Hey there Naomi, Welcome to the group. I'm so glad that you're here. Being a mom really does change everything. Doesn't it? It did for me. Is that your lovely daughter in the photo? I'm a mom too. I have two kids. My son, 23 and my 18 year old daughter. Right now I'm going through some changes because my daughter is leaving for school in September. I'm happy to share my tips with you. On August 12 I'm going to be doing a Mother/Daughter event on a Hangout on Google +. Another author colleague and I are going to be teaching mothers and daughters how to love and respect their bodies more. I hope you and your daughter can come. Hugs, Andrea

Dear Joan,

Welcome to the group. I'm happy to have you here. Thank you so much for sharing a bit about yourself and what challenges you're facing. It's very difficult having a family member who struggles with mental illness. I understand the level of fear and uncertainty that follows the illness. My mother was diagnosed with bipolar years ago and it's so hard trying to manage all the emotions around not knowing what to do to help.

My best advice is to be as gentle with yourself as you can. You're doing the absolute best you know and that is more than good enough. I know that you're probably very upset about the overeating, but rather than adding insult to injury and placing your focus on the food, it's best to pay closer attention to how you feel. Here is Part 1 of a 2 Part article that I wrote about what to do following a binge: http://ezinearticles.com/?Having-a-Fat-Day?-How-to-Love-Your-Body-Even-After-a-Binge!-Part-1-of-2&id=3329187

You've done such an amazing job so far with losing 16#. Keep on looking for opportunities each day where you can do something nice for yourself that will reinforce an "I'm worth it" attitude.

Have you heard of tapping or Emotional Freedom Technique? It's basically a simple do it yourself stress relief method that would help you to alleviate a lot of the conflicted emotions you have around all the things that are going on now in your life.

Hi ForeverDanielle,

I'm so happy that you're here in this group. If you read the posts and feel inclined to ask for help and share your thoughts and questions, you'll expand your image of what's possible. As an empowerment coach I'm all for teaching people how to envision new possibilities.

The focus of the group here is to deal with the stress in our lives first before focusing on what you are eating. With that in mind, Danielle, I want you to know that you haven't failed at dieting. Dieting has failed you. As with nearly 98% of all people who lose weight on diets, you also regained back the weight. You're so not alone in your frustration and confusion.

I would be happy to teach you alternatives to dealing with your stress that are more effective than eating. I've kept a blog for nearly 9 years now. It's called The Juicy Woman Blog. On that you will find a ton of useful information of ways that you can manage your stress. My favorite go to technique is known as tapping, also called Emotional Freedom Technique. The latest research shows that it reduces our cortisol (stress hormone) levels by as much as 25%. Amazing. Are you familiar with EFT?

I think that it would really help you to deal with all the emotional upsets surrounding the way you feel about lots of situations in your life.

Hi Rebecca,

First let me Congratulate you for finishing school. OMG! What an amazing accomplishment! Many people would die to be in your shoes. I'm so thrilled that you've joined the group because together with the group's input, I will offer you new tools to handle your stress and that will make it easier for you to put the emphasis on self care.

I'm a mom too, but my kids are 23 and 18 and my youngest is leaving for The Culinary Institute of America this September. So as a mom, I speak from the most personal of experience.

But I'm also a professional empowerment coach and author and I've learned a ton about how our minds and bodies work together. What most people don't realize is the role of our emotions on the stress in our lives.

You've done so much by finishing school, having a baby, taking care of the family and juggling two jobs. The result is that your body is probably chronically stressed and your cortisol levels are most likely elevated which inhibits weight loss and reduces nutrient absorption. In other words you could be doing everything right, and because your body feels like it's still under attack by all the stress and unresolved emotions you've been holding onto. Stress is the weight gain drug and you could be maxed out.

The first thing you have to do is stop putting all the emphasis on all the stuff you can see. Don't worry about the scale, how much you're eating, exercising or anything like that. You've got to focus on how you feel.

I'm here to help.

Warmest regards,

Andrea

Fabulous. You can find a ton of stuff on Youtube. Just Google it. And since I'm a practitioner and here, just ask me any questions and I'll be happy to help if I can.