My friend sent me an article about intuitive eating.  It was titled "What Happens to Your Brain when you go on a Diet".  Articles like this intrigue and disgust me. We all know that diets aren't as trendy anymore.  So it says all the right things; dieting makes you gain weight, everyone has a set point weight that the body wants to get back to after dieting, they make note that the “calories in and calories out” is “old”, and they even mention that you can maintain a healthy diet and gain weight which is true.  They warn of bingeing in reaction to deprivation and how the stress hormones from dieting can impact your health. They mention how dieting makes you stop listening to your body’s own cues. They even say that being slim doesn’t mean your healthy – they say it in parentheses (as if they don’t really want to say that).  It all sounds like they are against dieting – right?  

My daughter's first day of middle school is today.  6th grade.  Last night she confided that she is nervous and wants to go back to elementary school.  She is afraid she will get lost. I am afraid she will get lost too, but in a different way. 

I am afraid she will get lost emotionally and spiritually as is so common with girls in middle school. I am afraid she will start to value her looks over her intelligence. I am afraid she will start comparing her body to everyone else and judging herself or others. I am afraid she will find herself lacking from listening to other women complain about their bodies, or listening to other girls going on diets, or from participating in social media full of photo shopped and filtered pictures or by watching tv and seeing the millions of ads telling her what is wrong with her and how she can fix it for only $19.99 a month.