Compassion helps relationships

When one of my nephews was around three years old, he would start to wail and cry whenever he was put into his car seat. One day, his mother demonstrated how his teddy bear was able to calm itself by putting its paws together and thinking quiet thoughts.
 
They practiced this a couple times, and my nephew loved how this worked. After that, whenever she put my nephew into his car seat, she would say, “Now, just like your teddy bear, put your little hands together and calm yourself.” [Read more…]

Self-Compassion helps weight loss

One morning, Donna’s husband took the dog for a walk and never came back.Over the next three days, the police searched for her husband but couldn’t find any clues of where he might be.

It seemed that Donna’s husband had simply disappeared along with the dog that was her best friend.

But it got worse. [Read more…]

Acts of Compassion change lives

In our small town in Iowa, we live next to a row of duplex condominiums. While walking our dogs past these homes, my husband and I have met several of our neighbors, including Amber, a single mom raising a teenage daughter.

A couple summers ago, we noticed Amber had trimmed some of her trees but left the branches and leaves in a random pile next to the curb. [Read more…]

Conquering emotional eating Week 12

cookie jar

No more sabotage!

Just when you thought your diet was going great, things start to go wrong. Instead of giving you flowers on your birthday, your spouse hands you a large box of chocolates.

Then, in the middle of your favorite TV program, your kids rip open a bag of potato chips, plunk them down on the coffee table in front of you and ask, “Want some?” [Read more…]

Conquering emotional eating Week 11

What’s in my way?

Are you an “all or nothing” person?  Even if you don’t think it’s affecting you, perfectionism can block you from reaching your goals. 

Most perfectionists tend to follow the same theme—do it right or don’t do it at all. But since they never reach the point where they can do it “right,” perfectionists never start.  [Read more…]

Conquering emotional eating Week 9

Nurturing without food

In last week’s lesson, you were supposed to ask the question, “What do I need?” over and over until you had a list of your needs.But figuring out what we need is not easy. I struggled with making my list and wondered if I should leave some things off because I can’t do anything about them right now. [Read more…]

Conquer emotional eating – Week 7

Expressing, Not Stuffing

When Valerie went back to school, her husband agreed to take care of their home one evening a week. He knew he was supposed to feed the kids and get them ready for bed.

But week after week, he left the dirty dishes sitting on the table and the children’s clothes strewn all over the floor. Valerie constantly tried to get him to change his behavior by saying she wanted him to be more responsible around the house. [Read more…]

Conquer emotional eating – Week 6

What Do I Feel?

Remember how easily your emotions came when you were a child? You rolled around on the floor when you laughed and you never worried about whether you looked silly.

When you fell and skinned your knee, you wailed loudly and cried hot tears. You screamed in anger when your brother threw your favorite doll in the mud.

[Read more…]