Episodes

Are you afraid of satisfaction? Does it feel "wrong" to buy something you would like or to eat something that tastes truly delicious? In my intuitive eating coaching call, Erin Todd--co-host of the Intuitive Eating for Christian Women podcast--and I talk about why we struggle with satisfaction. We talk about the ways we've subtly learned that it's better or holier to not be satisfied--in everything from our clothing purchases to our food choices. We also talk about the following: Why do we use ...

Are you afraid of what others think of you? Maybe you're worried about what they think of your life, your body, your choices, your struggles. Today, author, speaker, and coach, Jill Savage and I tackle how we handle the fear of what others will think of us. Jill has experienced the gamut of life situations that could cause others to raise an eyebrow. From facing infidelity in her marriage (to a pastor), to walking through her son's mental health issues, to her other son's announcement about his ...

This conversation may shock and surprise you. Today, non-diet dietician, Tracy Brown and I have an informative conversation about bread avoidance. Over the last decade--bread has become a "scary" food to many who are dieting or trying to lose weight. But, is bread really something we should be afraid of? Is the frightening truth that we've been manipulated and guided towards certain foods and away from others because of popular trends or even politics? What? Have we been conditioned to be afraid...

Today is the start of a new month-long series about conquering our fears related to body image and food. Nicole Mesita, a non-diet RD, joins me to tackle our first issue: Conquering the Fear of Fat. The data surrounding this issue is astounding. Some studies show 63% of American women and 44% of American men are afraid of becoming fat. Eighty-one percent of ten-year-olds also are facing the fear of fat. But is there anything to really be afraid of? Where did this fear of fat come from? What doe...

Today Heather interviews Rosie Makinney of Fight for Love Ministries--a ministry dedicated to helping women affected by porn in their marriages. Rosie shares the resurrection story of her marriage and how she and her husband came to a new place of hope and healing after porn. We go to some hard places today in our conversation about the realities of porn and how it hurts our marriages. Here are some of the topics we tackle: Why we don't talk about it when porn shows up in our marriages and what...

This is the first in a series of three, monthly episodes where we'll talk about my latest book, The Burden of Better. Even if you've read it, these book club episodes go deeper and wider than what was captured in the book. Today we discuss the first part of the book--which goes into why we compare, the dangers of comparison, and what really happens when we chase our ideals and try to become more like the "ideal me." We also talk about the following: What does it mean to chase better? Why do we...

In honor of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, today I'm tackling the data on Eating Disorders. **Trigger Warning**This is a weighty and emotional topic. If you're recovering from an ED or have been diagnosed already, you may want to just skip this episode in case you find it triggering. My purpose today is to expose the many symptoms of eating disorders and alert you to the reality that some of what we consider "normal" in our health culture is actually disordered eating or eating disord...

Pregnancy can be a rough time on our body image. Rebekah Hargraves helps me dig into the challenges of body changes during and after pregnancy. Rebekah had her first baby in her early 20s, while I had my first in her early thirties. We compare stories and experiences and talk about the pressures we put on ourselves to come out of pregnancy like a celebrity. There's more to this episode than just pregnancy talk though, here are some other topics Rebekah and I dig into: Why she felt relief of hav...

My conversation with Tiffany Jo Baker was supposed to be about body after baby. But, where we landed became a beautiful orchestra of many topics ranging from infertility to judging others by their appearance to how to find your purpose. Tiffany Jo Baker is a mom of two and was a surrogate mom for three families dealing with infertility. Whether you're a new mom, or a mom of grown kids...whether you're dealing with body after baby or just wondering if your life has purpose. You'll enjoy today's e...

Today's episode is the recording of my coaching call with my Intuitive Eating Coaches--Char-Lee Cassel, RD and Erin Todd--hosts of the Intuitive Eating for Christian Women podcast. The most startling discovery: maybe my lifelong fatigue hasn't been related to eating the "right" foods or the "wrong" foods but could be related to not having enough calories. Both Diet Culture and Health Culture have deceived many of us about the calories we need to function well. I've believed it for years. I thoug...

Do you ever feel like life would be easier if you could just control everything? Or, perhaps you'd say you're not controlling...as long as everything goes the way you want it to! Friend, I understand both of those concepts--too well! That's why I invited my friend, author Jennifer Dukes Lee on the show today to talk candidly about it. Jennifer offers some great insights that will encourage your heart if this is an area in which you are wrestling. Here are a few things we talk about today. Why D...

I know all about battling control and so does today's guest, Shannon Popkin, author of the book, "Control Girl." Today, Shannon and I talk about all things related to how to stop being a controlling woman. We talk about: why women control, how we control, and what some of the antidotes are for control. If you're looking for help on how to stop being this kind of controlling woman, I hope you'll tune in to this delightful and informative conversation. Here are some of the highlights from How to ...

You asked for more 7 minutes of scripture episodes...so today we'll tackle Esther chapter 2 in about seven minutes (or 17 minutes...it's a full chapter!) Today we look at how for Esther beauty didn't lead to a fairy tale. Too often the story of Esther is presented as a rags-to-riches, inspirational tale--like the Cinderella story of the Bible. But the reality of Esther's story is much harder than that. And, though Esther had tremendous beauty--she had beauty for a purpose. God gave her great bea...

Who has a brain that just won't turn off? I do! Today we talk with the Mindset Makeover Coach, Alicia Michelle about how to find rest by focusing on what we're thinking (and overthinking) about. If you've wondered how to stop the brain from overthinking, today will be a super helpful show for you. In this series on habits that will actually change our year, we talk about how important it is to rest. But, instead of talking about getting more sleep or turning off Netflix, Alicia talks about how i...

This is part 2 of a conversation with Amy Carlson, MS, RD, LD on the topic of fasting. In the last episode we discussed whether or not someone with an eating disorder or recovering from an eating disorder should try fasting and what the dangers and challenges are surrounding that. Today, we dig deeper into scripture. We look at the Daniel Fast, Sugar Fasts, and uncover the truth about biblical fasting and answer the question: Should Christians who have had an eating disorder or disordered eating...

Sugar fasts. Daniel fasts. Lenten fasts. Churchwide fasts. Intermittent fasting. There is so much talk about fasting in our culture today, that it can become confusing to figure out what the Bible says about fasting versus what our culture (and Diet Culture) teaches about its role. Today, Amy Carlson, MS, RD, LD - a registered, non-diet dietician and I talk about all things fasting. We tackle some BIG questions and leave you to do some heart searching and questioning too. Heather shares her hila...

If you're familiar with scripture, you've likely heard the instruction to be transformed by the renewing your mind--an instruction from Romans 12. But how do we renew our minds? What does it look like to renew our minds in the body image arena? Is changing how you think about your body even possible? Today Heather talks with Barb Raveling about all sorts of helpful things in this arena. Barb instructs us how to renew our minds from a macro perspective, and from a micro-perspective. Barb even wa...

Today I'm inviting you to eaves drop on my very first intuitive eating coaching call. Today, my coaches are Erin Todd and Char-Lee Cassel, hosts of the Intuitive Eating for Christian Women podcast. They've been on the show before and now they're back to help ME figure out how to become a more intuitive eater. My biggest struggle, as we talk about today, is: What do I do about my mindless eating? Erin and Char-Lee guide me through a process of thinking about my habits and examining them in a non...

This month we're talking about resolutions that will actually change your year and your life. One of the most important things we can decide to pursue each year is growth with God through Bible reading. But, it's not always easy. Let's be honest, sometimes it's hard to get into God's word. It may feel boring, it may be hard to understand, or we may not even know where to begin. Today we'll talk about how to make Bible reading more interesting, or shall I say, spicy! Today's guest brings the spi...

I always get revved up at the beginning of the new year for a fresh start, a new journey. But in today's show I explore how, many years, I put myself on the wrong path. Looking at the classic story from John Bunyan's, "A Pilgrim's Progress" we take a deeper look at how easy it is for us, as Christians, to get distracted from the one path we should be on. You'll be encouraged by this allegory and how it applies to our lives as we approach a new year! Today Heather asks: "What journey are you on?...

It's a new year and everywhere you look you'll find advice for getting a "new you in 2022!" In today's show we take a different, unconventional approach to looking at the most effective ways to meet our goals this year. I'll share with you the three secrets to meeting your body image and other goals this year: Look Up, Look Out, and Look Away. Mentioned in Today's Show: ReFOCUS21 online body image and food freedom course: https://comparedtowho.me/refocus-christian-body-image-course-online/ Com...