Did you know...

Binges can be used to do many things. How do you use bingeing/overeating?
Distraction?
Reward for being "good"?
Escape?
Rebellion? Breaking the rules?
Avoiding scary situations or slowing time down?
Cherishing yourself?
Setting a "my space" boundary?
Soothing loneliness?
Dealing with anger, grief, or joy?
Other ways?
Remember: Bingeing/emotional eating are powerful strategies to soothe yourself. Bingeing doesn't really meet needs, or solve the underlying problems, but it probably got you through some rough spots. As people recover, it is important to remember BED is not a "choice"; it was part of the path you needed to take. Now, you can make very different choices!

Events in Ann Arbor

October 17
7:00-9:00
Eastern Michigan University, Ann Arbor, MI
Keynote: “The Body in the Mirror and the Body in the Mind:
Recognizing the Impact of Weight Stigma”
Speaker: Amy Pershing


Bodywise and The Center for Eating Disorders are offering EMBARC, a nine week mindfulness-based program to assist individuals with eating, weight and body image challenges. The next group will meet every Tuesday, 7-9:30 p.m., Jan. 25 - March 29, 2011 at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Women's Health Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

EMBARC (Encouraging Mindfulness and Balance, Awakening Responsiveness and Connection) teaches evidence-based principles and practices of mindfulness to promote greater awareness of the relationship between mind and body, and eating issues. By bringing mindfulness to mood states, thinking patterns and awareness of normal physiological cues (especially satiety and hunger), participants will learn to mobilize their own inner resources to enhance their health and healing. EMBARC is based on the seminal work of Jon Kabat Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course offered at the U-MASS Stress Reduction Clinic and James Gordon's Mind-body skills program offered through the Center of Mind-body Medicine in Washington, DC.

EMBARC is facilitated by Bodywise/CED Medical Director Melissa Sunderman, DO and Rita Benn, PhD. For information and registration, call Dr. Melissa Sunderman, 734-668-8585 or email info@thebodywiseprogram.com


The BED Recovery Group is a 12-week series designed for individuals looking for an adjunct to their current therapy. The group will provide an invaluable opportunity to develop and implement new skills in a supportive and collaborative environment. Working with the group leader, Kristine Vazzano, PhD, you will learn new skills to re-define your relationship with food and your body. An opportunity to re-connect with your body through two mindful movement sessions with Robin Okun, LMSW is an integral component to this series. Topic areas include: learning to distinguish physical and emotional hunger, enhancing communication skills, understanding and identifying triggers to bingeing, learning to stop a binge or overeating cycle, and mindfulness techniques. This 12-week series will provide you with skills necessary for recovery from BED and beyond!

New! A Weigh Out offers a supportive online community in conjunction with the Bodywise Program. Membership in the A Weigh Out Circle includes: Weekly Empowerment Tools, access to the "Weigh This Instead" Blog written by founder Ellen Shuman and top experts in the recovery field, including Bodywise's Amy Pershing. Members also gain exclusive access to a "Members, Only" social networking site called the "A Weigh Out Empowerment Network", plus audio, videos, and much, much more.

For a FREE 21-Day Trial, visit www.aweighout.com and click on "About Membership". The A Weigh Out Circle is the online follow up community for participants in The Bodywise Intensive and those in the Bodywise Program, and anyone working on recovery from emotional and binge eating issues.


The Bodywise Intensive. Ready to really let go of binge eating? Please join us for the Bodywise Intensive, a 2 1/2 day program that offers a powerful jumpstart for recovery from Binge Eating Disorder! Call for dates and locations. The Intensive provides a supportive environment for binge eaters to understand the causes and uses of binge eating in their lives, how to recognize and manage binge triggers, and learn skills for intuitive eating and movement. Please join us for a life-changing experiential weekend! Click here to see the latest flyer with more information.

BED Recovery Support Group meets weekly 12:00pm-1:00pm. A professionally drop-in support group for women in recovery from BED, yo-yo dieting and related issues. Please call us for a brief screening interview to be sure the group is a good fit.

Parents and Partners Support and Education Group - This group is designed to help parents and partners of people in recovery by providing education, tools and peer support. Group is professionally led by one of our staff. Please call the Center for Eating Disorders at (734) 668-8585 for dates.

BED Therapy Group - 12 week intensive therapy groups are offered for those currently in individual therapy. Groups can be a vital part of recovery; please call for more information, and to see if a group is right for you.

Diets don't work. Do you know why?

  1. Your body adapts to caloric restriction; the less you eat, the less it uses. Which means to maintain weight loss, you must ALWAYS continue to further restrict.
  2. Diets create food cravings; we are biologically designed to obsess about food when we are hungry OR when we forbid ourselves certain foods. It is only a matter of time before we satisfy the craving.
  3. Diets don't adapt to changes in your body, so they are never truly satisfying.
  4. Dieting makes people less likely to trust their own body. They believe they gained weight back because they "cheated," not because the diet was impossible to maintain.

Remember, every diet you have "failed" was your body telling you dieting doesn't work!