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3 Tips to Start Intuitive Eating with Sarah Burby

* Listen to the Episode with Sarah Burby * Episode Transcript – Intuitive Eating with Sarah Burby * FAQ with Sarah Burby * Meet Sarah Burby M.A., BCBA, NBC-HWC LISTEN TO THE EPISODE WITH SARAH BURBY sarah burby intuitive eating [https://www.resultswithoutrestriction.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/RWR-episode-22.png] EPISODE TRANSCRIPT – INTUITIVE EATING WITH SARAH BURBY Welcome everyone, I am here with Sarah Burby who is a health coach and she’s the owner of Small Changes Health and Wellness Coaching where she supports and empowers her clients to meet their health and wellness goals by focusing on small, sustainable changes that they can maintain for the rest of their lives. She also helps her clients heal their relationship with food and exercise as well as improve their body image. Laurie: Welcome Sarah. I’m actually really excited about this episode because this is the meat, I hate to use, I don’t eat meat, but the meat of like what this whole brand is about. So having coaches, you know, intuitive eating, health at every size, really promoting that weight neutral approach to health is really important. So I’m excited. So start kind of at the beginning. WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THIS POINT? WHAT IS YOUR ORIGIN STORY? Sarah Burby: Yeah, so I have kind of a long and not very straight way. I got a master’s degree in applied behavior analysis. And typically ABA is most commonly associated with autism. So working with with children, adults on the autism spectrum. And I think there’s a great need for that. And I think I will always love working in that space in some capacity. But I just thought, you know, how cool would it be to apply the science of applied behavior analysis to health and wellness. And at the time when I was in graduate school, which feels like yesterday, but was like 10, 11 years ago, no one is really doing that yet. Everyone was saying, oh, you can apply ABA anywhere. But but it was really only widely applied to autism. So at the time, being new in the field and not really having my feet wet yet, I just didn’t have, I guess, maybe the confidence or the direction of how to get into this field. So then kind of fast forward, a few years later, I started really taking on some additional certifications. I got a health coaching certification, a nutrition certification, most recently an intuitive eating counselor certification and just started to kind of build up my expertise in that area. So then I could feel confident in applying ABA to health coaching. Sarah Burby: So in 2020, the famous 2020 year, I opened Small Changes Health and Wellness Coaching, where I primarily coach based using the science of ABA, but with an intuitive eating framework. Laurie: So it sounded like you were kind of like on a teacher track, like you were going to be a teacher. Very similar school conflict, working in school as a consultant. But you took the knowledge that you gained and you said, oh, you know what, I really want to apply this to health and health and wellness. What prompted you to want to apply it in that area? Sarah Burby: I think I’ve always been really interested in that area. Personally, I’ve had my own personal journey of poor body image and kind of orthorexic type behavior with this obsession with being healthy. And I went through that and I had that struggle and it I went through it for for many years. I aspire now to be what I wish I had 15, 10, 15 years ago. So that’s kind of what piqued my interest. And again, to me, the science of applied behavior analysis just so naturally flowed into health coaching, right? Because behavior is behavior, whether we’re talking about maybe reducing maladaptive behavior and then individual with autism and trying to teach some replace the behaviors or we’re talking about, you know, behavior as far as your relationship with exercise, your relationship with food. To me, it’s all it’s all the same thing, right? It’s just how we address it. So I think that’s kind of where my interest kind of sparked. Laurie: So it was your own personal journey that that shaped the direction that you you saw you saw an opportunity to take what you were learning and apply it in a way that would have been helpful for you for your own personal experience. And I love that we are seeing now so many coaches and trainers. It has really come a long way in the last few years and recognizing the harm that’s being done with, you know, pushing over exercising, under eating, calorie counting, all that stuff. Really the long-term effects of it. So we talk a lot here about intuitive eating. Can you talk about how intuitive eating and mindfulness are integrated into the process that you use with your clients? Sarah Burby: Yeah, so and the missing of your listeners already have a backstory of what intuitive eating is, but just a quick, you know, recap. It’s really healing your relationship with food, healing your relationship with exercise, and also healing your relationship with yourself, right? Like, like, what do you think of yourself when you look in the mirror? Do you do like what you see? And if you don’t like what you see, are you perseverating on it all day? Is that constantly what you’re thinking about? And to me, that’s health, right? Like we think about health and we think about what we eat and we think about exercise, but we don’t think about this constant, what the constant stress of constantly worrying about what you’re eating and you’re putting into your body or constantly worrying about if you’re getting the most intense exercise in, like that affects our health so much too. Sarah Burby: So with intuitive eating, I really like to, number one, work with my clients and say, it’s not just eating, right? The name intuitive eating is we think it’s just eating skills, but it’s so much more raw than that. And there’s so many different areas we can work on. Like I said, with exercise, repairing your relationship with exercise and movement, how you, how you feel about yourself and kind of breaking down maybe what area of the client is struggling the most, starting with that, and then going into all the different aspects of intuitive eating. I do appreciate that you gave us that description of what intuitive eating is because they could be the first time here and learning about that. So this is really important. You just mentioned that, you know, LEARNING TO EAT INTUITIVELY CAN IMPACT MENTAL HEALTH, PHYSICAL HEALTH. WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT? Sarah Burby: There’s such a strong focus or push, if that’s the right word, on, on weight loss and looking a certain way and having this like ideal body. And I think that was probably always around, but now with every social media app and platform there is out there, it’s certainly getting worse and it’s starting at a younger age. There’s this like pressure to have to look a certain way or eat a certain way. And that’s not reality, right? And it’s really, really harmful, but I also think it’s the norm. So it’s really hard to kind of separate from that. And that’s where I see the importance of intuitive eating is like talking even about body diversity, right? I talk about that with my clients all the time is like you and I could literally eat the exact same thing every single day for the rest of our lives. We could exercise the exact same way every day for the rest of our lives. And we are never going to look exactly the same because we have a different genetic blueprint, but that’s not pretty to talk about on social media. That’s not glamorous. Sarah Burby: Like no one wants to post about that on social media because it’s not as glamorous as, Oh, I lost 30 pounds in a month by drinking the shake or going on this diet. You know what I mean? So I think intuitive eating is more, it’s a little bit deeper, but I think it’s so, so important because of all these messages that we’re getting. And I kind of say the opposite and kind of glamorize really restricted eating or over exercise and things like that to get, like I said, this ideal body, which is so silly because what does that even look like? It’s an illusion, right? And unfortunately we live in a world where being in a smaller body is idealized, right? We live in a world that favors people in smaller bodies. So I don’t, I don’t shame anybody and I don’t fault anybody for having the feelings like, Oh, you know what, I look in the mirror and I wish that, you know, smaller because you know what? Your life would maybe be easier, right? This is the world that we live in, but we’re all doing our part here to normalize, like you said, body diversity and acceptance and respect for people in all different shapes, sizes. I love that this is becoming more widespread and people like you are sharing the good word. And especially on social media where you said it’s teens, young adults on these platforms and they’re being bombarded by all this messaging. So I love that this is, this is becoming more popular. So we talked a little bit about diet culture, the prevalence of this messaging and how harmful it is. WHAT ARE SOME, SOME NEGATIVE IMPACTS THAT YOU’RE SEEING ON YOUR CLIENTS DUE TO EXPOSURE TO DIET CULTURE? Sarah Burby: Oh, I see a lot, a lot of, um, labeling how they eat as good or bad, right? So like I ate a salad last night, I was good. Or I ate ice cream last night, I was bad. And, and that breaks my heart when I hear things like that, because I’m like, well, did you enjoy the ice cream? Yeah. Okay. Like, like their food is neutral, right? It’s not good or bad. But if you look at diet culture and again, social media, it’s, it’s, um, putting food into these categories. Even the term clean heat, clean eating. Like I hate that term so much because I hate, I hate that. I hate it. It’s awful. And, and think about if you’re, if you’re calling something clean, like it’s typically like organic, or I think maybe like whole foods, like fruits and vegetables, but that’s such a privileged statement to make because what if a family can’t afford to eat quote unquote clean? Like who’s not to say that they’re, what are you saying that their food and what they eat is dirty? Like, how does that make someone else feel? So I’ve had to have clients come to me and say, you know, I can’t afford to eat quote unquote clean. Um, like, what do I do? Am I doomed? I’m like, no, you’re not doomed. Like it’s just, that’s just diet culture telling you that you have to eat this certain way, or again, you have to look a certain way. A lot of clients have come to me from diet culture that have tried like really intense workouts where you like work out twice a day for 75 days. And if you miss a day, you have to start back at one again. And like all this like negative self-talk that they, that they’ve come to me with was like, I couldn’t do that. You know, I have no willpower. I’m not strong enough. And it’s like so heartbreaking. I’m like, not you, it’s this ideal that you have to be doing this extreme workout and eating behavior. But you know, diet companies make so much money off of us buying into these things. And they’re meant to fail, when they fail then we feel badly about ourselves. And we do it again and it fails. And then we feel badly about ourselves. So it’s this whole big, vicious cycle. Thank you for pointing out that all of these programs are designed to set us up for failure to keep us on this roller coaster, this loop of feel like we’ve made progress, quote unquote, and then your body does what it does. And now you’re back where you started. And now you’re seeing that as failure. And not to mention one of the most common side effects of intentional weight loss is long-term weight gain. So an industry that makes money off of you trying to lose weight, knowing, knowing that whatever they sell to you is going to put you back where you started or, or higher, it’s a billion dollar industry for lots of good reasons. Sarah Burby: Right. Yeah. And also like, there’s a ton of research coming out talking about the dangers of weight fluctuation, right? So like diet cultures, advertisers, you know, lose weight, it’s good for your health or all this kind of stuff. But really that dangers of weight cycling, even those five to 10 pounds, if you’re constantly gaining, losing, gaining, losing, that’s a lot more dangerous than being five pounds heavier, lighter, whatever the case may be, you know, and that’s not talked about enough is the danger, the dangers of constantly fluctuating on your weight. Sarah Burby: I agree that it’s a danger and it’s not talked about because there’s no money to be made in letting people stay in larger bodies for that industry, then nobody wants to talk about it. Let’s jump into intuitive eating, adopting an intuitive eating practice and what some misconceptions people might have about what that looks like and the impact that it can have. The two biggest misconceptions that I see are number one is if I eat intuitively, I’m just gonna eat like chocolate and donuts and ice cream all day, every day for the rest of my life. And that’s just not true. I hear that from people that maybe did like a quick Google search, read an article about what intuitive eating is, and then just kind of made that assumption. But it’s not true. It’s really about giving yourself that unconditional permission to eat because we know once we label a food as bad, quote unquote, or off limits, we’re immediately going to want that food more. It’s just a natural response. When we deprive ourselves of anything, we’re immediately going to want that more. It’s kind of wild if you give yourself permission to say, I feel like having a donut, I’m going to have a donut and I’m going to enjoy it. I’m not going to feel guilty if I eat it. Once you learn to do that, which takes time, depending on your learning history, you learn to eat a donut or two donuts and whatever the amount of donuts is and you feel satisfied and then you move on to something else and you can kind of get in tune with your body and what it craves different times of the day and things like that. So I think that’s one misconception that I hear quite frequently. And another one I hear a lot is like, I let myself eat intuitively And that’s how I got to this point where I’m really unhappy in my own in my own body. And I would never tell somebody that that’s incorrect if that’s how they truly feel. But when I dig a little deeper typically, but are you really giving yourself that unconditional permission to eat? Are you really letting go of food labels of good and bad, clean, unclean, what you should and shouldn’t be eating? The answer is usually no. So why they might think that they’re eating intuitively, they have that kind of little diet culture voice in the back of their head that’s really not truly embracing intuitively eating to the fullest extent. And so that’s why they kind of have those, those feelings. I’m going to add on to yours because I’ve, you know, when I talk to people about intuitive eating, they almost feel like if they follow an intuitive eat, if they adopt an intuitive eating practice, they’re going to lose weight because their body is just naturally going to like go to quote unquote where they think it should be. Right. So they’re like, oh, if I stop obsessing, just let my body do this thing. So way to make my body smaller and intuitive eating has nothing to do with body size. Sarah Burby: Yeah, yeah. So that’s a good point too. And I try to make that very clear, even when I do initial consultations is I cannot guarantee that you will gain weight, you might gain weight, you might lose weight, you might say exactly the same, like it just depends on so many different things, right? No one can predict that when you become an intuitive eater, what will happen to your body. But I have heard that as well as like intuitive eating for weight loss almost. The other misconception that I get like to kind of go back to your first point was people don’t trust themselves, right? Because they have this history of restrictive eating, they say, oh, I can’t just eat whatever because I’ve restricted myself for 20 years and I’m just going to go buck wild and I won’t be able to stop. So they fear not having that control and they they don’t know what’s going to happen. Sarah Burby: Yeah. And I think that’s a valid fear. And I think that’s like, that is something that we explore quite a bit. And that’s where it goes into all these different principles of intuitive eating, because for people that have dieted for a long time, they actually lose that sense of hunger and that sense of fullness. So like, for example, people that chronically count calories or count macros or whatever it is, you’re thinking think about it, you’re constantly eating on a schedule, you’re eating to a certain to hit a certain goal of this many carbs or this many fats and proteins, or you’re going to limit yourself to this many calories. So that’s five o’clock and you hit your max calories for the day, regardless if you’re hungry or not, you’re not eating if you’re following a diet like that, right? So after a while, you start to lose that feeling of hunger and that feeling of fullness. So I think that’s even a lot of it with intuitive eating is and it sounds like so silly almost, but it’s relearning hunger and fullness cues. So you don’t eat to the point where you feel really sick. And maybe when you’re a new intuitive eater, maybe it happens once or twice or it happens a few times. So you have that experience and you say, okay, what did you learn from that? And usually they say, awful, I felt terrible. It was, I felt sluggish and I did. Okay, that was a learning experience. Now we know for next time, how do you know you’re starting to get full or how do you know that you’re hungry, right? So it’s all kind of all these different 10 principles. Really, they’re all so intertwined. The whole like, I don’t even know what hunger feels like, or I’ve learned to ignore it. I’ve learned to tune it out. My body doesn’t even feel hungry anymore because it knows it can ask all it wants. It’s not going to get anything. So and information, your body needs energy. It needs nutrition. It’s trying to communicate with you like, don’t ignore it. Please. Yeah, yeah. Our bodies know a lot. They were willing to listen. It’s kind of crazy. So when we talk about learning to identify hunger and fullness cues, what are some things that your clients have said to you about their experience that they were like surprised about that in particular, one of the ways that I usually, you know, kind of teach that skill is is looking at like a lot of the hunger skills, right? So on a level of one through 10, one being like, I am super hangry. I’m going to anything and everything and 10 being like, I am so uncomfortably full. I feel like I’m going to get sick almost right. And having client will go through like, you know, what is a two look like for you? What is a seven look like for you? And kind of set a goal of like, okay, this week I want to start eating when I’m at a four rather than a one where I’m starving and feel like I’m out of control.And I want to stop eating when I’m at a seven versus a 10. Right. For example. And having clients kind of self monitor and learn that skill. It’s kind of like this aha moment, like, wow, like I didn’t even realize I was doing this because I think again, so many times it’s a habit of restricting, right? So like not eating, not eating, not eating. And they don’t even realize how hungry they are or why they’re that hungry.And a lot of it is eating so much where again, it’s not even like really when we talk about like the satisfaction factor of intuitive eating, they might be eating foods and what they feel like is a large quantity, but they’re not even enjoying it. It’s just, it’s, and when we work on intuitive eating and slowing now and monitoring your hunger and fullness, it gets easier of our time and then they’re, they’re enjoying their food more. It’s a more pleasant eating experience, storing eating after eating. So I think it’s like a really big, like I said, like aha moment of I didn’t even realize this was how it was happening internally in my body, because they were just kind of on autopilot. So you’re bringing in like some mindfulness practice at the same time to be present while they’re eating. What are the, what are they feeling? What are the sensations? What’s happening, you know, inside, outside, all around and really just being present for it. Sarah Burby: Yeah. Yeah. And even just taking like stopping mid-meal, right? And just, I invite clients to take a note of how you feel mid-meal. Like do you feel satisfied? Do you feel, are you enjoying the food? What’s your environment like? Is it chaotic? You know, is it peaceful? And then again, you can kind of then go in some more detail of like what, what foods do you prefer or not prefer? Like you, what textures do you prefer and not prefer? What smells do you prefer and not prefer? Because again, you’re really almost relearning how to eat again, because for so long, whether it be a month or years and years that you were following this diet culture, whatever restrictive diet it was, you lose so many of those basic skills without even realizing it. You just made me remember something about when you talk about relearning the foods you actually like and you don’t like, because when you follow, you know, when you’re a chronic dieter or, you know, you’re so entrenched in diet culture, you have food lists. And there are foods that you automatically choose because they are quote unquote, a better choice healthier, right? Like brown, always choose brown rice over white rice or wheat bread over white bread. When I did this, I found out I realized I hate brown rice. It is not good. I don’t like it. It’s disgusting. I love white rice. And the freedom to just say, you know what, I would rather have white rice. And you know what, if I have a big bowl of it, great. And I mean, I gave myself permission to eat as much of it as I wanted. I found, you know what, I can eat actually the same amount or less. It doesn’t and I’m not even measuring it. I’m not obsessing about it, but I it’s so much more enjoyable to have the rice I want to eat enough when I feel like I’m supposed to eat. Sarah Burby: Totally, totally. And that’s so common. And even with like, like cookies or things like that, I have clients come to me and they’re like, I ate an Oreo and it was so good. Like I’m so good at eating these like cookies, but they’re not really cookies because they taste disgusting. I don’t even like them. cookies with the rocks and sticks in them that have fiber that they’re like, that you can feel like you’re gnawing on it and you’re like, right? Yeah, yeah. That’s your cookie, right? Nick, no, have a real cookie. Um, one of the other things that I love about intuitive eating and the trepidation really of having that freedom is that people are afraid that they’re going to do it wrong. Sarah Burby: Yes. And what I love about intuitive eating is there are no mistakes. It’s all information. Yeah. And I think that mindset comes from again, chronically counting calories or counting macros, or I don’t even know what the popular diets were before that.Right. But it was either met your goal, your dinner, right? It was either like black or white. It’s black or white.Yeah. And intuitive eating is so not black or white, which is really hard for people to, I think, understand at first because, you know, you’re so used to this rigid all or nothing black and white thinking. But like you said, it is so not intuitive eating. There’s no literally no right or wrong way to do it. Everything is a learning experience all about getting attuned with, reattuned with your body. At the end of the day, we know our body’s best, you know, so there’s nothing that we can do that that’s right or wrong. There’s no having a good day or a bad day. Like that just those terms just don’t exist, which I think is, is the really awesome thing about it. Like there’s no guilt involved. There’s no shame involved. There’s nothing like I feel bad because I did or didn’t you X, Y, and Z. I mean, it’s so freeing to be able to have that perspective. Extremely freeing and it’s it’s all about just relearning how to eat and trust yourself. Having that freedom to say, okay, I’m exploring what feels good and what hunger and fullness look like for me, what kind of foods I do want and don’t want to eat. So Sarah, let’s talk a little bit about how you work with your clients and what that looks like in terms of your coaching program and other sessions that you offer. Yeah, so I offer primarily one to one coaching starts at 12 weeks. It can go anywhere to 24 weeks. I don’t really like to put a timestamp on it because like I said, everyone’s journey is different. I don’t want anyone to feel badly if they did 12 weeks of coaching and they don’t feel like they’re, they’re fully ready. And it’s totally common. Again, there’s so many different factors that play into how you develop intuitive eating skills, but basically clients come to me that are like, I’m done. I’m done dieting. I’m done restricting myself. I’m done feeling trapped in my own, in my own skin and my own body. And I’m ready to, I’m ready to do this. And I just need some support. I need some guidance. And that’s, that’s where we start. So we start with the first session incorporate, like you said, a lot of mindfulness, a lot of acceptance and commitment therapy, because a lot of learning, intuitive eating, and to me is it’s a lot of mental things, right? It’s a lot of things with our mind. So we learn a lot about how to unhook, but really to like separate from those unhelpful thoughts, those diet culture thoughts or those thoughts that you’ve had about food, about your, about your body, whatever it may be for so long. And it’s like really, again, there’s no set structure as of like week one, we cover this week, two, we cover this because it really depends on your own, on your own personal experience and what’s showing up for you and what particular area you’re struggling in most. And we might focus on the principle of honoring your hunger and for one client that might take a week and for another client that might take four or five weeks, and there’s no right or wrong way, you know, that it’s okay, everyone’s going to be different. So, you know, the length of time that we go through each of the 10 principles and, and maybe you’re okay with a couple principles that maybe you’re really struggling with, with finding peace of movement and maybe the whole 12 sessions, we’re just working on finding peace of movement and that’s okay too. So it’s super individualized to wherever you are in your intuitive eating journey. So if somebody wants to get started with you, what does that look like? Sarah Burby: Every client starts with a free initial consultation. And that’s just to get a good idea of what the client is most interested in working on. Really, they can ask me anything and making sure that we’re that’s where the right fit, because I want that potential client to feel comfortable working with me confident working with me. And if someone comes to me and says, you know, I strictly want to work on weight loss and nothing but weight loss, we’re probably not the best fit. And that’s okay. I just don’t want someone to sign up for a coaching package and kind of have expectations that are different than what might happen during one to one coaching. So free 20 minute consultation session that can be found on my website, on Instagram, Facebook, the link to the free session is all on there. And then after that, we decide that we’re a good fit, then we go right into the first session of coaching. Okay, Sarah, you actually have something free for our listeners – It’s called intuitive eating five myths debunked about intuitive eating. We’ll put the link to this in the show notes so that the listeners can grab this. And if you’d like to connect with Sarah, you are on Instagram, you’re on Facebook. And we’re also going to link to your beautiful website. We’ll also put your your scheduling link. So if somebody wants to jump on the phone with you and and get that consultation to see if they are a good fit to work with you, that will be there as well. Sarah, we’re going to wrap up. And what I’d like to do at the end of every episode is have our guests give us their top three tips. So go ahead and give me what you got. Sarah Burby: Tip number one, I would say is to kind of do a social media cleanse, right? So just be, try to be aware of who you’re following on social media, whatever your social media platform is, Instagram, TikTok, I don’t even know what’s out there anymore. But what you follow affects you more than you think it does. So and the things that you like and you comment on and share, you know, whatever algorithm it is, you’re going to see that content more. So it can be pretty eye opening to kind of just take a look at that and maybe stop following accounts that you find unhelpful or triggering or whatever the case may be. So tip number one is it’s just kind of look at your personal social media and, and do a little clean out. Can I just say this is the only type of cleanse that I recommend? Sarah Burby: Yes. I agree. I agree. Tip number two, and I don’t know if this is really a tip, but I think like, like a normalize challenging diet culture a bit and normalize, you know, going against the grain a bit And I think the more that we talk about it and the more that we normalize the fact that that often diet culture is really just disordered eating in disguise. And the more it, the more we make it the norm, the more impact that we’re going to have. I know it can be hard and uncomfortable to talk about that, that those topics at first, but I encourage people to do that even if it’s just with, with friends or family members and kind of along those lines, setting boundaries, right? If you hear talk about diet culture or someone says something that doesn’t sit right with you, speaking up and saying something about that, because again, those things seem so small, but they’re going to trickle down and have a really big impact, I think, in the only way that we’re going to kind of be able to shift the culture is if the more of us stand up and talk about it. I love the idea of normalizing destruct, you know, taking down diet culture, and really pointing out these innocuous or seemingly innocent comments or things that we’re doing that are really harmful to people who are struggling with, you know, any kind of disordered eating or eating disorders and really, and trying to get out of that. I would love to normalize not commenting on people’s appearance, you know, when they change, if somebody’s body gets bigger. FAQ WITH SARAH BURBY WHO IS SARAH BURBY? Sarah Burby, M.A., BCBA, NBC-HWC, is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, Certified K–6 Teacher, Precision Nutrition–certified coach, Barre Eclipse Instructor, and Adjunct Professor. She specializes in helping clients break free from diet culture, repair their relationship with food and movement, and build sustainable habits grounded in self-compassion. WHAT IS INTUITIVE EATING? Intuitive eating is a non-diet, evidence-based approach that helps individuals rebuild trust with their bodies, heal their relationship with food and exercise, and learn to listen to natural hunger and fullness cues. It emphasizes internal awareness over external rules, supports mental and physical well-being, and encourages unconditional permission to eat without shame, guilt, or restriction. VIEW INTUITIVE EATING on AMAZON (affiliate link) [https://amzn.to/45tOvJv] HOW DOES INTUITIVE EATING SUPPORT MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH? Intuitive eating reduces anxiety, obsessive food thoughts, and the shame often created by dieting. It also supports metabolic health by reducing weight cycling (repeated weight loss and regain), encourages mindful movement, and promotes more balanced eating patterns. Many people experience increased energy, improved body image, and reduced stress around food. WHAT ARE SOME NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF DIET CULTURE THAT SARAH BURBY SEES IN HER CLIENTS? Common issues include: • Viewing foods as “good” or “bad” • Feeling guilt or shame after eating • Chronic dieting or restriction • Overexercise or rigid fitness expectations • Loss of hunger and fullness cues • Internalized weight stigma • Feeling like a “failure” when diets inevitably stop working Diet culture often leads to weight cycling, disordered eating patterns, and long-term harm to mental and physical well-being. IS INTUITIVE EATING JUST EATING WHATEVER YOU WANT, WHENEVER YOU WANT? Sarah Burby: No. This is one of the biggest misconceptions. Intuitive eating isn’t about losing control—it’s about regaining trust, reconnecting with bodily cues, and enjoying a variety of foods without restriction. Once someone removes food rules and guilt, cravings typically normalize rather than intensify. WILL INTUITIVE EATING MAKE ME LOSE WEIGHT? Sarah Burby: Intuitive eating is not a weight-loss strategy. Some people may lose weight, some may gain weight, and some may stay the same. The goal is to support your body in reaching its natural, sustainable set point, not pursuing a specific size. RELATED: CHECK OUT OUR BOOK CLUB POST ABOUT THE BOOK INTUITIVE EATING [https://www.resultswithoutrestriction.com/book-club-intuitive-eating-2/] HOW DOES SARAH BURBY INTEGRATE ABA AND ACT INTO HER COACHING? Sarah uses behavior science (ABA) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help clients re-learn hunger and fullness cues, unhook from unhelpful thoughts, reduce all-or-nothing thinking, and build habits aligned with their values. Her coaching blends mindfulness, behavioral strategies, and intuitive eating principles. WHAT DOES WORKING WITH SARAH BURBY LOOK LIKE? Sarah offers one-to-one coaching programs that typically span 12–24 weeks. Every client begins with a free 20-minute consultation to determine whether it’s the right fit. Coaching is individualized—no two programs look exactly alike—and focuses on the client’s unique relationship with food, movement, and body image. DOES SARAH BURBY OFFER ANY FREE RESOURCES? Yes! Sarah created “Five Myths About Intuitive Eating – Debunked,” a free guide to help you understand the basics and clear up confusion. The link is available in the show notes and on the episode page. WHERE CAN I LEARN MORE OR SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION WITH SARAH BURBY? You can connect with Sarah Burby on Instagram, Facebook, or through her website. The show notes include direct links to her scheduling page if you want to book a consultation or explore coaching. IS THIS EPISODE MEDICAL ADVICE? No. This episode is for educational and informational purposes only. Always consult with a qualified medical provider before making changes to your nutrition, fitness, or health routines. MEET SARAH BURBY M.A., BCBA, NBC-HWC Sarah Burby [https://resultswithoutrestriction.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/sarah-burby.jpg] Sarah Burby is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC), Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, Certified K–6 Teacher, Precision Nutrition–certified coach, Barre Eclipse Instructor, and Adjunct Professor. Sarah Burby has extensive training in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to support clients navigating body image concerns, disordered eating, and the long-term impact of growing up in diet-focused environments. Her coaching emphasizes sustainable, compassionate habits rooted in flexibility, autonomy, and self-trust. In addition to coaching, she provides mentorship for small business owners in the wellness space.

15 Nov 2025 - 33 min

My Sleep Challenge: Part 2 My 30-Day Sleep Challenge Results with Christine Meyer

Sleep coach Christine Meyer is back for the 2nd part of my 30-day sleep challenge results.Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by your own bad sleep habits. This episode is all about my triumphs, from enjoying my evening ritual of Sleepytime teas to sleep-inducing hypnosis audiobooks played through headband headphones. TABLE OF CONTENTS * Key Takeaways: * Quotes: * Resources Mentioned * About Sleep Coach Christine Meyer: * Connect with Christine: * Click here to check out more episodes of the Podcast! * Episode Transcript: KEY TAKEAWAYS: * Prioritize Quality Sleep: Recognize that quality sleep is essential for overall well-being, impacting mood, energy levels, and productivity. Make it a priority to improve the quality of your sleep. * Start Small: Implement small changes in your sleep routine, such as creating a relaxing sleep environment and establishing a consistent bedtime routine. These small adjustments can lead to significant improvements over time. * Adapt and Overcome Challenges: Be prepared to adapt to challenges that arise during your sleep journey. Whether it’s managing distractions or adjusting your routine, stay flexible and find creative solutions to overcome obstacles. * Notice Positive Changes: Pay attention to the positive changes you experience as a result of improved sleep habits. Increased energy, better mood, and enhanced productivity are all signs of progress on your sleep journey. * Take a Holistic Approach: Approach sleep improvement holistically by considering various factors that affect sleep, including sleep hygiene, stress levels, lifestyle habits, and physical health. Addressing these factors collectively can lead to more effective and sustainable improvements in your sleep quality. QUOTES: * “I had no energy, and [the lack of sleep] affected my mood, it affected my activities, it affected my work. It impacted everything.” * “It was little things. It was a lot of little tweaks, but they’ve made a big difference.” * “Sleep doesn’t just happen by itself. It’s not in a vacuum. So many things can impact your sleep and then your sleep can impact so many other things.” * “When you focus on it, when you’re intentional about improving the quality and the quantity of your sleep, it’s going to help you in other areas.” RESOURCES MENTIONED These are some of the items that we discussed using during my sleep habit makeover challenge (links to Amazon): Daytime Sleep Helpers * Sodastream [https://amzn.to/3W5qLa3] – In an effort to cut down on my afternoon caffeine consumption, I traded in my daily Dr. Pepper Zero for seltzer (or ‘spritzies’ as we call them in our house). Sometimes I drink it plain, but most of the time I add a little bit of flavor to jazz it up. * Water enhancer [https://amzn.to/4b5yx7V] – I add this to my seltzer water to up the fun drink factor. I like Stur brand because it’s naturally sweetened, but there are no rules here. Evening Wind Down * Reading light [https://amzn.to/3Jr05ZT] – This little gadget has been invaluable for my night time routine. It’s helped get back into reading more often, and it doubles as my bookmark! * Kindle [https://amzn.to/3xUNATC] – Some people are diehard physical book fans so if you’re one of them, skip to the next item. For everyone else, if you’re someone who falls asleep reading and drops their physical book on their face, this hurts less. * Headband headphones [https://amzn.to/3w3xyGB] – As I mentioned in the episode, I have freakishly small ears and so I have a hard time with most headphones and earbuds. These bluetooth headphones are perfect as they lay over the ears. I’ve also started using them for listening to audiobooks when I walk the dog and when I go running. They’re great because I can hear my books/music but I’m also able to hear traffic because it doesn’t block out outside noise. * Essential Oil Diffuser [https://amzn.to/49N6fOr] – Studies have shown that certain scents can contribute to better sleep quality. I used eucalyptus and lavender essential oils in my diffuser, but different scents work for different people, so if those don’t do it for you, try something else! * Blue light glasses [https://amzn.to/4baaWTT] – If you use devices close to bedtime, the bluelight they emit can interfere with your sleep. Using these glasses can help minimize that effect * Downdog yoga app [https://www.downdogapp.com/] – Studies have shown that practicing yoga can improve sleep quality, including sleep duration and reducing the number of nighttime wakings. If you choose to include yoga in your wind-down routine, look for slow and relaxing practices such as restorative yoga or a yoga nidra (yogic sleep). * Yoga mat [https://amzn.to/3weGwAK] – Not required but makes lying on the floor a little more comfortable. * Bolster [https://amzn.to/3Qf7FdA] – A fancy word for a yoga pillow. You can use one to support different parts of your body during your practice. * Sleepytime Tea [https://amzn.to/447UAZB] – This is a staple in my night time routine. I put it in a BIG mug and add a touch of honey. I was surprised to learn there were so many varieties of Sleepytime! * Bedtime Journal [https://amzn.to/3xNw6IT]– During our call I mentioned I had a hard time turning off my brain at night so one of the wind-down options was a brain dump into a journal so my mind could relax knowing all the things it didn’t want me to forget were safely documented somewhere, and all those mental sticky notes could go right in the mental trash basket. In bed/Sleeping * White noise machine [https://amzn.to/3xNv67B] – I had this left over from when my son was a baby and we recently brought it out of retirement to help mask the cat noises that were waking up the dog during the night. There are also white noise apps that can be used as well. * Weighted Face mask [https://amzn.to/3Qge1tn] – I’ve had this for years, I think my husband bought it for me when I was having a lot of migraines because it doubles as a mini-heating pad. I find the pressure on my eyes while I’m falling a sleep very relaxing! * Weighted blanket [https://amzn.to/3UsaASK] – Another present from my husband (I think from a Christmas or two ago?) that I hadn’t really been using but pulled it out for the challenge and have used it nightly since! Note, these types of blankets can trap in heat, so while it was great during the winter, I’ll be switching to a Cooling Weighted blanket [https://amzn.to/44c1Vr1] for the warmer months * ‘The Rabbit Who Wanted to Fall Asleep’ hypnosis audiobook [https://amzn.to/3W9SiH9] – For years I had no idea how this book ended because it was so effective at putting me to sleep. I now know how it ends (I won’t spoil it for you!) but this is really helpful to have cued up for those nights when I wake up and have a hard time falling back asleep. * Apple Watch [https://amzn.to/3vScZNq] – I use this to track my sleep, which is how I found out how much worse it was than I thought! It records your data in the Health app on your phone and it tracks how much time you’re in bed vs actually sleeping, how many times you wake up during the night, how much time you spend in the different sleep cycles, plus your sleeping heart rate and respiratory rate. * Rise sleep tracking app [https://apps.apple.com/us/app/rise-sleep-tracker/id1453884781] – This is the app I used to track my sleep debt. Even though I could feel it when my sleep debt was high and I knew I needed to prioritize getting caught up, seeing the actual number of hours of sleep my body was missing in the app made it more real and got my attention. What I also like about this app is that it can predict (with great accuracy!) when my energy will peak (and plummet!) throughout the day, based on my previous night’s sleep. What I used to think was just a post-lunch carb coma turned out to be a natural low point in my daily energy level. This made me feel less like it was “my fault” for being useless and brain fogged most afternoons between 2 and 3 pm. I hope these items help you create a wind-down routine that works for you! And if you’re not sure which things would help you the most, connect with Christine for a Sleep Strategy Session so she can put together your own personalized Restful Roadmap! ABOUT SLEEP COACH CHRISTINE MEYER: Christine Meyer is an Ace Certified Health Coach, Certified Health Education Specialist, and a Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant. She has over 14 years of experience in the health and wellness field and helps mid-life women go from foggy to focused, by helping them restore their restful sleep. Her coaching focuses on lifestyle changes, which includes stress management and time management skills. She is a wife, mom, and new Grandma and resides in Southern California. sleep coach christine meyer [https://resultswithoutrestriction.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/profile-photo.jpg] CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE: * On Facebook: Facebook.com/Christinesleepcoach [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063494231590] * On Instagram: @ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063494231590]Christinesleepcoach [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063494231590] * Book a consultation: CLICK HERE [https://calendly.com/cmyhealth/call_with_christine] * Download Christine’s Free gift: The Sleep Tips Ebook [https://cmyhealth.ck.page/] CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT MORE EPISODES OF THE PODCAST! [https://www.resultswithoutrestriction.com/rwr-podcast/] EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: Laurie: Welcome everyone. I’m here with Christine Meyer, who is a sleep health coach, to recap the results of my 30-day sleep challenge. Welcome back, Christine. How are you? I’m doing well, thank you, I am drinking coffee, but this is it for the day and I’m done, I promise. And I never I wouldn’t say never, very, very rarely even especially since, like the last month do I drink coffee in the afternoon, but I just there was some left over and I hate to. I hate to dump it out Like I can’t. I just can’t. So it pains me to throw out coffee. I just love it. So part one is my backstory of how you were on the podcast. I realized I sucked at getting good sleep. I did some of your things. It improved a little bit, and then I got an Apple watch and I realized I really sucked. And then I was like, oh okay, I got to do something about this. And then we connected and then we did our session and then you gave me a plan. That’s part one, and so now this is part two where we’re doing the wrap up. So the recap of the strategy session and the action plan, and then summing up with the challenge week by week. So I don’t want to go day by day because that’s going to be a three day episode, no one will listen to it. Week by week what went well, what didn’t, and then the changes that I noticed each week, and then the biggest changes I noticed from the beginning to the end I do. I do feel like a bajillion times better than I did when we had our session. I think it was like two months ago now, night and day. 0:01:57 – Christine Really. 0:01:57 – Laurie When we had that session, you asked me what my struggles were, what my challenges were, what I wanted to get out of the challenge. How did I want to feel at the end of it? Like what was the goal, what was I trying to do? And I had told you and I just watched it, I just rewatched it to recap and I was, like I remember, feeling like just drained, like I had no energy, and talking about how it affected my mood, it affected my activities, it affected my work. It was just everything. It was like a like a bicycle wheel, like the spokes, like it just touched everything. And now it’s completely different. But I wanted to be. I wanted to be popular in my house again. I wanted to be somebody people wanted to talk to, people wanted to spend time with. I wanted to want to go and do things and just not be too tired to do it. And so putting this plan that you gave me into place really helped me kind of get on track with habits and boundaries. And it was little things. It was a lot of little tweaks, but they’ve made a big difference. So after the session, you gave me a plan and I said, okay, I’m going to put this into action. And what happened was I had said I wanted, I wanted a few things. I wanted to read at night, I wanted some aromatherapy, and there was something else that I wanted. But when I went to start the challenge I was like, oh, I don’t have any of the things I need to do that, so let me go buy them. So I went on Amazon or I went shopping and I bought a little essential oil diffuser for my oils and there’s a funny story there that I don’t really have time for but basically I turned it on, used the oil and my husband was like, oh my God, it smells like a nursing home in here, Like what is happening. He immediately nixed whatever I was cooking up in there and he’s like no, no, no, whatever this is, ditch it. Like I’m not living this way. So I was like, no, I get it. And then the other thing was I wanted to read in bed and you had said if you have a table lamp, that’s fine, not an overhead. And I have a table lamp. I had one on my nightstand but it was too small, like I had to read, like all hunched over and leaning over, and it was not conducive to good sleep. So I got one of these little USB rechargeable book lights with a little clip on it so I can clip it on my book and then read. And it’s a tiny little thing and I can just keep it in my book. It’s a doubles as a bookmark. So and I’ve read like two whole books in the two months, which is like sadly a record but it’s. But it’s that time and I get to read and relax and it’s just mine and I read my silly books and it’s, it’s fantastic. But I had to go and buy my stuff that I needed. I already had a sound machine and I already had a weighted blanket and I already had a weighted face mask which I was kind of using intermittently. But those were the things that I wanted to help me in my plan. So once I had gone shopping and picked up everything, then I was ready to start. The goals were sleep goal number one create a relaxing bedroom environment. Sleep goal number two establish a nighttime routine. A little bit of a delay there, but it’s okay, it worked out because week one of the challenge coincided with the time change. So my plan was to start my wind down routine at 9.15 and then lights out at 10. And in my brain and in my body it already it thought it was already later. So I was kind of getting sleepy anyway around that time. So I said, oh, this makes it really easy to like excuse myself and say I’m really tired, I want to go to bed, you know, and go up to my room and start my wind down. So that worked out great. What was kind of a funny offset was that my dog doesn’t understand time change and so she was still waking up at what she thought was six o’clock but really five o’clock. But if I hadn’t been going to bed earlier I would have been going to bed at 10 o’clock and getting up at five. It did work out for the best that I was going to bed earlier because I was still getting up early with the dog, but that first week I was tired enough to just kind of to go with it lights out at 9.15. The other part of the changes that I was implementing was switching to decaf drinks after 2 pm, and we had talked about how I was drinking coffee and I would have a soda in the afternoon. I’ve cut out the soda. I do miss it, but I have seltzer, I have herbal tea and I have some other like fun drinks to have that are caffeine free, and so that hasn’t really been that much of a disruption. The other thing was getting more activity. I haven’t really done more activity, but I have the same level of activity of walking my dog twice a day. So that was one thing. The third thing was turning off screens in the evening, because I was a notorious shut. Off the computer, go right to the phone, have the phone on basically all night until lights out, like I would be scrolling in my bed and then staying up too late watching reels and then going to bed. So putting the phone away, putting the laptop away, no devices after a certain time. That was one of my things and I liked that because it actually had a side effect of reducing my stress in that if I’m not on my phone, I’m not on my computer, I’m not doing work. So it helped me to kind of set that boundary around not doing work after hours, which you know as a as somebody who’s self-employed, somebody who owns their own business. It’s really easy to. I’m just going to check this email. Oh, I’m just going to do this. I’m just going to do this. Two hours later you’re still on the device. You’re still doing work and you should have gone to bed an hour ago, so I really liked that. It helped me to be like nope, I’m off the clock, no devices can. Can’t help it. 0:07:44 – Christine Yeah, you’ve got that buffer zone there. You know you’ve got some work boundaries and now you can prepare to transition for Tibet easier. 0:07:52 – Laurie I definitely felt less stress, because that was one of the other things we talked about was kind of a brain dump, like I was having trouble turning off my brain and I had said I wanted to do like journaling before bed. But what happened that first week was when I, when it got to be 915, that first night that I was supposed to start this, I went into my room and I looked at my list because I’m very black or white, like when somebody gives me a checklist, it’s like you do all the things, that’s doing it right. If you don’t do all the things, you’re doing it wrong. So I looked at this list and while, as somebody with ADHD, I love lists because it helps me stay on track, I also get overwhelmed with lists because if I see everything at once, I go oh, too much. And that’s what happened that first night. It said yoga journal, read lights out. And I was like, oh my God, like this feels like too many things. I can’t, I’m going to do one thing. And then that’s when I messaged you and you said pick one or two and then add one later and I was like okay, I’m going to start with the reading, because I know that’s easy for me to do, like I can just lay down, open my book. I know it’s going to make my eyes tired, I know it’s going to help me fall asleep. We’ll start with that and, to be honest, that’s working. I would like to do journaling or yoga, maybe like some restorative yoga or yoga nidra, at some point. 0:09:18 – Christine But right now this whole situation is good. It’s important to keep in mind, because we can have all these ideas and you’re going to like one thing and maybe not another. Or I go through stages where I’m reading for bed, but then after a while it’s like I’m going to start doing yoga before bed, and so you can just kind of switch it up. The main thing is that you’re doing something for yourself, you’re keeping that routine. It doesn’t have to be like this rigid checklist all of the time. So it’s good to have that, that you know that menu of options that we talk about in coaching. 0:09:43 – Laurie Exactly, and so that’s why I keep the plan out and I said, okay, when I’m kind of like over reading at night, I’ll add in the journal or I’ll print out some prompts and maybe I’ll just write a sentence or maybe I’ll just kind of like dabble in between the three. It doesn’t have to be a do this, do this, do this. You’re not trying to give me another job here. Yeah, you do what feels good, exactly. So I got ready for bed you know pajamas, brush my teeth, do all that stuff lay down my weighted blanket and turn on my little book light, read my book, went to sleep. So that first week, that works great. The second week, I’ll tell you, I wasn’t as tired. At nine o’clock when it when it that time to start to wind down rolled around, I was like, oh, I don’t really feel tired. But I was like, oh, I’m not falling for this again, because I know that just because I don’t feel tired doesn’t mean I’m not tired, right, this is the line I give my son all the time. He’s like I don’t want to go to bed, I’m not tired. I’m like well, you might not feel it, but you are. But I have to tell this to myself Because I was like I don’t really feel that tired. And then, lo and behold, I would start the routine. I would read the book and I was like, oh yeah, I’m falling asleep, I’m tired. How about that Sneaky? It snuck right up on me. And then by the third week, I’m going to tell you I was like pumped. Like after dinner I would have my tea, I had my sleepy time tea and I stocked up on all the different kinds of sleepy time tea. I didn’t know they had different types of sleepy time tea. They have variations. And I was like give me all the sleepy time. I love me some sleepy time, like everybody, just get in the basket, let’s just go. So I’d have my tea in the evening and then my son would go to bed and at 9.15, I’m like hell yeah, I’m out of here, I’m going to go do my thing, I’m going to wind down and I’m going to be in bed by 10. And it just felt so good, like I didn’t feel like I was being punished, I didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything. My husband was a little sad. On the other hand, I think he was kind of like I could use some quiet time. I could use some time to myself. So I’m not totally broken up about it, it wasn’t. It was like he was like, eh, he was kind of like eh, eh. And I did have a few nights I wouldn’t say it was like a hundred I went to bed at, you know, on the time that I wanted to. There were a few nights that I did end up staying up later than I intended. Um, like, I maybe went downstairs to get my water or I forgot my headphones and I would come downstairs and my husband would be watching something fun and I would sit down and then the next thing I knew it was 11 30 and I was like this was not supposed to happen, but whatever, back. And then the next thing I knew it was 1130. And I was like this was not supposed to happen, but whatever, back on the horse the next night, not going to let it derail me. One of the issues that I was having was waking up in the middle of the night, like three or four, and not getting back to sleep. And you had said, if that happens and you’re awake for more than 15 minutes, go somewhere else, like, get out of bed, go in another room, go sit like in a chair and I was like, okay, I can do that. One of the things that I thought I would be a good idea was to get these Bluetooth headband headphones and then connect it to an audio book. That’s hypnosis on my iPhone, but my phone was in the other room but I could use my watch to turn it off and on. I thought I was pretty slick with this and that worked great. And my son loved my headband headphones so much he wanted a pair, so I had to get him a pair too. So now we’re all headband headphone nerds over here and they’re awesome and they’re actually good for like walking and like and running and stuff because they’re comfortable. I have freakishly small ears. So those earbuds never fit. Everything hurts. These things are great. So I’m a huge, I’m a huge fan of these. And that worked out really well because I would wake up. Am I falling back asleep? Sometimes I would, and if I wasn’t put on the headband, start the story lights out and I’m telling you this book. It’s called the Rabbit who Wants to Fall Asleep. I listened to this at bedtime with my son for like two years, before I even knew what the story was about. This book would knock me out. I was like what is this even about? This rabbit wants to fall asleep. But then what happens? I don’t even know, I have no idea. I couldn’t even tell you. And then by the fourth week, my husband was like you know what? I think I want to go to bed early too. I don’t know if he was lonely or he just saw like how much better I looked or felt or seemed. He was like you know what? Maybe I’ll do that too. So he’s starting to go to bed, not with me, but just earlier than he had. So but I will say like I noticed a huge difference between starting the challenge in the end, in my energy. I’m waking up without an alarm and I’m waking up awake, mm-hmm, I’m not dragging myself out of bed, I’m not hitting snooze, I’m not, you know, depending on coffee to wake me up, none of that. And it feels so good. So this has been a great experience and I’m so thankful and glad that you helped me get to this place. This has been amazing. 0:14:54 – Christine I’m glad it’s helped you and, like you said, it’s not just your morning, but your whole day is different. Your personality is different, you’re more pleasant to be around. So sometimes we don’t want to admit that, but it is hard. So that’s great to hear, it’s great to hear. And, like you said, it was just like these small little tweaks. You kind of experimented with what did and didn’t work and you’ve you’ve got the routine with other options, in case you decide I don’t want to do this anymore, totally fine. 0:15:22 – Laurie Exactly, and my goal was, you know, to do this for a month. I want to get caught up on my sleep. I want to develop some, some good habits around, you know, during the day, like things that I’m eating or drinking or doing that impact my sleep. Things I’m doing right before bed that impact my sleep, and then things that I’m eating or drinking or doing that impact my sleep, things I’m doing right before bed that impact my sleep, and then things that I’m doing after I’ve already fallen, it’s like in the middle of the night, that can kind of be impacting my overall sleep quality. And I’ve achieved that, like I’ve done all these things and I said, okay, I’m going to do this for 30 days, and if I get to the 30 days and I don’t want to go to bed at nine o’clock anymore and I don’t want to do all these things, I don’t have to right, it was an experiment, it was a challenge to see, like how this could impact how I felt my overall everything. And I’m going to tell you like I’m going to keep doing this because it’s awesome when my son goes to bed, I’m excited for my wind down. That’s like my time to take it easy and just, I love having the boundary around that time and it’s just for me to unwind and ease into sleep. 0:16:25 – Christine Yeah, and how do you feel this has affected you business wise, as far as, like, your creativity, your focus, your productivity? Do you know changes there? 0:16:35 – Laurie It’s much better. I’m a little less distracted. So I do have ADHD, so I’m not going to say everything’s great, but I will say like being exhausted, like my whole issue before was that I would be sitting here with a list of things to do and just already tired when I sat down. And so looking at this list, it was like I already have trouble focusing on what I’m doing, but now I don’t have the energy to focus on what I’m doing. So while it helps my focus a little bit but that also you know that’s myths but having the energy to point my flashlight in one direction for an extended amount of time in one direction for an extended amount of time huge difference. 0:17:19 – Christine Right, yeah, that’s great to hear. 0:17:28 – Laurie So definitely impacting, like my productivity and my energy, when I sit down at my desk. And also, I had a podcast interview this morning. This is my second one today. Now a couple of months ago could I have done that? No, I would have been on the couch. I would have needed a nap after that. So this is definitely an improvement. Awesome, I need some kind of I need some outside eyeballs on what I’m doing to help me figure out. You know how I can kind of make some adjustments, make some tweaks that work for my lifestyle, work for my preferences. 0:18:13 – Christine And just help me to get to a place where I am getting not only enough sleep but good quality sleep. So that’s what we do in my 60 Minutes to Better Sleep session is first thing I have you do is fill out that questionnaire that you filled out. It talks about your sleep hygiene, your stress levels, your lifestyle habits, your physical health because medical conditions and medications can have an effect as well and then we meet together and I talk about you know what’s standing out for me as far as you know, not only what your you know sleep sabotagers might be, but what you’re doing well that you want to continue with. And that’s where we come up with that 30-day plan. Typically, we’re going to pick no more than four things to focus on over the next month. You can implement them all at one time but, like you said, it can be kind of overwhelming. So I recommend, maybe every week you do one, maybe two things that you want to add in there. Like you said, prepare for it, get everything that you need and just start to notice maybe keep that journal each day of how many hours you slept, how you feel, and it’s a subtle change. Like you said, it’s not like all of a sudden you wake up one day and wow, everything’s great. It’s just kind of like gradual. Over time, like you said, you noticed week by week things were a little bit different, and now that you’re at the end of it you just notice this huge change. And so that’s what we do, is work together. You know, I’m not telling somebody what to do. We’re deciding together. I’m saying here’s what stands out for me. What do you want to work on? What do you think is going to work best? We come up with that plan. I send a great little roadmap summary to you and then we can do like periodic check-ins to see how things are going and then, beyond that, if more coaching is needed on a regular basis for that, then we can definitely continue on with monthly coaching. 0:19:51 – Laurie Awesome. So you mentioned keeping a sleep journal, so talk to me about that, because that’s something that you’re going to have available for any of the listeners who want to start tracking their sleep or understanding, maybe, what their obstacles are or what’s standing in their way. 0:20:07 – Christine Yeah, you can find like sleep diaries online. They’re huge checklists of everything you’ve done throughout the day, which can be kind of overwhelming to look at the next day and connect all the dots. But with this journal, it just has a different prompt each day, just asking you a question, and it could be a question about your sleep, your stress levels, what you ate that day, just kind of you know things that you want to maybe take a look at and how did it affect your sleep. And it gives you more insight to maybe where, again, those sabotagers are. Maybe you don’t know how it’s affecting you and it gives you more insight to maybe where, again, those sabotagers are. Maybe you don’t know how it’s affecting you and it allows you to figure out more on your own those areas that you might need to dive into a little bit more. Is it sleep hygiene? Do I need to work on my stress levels? That’s a huge one for people. Are there some medical conditions or medications that I’m taking that might be affecting it? So it’s good to look at so many different areas. That’s why I do like more holistic coaching, because improving your sleep isn’t just a one-shot deal. It’s not black and white. I can send you a checklist and that’s. It’s great for general ideas. It’s like a kind of like a little baseline blueprint, but everyone’s going to be different. 0:21:19 – Laurie It’s like a kind of like a little baseline blueprint, but everyone’s going to be different. You just said something that that’s important is that you know sleep doesn’t just happen by itself. It’s not in a vacuum. So many things can impact your sleep and then your sleep can impact so many other things. Everything is connected, but sleep is one of these foundational like. If you’re not getting sleep, that trickle down is going to be substantial. It’s going to be more of an impact than you know maybe some other self-care practices that you’re ignoring. But sleep is foundational and I’m telling you, when you focus on it, when you’re intentional about improving the quality and the quantity of your sleep, it’s going to help you in other areas. So now that I’m getting more sleep and I have more energy, now I have the energy to work out more and I have the energy to do things and I’m not stressed out at work, so I can take time off to like do fun things that I want to do, that that fill up my cup, like connecting with friends or going going to Costco by myself, with friends, or going to Costco by myself. No one tells you that. You know, when you become an adult, that one of the greatest luxuries is going to Costco alone. I don’t care what anyone says, I think like to me. That’s like I’m like Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music, just like spinning around. I’m like, ah, exactly, exactly. But it’s nice to just be able to have the energy to know like I’m not so stressed that I can’t take time out for myself during the day. The other thing that I was going to say is that if we have listeners who are not ready to book a call with you, I’m going to be setting up a challenge where they can do their own 30 day track, your sleep challenge and see, you know, maybe, maybe, make some adjustments and tweaks, look at some of the things that I am doing and see if that helps you. And then you know, all of Christine’s information will be inside the challenge so you can connect with her that way. Christine, I’m going to be putting the link to the 30 day sleep journal and all of your social media links in your website inside the show notes, so I’ll have all of your links in the show notes for anybody who wants to connect with you. They can do that and see all of the good things that you have available. 0:23:30 – Christine Awesome, I really appreciate it. I’m so happy to hear about your progress there. I know we’ve been kind of checking in here and there, but it’s so great to just hear at the end about your journey and how it’s helped you. 0:23:40 – Laurie Thank you, Christine. 0:23:42 – Christine You are welcome. 0:23:44 – Laurie Thanks for listening and if you liked this episode, go ahead and leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen to podcasts, and be sure to subscribe so you’ll be notified when the next episode is live. When the next episode is live, check out our show notes for this episode, where you can find any of the links and resources that were mentioned during the show and connect with a health and wellness provider committed to helping you ditch diets and achieve results without restriction. Thanks for listening and we’ll catch you in the next episode.

1 Mar 2024 - 24 min

Results Without Restriction

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