Our relationship with our body is one of the most foundational relationships we have in life. Our body is the vessel we move through the world in, and we only get one. Wherever we go, our body goes with us. Whatever we feel, our body feels with us. It's an understatement to say that it’s important to create a relationship with one’s body that is supportive and sustainable.

 

Unfortunately, most of us have been conditioned to judge and disconnect from our bodies for one reason or another. Whether it’s because of size, appearance, ethnicity, age, gender, ability, or something else, I find that every client I’ve ever worked with deals with some form of body criticism.

 

Therefore, cultivating body neutrality and acceptance is an important part of my work. I take particular interest in helping clients unpack body criticism involving size and appearance because I see fatphobia and adherence to a beauty construct as especially insidious and unchecked in our society. I have experience working with a number of different kinds of body struggles, including disordered eating, negative body image, Orthorexia (obsession with health), Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, ED NOS (Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified), and body dysmorphia.

 

My work is informed by organizations like Health At Every Size (HAES) and The Center for Body Trust, and is grounded in body-inclusive methodology. This means that I work with folks in all different kinds of bodies, and that I promote universal body acceptance. I take both a micro and macro approach with clients around body struggles that involves identifying their personal body beliefs, experiences, and stories, unpacking the messages they’ve received from their family and community around bodies, and exploring the larger societal systems at play that they have been impacted by. I also bring awareness to how one’s relationship with their body reflects things about their relationship with themselves and others. In addition, I strive to help clients reconnect with their physical body through increasing somatic (sensory) awareness and learning to listen to the body's cues. My approach is both psychological and practical, uprooting narratives that do not serve, and offering guidance toward a relationship with one’s body that is as supportive as possible.