Wild Healthy Nutrition

• For If It Feels Hard •

The How might feel a bit fuqt

The What had to pivot, multiple times, and might be unrecognisable

The Who came and went, they come and go

The When is unknowable

The Why might not make sense anymore

#2022

• International Women’s Day •
It’s a beautiful thing to celebrate our circle. I always message my women on International Women’s Day coz I have some badass ones in my circle.

But that’s not the point of IWD.

While we celebrate the incredible women in our lives, it’s important to acknowledge the women who might not be in our lives, the ones who have been deprived of opportunity, education, freedom, a voice, equal pay, bodily autonomy, and human rights.

IWD cannot be just a celebration of how far our small circle has come, when the world is still so unequal and the patriarchy still so ingrained. For those of us with the means to do so, we need to continue to petition, to donate, to march. We need to listen, and we need to advocate alongside without speaking over or on behalf of. IWD is about fighting for gender equality and justice and we are so far from that on a global scale.

For Black women and women of colour, disabled women, trans women, fat women, elderly women, women in poverty, women in forced labour, women in refuge, women in direct provision, women in crisis pregnancy, women with chronic illness, women with mental illness, women fighting for equal pay, women fighting for redress, women who can’t leave, women who don’t report, women who aren’t believed.

This day is about all of us, not just some of us.

• Wild Healthy Nutrition Clinic Schedule •

I’m back to work today after an incredible break over the Christmas holidays. I’m popping my schedule on here but my ‘live calendar’ is on my website i.e. what slots are actually left after my regular clients have booked in.

If you ever want to have a ten minute chat, I offer complementary discovery calls on Mondays - they’re a quick opportunity for me to tell you how the process usually works and for you to ask me questions related to non-diet nutrition and intuitive eating. If I’m not the right person, I’ll always signpost to another professional.

Wild Healthy Nutrition Clinic Schedule
Jan-Apr 2022

Consultations:
Wednesdays 08:00 - 17:00
Thursdays 09:00 - 15:00
Fridays 11:00 - 16:00

Discovery Calls:
Mondays 12:00 - 14:00

Remote consultations continue to be
the default unless otherwise requested

• Live Laugh Lovin and Solvin Nothin •

Body-focused work is political.
It requires confronting multiple systems
of oppression.

If you want to stay
apolitical when
talking about bodies, you can.

That’s called Wellness;
toxic individualism
writ large.

• Perfectionism •
It is not a quest for the best.

It is a pursuit
Of the worst in ourselves.

That part that tells us
That nothing we do

Will ever be enough

-Julia Cameron

• I’d rather we cause trouble •

Body Acceptance is the radical notion that we can inhabit our bodies, prioritise care and comfort, and deprioritise the urge to fix, manipulate, objectify or control.

• The Wilderness •
Issue 002 of my long form newsletter just went out.

This snippet is how I sum up my approach to nutrition.

And well-being
And movement
And mental health

And Health.

• The Wilderness •
The August issue is now the September issue. She took a little longer than planned. But she’s ready.

Folks, if you’re interested in non-diet nutrition, Health at Every Size, intuitive eating, fitness, wellbeing, and mental health, I’m sending the next issue of my newsletter into an inbox near you tomorrow morning. To subscribe, go to the link in my bio, scroll to the footer and sign up.

• Up on the Blog •
My newsletter has a section called ‘What I’ve Been Listening To’ and last month I wrote about my three favourite Maintenance Phase episodes. I decided to put a condensed version on the blog and on these here tiles, should you be looking for podcast recommendations. If you’ve been listening, lemme know your fave episode- I’ve now listened to them all three times over.

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Hi, I’m Carla. I’m a Registered Nutritionist and Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor, specialising in the non-diet approach. I run a weekly nutrition clinic from Dublin 2 (online and in-person consultations available). I have a monthly newsletter so if you want to sign up for August for deeper musings on diet culture, nutrition, wellbeing, body image and fitness through a non-diet lens, go to the link in my bio to join the mailing list.

• We’re Not Broken: The System Is •
When you’re in the thick of the shame, the body-hatred, the maladaptive, disordered and harmful behaviours, it’s challenging to view yourself as anything other than broken. A disbelief at the extent to which the shame, the body-hatred, the maladaptive, disordered and harmful behaviours have taken over your thoughts and your sense of self.

I meet folks at the centre of this Venn diagram who wholeheartedly believe there is nothing beyond that rugby ball shaped intersection. It’s them. They’re the problem. This is all there is. This is all there ever was. Stuck, loathing, never-enoughness.

Broken.

But, and I need you to hear me on this, this is a broken system working THROUGH you. A system of collective beliefs we’ve all accepted and internalised. A system dominated by patriarchal standards of how to be in the world. A system dominated by racism and white supremacy. A system that requires individual self-silencing to prevent collective liberation.

We are not broken. The system is.

Bodies Change

With time
With age
With love
With loss
With transitions
With trauma
With life
With newness
With sameness
With nothingness
With everythingness

• NewsTalk Interview •

Back in April I was interviewed by the wonderful on Alive and Kicking programme. Clare asked me all about the non-diet approach, Health at Every Size, and what the typical journey through Intuitive Eating looks like. I’ve just written the transcript into a blog post and linked the audio too. Early in the chat, Clare asked about my journey to becoming a non-diet nutritionist….

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Reader: It was not a straightforward journey.

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And it isn’t close to being over

• If Help Does Not Help It Isn’t Help •

One of the more common conversations I have with my clients is the unravelling of harm that was caused by a former ‘support network’. A PT who demanded results even to the point of injury. A Dietitian or Nutritionist who fed the disordered thoughts with meal plans and restrictive advice. The weekly group weigh-ins at the community centre that fuelled obsession in the days prior and compulsion in the moments after. These are real stories and I hear them over and over and over.

And here’s the thing.

Part of these stories are individual and part of them are societal.

Society tells us our bodies signpost our virtue and our discipline. So we find a PT, discuss our weight loss goals, and try find our self-worth at the leg-press machine. Society tells us we can’t be trusted around food. So we ask a Dietitian or a Nutritionist for guidance. For structure. For grams and calories and portion sizes. Society tells us we lack willpower and don’t want it badly enough. So we find a support group of like-minded people on a similar journey and agree that weekly public weigh-ins are what will keep us accountable. That’s what we went looking for. As individuals, immersed in a collective belief that bodies need to be controlled. That’s what we were told to look for. And that’s what we found.

Supply and demand.

Round these here squares, however, there’s a collective of us wanting something else. Who hold the painful knowledge that the story we were told and the stories we tell ourselves are misguided at best and oppressive at worst.

We’re out here asking how best we can help.

Because if you go looking for help,
and it doesn’t help,
it isn’t help.

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I’m Carla, a Registered Nutritionist who’s mission is to help people repair their relationship with food, movement and body image. Every week I hold clinic hours for folks embracing intuitive eating and non-diet nutrition. I also offer quick and complimentary calls so we can chat about whether this work would be the next-right-thing for you. Click the link in the bio to book your 10 minute chat. And let’s see.

One more thing in comments:

• Perfectionism Is A Trap •

• Tips n Tricks •
Tips n tricks are helpful, in-a-pinch offerings asked of and given by generous professionals on a topic they know lots about. In the last six months, I’ve gotten tips for keeping my plants alive, a really good hack for transcribing audio content into typed format, how to get to a wine spill out of a brand new jumper and the best tools for siliconing a shower tray.

Tips n tricks are super helpful, tried and tested, pieces of info.

And

When it comes to you

When it comes to your body
Relationship with food
History of disordered eating
Budget
Time constraints
Likes and dislikes
Family background
Cultural background
Trauma
Gender
Accessibility
Fears
Needs

I wouldn’t dream
Of flippantly offering
Generic advice
To heal
A lifetime
Of self-rejection

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• June/July Shelfie •

Hood Feminism by Nikki Kendall. An analysis of how white supremacy showed up in feminism for so long and a reminder that it’s intersectionality or bust in the fight for the rights of ALL women. Also just a delish critique of lean-in feminism [almost finished]

Tomorrow S*x Will Be Good Again by Katherine Angel. A socio-cultural and political underscoring of consent, female desire, and sexuality (and a title borrowed from Michel Foucault- hello!) [finished] (thanks )

Binge Eating Disorder by Amy Pershing and Chevese Turner. THE handbook for understanding Binge Eating Disorder and it’s presentations. Great mix of theory and storytelling. [finished]

Perimenopause Power by Maisie Hill. I never read Period Power and I’m looking forward to this, mostly due to my client base. [Just started]

Pursuing Perfection by Margo Maine and Joe Kelly. An essential read for understanding the emergence and reemergence of eating disorders and disordered eating in mid-life. [mid-way through and also jumping around]

Trauma and the Body - I borrowed this from my Mammy’s library last time I was home. Haven’t started it yet but I’m fascinated by bodies and the trauma response. I’m also continuing the lineage of psychotherapists in the Bredin household so will be stealing her books for the next three years.



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Also huge thanks to .diels who has inspired me to get really creative with my social media imagery. I’ve been adding in elements that really speak to me and represent who I am personally and professionally (if you know me personally you’ll know all these items are already on my body)

• Monday reMinders •

Body Acceptance
is the radical notion
that we can inhabit our bodies

prioritise care and comfort

and deprioritise the urge to fix
manipulate
objectify
or control

• The Twenty Year Adventure •

It’s been twenty years since I finished school, left home and started life on my own, first in Galway, then London and then Dublin.

In those twenty years I’ve been THROUGH it. Gathered a million stories. Tried my hand at many things. Done the most random collection of jobs. Lost myself. Abandoned myself. Forgave myself. Started over.

I remember hearing about an old friend who once tutted to my brother ‘what’s she up to now?’ Reader: it wasn’t a question.

I’ve changed and adapted and trialled and errored for two decades. I’ve been living my life in a searching curiosity-driven way for twenty years. And I know myself. I fully know myself.

Seth Godin has this wonderful piece about creating something to put into the world with full acceptance that people might not like it: “I made this and it might not be for you”. This is how I’m choosing to move through the world now. I know I’ve created something of value. I know I’ve something to say and a purposeful life to live. I know who it’s for.

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I’m Carla, a Non-Diet Nutritionist and Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor. Every week I hold space in my nutrition clinic to help people repair their relationship with food, movement and body image. If you’re curious about whether intuitive eating and non-diet nutrition is the next-right-thing, click the link in the bio to book a 10 minute chat. And let’s see.

📸 for

• Into The Wild •
The Wilderness Issue 001 has gone out. Returning to long-form writing has been so enjoyable. The Wild Healthy Nutrition Newsletter is divided into four parts:
🎧 What I’m Listening To (podcasts, audiobooks etc)
📖 What I’m Reading (books, journal articles, research papers)
💭 What I’m Thinking (a long-form reflection on a topic that I’ve been researching; mostly not always related to my clinical/client work)
💬 Who I’ve Been Chatting To (inviting a guest to share their expertise- this month was the phenom )

August Issue of The Wilderness has already been mapped.

• Rhetoric Rebranded •

Make them continue to hate themselves. Just don’t make it sound hateful.

Find ways to convince people their bodies are unacceptable and fundamentally flawed without sounding hurtful.

Continue the racism, misogyny, ableism, and capitalism but be nice about it.

Oppress and demean but in a gentle, caring way.

Find nicer words
and then
press
the same
pain
points.

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The Wildnerness, my monthly newsletter goes out tomorrow. If you’d like to read this full essay on why wellness culture is just diet culture rebranded, follow the link in my bio, scroll to the footer and subscribe to the mailing list.

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use this shorthand often - the find + replace tactics of diet culture. I’m talking about the Maintenance Phase podcast in my newsletter this month - for anyone that hasn’t listened yet, I’d highly recommend it.

There’s a tip and a trick for everything.

But if you’re crying into your Good Vibes Only mug? Lying prone during a sound bath and struggling to quiet a ruminating or raging mind? Spritzing lavender pillow spray during a period of insomnia? Feeling dizzy and nauseous after a workout because of the extra push - no pain no gain right? Digging deep, yeah?

What’s the tip?

Where’s the trick?

Wellness Culture is Diet Culture with Extra Lavender

• Everything can be advertised and sold to us, including our Selves •

Love it
But change it first

Rest
But improve it with this

Sleep
Using this tried and tested routine

Destress
Monthly subscription or annual?

Vitality
Once in the morning on an empty stomach

Glow Up
Glowy, glowier, glowiest, not quite.

Optimise. Hack. Nourish. Empower.
On our terms.
And conditions.

Try
Harder

Try Again

Comply

Wellness Culture is Diet Culture with Extra Lavender

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I’m Carla, a Non-Diet Nutritionist and Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor. I’m a little fed up with the wellness industry and I’m writing about it in my Newsletter this month. If you wanna hear more, subscribe via the link in my bio. From time to time I may let you know about my work, but mostly this is an educational and reflective newsletter on the wider field of non-diet nutrition to help us divest from diet culture (and wellness culture).

• Wellness Culture is Diet Culture with Extra Lavender •
It’s become a little trickier to notice the obvious forms of diet culture because there’s been a wholesale rebranding across the industry. The Diet Culture Playbook got an ‘upgrade’ a while back. It was feeling a little outdated and so a new cover was chosen, new PR and marketing teams were put in place, new product lines were launched. It’s now the Wellness Culture Playbook. New cover, new name, same content. Once you know what you’re looking at, once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

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All this week, I’m posting snippets of the “Wellness Culture is Diet Culture with Extra Lavender” essay featured in Issue 001 of The Wilderness. That’s my Newsletter, and the July issue goes out this weekend. If you’re not yet subscribed, I invite you to go to the link in my bio, scroll to the footer and sign up.

Happy half year folks.
Things are still s**t and being
a dick isn’t cute.

#2021

• Self-Care •

Self-care isn't all pillow sprays and pedicures.

Wellness culture convinces us the antidote to overwhelm
is a commodity with a lavender scent.

Sometimes, self-care
is
therapy,
medication,
boundaries,
tears
and
farewells.

Sometimes,
what's most needed
is a gnarly, fraught attempt
to prioritise the self.

• The Wilderness •
A vast and sprawling landscape that requires careful navigation. Maps, compasses and water for safety and the known; curiosity and a sense of adventure for everything else.

www.wildhealthy.com⁠
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I'm launching my monthly newsletter The Wilderness in July. I'm excited to share my writing, my projects, and all the things I'm vibing with that you might like to vibe with too.⁠
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I'll be navigating the terrain of diet culture, wellness culture, non-diet nutrition, the Health At Every Size approach and Intuitive Eating. This is all the stuff I've been exploring on this page these last three years, but the newsletter will be a long-form style, to get deeper into the subject matter and provide additional resources and references.⁠
⁠
If you'd like to receive these one-per-month emails, just click the link in my bio and scroll to the footer to sign up. I'll be in touch next month with Issue One of the Wild Healthy Newsletter.⁠
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• Care of Self Does Not Equal Control of Self • Control of Self Does Not Equal Care of Self •

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I’m Carla, Registered Nutritionist, Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor and owner of Wild Healthy Nutrition. I work with clients on repairing their relationship with food and body after years of dieting, excessive exercising, and attempts to shrink their body at all costs. I hold weekly office hours for those who want to chat through whether working with a non-diet nutritionist might be the next right step. Link in bio to book a discovery call

My hope is that our work together will embolden you to live a life where peace and fulfilment with food and movement become just one of the many, many, MANY facets to who you are and how you rightfully and joyfully thrive in the world.⁠
⁠
www.wildhealthy.com⁠
⁠
__________________________________________⁠
⁠
I'm launching my monthly newsletter in July and I'm excited to share my writing, my projects, and all the things I'm vibing with that you might like to vibe with too.⁠
⁠
I'll be riffing on diet culture, wellness culture, non-diet nutrition, the Health At Every Size approach and Intuitive Eating. This is all the stuff I've been riffing on on this page these last three years, but the newsletter will be a long-form style, to get deeper into the subject matter and provide additional resources and references.⁠
⁠
If you'd like to receive these one-per-month emails, just click the link in my bio and scroll to the footer to sign up. I'll be in touch next month with Issue One of the Wild Healthy Newsletter.⁠
⁠
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⁠
photo by for (I'm an ambassador, and grateful for the opportunity to use my platform to speak with them about weight-inclusive approaches to health, fitness and wellbeing⁠).

• Body Image Healing •

It’s not a linear process.

It technically can be step by step, but mostly, it’s just not.

It’s more akin to snakes and ladders.

You can do the most work,
be the most healed,
take tentative yet steady steps towards improving your relationship with self,

and then,

*something*

pulls you multiple steps backwards.

🌿…………………………………………………………..☂️

Psssssst…. That *something* tends to be white supremacist, patriarchal, anti-fat, ableist, classist, ageist standards of health, wellness, fitness and beauty.

🌿……………………………………………………………..☂️

I’m finally putting my monthly newsletter together so if you want to sign up for July for deeper musings, go to the link in my bio to join the mailing list.