An update from little old me
I haven't written to you in a couple of months and want to share what is going on in my life right now. I've now been a dietitian for 25 years, in private practice for the last 11 or 12. My practice was created based on a hunch that there was something important to be gained from combining eating disorder recovery work with meditation and mindfulness.
Bringing meditation into my work with individual clients and groups was like introducing people to themselves. To witness folks discovering that old cliche - that they already have everything they need to feel whole - made my work so rewarding. It also made me want to spread the word.
Starting the Intuitive Eating for Life community was an attempt at doing that. My hope was to provide a virtual gathering place where people on the path to recovery not only could access the teachings of Intuitive Eating and Buddhist philosophy, but also could interact with others just like them: to witness and to be witnessed in their vulnerability, during change, in times of uncertainty.
Most people never got the message that the community existed – and if you have no idea what I’m talking about, that’s totally fine. Those that did hear about the community often discovered the schedule didn’t work for them. But the folks who did join and were able to attend regularly really showed up, did the work, supported one another, took risks in service of their recovery. And, quite frankly, it was magical. In the end, there just were not enough of the people for whom it did work to keep it going.
Meanwhile, I have been noticing several shifts inside and around me. I’m firmly premenopausal, with a young child, and I’m thinking about the second half of my life (yes, I plan to live to 98). So I’ve taken a step back to figure out what is going on in my heart, what feels true. My values haven't changed but I’m no longer willing to hustle as I once did. Working with a few 1:1 clients, writing, reading, learning, volunteering, practicing meditation, playing guitar, swimming, doing yoga, and spending time with my family and friends – this is where my attention is right now. And that feels appropriate as the post-COVID world is a little bit over everything being virtual and I hear myself saying the words “think globally, act locally” over and over again.
This is the first time I’ve allowed some space to open up in my life and I’m hoping that it will help clarify what is coming down the line. In the meanwhile, I’m enjoying being right here. I’ll be resuming some form of regular communication with you via this newsletter – exact frequency TBD – but I’d love to hear what’s going on in your life. Are you in a period of transition? Flux? Change? Stagnancy? How are you managing?