Diet Culture Dropout

Upsizing a wardrobe for most comes with a lot of feelings of grief, body shame and frustration. Because our society has made it this big taboo that any body that changes is a major problem. Today I am joined with an east coaster Amanda Hanson who is a Feminist Style Coach. She helps people build an intentional and sustainable wardrobe that supports how they want to feel, that fits the current body they are in and that supports all aspects of their life.

Here is what we discuss in this episode: How our mentality towards dressing ourselves in ill fitting clothes keep people stuck in bad body image spirals

Amanda shares her advice for anyone in this place of body change

Review various tips in navigating how to dress your body with more self-compassion, gentleness and success

Explore advice for people wanting to wear more “risky items” like shorts, bikini, tank top etc with more confidence and ease

Lastly Amanda shares her top tips for helping people confidently dress themselves

Connect with Amanda Hanson by:

Today I am joined with Kyla Balderson a Registered Social Worker and Psychotherapist having an important conversation around mom guilt, shame and self-care.

Here is what this episode is about:

• Unpack the difference between mom guilt and shame.
• Explore what contributes to this systemically and individually for mom's.
• Discuss how common it is for women postpartum.
• Review how these feelings are different for the primary versus secondary parent
• Get some tangible take home tips if you are in this space.
• Unpack how important is self-care is for parents.

Resources mentioned:

Joined again for a second time with Ange Defosse (my older sister) and we are talking about food waste when feeding kids.

Here is what we talk about in this episode:

• Ange starts us off by sharing her personal experience of feeding her young boys and trying to raise intuitive eaters.
• Shares some ways we can work at managing food waste when feeding ourselves or families.
• Explore how we can include our children in these climate conversations without being to polarizing or inflict environmental anxiety onto them.
• Reviews how to have conversations with kids when they notice the world doing things differently.
• Empowers us with some success stories about kids leading the way.

Resources mentioned:

Joined today with Jessica Trainor a Registered Psychotherapist who specializes in trauma, eating disorders and body image. Talking today about trauma and how it may show up when working on your relationships to food and body.

Here is what we cover:

Start by defining trauma and the different categories of it (big T and little T)

Review how common it is within the area of disordered eating and body relationships

Discuss how restrictive or disordered eating is a trauma of itself within the body

Jessica explains what trauma work entails and does not have to be reliving these emotional experiences

Review what life can look like after healing

Some take homes to remind yourself when approaching this for yourself initially

Connect with Jessica below:

In this solo episode I review what the Division of Responsibilities are for both parents and children. This framework was developed by Ellyn Satter and is foundational when working with families to feed children. The feeding relationship can thrive when both the caregiver and child are working within their roles. Many times there are inbalnces which tip the feeding relationship.

Tune in to learn more about:

This framework

How to identify your role as a caregiver

What the roles of the child is in the feeding relationship

Why this is helpful in feeding

How you can start to make small strides in implementing it.

Today's episode is a deep dive into the intersections of emotion regulation and disordered eating. Joined with Erin McGuinty a Social Worker and Psychotherapist from Ottawa.

A big aspect to disordered eating recovery is learning to regulate your emotions. Emotions are a big part of our human experience. Not everyone is taught at a young age about how to regulate their emotions effectively. So it can be an extra layer of challenge when faced with disordered eating behaviours.

Here is what we discuss in the episode:

Explain what emotion regulation is

Review the various ways we can regulate our emotions

Explore why the emotion regulation piece is so vital for many when working on disordered eating

Take a moment and explain attachment theory and review how it impacts how we regulate our emotions Erin explains what attachment-focused therapy looks like

How this all relates to intuitive eating

Lastly, Erin shares three ways people can incorporate when they are working towards managing their emotions

Connect with Erin McGuinty by:

Join me while I discuss all the aspects around using pressure at the table with your kid. This is a very common strategy parents use (with best intentions) but it usually backfires and only works temporarily. Tune in to learn more about what to do instead.

Listen to the full episode to learn how you can:

• Identify if you are using pressure
• Understand the types of pressure
• Review the outcomes of it on your child's food relationships and experiences
• Learn some other supportive ways to do and role model
• Get some reflective questions to ponder your current approach

Today I am taking an environmental spin on the podcast. Talking with Ange Defosse who is the owner of Harlowe Green about reducing carbon footprint with our lunch choices. She is an environmentalist, low waste advocate and my older sister. Here is what we discuss:

Start by defining what a carbon footprint or carbon budget is?

Explore the many ways our carbon footprints have gotten larger. Discuss the initial ideas of what a litter less lunch was in the Covid days. Along with why we should work towards bringing them back.

Review all the how to's of bulk shopping. Along with tangible ways to get started. do better here. Explore how this may modify grocery shopping habits following a new bulk shopping routine.

Review common questions people have around storage, freezing and organizing their food.    Ange shares the environmental impact certain ingredients have that are common amongst ready to eat foods.

Discuss some tips for families that have food allergies within the home and ways they can be included in litter less lunch packing.

Resources mentioned:

Book: Carbon Footprint of Everything by Mike Berners-Lee

Connect with Ange Defosse by:

Joined with Julie Gerber a Social Worker, Empowered Body Mentor and Consciousness Coach. Today we are chatting about inner critic work. A much needed area many people likely need support around. The dialogue within our mind is one of the longest relationships we have in our lives.

Here is what we discuss in this podcast episode:

Explore what an inner critic is and the common two narratives most people have

Review how is it formed and what influences it

Understand how you can modify it to be more loving, intentional and supportive

Julie shares what this process looks like for her clients

Discuss how improving the inner critic can impact people’s body confidence and acceptance

Connect with Julie below:

Today I am joined with Leslie Schilling who is a Registered Dietitian and book author. We are exploring how diet culture comes up in places of worship. Growing largely is this purity culture in faith based communities or church brands as Leslie calls it. We explore various elements to yet another way people can be upholding and mislead by diet culture.

Here is what we discuss:

• Leslie shares various examples of how diet culture comes up in the Christian faith.
• Discuss the root of food moralization, fasting based intentions and a common scripture that is taken out of context.
• Review how diet culture has been aligned within churches and faith-based communities.
• Explore how this wellness spin on diet culture is becoming harder to recognize.
• Leslie shares her best advice for anyone navigating this situation.
• We talk about the new book she is releasing called Feed Yourself

Resources mentioned:

Today's episode is for all those perfectionists and people pleasers out there. Joined with Ahuva Hershkop a pediatric dietitian and burnout coach. Exploring a much needed topic for women who usually fall into the trap of burnout. Whether they realize it yet or not.

Here is what we discuss:

• Explore how one would describe burnout and the common red flags.
• Review how common is for men and women.
• Dive into how it relates to diet culture and food relationships.
• Unpack how women are uniquely socialized into burnout.
• Chat about working mom hustle culture and how women can step out of it.
• Ahuva explains her 3 P's to burnout and leave us with some strategies.

Connect with Ahuva Hershkop by:

Today I share space with Jennifer Neale a Registered Dietitian and mom of two. We are just scratching the surface on this episodes topic. On how applying intuitive eating in motherhood can be very challenging. If you are a parent or mom you are going to want to listen to this one.

Here is what we chat about:

Do a review of what Intuitive Eating is all about We share our personal challenges that have come up for us when navigating intuitive eating in motherhood

Review the idea of what attunement is and how it relates to intuitive eating

Discuss challenges to being attuned in motherhood

Explore various challenges to applying intuitive eating as a parent

Jen leaves you with some takeaway practices

Today we explore how making behaviour change is so difficult for humans. Ambivalence shows up for so many reasons when making change around your eating behaviours. I am joined with Alida Iacobellis an eating disorder dietitian from Milton, ON.

Here is what we discuss: - Review what diet culture is and highlight the lense of oppression

- Define ambivalence

- Explore how ambivalence shows up for people trying to recover from disordered eating and intuitive eating into their life?

- Discuss why is this so common for many people trying to make behaviour change

- Alida's top 3 tips to manage and overcome ambivalence

Resources mentioned in the episode:

Today I am joined with a fitness professional Jessie Mundell. She is sharing her personal journey about how her relationship with fitness and her body has dramatically changed over the years. Jessie is a fitness coach for pre and postnatal women helping them build strength, recover and embrace all the body changes throughout this time. 

Here is what we chat about:

Jessie shares about why she pursued fitness at university and further went on to complete her masters. Exploring her intention at that time.  Her education and training experience that was saturated in diet culture and fatphobia.

Reviews how she started working with clients and the shift she took to transform this from a non-diet space.

Talk about the shifts that are happening in the gym and sport culture to be more body-inclusive. 

She shares her advice for anyone curious to get back into movement after having bad past exercise experiences rooted in diet culture.

Strategies for anyone working to repair their relationship with movement.

Ideas for people who reside in higher weight bodies to navigate the fitness world while being able to  advocate for themselves.

Resources mentioned:

This week's episode we are exploring all the covert factors that may arise when feeding your kids. These factors may not be as obvious when managing food battles at the table. We all know dinner time would be more enjoyable without the constant struggle some families face. Tune in to learn more about the commonly missed factors and how we can get to a place of connection and enjoyment. I am joined with Rosanne Robinson a pediatric Registered Dietitian to discuss the matter. 

Here is what we discuss in the episode: 

- How to describe a food battle 

- Review some of the more common reasons parents and kids get into food battles

- Review more complicated factors that could be contributing to meal time battles for the adults, parents or caregivers

- Discuss experiences that may make it difficult for our kiddos to be settled at a meal

- How families can work through these factors to set up a “safe as possible” space at meal times

-  Tips for navigating a more peaceful mealtime experience

Joined today on the podcast is Cara Kasdorf a sports Registered Dietitian located in Waterloo Ontario. She has dedicated her practice to sports nutrition and quite often is helping clients with this unique syndrome RED-S. Today we talk and define what RED-S (Relative Energy Deficit in Sport) is. Please know this can impact all types of athletes from recreational to professional level.

This episode we chat about:

Defining what RED-S is

Review how common it is amongst athletes

Discuss red flags a athlete would see this syndrome presenting

Along with red flags for coaches, loved ones in families to recognize

How other allied health professionals can screen or ask questions to assess if this is impacting their client

How can we try our best in the competitive or recreational sport environment to prevent this from happening to athletes

What treatment looks like for athletes

Connect with Cara Kazdorf by: 

Here is a supportive solo podcast on how to manage your bad body image day or moment.

Have you been having a hard time with you’re here and now body? Feeling the urge to try that next diet or “fix it” solution to solve all your body problems? But know that it is not a solution because it has never worked in the past.

The thing with body image work is that it is not about the body at all. It is all about the work we do within our head and our mindset.

Joined today with Kayla Stansberry a fat positive therapist from Maryland USA. She shares some tangible ways people can move towards more body acceptance. 

Here is what we chat about:

Begin by describing what body acceptance is

Kayla shares how this process usually starts to unfold for people

Discuss some elements that help support people move from body hate to body neutrality and/or body acceptance?

Shares her best tips on moving towards a body liberated place

Ways one would know when they are moving along the trajectory towards body liberation

Ideas for parents on how they can start this work in the home for their kids

Connect with Kayla Stansberry  by:

Today's interview is with Nicole Otto which is exploring disordered eating and how it relates to physical activity and sport culture. 

Here is what we review:

Discuss how common are disordered eating is for athletes and the general population. 

How sport culture influences disordered eating and in many ways normalizes it. 

Review the types of activities or sports that are “more common" for having disordered eating issues.

Explore how a coach, loved one, or parent would recognize disordered eating behaviours for themselves or in their child. 

Discuss how an athlete would identify an unhealthy relationship with food.

Strategies parents can take to help their child. 

Some key nutrition interventions to support healing from disordered eating.

Resources mentioned:

This week's episode is all about Eating Disorders 101.  We are honoring National Eating Disorder Awareness week which is celebrated from Feb 20-26 2023. Joined today with Brittaney Berendsen who is an eating disorder dietitian in Ontario. 

Here is what we discuss:

• Statistics of how prevalent eating disorders are before the pandemic and now
• The various types of eating disorders, their prevalence and age of onset
• Brittaney shares the most common misconceptions around eating disorders 
• Some truths and facts about eating disorders
• How someone struggling with an eating disorder or disordered eating can go about seeking support
• Review some resources, programs and organizations that can help support recovery

Resources mentioned:

In this solo episode I review the eating behaviour spectrum. Which is the diverse eating behaviours a person can have. I explore how a person's relationship with food can ebb and flow throughout their life. 

You will learn more about:

The different areas on the spectrum from intuitive eating, disordered eating and clinical eating disorders

What these three areas look like in terms of behaviors, thoughts and food patterns 

Defining diet culture and the wellness industry

How diet culture fits it's way into this spectrum

I review how your relationship can change overtime into different spaces on the spectrum

When you can begin to identify if you are engaging in disordered eating or intuitive eating. 

Today I have the pleasure of talking with Surabhi Veitch a passionate physiotherapist located in Toronto Ontario.  We talk about the much needed topic of postpartum bounce back culture. If you are a mom, mom to be or a mom deep into her postpartum journey this episode is a must for you. 

Here is what we chat about in the episode:

Surabhi shares her perspective of toxic cultural expectations of what postpartum should look like.

Reviews the various elements that contribute to this “ridiculous idea”.

Discuss  how the medical community feeds into this bounce back culture. 

How this goal can this be harmful from a physiotherapist point of view. 

Explores how women can be safe when returning to movement.

What women can do when they are triggered by social media, someone making a comment or a body-based inner comment comes up.

Connect with Surabhi Veitch by:

Today we focus an entire episode to teens, tweens and adolescents. I am joined with Bracha Kopstick and we have an in depth conversation about how disordered eating impacts teens. Bracha is a Registered Dietitian located in Toronto Ontario who specializes in adolescent nutrition.

Here is what we discuss:

Start off by defining disordered eating.

Review how common is it for teens to engage in disordered eating. 

Explore some unique challenges that contribute specifically to disordered eating for this population.

Talk about how normal puberty and weight gain is for teens. 

Review some red flags parents may notice in their teen that could indicate a challenging relationship with food. 

Discuss some strategies parents can focus on to help their teen to provide a supportive eating environment at home. 

Connect with Bracha by:

Are you celebrating the holiday season this year? I bet you are!! Than you need my top 8 tips on how to manage it more successfully when working on food freedom! We all know diet culture comes up in these gatherings and let's support you in not derailing.

In this solo episode I review how to manage:

Unsolicited body comments

Navigating the table with food police or food pushers

What to do when people share their food rules onto your child

How to thrive at a gathering for the holiday's 

Two supportive practices that can get your mindset ready and decompress after

How to chat with your child following a diet culture explosion.

I wish everyone a very restful holiday and I look forward to taking down more diet culture in 2023. Enjoy you food, family, friends and rest!

Is making behaviour change difficult for you? You are so not alone! Today I host Shawn N. Hondorp and we chat all things motivation and how it connects to adult behaviour change. Shawn is passionate about helping women heal from diet culture and have positive relationships with food. 

Here is what we cover in the episode: 

• Discuss our common goal we share helping women drop out of diet culture.
• Review the role motivation has when tackling our approach to food.
• Explore how you can shift from external shame-based motivation to empowerment in regards to food.
• Learn other forms of motivation.
• Shawn shares how can people can move away from diet culture and stay motivated when prioritizing their health.
• Explore how intuitive eating and a weight inclusive approach boost motivation for people. 

Resources mentioned: 

Today I speak with Ella Van Bruinessen a Pediatric Physiotherapist from Peterborough. She shares her expertise in managing bowel and bladder challenges for kids and sheds light of her role as a Physiotherapist.

Today’s topic: Managing bowel and bladder dysfunction in kids

• Ella explains her role as a Physiotherapist in pediatric care
• She reviews what bladder and bowel dysfunction is for kids
• Discusses some long-term complications of these conditions
• Reviews flags parents may notice in their child that could be having these issues
• Shares her family centered approach with clients
• Explains her best tips for parents who are dealing with this 

You can connect with Ella Van Bruinessen by 

This week on the podcast is a personal story shared by Nicole Lemke. All about her relationship with her body and how it has drastically changed overtime. I am sure this episode will deeply resonate and validate other people’s experiences. 

Here is what we cover:

Nicole shares what she learned about bodies from family when growing up

Discusses what was deemed acceptable or valued and what was not

She shares what her earliest memory of when you began to notice that “her body was a problem” 

What fuelled her understanding that she needed to change/fix your body

Nicole shares other experiences that encouraged her down the disordered eating path

When she knew she hit “rock bottom”

How did she began to drop out of diet culture and learned how to trust her body?

Shares her best advice for anyone struggling in their body 

Connect with Nicole Lemke by:

In this solo episode Atheana shares her best tips for managing Halloween. Tips that will help facilitate your intuitive eater and help decreasing the parental stress around managing candy this time of year. We all know Halloween and candy is not going anywhere. So we must learn some more sustainable long-term approaches when managing this holiday.

What is discussed:

- How to approach candy when promoting a positive relationship with food.

- Parental tips for making a successful Halloween plan.

- Answers the common question of "What to do when your kid feels ill after eating candy?"

- Provides ideas of how to manage Halloween and candy consumption for kids under two.

- How to manage hyperactivity following sugar consumption and our perspective of this common idea.

Lastly, how to approach candy consumption for any child that resides in a larger body. 

Today’s guest is Sylvi Martin an Ontario based Naturopathic Doctor, Registered Nurse & Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor. We review how underfueling impacts clients and what clients see as "failure."

Here is what we cover:

Define and describe what under fueling is

Review some reasons a client may be seeking help that would be red flags in Sylvie's practice. 

Diffuse how does diet culture promotes this narrative

What the risks of under fueling or not consuming enough energy are

What symptoms are felt within the body 

Discuss how some clinicians and health care providers may perpetuate disordered eating

Review the invalidity of food sensitivity testing and other unvalidated tests

Sylvie shares her top tips for anyone straddling the decision between another diet and taking a non-diet approach to their health

Connect with Sylvi Martin by:

Today's show I am joined with Jenna Kelly a local psychoeducation consultant in the Kawartha Lakes. To talk all about anxiety and ways you can help your child manage it. 

Here is what we discuss:

- Explore how anxiety may show up in a child

- Review factors that contribute to elevated states of stress and anxiety for a child

- Discuss how common it is along with the impact Covid has had

- Jenna shares what her role as a psychoeducation consultant consists of 

- Some tips parents can take to help their child manage anxiety 

- The current gap locally with our pediatric mental health care services 

Today I am joined with Jenn Messina a Vancouver based dietitian. We talk all about tips, tricks and mindset shifts for parents to support their intuitive eaters within the school environment. 

In this episode we discuss:

• Advice for parents getting back into the routine of packing lunches
• We review the Division of Responsibilities by Ellyn Satter 
• Review how the feeding responsibilities can be applied at school 
• How to navigate: lunch monitors, the food police at school and diet culture coming up in the classroom learning
• How to effectively talk with teachers when you have concern around food and bodies at school

Resources mentioned:

Today I speak with Shelley Restall an eating disorder therapist in Ontario. We explore pediatric weight bias that comes from medical professionals and family members. 

Here is what we cover:

• Explain what weight bias is
• Explore the ways weight bias is shaped and developed in our lives
• Shelly shares how this form of bias comes up in her practice from caregivers and health providers
• She explains the impact it has on kids suffering with disordered eating 
• Ways parents can work on being less weight bias
• Ideas of how parents can effectively advocate for their kid in a health care setting

Connect with Shelly by:

Have you ever caught your kid sneaking food or eating in secrecy? Did this stir up some big feelings or emotions for you? You are not sure if you approached it the right way? Or want to know what to do in the future?

I provide tips on how to navigate this and a framework to follow. 

I get real by sharing this personal situation happening with my three year old. 

P.S You are so not alone, this happens. We cannot possibly monitor our kids 24/7.

Body security "I feel accepting and excited about the body I am in, despite still perceiving some of those problematic messages."

Jessica Curran is a local psychotherapist who helps clients disentangle their self-worth from their bodies.

In this episode we discuss:

• Jessica's personal experience of difficult body talk conversations during pregnancy.
• Defining what body security is.
• Explain how people’s safety and security in their bodies can be jeopardized directly and indirectly.
• The ways body insecurity shows up in the body- mentally, physically, and emotionally.
• How fatphobia relates to body security. 
• The narrative that is common around describing fat people which drives the fear for people.
• Why do people place such a value on thinness and attach it to their self-worth
• Jessica shares her top 5 tips to start the process of developing a more aligned self-worth and sense of body security.

Connect with Jessica Curran by:

Today I interview Sarah Kendell who is a dietitian in Ontario who specializes in binge eating disorder. We work on unpacking this eating disorder.

Here is what we review:

• What is binge eating disorder and other names that people will resonate with
• Review the official clinical definition of Binge Eating Disorder
• Discuss how common it is and the age of onset
• What are some risk factors for developing it
• Explore how binge eating is an extraordinary adaptive behaviour
• Discuss how the “cure” of dieting and weight loss fuels binge eating
• How our traditional health care approach miss the mark on this ED
• Sarah shares what the work of recovery look like
• Shares her top 5 tips for anyone struggling with binge eating

You can connect with Sarah by:

Today's episode is all about plus size shopping from an expert with loads of lived experience. Shelly shares the challenges, distressing moments and biggest advice for anyone dressing their plus size body with fashionable well-fitting clothes. 

Today’s episode is coming from a collaborative conversation I had with Kerri Fullerton ND. A Naturopathic doctor who is doing radical work in her field. We dive into the topic: Are food interventions low risk or high?

Here is what we cover:

• She shares her journey of becoming a Naturopathic doctor
• Explains the way she use to practice as a fresh grad and the 'normative approach" used by in most Naturopaths
• Shares her story of experiences that shifted her view of nutrition and the impact it was having on clients?
• Define what a food intervention is 
• Shares her ideas of how nutrition is being approach that is risky 
• Tangible ways we can approach things more informed and client centered
• Her advice when approaching food and bodies coming from a holistic point of view

Julie Sweeney and I discuss the heavy topic of weight stigma and fatphobia. The first of many conversations about this topic on the podcast. 

What we cover in this episode:

• How do you define weight stigma and fatphobia.
• The different levels of fatphobia one can have.
• How weight stigma directly impact people’s health
• Julie shares real-life situations of weight stigma coming up for her personally and her clients. 
• Share some gentle ways one can start advocating for themselves or handle these difficult situations.
• Learn about some steps people can start taking to work on their own bias.

You can connect with Julie by:

In this solo episode I review the final principle in the Intuitive Eating series. Principle #10 which is Honour Your Health with Gentle Nutrition.

Here is what I discuss in this episode:

• Explore this final principle
• Explain why it is imperative this is the last step in the Intuitive Eating journey
• Review what body-food congruence is and how this shapes your food decisions moving forward
• Provide examples of health related goals one may have to consider when making food choices
• Provide prompts and reflection questions when evaluating how the food impacts your body
• Review nutrition basics of variety, moderation and balance
• Discuss gentle nutrition guidelines that are applicable to most people
• Review key points to applying intuitive eating to keep in mind moving onwards

This week I review the Intuitive Eating principle #9 Exercise: Feel the Difference. I dive into this principle with Natalie Hastings a Registered Dietitian located in northern Ontario. She shares her wisdom and advice for anyone interested in improving their relationship to movement. 

Here is what we chat about:

- Explore the word exercise and what people typically think this includes.

- How exercise is usually measured  in diet culture.

- How movement and physical activity can be more inclusive and resonate better with listeners. What this looks like and can be for people. 

- The two components to physical activity that impact health.

- How we can pursue movement in a more positive manner.

- Natalie shares her tips when engaging in joyful movement.

- She also shares her personal experience of how her relationship with movement has changed overtime. 

- Review warning signs of problematic relationship with exercise.

You can connect with Natalie by:

Instagram: @_wild_chive

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This week I review the principle #8 Respect Your Body. I dive into this principle with Renee Hamati a Zumba instructor and Intuitive Eating Counsellor.

In this loaded episode we cover:

- How do you begin to define body respect?

- Is this place accessible to everyone?

- Renee's journey with respecting her body and how this has evolved for her. 

- What are some ways to begin showing your body respect?

- Explain how you can measure one’s body appreciation and positive body image.

You can connect with Renee by

Instagram: @sensiblyyou

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This week I review the principle #7 Cope with Your Feelings With Kindness. I dive into this principle with Dr. Megan Gallagher a Clinical Psychologist at Integrated Wellness in Ottawa.

In this loaded episode we cover:

What coping mechanisms are

Why they are essential and can build a sense of resilience

What influences the development of various coping mechanisms (hear, see, and life experience)

Emotional eating and explore how it can be supportive

Identify when unattuned eating is happening and if it is supportive

How to approach emotional eating with kindness and self-compassion

How to be proactive in changing your typical patterns to move away from autopilot mode