Advice for Parents by Doris Smeltzer

How to respond when ...

In the last few weeks my husband has pointed out to me a number of Carolyn Hax columns. In the Feb 22nd piece I so appreciated the clear understanding she had of the damage that can be done by "innocent" comments. A mother asked how she could best counter jokingly delivered "criticisms" to her one-year old daughter made by her mother-in-law. Evidently the Grandma, while patting her granddaughter's belly exclaims, "That's disgusting! Look at that round belly! How horrible!"

Body over mind

It seems that I have been having many conversations lately about the implications of "body over mind." A friend of mine shared with me her revelations while reading Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now (all about being in the present moment and living in our bodies fully) while another friend and I had a rich dialogue over the article she sent me at the Psychology Today What a Body Knows blog by Kimerer LaMothe, PhD. In this article LaMothe speaks about the value of the mindfulness instructions in the book The Religion of Thinness. Although LaMothe, like me, found this book extremely helpful she feels that something more is needed: the recognition of and attunement to our "bodily selves." She writes,

A radio interview

In honor of Eating Disorders Awareness Month (February), our local Hispanic radio show asked me to join them on their Salud Con Ritmo (Health with Rhythm) Program to answer questions on eating disorders (EDs). I share my responses with you below:

A message to our First Lady

The following letter is one I sent to our First Lady a few days ago:

Dear First Lady,

I must tell you how thrilled I am with the leadership you and President Obama offer our nation ... I have not felt such confidence in a Presidency in a very long time and I thank you for the important role you are playing in healing our country.

Although I have no idea if this letter will ever actually reach you, my compulsion to write it cannot be ignored.