by guest blogger Susan Albers, Psy.D., author of 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself without Food

Whether you agree or totally disagree with a plant based diet isn’t the issue. The primary benefit of seeing Forks Over Knives is that it shows change is possible. Before your client can modify their eating habits, they need hope and to truly believe that change can happen. This film successfully meets that goal. The film follows a few individuals from all walks of life and at various ages who are on multiple medications and have critically elevated cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Within a short period of time, these individuals got off their medications and significant improved their lab results. The change is dramatic. The viewer is left with the impression that what you eat does matter to your health and that you can make changes that will significantly improve your well-being. It appears attainable and completely in reach no matter who you are or how old. In other words, Forks over Knives is likely to change the perception of the client who thinks it is a waste of time to be more mindful and attentive to what they eat.

by guest blogger Pavel Somov, PhD, author of Eating the Moment

Emotional eating is misunderstood and often unnecessarily demonized. However, emotional eating -- that is, eating to feel good, often termed "compulsive eating" -- isn't the problem. It's emotional overeating and mindless emotional eating that can be both psychologically and physically unhealthy. Emotional eating works as a coping strategy and stress reliever if approached with mindfulness and moderation.

review by Wendy Millstine, NC

The Whole-Food Guide to Overcoming Irritable Bowel Syndrome offers helpful and nutritious guidelines for what to eat and what to avoid to prevent IBS symptoms, as well as supplements for healthy digestion and tips on lifestyle changes, stress reduction, and exercise. The best part is the recipe section. Among my favorites, the book’s mouth-watering recipes include: chicken breakfast patties; gluten-free golden carrot pancakes; liver pâté; Japanese-style fish soup; and sweet potato pie. They’re all delicious and easy to prepare, and even better, they don’t require too many ingredients. Savor and enjoy good food and good health!

Quick Tip for Therapists by Sasha T. Loring, M.Ed., LCSW, author of Eating with Fierce Kindness .

I try to put myself in my clients' shoes as often as I can. When I think about "the first session" from a client's perspective, I usually think about how scary and intimidating it is to come into a session with a stranger and be asked all sorts of questions about your personal life. So when I first meet with a client, my first question is usually "What brings you to therapy now?"

by blogger Susan Albers, PsyD, author of 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food.

Heavy, a new T.V. docudrama about obesity, debuted on A&E. Have you noticed several T.V. shows about obesity and eating disorders popping up on different T.V. channels? Some have been better than others-depending on the angle. A few have showcased eating disordered behaviors as odd and "entertainment" whereas are more geared toward helping people learn. On a positive note, the plethora of T.V. shows seems to reflect an overall growing curiosity and interest in how eating problems develop and how to best treat them.

Five aspects of Heavy were unique and inspiring.

excerpt from Eating With Fierce Kindness by Sasha T. Loring, M.Ed., LCSW

For most people, changing deeply ingrained habits is not easily done, especially with habits that are as personal as those that relate to eating. Research indicates that the approach of self-kindness has powerful and lasting results and supports the kinds of changes that will enable your long-term success with achieving a healthy weight. I like using the term fierce kindness, which is the ability to strongly devote ourselves to changing thought patterns, beliefs, and behaviors that are ultimately not in our best interest, and doing so out of self-kindness, not self-judgment or criticism. The “fierceness” is the determination it takes to face your personal challenges. The “kindness” is the act of learning to enhance sincere feelings of warmth and caring toward yourself as you go along.

Quick Tip for Therapists by Susan Albers, Psy.D., author of Eat, Drink, and Be Mindful, 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food and Eating Mindfully .

Clients with eating problems often develop a number of mindless eating routines. Eating in the car on the way to work, snacking at their computer, or munching during their favorite TV show each night are a few common examples. Help your clients identify the mindless eating behaviors that have simply become habitual. These behaviors are often much easier to tackle than emotional eating behaviors.

by Susan Albers, Psy.D., author of 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food

Already fretting about how many calories are in pecan pie? Anxious about weight gain this holiday season? If you struggle with post-Thanksgiving food guilt, let gratitude be your guide this year. It sounds deceptively simple, but it can be a difficult mindset to adopt if you worry about what you eat. Enter the day with a grateful spirit to help you end the holiday without food guilt.

Stop Thanksguilting and start Thanksgiving. Here are five tips:

by guest blogger Pavel Somov, Ph.D., author of Eating the Moment

The act of giving thanks is more than just a gesture of gratitude. It is a unique teaching moment. Indeed, by expressing appreciation for this or that we teach the world about what matters to us, about what is existentially significant for us. With this in mind, let me ask you this: what contributions to your well-being will you be reinforcing this year with your gratitude? Will you be showing gratitude for financial, material, logistical help you have received this year or will you be emphasizing the importance of the contributions of support, friendship and companionship?

Pavel Somov, Ph.D. created a mindfulness eating tracker to help people with mindful eating. He says:

For years we've been asked to track what we eat and how much we eat. Mindfulness Tracker allows you to journal (twitter-style) about the how of your eating - about the mindfully-meaningful eating moments of your life. The idea is to track experiential calories. Share (with yourself and the world) a moment of eating presence. You don't have to eat mindfully all the time: just aim to have a mindful at each meal and flag it here: set a precedent of mindful eating! Also, feel free to journal about eating moments lost - i.e. about the effects of mindless eating.

Jumpstart your Thanksgiving holiday by using this Mindfulness Eating Tracker.