Are you getting bombarded with ads about all the new diets over this holiday season? Do you still struggle with trying to get rid of believing diets that all promise you that they work? How can you effectively “undiet your life” and your mind? In this podcast episode, Dr. Cristina Castagnini speaks about how to “Undiet Your Life” with expert Stephanie Dodier.

MEET STEPHANIE DODIER

Stephanie Dodier is a Clinical Nutritionist CNP, Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, host of two top-ranking podcasts in the non-diet industry, and creator of the Going Beyond The Food Method™️. She founded Undiet Your Life, a global coaching and online training platform focused on helping women make peace with food and their bodies to live a fulfilling life… right now! She is also the founder of Undiet Your Coaching Practice, a global professional training platform.

Visit Stephanie's website and connect on Facebook and Instagram.

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IN THIS PODCAST

  • How to stop dieting
  • Working through toxic diet culture beliefs
  • Reshape your mind, not your body

How to stop dieting

For most people, they stop dieting because their life nearly falls apart. Either there is a drastic moment where they are hospitalized or something to that extent or in their relationships with family or loved ones. Other people come to understand that dieting is the real culprit of their unhappiness and health issues through finding out information that resonates with their life experiences, like podcasts, books, and talking with friends.
As soon as we name it and explain it, there’s this visceral emotion of like, “Holy shit, this is what has a grip on me and actually has a name, and I’m not alone.” (Stephanie Dodier)
Sometimes knowing that you are not alone in the problem you are facing gives you the power to change because now you know that other people are struggling with the same issues. Now you know that you can find people to work with to undo these beliefs, mindsets, and habits, and finally start to live your life how you want to live it.

Working through toxic diet culture beliefs

1 - Name it: whenever you notice a diet-culture thought to come up, identify it and separate it from what you actually think and personally believe.
Diet culture is a systemic belief that places virtue on thinner bodies and fatphobia is kind of the cousin of diet culture that goes along and it says, “Fat people are [this and that]” … There’s so many things in our society that are structured to make your life harder if you don’t conform to the standard that your body should be, and that’s called fatphobia. (Stephanie Dodier)
2 - Identify that diet culture is ingrained in modern culture: some modern medical staff and societal ideals of beauty or health are all skewed to prefer thinner bodies over bigger bodies. Once you understand this discrepancy, you can notice it whenever it comes up. 3 - Offer yourself and others compassion: see that this is a battle every person faces because diet culture is so prevalent within society. Offer yourself some self-compassion while you learn to tell the difference between toxic diet beliefs and what is real.
What if we say, “Okay, you want to focus on health? Let’s look at 99 other things out of 100 that can impact your health … but we just take body mass index, park it to the side, and we work on all these 99 other things.” What do you think is going to happen to your health? … I guarantee you that you will have a different experience of your health by broadening the scope of how you’re helping and supporting your body being healthy. (Stephanie Dodier)

Reshape your mind, not your body

Your mind is the lens through which you see reality. However, your mental health will end up dictating how you perceive and understand your reality. If you have a poor mindset and you struggle with viewing yourself positively, it doesn’t matter what your body looks like because you will always think it could be better. You could reach your “goal” size, shape, or weight, and it wouldn’t be enough. That is why you need to readdress your mind, and your thoughts and beliefs, before you begin to address your reality.
Invest that time in investigating your belief systems, understanding your socialization based on your gender, your race, your sexual orientation … What makes you who you are and how has society's thinking impacted you, and then [ask yourself if] that’s how you want to live your life. Is this how you want to live your life, believing [their narratives]? (Stephanie Dodier)
It’s not the layer of fat on your body that creates the discomfort or shame. It’s the thought about that layer of fat. Your mind is powerful, and what you believe something to be creates your nervous system’s reaction to those things in the world.
One of the new beliefs I suggest to women when they start [this work] is, “My body is a tool to experience my life” … Instead of what we’ve all been taught, “My tool is a sign of my worth”. (Stephanie Dodier)
Your body is the vehicle of your senses and how you experience life. It does not mark the value of who you are.

USEFUL LINKS

MEET DR. CRISTINA CASTAGNINI

  I am a licensed Psychologist and Certified Eating Disorder Specialist. While I may have over 20 years of clinical experience, what I also have is the experience of having been a patient who had an eating disorder as well. One thing that I never had during all of my treatment was someone who could look me in the eye and honestly say to me "Hey, I've been there. I understand". Going through treatment for an eating disorder is one of the hardest and scariest things to do. I remember being asked to do things that scared me. Things I now know ultimately helped me to get better. But, at the time, I had serious doubts and fears about it. If even one of my providers had been able to tell me "I know it's scary, but I had to go through that part too. Here's what will probably happen...." then perhaps I would not have gone in and out of treatment so many times. My own experience ultimately led me to specialize in treating eating disorders. I wanted to be the therapist I never had; the one who "got it". I will be giving you my perspective and information as an expert and clinician who has been treating patients for over 2 decades. But don't just take my word for it...keep listening to hear the truly informative insights and knowledge guest experts have to share. I am so happy you are here!

THANKS FOR LISTENING

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