Body Prema: Food & Body Freedom With Stella Stathi

I have been feeling the pull toward that 85% very strongly over the last couple of years, but even more so lately. . I used to rely a lot on technique, wanting to get as many tools, practices and qualifications as I could under my belt, in order to be able to best support my clients. And even though having a rich, varied toolbox and proper training in established modalities is extremely important when working with people, what has also become very clear to me is this: . Nothi...ng is more important than the relationship between two human beings sharing the same space with the intention of healing. . Presence -true, whole-bodied, soul-full presence- is the ultimate catalyst for real, deep transformation. . Everything in therapy, and especially in therapy for food and body-image related issues, is a matter of CONNECTION and RELATIONSHIP. This is where the wound lies, and this is also where healing can truly take place. . I am forever grateful to my clients for teaching me this. It was them who, in a non-verbal, deeply instinctual way, invited me to take off the layers upon layers of the profession, step out of the *role* (the persona, the mask) of the ‘therapist’, and sit with them, bare and human, in deep resonance and coherency, simply feeling and being *together*. . This state cannot be mistaken. It is felt profoundly and undoubtedly. And it is in this togetherness, where magic happens. Every.single.time. 🙏🏼♥️
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Great article on accessing, processing and expressing emotions we have suppressed and which still live inside our bodies.
"We have to feel it to heal it—we have to fully experience the emotion in order to process and integrate it into our experience.
But we must feel it in the body; this is the critical point. As Brach writes, “If the process of including difficult emotions in awareness stops at the level of cognitive understanding without a fully embodied experience, the ge...nuine acceptance, insight, and inner freedom that are the essence of true healing will not be complete.""
The author mentions the acronym RAIN by Tara Brach, which stands for: {Recognise - Allow - Investigate - Nourish}.
In the SomaSoul approach by Dan Leven that I have trained in, we use REST: {Recognise - Express - Support - Transform}.
The core and essence of the process is the same across schools and traditions. We all naturally resonate with certain approaches more than with others, and it is important to find the one (or more) that feel 'right' for us, but, beyond the specifics, what our emotions need, at all times, is:
🔹Recognition/Acknowledgment 🔹Permission to be and to be fully felt, *in the body* 🔹An outlet to be expressed through 🔹To be met and supported with Heart, Kindness & Compassion
Would you take some time today and/or over the weekend to give those things to yourself? I promise you, it will be so worth it. 🙏 ❤️
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Happy Spring Equinox, friends! 🦋Spring is here -even if it doesn’t particularly look or feel like it, at least in the UK!
I’ve been rather quiet in here lately, mostly because it’s been a very busy couple of months in my practice.
I have had the pleasure of welcoming some new, beautiful people in, moving deeper into the process with existing clients, as well as slowly transitioning toward closure with one of them.
... Reflecting on that, I realise how much I appreciate all the different stages in this process; the beginning, the middle, and the end. The universal phases of birth/creation, preservation and death/dissolution. There is so much magic and potency in each one of them. And there is a very natural, organic rhythm of moving from one to the next -when we let it manifest, uninhibited.
I used to be a huge lover of beginnings, in all areas of my life. Metaphorical spring and early summer, with all their young, ‘maiden’ energy, was when I used to thrive. I would have so much enthusiasm in that opening phase, but it would quickly fade, after the ‘honey-moon period’ was over.
Endings were not my favourite part either..I would resist them, and postpone them, even when I knew with every fibre of my being that it was time for the chapter to close.
Interestingly enough, I’ve had to make friends with ‘death’ first, before I was able to start appreciating that middle part; preserving, sustaining, nurturing. ~Mother energy~
For a long time, I had been looking for new, different and exciting ways to do my work (and my life too). Dreaming up new offerings (and experiences), and updating existing ones was what I thought I should be doing all the time. These days however, I am much more interested in nurturing my practice as it is and keeping things simple. I am fiercely committed to supporting my clients and holding space for them to go deep..really deep..in their own time, simply because I have been shown over and over again that this is how this work can best be done.
I am discovering freshness in continuity and magic in intimacy and familiarity. And I am deeply grateful for safe, strong containers and nourishing structures -both those that I create for others and those I am lucky enough to be held into myself.
I would love to hear, how is this transition point finding you? And what is your relationship with spring/maiden/new beginnings energy? 🌺🙏🏼🌺
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This is something I've had to learn the hard way, over and over again.
A big part of healing our relationship with food and body is learning (actually, re-membering) how to listen to even the subtle messages, cues and signals our bodies share with us ALL the time, without letting them turn into 'screams' (physical, mental and emotional dis-eases), to draw our attention. 🙏❤️

Not knowing how to manage and respond to difficult emotions lies at the very core of all food-related and body-image issues.
And it is no wonder, since most of us were never taught how to do that. On the contrary, as kids growing up, we were most likely shown, repeatedly, both explicitly and implicitly, that emotions are a sign of weakness and that we need to rise above, hide or 'power through' what we were feeling, at all costs.
Often, those beliefs were passed on to us wa...s through shame and humiliation for feeling a certain way, no matter how subtle.
This article offers some great ways to respond to a child, when they are upset, so that they can develop a healthy relationship with their emotions, and their own skills and resilience.
***Whether you are a mother or not, you can still use these phrases to respond to yourself, when dealing with a challenging emotion -remember, we all have an INNER CHILD that needs to be soothed and cared for on a daily basis, and that we will be parenting for the rest of our lives..
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Happy International Women’s Day, friends!
May we all discover the freedom that comes with accepting and embracing ALL we are, exactly as we are, inside and outside 🙏🏼♥️

Beauty-full and important project, putting things into perspective around our beauty and body ideals, how they get created, and how they have changed throughout history.
“I think the main thing I could draw from [the project] is the power of imagery. What you consume every day is what you are told to believe is beautiful."
Beauty, Ginsburg believes, doesn’t really exist. “It’s a set of [selected images]. It’s not that one thing is beautiful and another isn’t – there’s not much rhyme or reason to [what’s considered beautiful]. It just seems to be influenced by the loudest voice in the culture at the time. As human beings, we like to copy. It’s about being aware that the images we’re consuming are not reality.”

Today marks the beginning of #EatingDisordersAwarenessWeek.
In honour of that, I have had the pleasure to contribute to an article on Counselling Directory about one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented eating disorders, Binge Eating Disorder (BED).
Visit the link below to read about:... - the complex, inner and outer, personal, cultural and societal, challenges people with BED are faced with - why 'easy solutions', such as diet and exercise alone, are never the answer - why receiving psychological support is essential and how exactly it can help people heal their relationship with food, their body and themselves
And if you feel called to share, I'd love to hear your thoughts below.
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Remembering what COURAGE is really about.
How's your heart feeling today? <3

"And it seems, some of us must be shown how to love ourselves through the mirror of those who already do."
Opening up about one's eating and body-image struggles can feel terrifying -that's why eating disorders thrive in secrecy. However, it can also be one of the most freeing and healing experiences one can have.
It is undoubtedly very important to have a healthy, loving relationship with ourselves and to be able to provide the care and appreciation that we need, without ex...clusively depending on others to do it for us. *And* this can be extremely difficult when we haven't learnt how to do that; when this experience isn't already stored inside our body and psyche; when, on the contrary, we have been taught to hate and neglect parts (or the whole) of ourselves.
Very often, we need to receive something -in fact, receive it over and over again- before we are able to fully give it to ourselves, on our own. We just need to be shown what it feels and looks like. That doesn't make us weak -It makes us human.
It also doesn't need to be an 'either-or'. We can do our best to cultivate acceptance and kindness toward ourselves, *and* make space for others to step in and love us, when and where we can't -yet..
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My clients have probably heard me say this about a hundred times each by now: . IT’S A PROCESS . When you desire deep, real healing, you have to realise that...... . It takes time, energy and commitment. . It has its own, innate, wise rhythm. . It will look different for you than it will look for anybody else. . It is not linear, nor a one-off thing; you don’t go (or jump) from point A to point B, leave point A behind for good and be done with it. You will find yourself back at the same point, dealing with the same issues, patterns and aspects of yourself and life over and over and over again -BUT each time will be different. Each time, YOU will be different. A bit more aware, connected, resilient, more willing to dive in and trust the process, because you have been there before. And you came through. ——Healing happens in a spiral. . And, most importantly, healing and becoming who you truly are is not a task to get good or perfect at; it’s not a race, you cannot rush through it; and you can definitely not beat yourself up through it. . As Sylvester McNutt beautifully points out below, it requires patience, compassion and respect. I will add, humility. And support. . I’ve been contemplating recently how the work that I do is really about that; the deep healing. This is why I work long-term with people. This is why I don’t often offer time-specific programmes and packages, and when I do, they are rather long. . You cannot package or put a time-frame to this kind of healing. And the Soul requires time and space to unfold. . On the journey with you, Stella 🙏🏼💕
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It’s not only comments addressed to us personally that shape our core beliefs and ways of relating to ourselves and our bodies. Let’s be conscious of our words -all of them. 🙏🏼♥️

First post for #2019 and my wish for you for the whole year ahead, and those to come. . May we remember what truly matters and choose how we define ourselves wisely. 🙏🏼♥️ . Picture credit: unknown

Because 9 only are not enough to do this beautiful, BIG year justice... . Here is my version of #bestnine2018 x 2, and the end-feeling written all over my face! . Thank you 2018, my heart is full of gratitude for the many top moments, peak experiences and beautiful people you brought into both my professional and personal life!... . Here is to a wonderful 2019 for us all! . Happy New Year, friends!! Thank you for being *here*!! ♥️
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Have a freedom, peace-of-mind and pleasure-filled holiday, everyone! 🎊💕🙏🏼

CONTENTMENT . GRATITUDE . WONDER... . PEACE . WHOLENESS . All that I’m filled with right now and all that I wish for you for these holy-days. . Hope you have a truly beautiful and meaningful time, friends. . If you need support in dealing with the challenging moments that can also occur this time of year, especially around food and body, you can find my most recent newsletter, here: https://mailchi.mp/…/food-body-holiday- survival-free-resour…. . In it, I shared several relevant free resources, tips and guidance, including a guided, recorded practice for Emotional Awareness & Self Care -THE most important skill when it comes to our relationship with food and our body, as well as in any area of our lives. . Sending you Love and many, many, many blessings 🙏🏼♥️
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An important reminder for this festive season. . Let’s choose our words, comments and compliments wisely. . There are way more meaningful things to focus our attention on than people’s weight loss (or gain).... . Let’s ask our friends and family about their lives, what fills them with joy, what challenges them. Let’s look into their eyes and see them through our hearts. Let’s *feel* their energy, their soul, rather than their figure. . Let’s choose real connection. . I hope you have a beautiful holiday, my friends. . p.s. Tomorrow I’ll be sending an email to my list with free resources to help you deal with food and body challenges during the holidays. Feel free to sign up through the link in my profile, if you’d like to receive it too. 🙏🏼♥️
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Always powerful and important words by Desiree Lynn Adaway 🙏