At a restaurant a few years back, I ate too much. I hadn't planned to. Honestly, I hadn't planned at all. When I arrived, I went into “lemming mode” and mindlessly followed the people with whom I was dining. We lined up at a buffet, went down the line, and filled our...
Sometime around the turn of the year two types of articles are written: 1) articles that tell you to abandon New Year’s resolutions, and 2) articles that tell you to make New Year’s resolutions. I say, don’t do either. Consider this an invitation to reframe your...
This is the fourth article in my series related to Prochaska and DiClemente’s stages of change. When my son Barrett turned 18, my husband and I had to relocate from North Carolina to Virginia for work. Mike and I left Barrett to take care of himself and our house. As...
This is the third article in my series related to Prochaska and DiClemente’s stages of change. When we were little girls, my parents took my sister and me to the beach every summer. We loved it, except for the very first time. We took our maiden trip to the beach when...
This is the second article in my series related to Prochaska and DiClemente’s stages of change. The first stage of change, as discussed in a previous article, is the pre-contemplation stage. As a recap, this is the stage when ignorance is bliss, and you are not ready...
This is the first article in my series related to Prochaska and DiClemente’s stages of change. As I talk more and more with my clients about the ins and outs and the ups and downs of following a WLS-friendly lifestyle, one main theme pops up again and again – change....
Have you heard the Aesop’s fable about the dog and his shadow? In the story, a hungry dog manages to get a morsel of meat. Thrilled with his acquisition, the dog decides to take it back to his den where he can devour it in peace. As he hurries home, the dog dashes...
Andrea has been coaching with me for a few months now. She already has overcome a lot; for example she has stopped gaining weight. She has sorted out her self-care needs and wants very badly to follow her new lifestyle plan. The problem is she isn't following through....
Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Luke Skywalker looked into Darth Vader's eyes and found the good in his father. Luke said, "The Emperor hasn't driven the good from you completely." Vader denied him, insisting, "You don't know the power of the dark side." This...
Today is the day my father will be buried at sea. My earliest memories of him include his love of the sea. As a child he lived with his grandparents on the Oregon coast. He had great memories of scouring the beach for Japanese floats, one of which, he recalled, was 5...