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Food for Thought: Caring for Yourself

The intersection between food, nutrition, and self-care.



While self-care is often linked to more spiritual and mental practices, self-care extends well beyond the metaphysical realm. Self-care includes a myriad of physical elements, including but not limited to, what and how we choose to put nutrients into our bodies.



While defining self-care is a rather challenging affair, I would define self-care in my own words as any activity that actively and intentionally promotes mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing. Having said that, I feel that many traditional diets do not necessarily foster growth within these systems. Any individual who has undertaken a more serious change in their diet understands the guilt and struggle that can often accompany them. For instance, those who choose to restrict calorie intake may find themselves disappointed or emotionally anxious over the amount of food they have consumed. While there are certainly healthy ways to diet, this article will deter from any discussion on food diets and limitations for two reasons. The first, I am not a licensed health professional. I can not in good conscience recommend any deficits or additions to your diet. Secondly, I want to create a space that speaks more intentionally about diet as a way to foster self-care, rather than as a way to promote losing weight, gaining weight, or any radicalized beauty standard. In turn, I will instead focus on ways in which our individual relationships with food can be improved to foster a greater mind and body alliance.


While diet culture is not a new concept in the modern world, the practice of actively engaging with the food we choose to put in our body as a form of self-care is something more novel. I first heard about self-care in our diet through Evelyn Tribole, one of the founders of a so-called "Intuitive Eating" practice. Tribole has been featured in hundreds of major news outlets including the New York Times, CNN, NBC's Today Show, People magazine, and countless others, for her process of Intuitive Eating. This process attempts to teach individuals how to cultivate a healthier relationship with food by responding more acutely to signals in your body. She outlines this practice into ten principles. Many of these principles directly correlate to self-care techniques that I learned under the discipline of Dr. Dorroll. One of the main principles of this technique is to reject societal notions that things are "good" or things are "bad". This categorical way of thinking excludes the potential for physical balance. Chocolate cake is not bad. Choosing to criminalizes food only amplifies guilt-provoking indictments. Rather, an individual should make peace with their body, giving unconditional permission to eat. This practice is not saying that your diet should consist of nothing but sugar, but it is suggesting that by being more intuitive to what your body desires, you are creating respect for it.


Although these ideas seem rather abstract, one of the main principles that Intuitive Eating promotes is "Feel Your Fullness". This principle reiterates a communication with your body. It should naturally signal you when it's full, and we should observe these signs -- even if it means food left uneaten. The next, related to mentality, is being more observant of "emotional eating". Emotional eating could have a whole blog upon itself, but essentially, it is the practice of using food to distract and offer short term comfort in the face of mental and emotional difficulties. With Intuitive Eating, the individual is asked to think more intentionally on their decision to eat, the purpose behind it, and ultimately, to identify and deal with the source of the emotion. Because of the difficulty that arises with dealing with food and emotions, Tribole recommended that this process may need to be supplemented through professional food and mental health counseling.


While Intuitive Eating was one of the first self-care practices that outlined eating specifically, the genre of self-care in diet has since grown vastly. Specifically, there has been a great deal of research on the physical benefits of the act. As registered Dietitian Nutritionist Emmy Bawden states in her blog Real Good Nutrition, "Chronic stress has been well-studied for its negative effect on appetite, hydration, and the overall functioning of your gastrointestinal system." Self-care and controlling stress is therefore the building block to forming good nutritional practices. To the contrary, according to Bawden, traditional diets often restrict bodies rather than nourish them.

" According to the Oxford English Dictionary, self-care can be defined as “the practice of taking an active role in protecting one's own well-being and happiness, in particular during periods of stress.” Now, tell me: When did a diet ever actually make you happy? Or protect your well-being? Or make you less stressed?" - Emmy Bawden

The search for balance is in itself, an act of care. While the body inarguably requires necessary amounts of nutrients to function, that does not mean that our relationship with food has to be cut and dry. Daily wellbeing is a conscience effort to find balance within your body. Mindful eating can be simple changes: not mindlessly snacking while typing away on a computer (guilty!), choosing to meal prep, not feeling guilty for eating your favorite food (even if it's chocolate cake), or leaving one bite left on the plate because you are too full. Though often overlooked, sustainable, balanced practices of nutrition foster a body/ mind connection rooted in a strong, positive self-awareness.

 

Sources and Related Links


Intuitive Eating



Self-Care through Diet



Disordered Eating Information and Help



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