Hello and welcome.
My name is Lisa Schlossberg,
And I will be your guide for today.
Today I'm going to explain a little bit about what we're doing ahead of time and then guide you through a practice that is dedicated to supporting you with fear foods or trigger foods.
If you have certain foods in your life that either you don't feel safe around,
You don't trust yourself with.
Or it feels like the only way for you to safely trust yourself is to have total control over.
If there are certain foods that you want to feel more safe and comfortable eating or engaging with,
That's what this practice is for.
So I do invite you to go get a piece of food or a meal or something that brings up a big emotional experience or reaction in you,
And then we can practice this together in real time around it.
So if you need to pause the video to go do that,
Please feel free.
So part of the reason that I felt inspired to create a practice like this is because number one,
I know what it's like to move through the world and move through my life with a lot of fear of food.
And number two,
I also am pretty well versed in the mind-body connection and brain science around food.
So now I also understand what I didn't many years ago,
That is,
The brain doesn't know the difference between stressors.
And so at a certain point,
Because of where my relationship with food was,
Maybe on the surface,
From the outside looking in,
It was just a piece of pizza.
But the way that my animal brain was perceiving that piece of pizza was like it was a saber-toothed tiger that was going to kill me.
So I know now,
And I also want you to know now,
That when these big,
Big,
Really scary panic,
Anxiety,
Terror sometimes feelings come up around food,
You're not doing anything wrong.
You are not overly dramatic.
You're not being too sensitive.
This is the mind-body connection and how it works.
The good news is when we start to do practices like what I'll walk you through today,
We can actually increase the safety,
Increase the comfort,
And really neutralize the experience around these foods so that you can enjoy them again.
I think one of the biggest problems with fear around foods is that then it becomes kind of a repeating cycle of being afraid of the food and then avoiding the food because of the fear,
And then being more afraid and then avoiding,
And then being afraid and then avoiding,
And then at no point is there exposure And at no point do we really get to create safety and sustainability around a relationship with food that feels stable.
So what we're going to do here today is actually course correct a little bit.
Where instead of trying to not be afraid of food or change the way you feel about it,
Or instead of avoiding it completely and just kind of disconnecting from it.
What we're going to do is support you in engaging with it and being exposed to it so that,
Again,
You can feel more safe moving forward.
Now,
With all of that being said,
I invite you,
If you haven't already,
To get the food that you want to work with.
And then when you're ready and it is here with you,
First I'll just have you close your eyes,
If that feels okay.
And take a deep breath.
And first,
Just start bringing the awareness to what's going on inside your body.
Right here,
Right now.
You've closed your eyes,
So you're closing off the world outside of you.
And just starting to focus on what's going on inside.
Notice how you feel.
Notice the energy in your body.
Any thoughts that might be going through your head?
And right now with your eyes closed,
You're just allowing yourself to settle in stillness.
So there might be a lot of activity.
There might be a lot of thoughts,
There might be big feelings,
There might be a lot of energy coming up and that's okay.
So right now,
All you have to do is breathe.
The only thing you have to focus on in this moment.
Is your inhale and then your exhale.
We're just creating a bit of a transition for your mind-body system.
To slow down a little bit.
While you connect.
With yourself and your breath and your body.
Here in the present moment.
So bringing the energy of safety into the stillness right now.
Letting your whole body know that it is okay.
It's okay to be here.
It's okay to have feelings about being here.
And it's also safe for you right here,
Right now,
To take a deep breath.
Sigh and giving yourself another minute just to settle in.
Feeling your feet on the ground if that's where they are.
Noticing the chair or couch beneath you and behind you.
Maybe even feeling your clothing on your skin.
And just orienting to being inside your body.
And then from this place of stillness.
Softening.
And relaxing.
Now keeping your eyes closed.
And just starting to bring the awareness back.
To the practice.
That you are here for.
Bringing the awareness back to the food that you have sitting with you or in front of you.
But just keeping your eyes closed.
Right now,
Your intention is to stay connected to your body.
And your feelings.
So as you start to reintroduce the idea,
Of engaging with this food.
Notice what comes up.
Notice if there's fear or anxiety.
If there's judgment or shame.
If there's excitement or eagerness.
Maybe even sadness or grief or anger.
Just notice.
And for a moment,
You're just being the witness.
What do I find when I think about eating this food?
What comes out?
And breathe.
So as you start to notice any emotions.
You might also notice the energy in your body.
So maybe there's a.
.
.
Tightness or clenching.
A faster heart rate,
A faster breath.
And so as you bring these feelings up,
Which is exactly what you're here to do,
Take another breath.
And let it be here.
So that helps you can imagine taking a step back and just creating space.
If fear or anxiety is here.
Imagine letting it in.
Almost like you're opening a door.
Letting it into the room with you.
It is safe for you to feel what you're feeling.
Even if it's fear.
You can let it be here.
So breathe as you do that.
And introduce the intention.
To feel what you're feeling emotionally.
While also settling your body at the same time.
Can I keep breathing deeply?
While I let in the anxiety.
Can I stay present in my body with myself?
While I hear the voice of judgment or shame.
And just notice yourself being here with you.
Not running away because there are big feelings.
And if you need another few breaths here practicing this,
Please feel free to pause this and stay here.
And then when you're ready.
You can start to very slowly blink your eyes open.
And just noticing your surroundings.
Reorienting to the room that you're in.
Noticing any objects or colors around you.
And then bringing your awareness again to the food that you are here with.
And just looking at it.
Giving yourself a mindful moment just to observe.
The food that you're here with,
And then noticing any feelings that might be coming up as you're here.
And again,
There is no right or wrong.
There's no good or bad.
You are just creating space for the emotions that usually come up to be exactly here now.
So as you think about eating this food,
Remember your intention is to stay embodied.
In your body.
What am I feeling?
How is my breath?
Can I keep coming back inside?
And so before you eat anything.
Just taking another moment to ground yourself.
Now your eyes are open,
You're looking at the food,
And even just being here in this moment can bring up a lot.
So notice your breath.
Slow your system down.
And if you notice that there is any more clenching or tightening or speeding up in your body,
That's okay.
First,
Just notice it.
Bye.
And then bring yourself back to the truth that is you're safe here right now.
You are safe.
You may not be comfortable.
You might be scared.
You might be emotional,
That's okay.
That's okay.
None of that is threatening your safety.
You're a human being.
You're having feelings.
It's okay.
Just let it be here.
And you might notice even if there's any part of you that wants to cry.
Or release any emotion.
Just let that happen.
It's okay.
It's okay.
And then moving really slowly.
Breathing.
If you feel ready.
You can go ahead and take a bite of what it is you came here to practice with.
And moving really slowly.
So maybe that means just taking a little bit on a fork or a spoon,
Maybe breaking off a little piece.
And just again,
Slowly with intention.
Taste what it is that you're eating.
And if it helps to be even more present with it,
You can close your eyes again.
And just again,
Notice you're here,
You're doing it.
You're eating this food.
And you're having feelings about it.
And that's okay.
You are safe here.
So that any point is helpful to remember.
The mantra that I always use around things like this is,
I'm uncomfortable,
I'm not unsafe.
So as you are practicing with this food,
You can tell yourself.
I'm uncomfortable.
I'm not unsafe.
And maybe if it resonates,
I'm scared,
But I'm not unsafe.
I feel anxious.
But I'm not in danger.
And as you do that,
Just keeping yourself moving slowly.
With your breath in your body.
And then when you're ready,
If you want to take another bite.
But just notice what does it taste like.
Do you enjoy it?
Does it remind you of anything?
How is it for you to be slow and in your body as you're eating it?
And just notice.
There's no right or wrong answer.
There's no good or bad.
There's no agenda here.
Other than keeping you in a safe,
Safe energy.
So keeping this up with every bite,
Every breath.
Just moving slowly and reminding yourself.
That this food is not a saber-toothed tiger.
This food is not a life-threatening predator.
And right here,
Right now,
What you're doing is feeling feelings and allowing the emotional energy to be present in your body with you.
This is safe.
And if you notice at any point that you start feeling a little too overwhelmed to stay present in your body,
That's okay.
You can pause the video.
You can take a break.
You can close your eyes.
You can give yourself some distance from it if you need.
And for anchors back to the present moment,
You can always again,
Close your eyes or not,
Feel your feet on the ground.
Feel yourself in the chair.
Feel the close on your skin.
And just keep bringing yourself back to the room around you to orient yourself back into safety.
So as you continue on with the rest of this snack or meal,
Whatever it is,
The practice,
The intention is to move slowly and stay present in the moment in safety.
And then when you're ready,
When you're finished,
I think it's really important to also acknowledge yourself.
For doing something really brave.
This is not about getting rid of the fear or getting out of the feelings.
But bravery and courage is walking into them so that you can take your power back and really eat and enjoy this food when you want to moving forward.
So this might be something you want to practice a few more times or many more times until it feels like this food has been a little bit more neutralized in your system.
And that's okay.
That's the purpose of this practice,
For you to continue coming back to it as you need it.
Congratulations on doing this and moving through this.
You survived.
You made it,
And you can always come back when you need it.
