Class Description:   

This 6- week series addresses the common predicament many of us find ourselves in, of not being happy with one’s eating habits, whether because we haven’t been able to lose and keep off excess weight, whether because we can’t stop eating unhealthy foods, or whether we just want to learn how to enjoy meals more deeply. 

We will apply a new approach to eating by applying mindfulness and setting intentions and developing strategies to change our unwholesome habits and nurture healthier choices.  We will also practice cultivating understanding, patience and compassion for ourselves and re-directing our energies so we are able to create and maintain more mindful and healthier eating habits.

The sessions will be very participatory and interactive with discussion, exercises and guided meditations. Required reading includes Mindful Eating:  A Guide to Rediscovering a healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food, by Jan Chozen Bays, MD.   (The book also comes with a CD of thirteen 2 - 10 minute guided meditations.)

Class Activities include:

• Mini-presentations on mindfulness as as it applies to eating, and actions/strategies to help change unwholesome habits.
• Review of relevant chapters in Mindful Eating
• Sharing in pairs of challenges to mindful eating and reporting back;
• Individual exercises to create intentions and action plans and reflect on our progress;  
• Guided meditations

Presenter’s Bio

Nancy Natilson has been practicing mindfulness for 15 years.  She is also a lifetime member of Weight Watchers.  Nancy has realized that many of the principles that have made her experience with Weight Watchers so successful and lasting are related to her mindfulness practice.  With support of this practice, she has been able to change habits and nurture a healthier lifestyle.

Less relevant to the course, Nancy is a fellow of the Gates Summer Institute at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She received a Master’s in Business Administration in International Finance from New York University in 1979. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1973, Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies and Elementary Education.

Nancy has recently retired from a 20 year career in international development.  Her consulting clients included owners of small rural health clinics, microfinance institutions and non-profit organizations.  Nancy values compassion, social justice and generosity. She is fluent in Spanish.