Aspiring Nutritionist

                  Being a Nutritionist or RD in the professional world, as much as it is exciting to live your passion it comes with obstacles. Writing blog entries is very self-revealing. While filing through research articles and educational material  the only way I could produce meaningful writing which others can relate to as professional was to be honest with my past and present struggles. Somewhere in the midst of all my dry rough drafts which consist of reiterated knowledge,  I hear my voice surface and it’s honest and its raw. My own true voice feels foreign, because there are parts of my true self have been muffled by all the knowledge I have been taught about what it looks like to be a professional.  Part of finding a good organization to work for is to find one same mission and vision as our individual values. In my own personal opinion company culture that endorses individualism and has respect or one's personal strengths and weaknesses is essential.  As I look to the future feelings of anxiety, fear, and excitement arise. I know that how I will carve my own path will largely be my own will.  A study was conducted by the International Journal Of Therapy & Rehabilitation ( 2011), identifying that  a major factor that leads to positive results is professional treatment are attitudes and approach to treatments. Professionals who were unsuccessful or ineffective in service were individuals who were unable to control their own emotional reactions, perceived themselves as ill-equipped, or had poorly developed tools in their treatment of participants. It takes experience, thick skin, and a big heart to deal with this population. But it's rewarding!

            I found that I am not the only professional desiring to bring about deep dinner healing, to actually address the root issues of eating disorders and disordered eatingOver the weekend I had the opportunity to meet with an amazing organization called Beauty I Am (http://www.facebook.com/BeautyIAM3?ref=ts&fref=ts). The organization is designed to reach talent in Hollywood, the hub of pop-culture and provide coaching, beauty care, counseling and nutrition. I was inspired and suddenly this world with all it's darkness and pressures seemed so small because I no longer felt fear of the struggle but a passion among professionals for the restoration of women. Beauty I Am is designed to unpack the bondage that media has brainwashed women into about standards of thinness, beauty, and glorification of achievement.  The world has created standards which we could never reach without self-punishment, control, and obsession .  A woman could really waste years of self-imprisonment and never know that freedom is possible when you pursue healing.   

             Futhermore, many professionals in the field of Dietetics or Nutrition have faced their own struggles related to food and body and continually on the path to happiness, health and balanced living. It can sometimes become discouraging. A vast majority of individuals in the field ( about 70%) still struggle with some form of an eating disorder but use the profession to mask it or simply just feel triggered by so much exposure to thinking and talking about food.  The shame is what can keep professionals in isolation because we have to be careful of not being controlled by others expectations. As professionals we are expected to know every answer, to never eat chocolate cake, and to never struggle with body-image and eating.When once at a conference  I remember a therapist Rebecca Bass-Ching specialized in eating disorders is the key to breaking this perfectionist mindset is a self-grace for ourselves. Whether that be in taking steps to change our thinking or behavior grace is needed if women are to have self-love and personal health.

Shame, Guilt, Despair and Body Acceptance

   

Guilt and shame are feelings which can be crippling and cause us to go into hiding and isolation. Sometimes they can be feelings that seem to never end. It is important to examine some of our belief systems or experiences which shape and cause the cycle of guilt and shame so we are able to move forward from our mistakes and shortcomings and still continue to lead productive lives filled with risks and failures along the journey. Sometimes we end up feeling defeated and in despair, but there is hope!!

                        When it comes to healing from eating disorders or disordered eating some of the most difficult emotions to work through are feelings of shame, guilt, and despair. In an eating disorder where a person is trying to starve them-self in order to attain thinness the body will go one is stuck in an endless cycle of losing weight, failing with food restrictions, overeating purging, and failed attainment of body size.  A major part of changing our attitudes or perspectives is to understand cultural forces, and the socially constructed realities we create. Everything is real in and of it's consequences. It is important to be wise and weary of the kinds of words and images we let shape what our idea or normal or healthy is, because society as warped it. "Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing." Proverbs 12:18 The emotions of shame and guilt. Negative events which are a consequences of personal choice are. It requires a paradigm shift in thinking from Traditional diet approaches to non diet approaches toward healing eating. An individual must find a way to address obessive behavior. and accept body size