5 Steps to Help Your Clients Reach their Eating Disorder Recovery Summit!

Eating disorder recovery is like climbing a mountain – I was reflecting about this as I reached the summit of Bergen Peak in Evergreen, Colorado (see video below)! It was a long and sometimes difficult journey, but my traverse was eased by those who had created a trail to reach the summit. In addition, I was prepared, carrying the essentials that I needed with me in my backpack, and wearing the right gear. But it all began with my commitment to embark on this journey, and trusting my Inner Guide for Inspiration to complete this climb.

During my own eating disorder recovery, I learned five essential principles, and practicing these principles on a daily basis gradually allowed me to let go of eating disorder behaviors and embrace a new life of freedom! Now, as a Licensed Addiction Counselor and Certified Eating Disorder Specialist, I share these five principles with my clients. These principles comprise the method I created, Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ – and I provide training and certification for Eating Disorder Recovery Coaches and Treatment Clinicians  to be able to help their clients. EDIT™ Certified professionals are like mountaineering guides, using these five EDIT™ Principles as steps to the summit of eating disorder recovery success.

1. Love Your Self – Commit to the Recovery Journey!
Even if clients have some ambivalence, emphasize their worthiness to recover and live the life they truly want to live! Give your clients essential tools to begin their recovery journey – these are specific EDIT™ Worksheets you’ll provide in an initial session. Using the hiking analogy, you’ll give your clients a backpack (which will be filled in the next steps), and a map (so they don’t feel likely they’re blindly wandering into the unknown). Some clients might wonder, “What about my bathroom scale? And a mirror?” You might explain that a bathroom scale would be a heavy item to carry, and use EDIT™ Worksheets to help them find freedom from weighing (or measuring their bodies in any way). As for the mirror, you can suggest that this journey of recovery will involve discovery of their True Self, which can’t be seen as an image of the body reflected in a mirror. Hold the vision of your clients as their True Self until they can envision this themselves.

2. Be True To Your Self – Enjoy Nourishment for the Whole Self!
This includes the body, mind, heart and soul – or, the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of recovery. Introduce the concept of listening to one’s Inner Wisdom, or Intuitive Therapist (IT) within themselves. Start with the EDIT™ Worksheets which help clients access their Intuition, and then guide them with the EDIT™ Worksheets for Intuitive Eating and Intuitive Exercise (or Mindful Movement).  Using eating disorder recovery as a mountain climbing metaphor, emphasize the importance of water, meals and snacks, and assist your clients to add these to their backpack for their recovery journey. To further support the body, your clients need adequate hiking shoes or boots, and trekking poles can make it easier on the knee and hip joints. Remind your clients that this recovery journey is not a sprint, and encourage them to take lots of breaks along the way.

3. Express Your Self – Attend to Thoughts, Feelings, and Authentic Needs!
This is a critical step on the eating disorder mountain climbing journey. Guide your clients to gently notice their thoughts and feelings, and assist them to be curious about their authentic needs (shifting from ED to IT). There are essential EDIT™ Worksheets which facilitate this process. Sometimes the path may be very clear and clients can proceed with ease… celebrate your clients’ successes! And then the path might disappear. have your clients wandered into the weeds (filled with thoughts from the ED mind) instead of the Way of Recovery (filled with hope and encouragement from the mind of IT)? Prepare your clients when the Way gets challenging, such as climbing through scree (broken rock fragments and loose stones that are often at higher elevations, especially nearing a mountain summit). This is when clients are concurrently climbing high and yet “slipping back” to address core issues. Affirm that the Way has challenges, and moving through these leads to workable solutions and more freedom from ED! Offer EDIT™ Worksheets to guide clients to develop healthy coping skills and explore those deeper issues. Clients may appreciate having a journal in their backpack, so they can take note of their challenges and successes on their recovery journey. Sometimes, life can get messy, so be sure that your clients have toilet paper and a trowel (to dig a hole and bury the s*** left behind)!

4. Give To Your Self – Become Full-filled from Within!
Many clients struggle with the concept of “enough.” They might strive to be “good enough,” always striving yet never arriving, it’s “never good enough.” This can be mimicked through ED behaviors, such as restrictive eating to reflect an inner emptiness, or binge eating in an attempt to fill a hole inside. Meanwhile, basic needs are barely being met. It’s like your clients are going in circles near the mountain top, unaware of who and where they really are, looking outside themselves for approval instead of pausing to realize their own Self-validation. Clients will never feel “good enough” listening to the voices of the world, also hearing the chatter from the mind of ED and the inner critic, which keeps them spinning. What would happen if you guided your client over to a couple of trees, where they can hang a hammock (which you thoughtfully put in their backpack)? Encourage your client to truly pause – and just be in the moment. This can be a challenge for clients, so assist them through visualizations and other EDIT™ skills. It’s like there is a spring-fed well that can suddenly appear anywhere your clients are, as long as they can be still and know their Intuitive Therapist is with them. This Inner Wisdom can spring forth, providing full-fillment from within, and clients can finally experience and appreciate their enough-ness. Guide your clients to affirm, “I AM good enough, always have been, and always will be!”

5. Believe In Your Self – Reach the Summit of Recovery Success!
By practicing the first four EDIT™ Principles, clients can begin to see the summit… only to realize that when they reach it, there is another summit that becomes visible. In the eating disorder recovery mountain climbing analogy, this is known as a “false summit.” It’s like working sooooooo hard, only to realize that you haven’t arrived to the top, and there’s still seemingly sooooooo much more to go on the journey. Somehow mustering more strength, the journey continues. But where is this strength coming from? Is it the small-s false self, who can experience moments of freedom from ED by controlling the ED behaviors, reaching a false summit? Or is it the Capital-S True Self, who has found a renewable Energy Source with Infinite Power and lasting Freedom from ED, which is always available by staying aware of one’s Mind? This is the Mind of one’s Intuitive Therapist and True Self, rather than the limited mind of the false self, still caught up in striving-yet-never-arriving, vulnerable to relapses with ED. Remind your clients that they have a compass (another recovery tool you tucked into an easily accessible side pocket of their backpack). The false self’s eyes are limited, but the Eyes of the Soul can see the Way (even in the dark). Clients might feel hopeless, like they’ll never reach the “real” summit, but with their Inner Compass, they Way is clear. At last, the mountain top is reached! Clients are so Grateful, often feeling Joy that they haven’t experience in years or decades. On top of this mountain, they have a 365º view of the world around them. They see other summits they can rise up to, and valleys they can venture into very deeply.  They realize that the journey of recovery can continue, by proceeding with the Confidence of their Intuitive Therapist as their ongoing Guide in Freedom.

“Love Your Self, Be True To Your Self, Express Your Self, Give To Your Self, Believe In Your Self,” you remind your clients, as they conclude their work with you. They smile and nod their head, knowing that this EDIT™ Message is always within their True Self.

*****

Article may be reprinted with the author bio below.

©2020 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders. She is the President of the EDIT™ Training Institute LLC, which provides training and certification in her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™.  She also provides sessions for clients who struggle with these issues, either in person or by phone/video. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized programs for people in recovery from eating disorders and who struggle with weight issues, and  EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – GET CERTIFIED – ATTEND ONLINE RETREAT

The post Eating Disorder Recovery and Mountain Climbing appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

Why Spirituality in Eating Disorder and Addiction Recovery is Essential and How to Unmask the Myths

The post Spirituality in Recovery from Addiction and Eating Disorders appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

You may have heard the Cherokee story, about two wolves who are fighting. One wolf is evil, and the other wolf is good. The legend states that both wolves are within each of us, and the wolf that wins the fight is the one we feed. 

The wolves could also be considered “selves” – one “false self,” and the other “true self.” Well-known psychoanalyst D.W. Winnicott is credited with coining these terms in the 1960s. The true self is the original sense of self at the time of birth, which continues to be “fed” throughout healthy development. The false self is “born” in an attempt to compensate for inadequate nurturing, and is “fed” by adhering to other people’s opinions and demands. 

Psychotherapist Stephen Cope explains, “The false self is born when the environment does not welcome the self to be as it is… When we are separated from our capacity to be with life the way it is, especially in our early development, our capacity to self-soothe is severely impaired. Our need for soothing and confirmation from external sources will be chronic and insatiable.”

Eating disorders are an example of this false self, obsessively seeking to self-soothe. The wolf of this false self has an insatiable hunger, which binge eating cannot satisfy, nor starvation deny. The wolf is “fed” through eating disorder behaviors, but it’s never enough. Amidst the false self’s obsession, the other wolf is forgotten. It’s as if there is no true self. The false self – eating disorder – becomes one’s identity. 

Cope continues, “The false self, though initially an effective adaptive strategy, can eventually become a learning disability. It requires us to shut down our connection with the direct feedback from our bodies, our biocomputers… Our ideas about who we should be can be so powerful that they deeply impair our capacity to see who and how we really are. Over time, the ego becomes so invested in the false self that it begins to believe in its reality. Any threat to the false self, then, or any obstacle to the manifestation of its demands, becomes a threat to life itself. We will defend, to the death, whatever we consider to be ‘me.’ ”

No wonder our clients often resist treatment – and sometimes die as a result of their eating disorders. If their eating disorder is who they are, then who would they be without it? Having forgotten about their true self, the fear is that without their false self, there would be no self. They cling to their eating disorder like their life depends on it, even though their eating disorder is taking their life away. 

It is essential to guide clients to realize that their eating disorders are not who they are. It is equally essential to assist clients to discover their True Self, hidden beneath the false self of their eating disorder (note that I deliberately capitalize “T” and “S” for emphasis). Recovery is about remembering and “re-feeding” one’s True Self. 

*****

BLOG ARTICLE – is an excerpt from a full article published on the Gürze/Salucore Eating Disorders Resource Catalogue website, at this link: https://www.edcatalogue.com/hungry-wolves-false-self-true-self-eating-disorder-recovery/

PRESENTATION – on this topic which offers 1 CE (through NBCC), learn more and register  on the Gürze/Salucore Eating Disorders Resource Catalogue website, at this link: https://gurze.thrivecart.com/false-self-and-true-self-ce

DOWNLOAD HANDOUT – which goes with the presentation here: https://www.drdorie.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Hungry-Wolves-Handout.pdf

©2019 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE – GET CERTIFIED

The post Eating Disorder Recovery – False Self vs True Self appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

Our clients get stuck in eating disorder recovery because they can’t hear their intuitive wisdom which is there to guide them on a healthy path. We as eating disorder clinicians and recovery coaches can solve this “hearing problem” by helping our clients learn how to listen to the intuitive messages within them and all around them. This EDIT™ Worksheet which can be a “hearing aid” for your clients:

Scroll below the image for guidelines about using the worksheet.
CLICK ON IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

I’d like to introduce you to Amanda Grace Caldwell, who is an EDIT™ Certified III – Eating Disorder Treatment Clinician. Amanda Grace was a Counselor Intern under my supervision at Positive Pathways from January, 2014 through December, 2015. She is a knowledgeable and compassionate therapist, who works with clients in Houston, Texas. You can contact Amanda Grace with any comments or questions, including how to get started with individual sessions (see bottom of article).
– Dr. Dorie

The emphasis of the Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ approach is to guide our clients to shift from the voice of the Eating Disorder (ED) to the healing wisdom of the Intuitive Therapist (IT) within themselves. Through practicing the Be True To Your Self principle, clients discover how to become “Intuitive Eaters,” finding freedom from eating disordered eating. In addition, clients learn how to be “Intuitive Exercisers,” where they can truly enjoy the movement of their bodies, and actually have fun with fitness. As a first step towards Intuitive Eating and Intuitive Exercise, we can guide our clients with perspectives about Intuitive Living – the ways in which their Intuitive Therapist (IT) is trying to “speak” to them through a variety of messages, if they pay attention.

We live in a society rich with information. Whether it’s in a magazine, television show, online or even in a conversation, we hear and see messages everywhere. The voice of the Eating Disorder (ED) is formed from these external messages – dictating how to look, what to eat (or not eat), and most decisions in general. Our clients look outside themselves for guidance, wondering, “Who should I be?” Then, our clients seek approval from outside sources, questioning, “Am I good enough?” Recovery is about “turning up the volume” of the client’s inner guidance – the voice of their Intuitive Therapist (IT). Ultimately, clients will be able to “go within” to make decisions and receive validation.

Clients may be so used to looking outside themselves for guidance, that this concept of “going within” may be very unfamiliar to them, and it may also feel unsafe. This worksheet is a step towards paying attention to intuitive messages, and beginning to trust them. Clients need guidance to notice some of the internal and external messages they are currently hearing and seeing, which reflect their “Intuitive Knowing.” When used appropriately, this exercise helps clients make choices and empowers them to take the next step needed for their healing.

The first step in this exercise is to look at the internal messages a client might be hearing. It’s important to use their language when describing intuition. For some clients, they might best relate to the idea of a “gut feeling” or a “still, small voice.” When I describe intuition to clients I sit with, I explain that it’s the inner voice we hear when the world goes quiet. If your client has a difficult time tapping into their inner voice, try to introduce solitude or stillness into your sessions. Help them find the space to connect with what might be inside of them. Guide them to list five internal messages they have recently received, for example: I’m feeling guided to become a teacher; I have a sense I need to break up with my boyfriend; I really need more time to write in my journal.

When guiding clients to trust their intuition, it’s important to also help them realize that they don’t want to completely ignore the messages from the outside world. Although clients can sometimes internalize these external messages in a harmful way (feeding the voice of ED), clients can also use these external messages to bring healing and freedom along their journey (in alignment with the wisdom of their IT).

The second half of this worksheet focuses on the external messages clients might experience. These messages can be defined as signs, fate, coincidence or happenstance. Help your client explore what comes to mind and encourage them to write down all that they become aware of. As you walk through this exercise, the light bulb will start to go off for clients as they begin to connect the dots and become aware of themes. For example: I keep seeing that commercial on TV and it makes me think of my friend Suzy – maybe I need to call her; That’s the third time someone has mentioned that book – I guess I need to read it; I was re-routed due to construction today, and noticed a new park I’d love to go explore.

The final step of this exercise is to help clients integrate the internal and external messages they have seen and heard. When evaluation all that has come to one’s mind, connections can be made. Clients are empowered when they realize the answers they needed were with them the entire time.

At one point in my life, it was an internal and external message that helped me make a big decision. I was in Colorado at the time, pursuing my counseling degree, but I was homesick for my friends and family in Texas. I wasn’t sure whether to stay or go home. While on a trip to Houston, when all was quiet, I heard a voice say, “You’re not done.” At the end of that trip, I was driving to the airport to head back to Colorado when I noticed a billboard sign that said, “Come to Life.” It was an advertisement for Colorado. These messages told me what I needed to do. I needed to stay in Colorado. Clients can find the same validation I did when they begin to make meaning out of the messages they hear everyday.

*****

Want to enhance intuitive messages? Contact Amanda Grace Caldwell, MA, LPCC – the author of this blog article. She is an EDIT™ Certified III – Eating Disorder Treatment Clinician who meets with clients in Houston, Texas. EMAIL AMANDA GRACE

Interested in a FREE consultation with Dr. Dorie? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE

The post Intuitive Messages in Eating Disorder Recovery appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ can lead to complete recovery from eating disorders – which means having a healthy body image; a clear sense of values and identity beyond one’s body; the ability to intuitively and mindfully enjoy all foods without restricting, binge eating, or purging; effective ways of coping with a range of emotions; regular Self-Care practices; relapse prevention skills; and a strong presence of one’s “Intuitive Therapist” to guide ongoing recovery.

My name is Dr. Dorie McCubbrey, the Creator of EDIT™ – which I developed during my own eating disorder recovery. Practicing the five principles of EDIT™ led to my freedom from anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder, and continuing to live these principles in my own life allows me to stay free. This is how I know that complete recovery is possible! Also, as a Licensed Addiction Counselor and Certified Eating Disorder Specialist, I’ve been using the EDIT™ process with my clients for more than 20 years, and have guided thousands on their journeys of complete recovery from eating disorders.

I truly believe that by practicing the five principles of EDIT™, anyone can find freedom from anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, or other issues with food, exercise and weight. Here’s a “taste” of each of the five principles, and what freedom can feel like:

Love Your Self: You look in the mirror, and truly LOVE what you see – your radiant essence, your compassionate heart, your creative mind, and your strong body. You are free from society’s standards of what others think is “ideal,” and you fully embrace your True Self!

Be True To Your Self: You live your life in alignment with your “Intuitive Therapist” – your own inner guide to eating, exercise, and all decisions in your life. You trust your intuition for the type and amount of food your body needs. You rely on your intuition for the flow of mindful movement. You go within to access intuition for relationship guidance, career choices, and moment to moment needs.

Express Your Self: You have skills to safely and fully experience a range of emotions as they come and go through the day. You view your emotions as “messengers,” pointing to areas in your life you need to address. You approach all emotions with curiosity, knowing they are guiding you on your healthy path. 

Give To Your Self: You incorporate Self-Care throughout your day, to “feed your true hunger” – spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically. When you are “nourished from within,” there is no need for eating disorder behaviors of any kind.

Believe In Your Self: You wake up every morning, excited for the opportunities in your life! You live as if you’ve never had an eating disorder. Occasionally, an old “ED” thought might pop into your mind, but rather than acting on it, you naturally become curious about it – as “IT,” your “Intuitive Therapist,” takes over. Your ED-IT transformation is what complete recovery is all about!

Article may be reprinted with the author bio below.

©2018 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE – GET CERTIFIED

The post Eating Disorders: Complete Recovery appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

The first EDIT™ Principle involves Self-Love – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. People with eating disorders typically only hear the critical chatter of their Eating Disorder (ED) mind. However, this is their “false self” – ED is NOT who they really are! We all have a compassionate voice within, which we might call the Intuitive Therapist (IT). As EDIT™ Practitioners, we model the voice of IT until clients can her IT within themselves. The EDIT™ process involves having ED-IT dialogues with clients. Here’s what this might sound like:

ED (false self) – “I’ll love myself when I look the way I should.”

The false self believes that the body is its identity, and that self-love implies body-love. Therefore, the only way to have self-love is to have a body which conforms to ideal standards. However, these standards are elusive, and even if they are attained, somehow it’s still not good enough. Ultimately, it’s never good enough.

IT (True Self): “I love my whole Self, exactly as I am.”

The True Self has spiritual, emotional, mental and physical aspects. There is an honoring and an acceptance of the entire Self – exactly as it is in the moment. There is no need to “fix” anything. There is freedom from the ideals of society, and no effect due to opinions of others. The True Self is already “good enough,” always has been, and always will be.

Try this “taste” of EDIT™ – ED-IT Dialogue

Click on the image below for a downloadable worksheet which you can use to guide clients to see themselves as more than their eating disorders, and more than their bodies. Discover Self-Love from this perspective of the True Self.

Scroll below the image for guidelines about using the worksheet.
CLICK ON IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

Ugghhh! My thighs are so fat and disgusting…
I shouldn’t have eaten that, now I’ve got to get rid of it…
I’ve had this eating disorder my whole life, I’ll never get better…

Have you heard your clients make statements like these, or something similar? That’s the “Voice of the Eating Disorder” – or, ED. Explain this to your client, saying something like, “That’s ED talking right now. ED makes critical statements, like the ones you just said.” You can further explain to your client that ED can seem to dominate their mind, as if ED thoughts are the only thoughts they think. In early stages of recovery, the voice of ED can be very loud, chattering on and on with judgments and criticisms – but it’s often like background noise in your client’s mind, because they may not be aware of everything ED says. However, because these are the dominant messages in your client’s mind, the voice of ED can be very destructive to their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. These ED thoughts are what drive ED behaviors – as you re-read the three examples above, can you think of ED behaviors that might follow those thoughts.

Encourage your client by saying something like, “You are not ED! You have another voice within you, which gently counters the voice of ED, and encourages you on a path of recovery.” This “recovery voice” is what you are modeling for them as their therapist, especially when you offer compassionate feedback or guidance to take that next small but healthy step. When you are speaking to your client in this way, you are likely accessing your own intuitive wisdom. In this sense, you are modeling the “Voice of the Intuitive Therapist” – or, IT. Intuitive wisdom goes beyond the analysis and thought processes of the logical mind. And while intuitive wisdom is typically heartfelt, it goes beyond raw emotion. From a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) perspective, you can consider the Intuitive Therapist (IT) as the “Wise Mind.” Here are some words of wisdom that IT might say:

Wow! There are so many amazing things about you…
That was exactly what you wanted, and it’s OK to have eaten it…
Complete recovery is possible, by taking one small recovery step today…

In a session with your client, you might find yourself engaged in an ED-IT dialogue with your client. They reveal the critical messages which keep them stuck in their eating disorder behaviors, while you try to counter these messages with intuitive wisdom. Note that you’re not just saying the opposite of what your client says. For example, you would NOT want to have a dialogue like this:

ED’s critical thought: Ugghhh! My thighs are fat and disgusting.
Opposite of ED: Your thighs are not fat, they are beautiful!
ED’s critical thought: You’re lying to me. Anyone can see how fat my things are.

What happens if you say the simple opposite of ED to your client? They don’t believe you. In part, this is why basic affirmations are not effective to shift the deep rooted inner critic. These “opposites” or what might seem like affirmations can actually make the client’s ED voice even stronger. Your client feels stuck. And you as their therapist feel stuck! Let’s look at another example. Refer to the ED-IT Dialogue worksheet:

ED’s critical thought: Ugghhh! My thighs are fat and disgusting.
IT’s compassionate reply: Another possibility is that your thighs are strong.
ED’s argument: How can they be strong when they’re so fat and gross?
IT’s nonjudgmental observation: That’s interesting… so what does strong look like?
ED’s retort: Lean, toned, muscular legs!
IT’s curious query: What would happen if you noticed how strong your legs feel?

In this example, you as the therapist are guiding the client to shift away from how the body looks to how the body feels. This is one way to model intuitive wisdom for your client. Remember, as the Intuitive Therapist, you are guiding your client to go within themselves to access their “hidden” parts – from their mind and body, into their heart and soul. The above example guides clients to go into their bodies to feel sensation, and hopefully into their hearts to feel emotion as well. Going to a deeper level – the level of the soul – you might say something like this:

ED’s critical thought: Ugghhh! My thighs are fat and disgusting.
IT’s compassionate reply: Another possibility is that your thighs have a beauty you can’t see with your body’s eyes.
ED’s argument: My eyes see just fine. And they see fat thighs!
IT’s nonjudgmental observation: That’s interesting… that’s what your body’s eyes see. But what do the eyes of your soul see?
ED’s retort: What do you mean, eyes of my soul?
IT’s curious query: What would happen if you closed your eyes for a moment? I’ll guide you to see with your soul’s eyes…

Now, you have your client’s interest – and trust – and you can guide them with a visualization to imagine what their soul’s eyes might see. Perhaps their soul doesn’t have any labels to describe thighs from a physical perspective. Perhaps their soul can sense the amazing experience of “having a body.” Perhaps their soul feels gratitude for their whole Self, exactly as it is in this moment, serving a spiritual purpose on the physical plane. Meet your client where they are – and gently guide your client to explore the deeper parts of themselves.

Complete this ED-IT Dialogue worksheet in a session with your client, filling in the text bubbles for the conversation. Suggest to your client that they refer to this worksheet as an example, so they can practice their own ED-IT dialogue. Encourage your client to write ED-IT dialogues in their journal, and consider using different color pens to represent the different voices of ED and IT. With practice, your client will be able to “talk back to ED” in a consistently compassionate way, using their own voice of IT to guide their next healthy steps of recovery!

©2018 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

Article may be reprinted with this author bio.

The post Love Your Self appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

The second EDIT™ Principle involves everything about INTUITION – how to use one’s intuitive wisdom for guidance about eating, exercise, and everyday life. This intuitive wisdom is what we can also call the insight of the Intuitive Therapist within us all. People with eating disorders typically only hear the chatter of their eating disorder (ED) mind. But as EDIT™ Practitioners, we model the voice of the Intuitive Therapist (IT) until clients can her IT within themselves. The EDIT™ process involves having ED-IT dialogues with clients. Here’s what this might sound like:

ED (false self) – “I follow the rules and do what I should do.”

The “rules” involve eating, exercising, and other eating disorder behaviors, as well as countless expectations of others. The false self adopts these rules as ones own, unaware that they are being imposed from outside influences. Many rules contradict each other, which is a setup for the rules to be broken, followed by attempts to resume the rules with even more rigidity. The false self is adamant that it is moving in the right direction, without realizing it is blindly going in circles.

IT (True Self): “I trust my intuition, in all areas of my life.”

Intuition is an inner knowing, a gut feeling, an awareness which comes without any logical analysis – it is the “voice” of the True Self. Intuition is accessed to guide all decisions, including career direction, family and relationship choices, as well as eating and exercise selections. The True Self may listen to the others opinions, then discern whether they are in alignment with ones own values. The True Self has an inner compass, which always points in the right direction.

Try this “taste” of EDIT™ – Reasons WHY We Eat

Click on the image below for a downloadable worksheet which you can use to explore how the concepts of intuition can be applied to eating disorder behaviors. Discuss the three reasons WHY we eat, and guide your client to trust their INTUITION for the type and amount of food their body needs.

Scroll below the image for guidelines about using the worksheet.
CLICK ON IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

I’m feeling low on energy, and need a snack…
I just finished dinner, and want something sweet…
I’ve just had a stressful day, and want my favorite comfort food…

Can you relate to eating for these three different reasons? The first is the body’s PHYSICAL NEED for food – or, HUNGER. The second is a PHYSICAL DESIRE for specific foods although not necessarily hungry, for example, dessert – also called APPETITE. The third is an EMOTIONAL DESIRE for specific foods, as a means of self-soothing – referred to as COMFORT. It’s normal to eat for all three of these reasons – and eating disorders reflect being out of balance with why we eat. Eating disorder recovery is about restoring this balance, through Intuitive Eating.

As a little more background information for you as an EDIT™ practitioner – I developed the terminology for these three reasons why people eat as an outcome of my own research. I observed the eating patterns of people who reported never having had an eating disorder, and noted that the reasons people ate fell into three main categories. My original terms were “Physical Need,” “Physical Desire,” and “Emotional Desire” – which I have since simplified as “Hunger,” “Appetite,” and “Comfort.”

On a typical day, people without eating disorders reported eating for the three different reasons with these percentages: Hunger (75-100%), Appetite (0-25%), Comfort (0-10%). What this means is that some days, a person might eat in this distribution: Hunger (75%), Appetite (15%), Comfort (10%). Another day, perhaps their proportions may be: Hunger (90%), Appetite (10%), Comfort (0%). Occasionally, people without eating disorders reported: Hunger (100%), Appetite (0%), Comfort (0%). However, most often, people without eating disorders ate with some percentage for all three reasons.

When I ask people with eating disorders the reasons why they eat, I often find different ranges for different types of eating disorders. For example, people with Anorexia typically report something like: Hunger (100%), Appetite (0%), Comfort (0%). However, many anorexics resist eating even if they do feel hungry, and only eat if they feel extreme hunger. In contrast, people with Bulimia or Binge Eating Disorder typically report something like: Hunger (0%), Appetite (25%), Comfort (75%). These individuals may actually eat some of the time because they are hungry – but to them it might seem like they are eating because they “want to” but don’t really “need to.” These individuals especially identify with eating for comfort, noting that they use food as a means of coping with intense emotions. People who identify themselves as having a Food Addiction report a slightly different percentage, usually something like: Hunger (0%), Appetite (75%), Comfort (25%). These individuals tend to relate to the concept that they are drawn to the taste of food and “love to eat,” but are less aware of using food as a means of emotional coping.

When you use this worksheet with your clients, begin by explaining the three reasons why people eat. Next, ask your client why they tend to eat on a typical day, so you can get a sense of their percentages for each of the three reasons. Ask your client why they think they “should” eat – any they will probably say something like, “I should only eat when I’m hungry” – which is what many weight loss programs advocate. Emphasize that it’s OK to eat for all three reasons, and then encourage your client to being their journey of Intuitive Eating by simply noticing their current eating patterns. Encourage them to gently ask, “Why am I about to eat right now?” Non-judgmental awareness is the first step in eating disorder recovery!

©2018 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

Article may be reprinted with this author bio.

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE – GET CERTIFIED

The post Be True To Your Self appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

The third EDIT™ Principle involves emotional awareness, being curious about the messages of emotions, and learning healthy coping skills – instead of engaging in eating disorder behaviors due to the inability to regulate emotions or to tolerate intense emotions. We need to guide clients to stop “putting on a happy face” – that there are safe ways to experience ALL emotions. The EDIT™ process involves having ED-IT dialogues with clients. Here’s what this might sound like:

ED (false self) – “Just put on a happy face, and try to fit in.”

The false self is very good at pretending that everything is “fine,” and acting in a manner to evoke acceptance from others. The false self may be compensating for past experiences where it was unsafe to show certain emotions. Eating disorder behaviors serve to keep emotions hidden. Any expressed emotions are “safe” masks the false self wears.

IT (True Self): “I am grateful for my range of emotions, and freedom of expression.”

The True Self has insightful emotional awareness, healthy emotional expression, and safe emotional vulnerability. There is an ability to experience intense emotions, using a variety of coping skills as needed. All emotions are authentic expressions of the True Self.

Try this “taste” of EDIT™ – The Mask

The false self is attempting to be an “ideal self” to please others and be accepted, while hiding a “shadow self” – any qualities which may result in criticism or rejection. Eating disorder behaviors are hidden in the “shadow,” but this is where the True Self has been hidden, too. Click on the image below for a downloadable worksheet which you can use to guide your clients to uncover the “gold” in the shadow.

CLICK ON IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

©2018 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

Article may be reprinted with this author bio.

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE – GET CERTIFIED

The post Express Your Self appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.

The fourth EDIT™ Principle involves Intuitive Self-Care – these are Self-Care practices which can truly be replenishing, at all levels of being: spiritual, emotional, mental, physical. This is in contract to so-called “self-care” which is just another “should” on one’s never-ending  to-do list. Regular Self-Care which truly “feeds one’s True Hunger” is the key to long-term recovery. The EDIT™ process involves having ED-IT dialogues with clients. Here’s what this might sound like:

ED (false self) – “Everyone else needs me; my needs don’t matter.”

Self-care is considered “selfish” by the false self, who will give to others in self-sacrificing ways. The false self doesn’t perceive any needs – except the need to engage in eating disorder behaviors.

IT (True Self): “I matter; nurturing my Self is my priority.”

Self-care is considered “Selfish” (with a capital “S”) by the True Self. This implies giving to enhance the Self – including others as Self. When “filled from within,” there is more than enough to share with others.

Try this “taste” of EDIT™ – Ways to Care for My Self

Click on the image below for a downloadable worksheet which you can use to guide clients to explore the four aspects of the True Self – spiritual, emotional, mental, physical. Then, consider Self-care activities to “feed” each aspect of the True Self.

CLICK ON IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT

©2018 by Dr. Dorie McCubbrey. Dr. Dorie is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Licensed Addiction Counselor who is passionate about training professionals to effectively guide clients in recovery from eating disorders, through her Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ Certified program. She also meets with clients at her treatment center, Positive Pathways PLLC, located in Evergreen Colorado. Learn more at: https://www.drdorie.com

Article may be reprinted with this author bio.

*****

Want more that this “taste” of EDIT™? Dr. Dorie is passionate about her method of Eating Disorder Intuitive Therapy (EDIT)™ to help people overcome eating disorders and addictions.  She provides customized counseling for eating disorders and alcohol / drug addiction at her Positive Pathways treatment center in Evergreen, Colorado – and EDIT™ eating disorder training and certification for coaches and clinicians worldwide. CALL 303-494-1975 – EMAIL DR. DORIE – GET CERTIFIED

The post Give To Your Self appeared first on INTUITIVE THERAPY™ | Healthy Weight Loss | Eating Disorder Recovery Coach.