Welcome back to Beyond Diet Dogma - a space for nuance, real life, and the mindset, food and body conversations that donāt fit neatly into boxes.
This issue touches on one of those places where things get complicated. Iāll start there, then weāll ease into something lighter (and yes, there are dogs and Super Bowl snacks involved).
Let's dig in!
š½ The Main Course: Apparently This is Controversial
I support clients who are on GLP-1 medications and I'm an intuitive eating practitioner.
That pairing raises eyebrows for some of my colleagues.
The pushback I feel most isnāt always loud or 'in my face' (though yes, there's been some of that in my inbox).
More often it's the subtle pause or the quiet āI would never" or "I can't believe she's doing that". Sometimes itās not aimed at me at all, it's just a general judgment about practitioners (like me) who choose to work in this space.
And yes, I feel that.
But what often gets missed in these conversations is that people need support through the emotional reality of being on a GLP-1. Especially those who already have a complicated relationship with their bodies.
Thereās shame.
Not always the obvious kind, but the quieter kind that comes with secrecy.
The āIām not telling people Iām doing thisā kind, or the āwhat will they think about my reasons?ā kind.
Because for many women, itās not about medical necessity at all. Itās about wanting their body to feel different, and the underlying worry about what that desire says about them.
They donāt want to be seen as vain. Or lazy. Or as someone who ātook the easy way out.ā
That shame? It comes from living in a culture that moralizes bodies and motives. Not from a medication.
Thereās also fear.
Bodies can change, and...attention can follow. And attention has a way of raising the stakes. People start wondering what happens if things shift again. What if their body changes in ways they didnāt plan for, or if the approval quietly disappears?
That fear is familiar to anyone whoās ever dieted, even if the path with GLP-1s looks different.
And then thereās another layer that rarely gets named.
When bodies change, other people feel oddly entitled to comment on them.
Even āpositiveā comments can feel intrusive. Especially for someone who has spent years feeling uncomfortable in their body, the attention can be unsettling, conflicting or confusing.
I hear some version of this from clients often:
āI do like that my body feels differentā¦ and I really wish people would stop looking at itā. Or, āI didnāt do this so my body could become a topic of conversationā.
Relief and discomfort can exist at the same time.
Thereās also fear around pleasure.
What if food stops being enjoyable? What if small rituals lose their spark? What if I don't want to go out for end-of-week happy hour with my spouse anymore? What if pizza night just feels "meh"?
That worry isnāt about eating less...it's about losing something meaningful. Food isnāt just nourishment. Itās texture and celebration and connection.
Intuitive eating, at its core, is not meant to be a purity test, like a rigid diet. It is a framework meant to help people stay connected to themselves, even as circumstances change.
If standing in this middle space makes some people uncomfortable, I can live with that.
Staying present with people when things get complicated matters more to me than staying in anyoneās good graces.
If GLP-1s are part of your world right now, Iāve put together a couple of free resources depending on where you are in the conversation:
ā If youāre still deciding whether theyāre right for you, thereās a short checklist here.
š Decision Making Checklist
ā If youāre already on them and looking for support that aligns with intuitive eating, you can find that here.
š GLP-1 Support Guide
š£ Table Talk: Silence
Somewhere along the way, I got into the habit of feeling uncomfortable if I didn't have an airpod in my ear, with someone telling me something I simply must learn. Whether I was walking, taking a shower, or washing the dishes. I had to have it. A podcast, an audiobook, a lesson from a course.
So I've surprisingly been enjoying a small but real pleasure lately: finishing a walk without listening to anything.
Just enjoying the dogs, feeling my feet on the ground, seeing the sights, hearing the sounds, sensing the temperature, saying hello to dogs (oh, and people) that I pass.
It turns out my nervous system doesnāt always need more input. š§š¼āāļø
š° Just Because: Dessert
Super Bowl week around here is officially a celebration this year š„³
Yes, Iām a big Seattle Seahawks fan (a "12" as they say), and honestly, win or lose, Iām just glad theyāre in it. Itās been a minute, and it feels good to have something to cheer for right now in our mixed-up, messy world.
I grew up in New England in a family thatās all-in on the Patriots (š), but my loyalty has been with the Hawks since I moved to Seattle 32 years ago, and I still am, despite the fact that I live in Oregon now.
I went digging through old photos and found this gem of our old dogs, Jack and Juno, from the last Seahawk Super Bowl era (2015!), fully decked out and extremely patient about it. A different time.
For the record: Benny and Ramona have already declined participation. Loudly.
So this weekend? Iāll be cheering, making and eating a whole lot of snacks I actually enjoy, and soaking up the fun of it all. I hope you will be, too.
(And yes, I know some of you are Patriots fans. We can still be friends.)
Go Hawks. šš
Until next time - more dogs, less dogma. Always.
Carol
