a long overdue update

Hi Friends!

I have been trying to find a pocket of time to sit down and write this – turns out, I needed about a month + worth of pockets to finally make it happen! I wanted to give you an update on life, where I’m at with work and everything else. I’ll try to keep it somewhat concise, but that’s not exactly my strong suit 🤗

Life Lately…

Life has kind of kicked me in the butt since COVID hit (I know many of you can relate). The confluence of events (welcoming a second child, school closing for Owen, lockdowns, etc.) that occurred right around it meant that I lost the majority of time I had to dedicate to work. And try as I might, nearly two years later, I’m still finding it really hard to get back into a groove with balancing it all in a way that’s not been detrimental to my wellbeing and/or to how I’m able to show up as a mom. As a result, work life took a backseat.

I recognize how extremely fortunate I am that I even had the option to prioritize my wellbeing and being at home with my kids when so many did not. I would also be lying if I said I didn’t truly miss having the opportunity to mix that with work. I miss putting my degree to use every day, having the chance to connect with and help people who need it and continuing to spread the non-diet and HAES® word.

I’m hopeful that there will be a time in the future that I will be able to throw myself back into work more fully, but for now I’m just taking it day by day.

A Note On Instagram

You may also have noticed that I haven’t been on Instagram. I was sort of forced into a hiatus when Ellie was born because I just didn’t have the bandwidth. However, once I found myself having a few bits of time here and there, I noticed that I didn’t really feel a huge pull to be back in that space. I love it for the quick & easy, day-to-day connection with everyone, but with more information coming out about the real harms it knowingly causes, I struggle with creating content for it, thereby sort of encouraging people to spend more time on the app.

I wrestle a lot with what that. Part of me feels like it’s important to put out messaging counter to all the diet culture crap that gets posted every day, and part of me wonders if it’s better to just find another way to share my messaging with those who really want to, and are ready to, receive it (thus avoiding much of the false and negative messaging that often comes from diet culture proponents who feel it’s their responsibility to uphold diet culture in anti-diet spaces).

All of that said, I’ve personally noticed a positive change in my overall mental health and wellbeing since spending less time on the app. While I miss the day-to-day connection, I’ve really found myself wondering if there’s some other way to achieve that in a different space. Maybe through my newsletter or perhaps just this blog? A space that’s a little more sacred and protected from algorithms, paid ‘wellness’ ads from influencers, etc. If you have any suggestions, let me know!

I’m not ruling Instagram out all together, but for right now, unless I really feel a pull to be in that space, I haven’t been forcing it. My time is also still so limited that I don’t really feel like I can engage in the space in any sort of meaningful way.

Food & Recipe Content

To be totally honest with you, mealtime has really become just another task to complete each day. The kids are home with me all day which means I’m cooking/preparing/making food upwards of 6 times a day between meals and snacks for all of us, and I’ve really gotten burnt out in the kitchen. My creative juices feel tapped out and I find myself relying a lot on a rotation of the same meals for right now (many of which are favorites from the blog!).

I’m hoping this will change as time goes on and I have more space for things like inspiration and recipe testing again – but for right now, new recipes and creations are on hiatus.

Counseling

The pandemic caused me to take a step back from the virtual counseling aspect of my business.

For those of you that are not familiar with the counseling side of my business – I work with individuals looking to break free from dieting and move toward a more peaceful relationship with food. I do not focus on weight loss and I do not prescribe specific meal plans. My goal is to provide you with helpful tools and insights that will allow you to re-establish a connection and re-build trust with your body that years surrounded by diet culture messaging has broken. The goal is to help you come to a place of peace with both food and your body, freeing you up to live the life you have rather than feeling a constant pull to chase some other, ‘better’ one.

I’m still trying to figure out how and when I might be able to get this back off the ground, but I’ll be sure to make it known when/if I do.

Future

If this virus has taught us anything, it’s that there’s no way of knowing what the future will bring. Like I said, I’m hopeful I’ll be able to get back fully in the swing of things at some point – I have pages and pages of plans and ideas for things I’d like to create for you all. Now it’s just about finding the time to do it.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all of you who have shown me kindness, patience and understanding as I work to navigate all of this. I truly cannot wait to get back to creating for and connecting with all of you again more regularly!

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