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!!!!!!!!!!!!!VOLUME!XIII!!!!NUMBER!2!
!
Dr.!Viviana!Mauas,!Psychologist!
Dr.!Viviana!Mauas!
Clinical!Psychologist!!
4269!Ste.!Catherine!St.!W.,!!!
Suite!302!
Westmount,!Québec!
H3Z!1P7!
FOR!AN!APPOINTMENT!
CALL:!!(514)!934– 1800!
WEBSITE:!drviviana.com!
Dr.!Mauas!specializes!in!
W omen’s! M ental! H ealth,!including:!
- Anxiety!/!Stress! • Menopause!
- Depression! • Infertility!
- Chronic!Pain! • Body!Image!
- WorkELife!Balance! • OCD!
- Divorce!/!Separation! • Coaching!
!!!!!!!****!! If !you!are!overweight,!you!are!hardly!alone,!as!you!can! see!by!looking!around!you.!About!twoEthirds!of!North! Americans!are!overweight!and!the!statistics!climb!by!the! year.!Even!children!now!are!heavier!than!they!have!ever! been!–!and!this!is!happening!during!a!time!in!our!history! when!the!thin!look!is!defined!as!the!ideal.!Type!II!diabetes! and!hypertension!(or!high!blood!pressure)!are!two! diseases!associated!with!obesity,!and!the!rates!of!these! diseases!have!been!increasing!steadily!over!the!years.! Obesity!is!also!linked!to!heart!disease,!stroke,!and!certain! cancers.!! ! The !causes!of!obesity!are!easy!to!identify.!We!eat!more! calories!than!we!burn!off,!and!the!excess!calories!are! stored!as!body!fat.!In!the!1960's!the!average!person! consumed!about!3,100!calories!per!day.!By!the!1990's! that!number!had!increased!to!3,700!calories!per!day.!We! have!easy!access!to!fast!food!and!sugary!sodas,!and! restaurants!have!found!that!their!sales!increase!when! they!offer!excessively!large!servings.!We!eat!more! processed!foods!and!fewer!natural!or!whole!foods,!and! this!is!mostly!due!to!convenience!and!low!prices.!We! spend!more!time!these!days!in!front!of!the!computer!or! television!set,!and!we!drive!to!where!we!need!to!go!rather! than!walking!or!biking.!Our!jobs!are!increasingly! sedentary!and!don’t!involve!as!much!physical!labor!as!in! the!past.!We!pay!a!price!for!our!presentEday!conveniences.!!
WOMEN’S
WELLNESS
W eight! Management!and! Your!Emotions! !! VOLUME!XIII!!!NUMBER! 3!
Getting !the!weight!off!involves!more!than!going! on!a!diet,!although!a!calorie 5 restricted!diet!is! essential!for!losing!excess!pounds.!To!lose!weight!it! is!necessary!to!decrease!caloric!intake!enough!to! cause!an!energy!deficit,!but!it!is!important!to!avoid! the!binge!eating!that!can!result!from!feelings!of!food! deprivation.!Filling!up!on!fiber!with!salads!and!lots!of! vegetables!and!some!fruit,!as!well!as!drinking!a!lot!of! water!and!eating!a!number!of!low 5 calorie!snacks! throughout!the!day,!can!help!in!avoiding!a!deprived! feeling.!Make!sure!that!your!fat!intake!comprises!no! more!than!30%!of!all!the!calories!you!consume!in!a! day.!In!addition,!making!exercise!a!regular!part!of! one’s!lifestyle!is!essential!for!successful!weight! management.!However,!even!with!a!good!diet!and! exercise,!maintaining!weight!loss!over!time!can!be!a! challenge.!Most!people!who!lose!weight!gain!it!back! again!because!they!haven’t!come!to!terms!with!the! emotional!factors!that!were!associated!with!the! weight!gain!in!the!first!place.!! ! A !number!of!psychological!factors!can!affect!our! ability!to!maintain!our!weight!at!a!healthy!level!over! time.!For!example,!!
-! When!losing!weight!or!maintaining!weight!loss,!it! is!helpful!to!learn!how!to !think!positively! by! challenging!negative!beliefs.!! -! There!are!a!number!of!strategies!to!use!for! coping!with!difficult!emotions!and!stress! rather! than!relying!on!food!for!emotional!soothing.!! -! Maintaining!your !motivation !over!time!to!stay!at! a!healthy!weight!is!a!key!to!long 5 term!success.! -! Successful!maintenance!of!weight!loss!depends! on!improving!your! body!image .!! -! Achieving! satisfaction!in!our!daily!lives! is!an! important!component!of!maintaining!weight!loss,! and!this!involves!acquiring!good!living!skills.! These!skills!include!the!ability!to!assert!yourself! and!your!needs!effectively,!knowing!how!to!solve! everyday!problems!well,!and!nurturing! supportive!relationships!with!others.!! ! You+ can!work!on!these!issues!and!increase!your! chances!of!keeping!the!weight!off!over!time.!Weight! gain!and!the!difficulty!of!maintaining!weight!loss!are! often!associated!with!heredity,!experiences!in! childhood,!and!family!of!origin!influences.!However,! there!are!emotional!factors!associated!with!weight! problems,!and,!fortunately,!these!issues!can!be! addressed!in!therapy.!!! ! Let’s !consider!a!few!of!these!emotions!–!!
At !the!core!of!most!depression!is!a!sense!of!loss.! Depression!may!result!from!the!loss!of!a!significant! person!in!one’s!life,!from!loss!of!opportunity!or! status,!job!loss,!financial!loss,!loss!of!self 5 esteem,!or!
the!loss!of!a!coherent!sense!of!one’s!identity.!!
An+ overweight!person!may!have!a!negative!view!of! self!and!believes!that!“I!am!the!problem.”!He!or!she! may!feel!inadequate,!a!failure,!or!unworthy!of!love!or! acceptance.!This!core!belief!may!affect!everything!in! this!person’s!life.!This!leads!to!other!negative!beliefs,! such!as!“nothing!will!ever!work!out,”!or!“when! something!bad!happens,!I’m!the!one!to!blame.”!This! person!often!takes!things!personally!and!is!sensitive! to!criticism.!Or!this!person!may!assume!the!role!of! caregiver!with!friends!and!family,!and!when!things! don’t!work!out,!the!feeling!of!being!a!failure!is! intensified.!! Food !may!numb!the!person!against!what!he!or!she! experiences!as!a!painful!existence.!Eating,!and! overeating,!can!be!a!small!reward!that!soothes! painful!depressed!feelings.!The!fatigue!that! accompanies!depression!can!sometimes!be!treated! with!food!–!although!this!is!a!form!of!self 5 medication! that,!over!the!long!run,!has!dire!consequences!in! terms!of!health!and!body!weight.!! Overeating !for!emotional!soothing!can!start!a! cycle!in!which!obesity!negatively!affects!self 5 esteem,! and!because!self 5 esteem!is!low!(confirming!to!the! person!that!they!are!less!attractive!and!effective!in! the!world!than!other!people)!the!person!eats!more.!It! never!seems!to!stop.!! In !therapy!the!overweight!person!with!depression! might!want!to!explore!ways!to!improve!self 5 esteem! and!negative!beliefs!that!perpetuate!the!cycle!of! depression!and!overeating.!This!negative!cycle!can! be!broken!and!a!more!positive!outlook!can!lead!to! learning!new!ways!to!take!control!over!one’s!health.!! _+
Feeling_ !uneasy,!apprehensive,!fearful,!or!worried! describes!anxiety.!It!is!brought!on!by!a!real!or!! DEPRESSION)
ANXIETY)
Research !studies!have!been!conducted!to!find!the!factors!that!do!and!don’t!contribute!to!weight!gain.!! !
The!following!have!been!shown! not$to$be$related !to!weight!problems!–!!
! 1.! Being!born!overweight! ! 2.! Poor!metabolism! ! 3.! Love!of!food! ! 4.! Lack!of!nutritionBrelated!knowledge! !
And!the!conditions!listed!below! are$linked$to$obesity$ – !!
! 1.! A!person’s!need!to!make!themselves!feel!better!with!food.! ! 2.! A!person’s!need!to!feel!safe!–!excess!weight!can!take!away!a!person’s!need!to!deal!with!social!interaction,! intimacy,!responsibilities,!and!job!demands.!! !
In! comparing$slender$people$with$those$who$are$overweight ,!it!has!been!found!that!people!
who!have!had!chronic!weight!problems! are$more$likely$to$have !–!
1.!!!!Experienced!the!loss!of!a!parent!in!early!childhood!–!either!through!death!or!divorce!(48%!of!overweight!! !!!!!!!!people!vs.!23%!of!thin!people);! ! 2.! Grown!up!with!a!parent!who!had!an!alcohol!or!other!substanceBrelated!problem!(40%!vs.!17%);! ! 3 .! Suffered!from!chronic!depression!(57%!vs.!22%);! ! 4.! Experienced!difficulty!with!negative!emotions!(12%!vs.!3%);! ! 5 .! Sleep!disturbances!(46%!vs.!23%);! ! 6.! Relationship!concerns!involving!intimacy!(54%!vs.!16%);! ! 7.! Felt!that!being!overweight!is!protective!(25%!vs.!0%).!!
What%Causes%Weight%Issues?%
THE%BACK%PAGE% !
Dr.%Viviana%Mauas%
Clinical%Psychologist%
514 D 934 D 1800 %
www.drviviana.com%
