Catching Up

It's been a whirlwind summer already! We spent three weeks back east for our wedding and honeymoon, and I have to say, dreams can come true! My wedding day was, indeed, the best day of my life. In fact, the whole week of the wedding was amazing, full of parties and festivities, friends and family. I have re-lived the moment many times of stepping out to walk down the aisle on my father's arm, and each time I get chills and can hardly believe it--a very powerful, emotional moment.

Photo by Stephanie Gross

After a relaxing, sleep-filled honeymoon on the Outer Banks, it's been back to work for me! This summer involves mostly planning for the fall, a few big events:
In September, the annual NEDA Conference will be held in Austin, Texas, and I'm excited to be speaking on a panel with several others about exercise in the eating disorder treatment setting.
Then in October, Summit is hosting a one-day event with four great speakers here in Sacramento.
And...drumroll please...! In November, my book comes out!

In the meantime, I'm trying to survive the dry heat of 100+ degrees and smoky skies, a terrible side effect from the Northern California wildfires. Oh, what I'd do for a big east coast rain storm at a time like this! Happy July. :)

France's New Bill

I just sent this email to several of my friends...thought I'd post on here as well

You've maybe seen this in the news--but it raises an interesting debate. At what point does "freedom of expression" become outlawed? Jeffrey and I discussed on our way home from the gym this morning...

For instance, Jeffrey and I both agree that it should be illegal for people to bike while listening to headphones, because it endangers other people on the road. The pro-"ana" and "mia" websites are also harming other people, but Jeffrey draws the line there and does not believe that this behavior should be criminalized. He defends, "This is freedom of expression. I don't like what these people are expressing, but I don't want to criminalize expression." But aren't they both personal freedom choices? Whether to bike with headphones, whether to help people be unhealthily thin? Both personal choices, but both endangering other people. Where do YOU draw the line?

I'm not actually sure where I stand. I don't like laws that infringe of my personal freedom but I also get really annoyed when I see people biking with their ipod on AND when I see young girls starving themselves to death (both of which I see on a daily basis!). In an ideal world, I think I would like everyone to be educated and enlightened enough to make healthy choices themselves, without having the government make those choices for them. But if that isn't a reality, where do we, as a society, draw the line? So, something to think about...

Inspiration

I've been spending some time lately thinking about inspiration. You know, the stuff that makes me want to be my best self, stay happy and engaged in life. And I've come up with a little list...

1) My friend Whitney
2) Yoga classes
3) Walking in the sunshine
4) Really great books (lately I'm re-reading Faulkner's As I Lay Dying which is probably my all time favorite novel...)
5) Oprah. It's true! She's amazing.
6) My job. I'm SO LUCKY to have a job that inspires me!!!
7) Nice houses
8) NPR
9) My brother

Anyway, why am I thinking about this lately? I guess I've been evaluating how I spend my time. For instance, how much time am I "wasting" vs. engaging in a pastime that inspires me and helps me grow? Now, if you're reading this you already know I'm all about balance, and I totally think that eating ice cream and watching a chick flick is, sometimes, the absolutely best thing to do. But I'm also aware of my habits and patterns, and how regularly I waste away my evenings surfing the web or watching television, when maybe, just maybe, making another choice might feel more inspiring or invigorating. I've been playing around with making different choices, even small things.

Daytime Peach: Playing frisbee with my brother in San Francisco

For instance, I rarely pick up the phone after 7pm unless it's my fiance or my sister. I think in part this is a treat to myself: my evenings are my own, and I like them mellow and stress-free. Plus, I don't believe that I am "on call" just because I own a telephone. So, I make the choice to let it ring, and I wait to listen to the message until I feel like it. I think, for the most part, this is okay.

But then sometimes I realize that I'm letting my phone ring even when it's one of my best friends calling, and all I'm doing is watching "Everybody Loves Raymond" re-runs. Maybe, just maybe, sometimes talking to one of my girls would be more satisfying than watching a sitcom I've already seen. So, what would it be like to pick up the phone?

Nighttime Peach: PJ's at 7pm, the couch, and the laptop!

I have this weird identity dichotomy where I'm Peach #1 during the day and Peach #2 in the evening. All day long I'm super productive, getting through all my work, exercising, preparing nice meals, cleaning the house, but then after dinner I shift into nighttime Peach, who can't bother putting her clothes away and drifts into chill-out oblivion complete with fro yo and re-runs. And. I. (kind of) Love. It.

But it doesn't inspire me. And sometimes it makes me feel depressed. So I'm playing around with how to keep the inspiration alive even when it's nighttime. My hunch is that I veg out at night because I'm plum tired! I really go go go all day. I am super woman, type A to the max, all about productivity and progress, so I think at night I'm just pooped and I need to relax. I just wonder...is there a way to relax that doesn't feel like a total personality switch? I'm thinking I might have to start a post-dinner bubble bath ritual followed by reading poems in bed or something. Doesn't that sound...like a more inspiring version of junk food and TV?

So my verdict is: Again, it's all about the balance. There's nothing wrong with spending an evening snacking with a movie on, unless it becomes habitual, thereby losing it's calming effect and becoming a sort of depressing habit. And then, well, I've got my bubbles waiting in the bathroom!

Exercise and Eating Disorders

I found an article about exercise and eating disorders that I like. Some of the authors warning signs match my own characteristics of exercise bulimia.

Why She Feels Fat

A plug for the new edition of my boss, Dr. Tony Paulson's, book--it's the best resource out there for loved ones of those struggling with an eating disorder. You can order it here!

Lacrosse in California

We drove down to Claremont, California this weekend to watch my sister play in a lacrosse game against Pomona. Her school, Sewanee, aka The University of the South, kicked some serious west-coast booty and won the game 12-10.



Lacrosse is a pretty common sport in Virginia, where I grew up. I played, along with pretty much everyone else I knew, but it seems lots of people in California don't even know about the game.



I haven't played on a lacrosse team since the eighth grade, and never was really very good at it anyway, but watching Tor with her college classmates run around the field was super duper inspiring. I wish I could do college over again!

Eating Disorders on the Radio

Click here to listen to my radio interview yesterday on Capital Public Radio.