Intuitive eating, chronic dieting, and body image

 

 

Are you ready to finally get off the diet roller coaster and make peace with food?

 

Let us show you how through the use of a range of educational tools, counselling, and hypnotherapy techniques, you can improve your relationship with food and your body in a sustainable and lasting way.

 

 

Welcome to Freedom from Food

 

You have come to the right place, where you can learn to stop fearing food and weight gain, and instead create a relationship with food and your body which is based on respect, trust and acceptance.

At Freedom from Food we take great care to practice in a non-judgemental and inclusive way, treating all of our clients with the respect and dignity that they deserve, irrespective of health status, weight or size.

We ensure that all of our practitioners and referral partners practice a non-diet approach, which is aligned with the Health At Every Size movement. What this means is that we make a conscious decision to reject dieting, whilst along the way, challenging stereotypes and common assumptions about health and weight.

We believe that everyone has a right to love, honour and respect the body that they live in, whilst living free from judgement and discrimination.

At Freedom from Food, you can be guaranteed that your weight, shape and size will (finally!) never be a focus of treatment. Rather, treatment will focus on the creation of healthy habits and skills which support mental, emotional and physical health. Our intuitive eating programs are appropriate for anyone experiencing:

 

Disordered eating patterns

Episodes of binge eating

Episodes of restriction 

Body dissatisfaction / poor body image

Weight or size concerns

Confusion about food choices

Obsessive thinking about food

Rigid thinking about food

Guilt or shame around food choices

Cravings

Compulsive exercise 

Getting Started

 

Following principles of attuned eating, it is possible for you to stop feeling the shame and guilt that you feel after every failed diet, and instead learn how to listen to your body and let your body naturally guide you in determining what you need. This is a natural gift that we were all born with, however trained ourselves out of, with diet after diet, as we tried to fit in the ‘cultural ideal’. You deserve more than that.

Upon making contact, you will be invited to attend a free initial 15-minute consultation (either in person, phone or skype/zoom). In this consultation, your therapist will get to know a little more about you and your history, in order to ascertain your needs and what will likely be the best plan for treatment going forward.

You will be offered a treatment plan which will consist of individual sessions of counselling and hypnotherapy. Depending on your needs, you may also be offered one of our online programs as well as the chance to participate in our group therapy sessions with access to our online community for support. Please note that whilst a treatment plan will initially be designed for you, this will be subject to change, depending on your progression through recovery.

If acute malnutrition or low body weight is present, you may be asked throughout the treatment process to visit a doctor and permit contact between the doctor and therapist. This is so that your therapist is able to adhere to an adequate level of duty of care, and maintain an ongoing treatment process that is outside of an in-patient treatment setting. 

 

Book an appointment

 

 

 

What to expect from a program of hypnotherapy and counselling

 

Using sessions of hypnotherapy which are specifically tailored for you, we will help you to start listening to your body again and stop fearing food. These programs are designed to assist you to:

 

✓ Tune in to what your body needs

✓ Increase your confidence with food choices

✓ Increase your confidence with enjoyable movement and exercise

✓ Decrease obsessive or compulsive thinking about food and diet

✓ Decrease anxiety and depression

✓ Increase self-esteem and self-worth

✓ Improve body image

✓ Become more mindful and present in the moment

✓ Set yourself up for a lifetime free of the roller coaster of the diet cycle

 

Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating

Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating

Intuitive eating, chronic dieting, and body image

Intuitive eating, chronic dieting, and body image

Gut-directed hypnotherapy for IBS

Gut-directed hypnotherapy for IBS

Online Group Therapy

Online Group Therapy

Support for carers

Support for carers

Anxiety & Other Related Conditions

Anxiety & Other Related Conditions

Other services available

Other services available

What is the non-diet approach?

 

Whilst it is recognised that most common diets (‘wellness diets’, ‘lifestyle changes’, however you want to label it) will reliably induce weight loss in the short term, research tells us that the vast majority of individuals who lose weight will not be able to sustain that weight loss in the long term.

You might have experienced this yourself. Many people who follow a diet will lose weight whilst they are on that diet. However, as soon as the diet stops, the weight often returns; that and some extra.

This is what is called the diet cycle, and it happens because at the heart of most diets is the premise of restriction and deprivation.

On a diet you must count calories and avoid your favourite foods. If you are a perpetual dieter, you will already know that this sets off the ‘alarm’ in the brain; restriction and deprivation are coming!

You must ignore the natural signals that your body is giving you; signals that are biologically hardwired in to your body from birth. Before long, you see that you are missing out. You have to eat differently, avoid joining in socially and you must constantly deny yourself foods which are a natural part of a healthy and balanced diet.

Your mind, body and environment will naturally fight against this. On a typical weight loss diet, you are instructed to think constantly about food, so guess what happens when you ‘fall off the wagon’; you’re thinking about food more than ever. This in turn sets up a vicious cycle of shame and feeling like a failure. It is not you who failed however, IT WAS THE DIET THAT FAILED. Conscious self-denial of something will often lead to an increased desire of that very thing. There is a term for this; Salience. Food starts to have a higher salience than it did before.

Research has shown that repeated episodes of weight fluctuations are more harmful to your health than being overweight to begin with. More importantly, dieting can lead to reduced self-esteem, reduced mental health, confusion and obsession about food and even an eating disorder.

The truth is that if you are a person who is vulnerable to disordered eating, diets are actually one of the most dangerous and counterproductive things that you can do.

So, is it time for you to reject diet culture and the thin ideal and instead learn to love the body that you are in?

 

Book your first appointment

Sean M

Sean M

I reached out to Bianca for assistance with my wife who was going through a very trying time with the arrival of our new baby girl and within weeks, the passing of my father in law. My wife was really struggling like never before with high anxiety and depression and Bianca was able to guide my wife through this very troublesome time. Bianca’s communication, professionalism and kindness made this whole experience that much easier by her guidance and confidence from the moment Bianca took on the concern. Thank you Bianca, I would have no hesitation in recommending your professional services.

Jane C

Jane C

My eating disorder was always something I couldn't change from the surface, it was so hard to wade through an ocean of conflicting emotions and thought to really address the negative behaviours and feelings I was having. Hypnotherapy was almost a last resort for me, but I remember leaving the first session and just feeling lighter. It was as though the weight was lifting slowly, and I could see more about the why I was the way I was. Through hypnotherapy, Bianca helped me sift through nearly 7 years of bad habits and negative thoughts to find a resilience within myself that I didn't know existed as I had shut it down myself. This helped me immeasurably in both the long and short term to develop my own voice and really stand up to my problems

Brooke B

Brooke B

Bianca has provided me with a professional service of hypnotherapy and counselling in a relaxed and safe environment. Her credentials and knowledge can be noted from the outset. She is gentle and non-judgmental but most importantly she has helped me to get the results I needed. I highly recommend Bianca for anyone who needs assistance with recognising that their low self-worth is affecting their day to day existence. Bianca will help you to put life into perspective and will provide you with the tools so that you can begin to enjoy your life to the fullest.

Jon S

Jon S

Bianca is very helpful, I had 4 sessions with her over a 4 month period. The combination of counselling and hypnotherapy has helped me with anxiety. I definitely recommend Bianca"s services and giving it a go.

Gail P

Gail P

I have seen Bianca several times now and she has made me feel extremely comfortable during the sessions. She exudes the perfect balance of gentleness and confidence, and has an obvious depth of knowledge that comes through in her responses and insights.

I highly recommend Bianca as a hypnotherapist.

Anita M

Anita M

Bianca made me feel so comfortable. I have never had this type of therapy before and didn't know what to expect. All I can say is Bianca made me open up and feel safe. I fee like I have learned so many tools for life and swear by this therapy. My eating disorder is now under control and I feel amazing. This was honestly a life changing experience for me. I would recommend Bianca to anyone and already have done so, she is very good at what she does.

Tina D

Tina D

We are so happy with Bianca's service. My mum has been seeing her for 6 months now and has come a long way. She is so much happier that she has been able to talk to someone about her issues and feelings. We are so grateful. Finding Bianca has helped mum a lot and in turn has helped the family with mum being so happy.

Maxine S

Maxine S

I completed 12 weeks with Bianca throughout the year, and highly recommend her. I felt very comfortable and relaxed each time i visited, and the lifestyle changes that have occured have been amazing. Thankyou!! :)

Tara S

Tara S

A big thank you to Bianca for helping me achieve so much with hypnotherapy. 6 months ago, I was lonely, depressed and very critical of myself. However, since seeing her, I am on the road to becoming a much happier and stronger person. I find that I am no longer overwhelmed by the small things and I’ve noticed that my levels of self-esteem and self-worth are continuously improving….seeing Bianca has really changed the way that I feel about myself and my life a lot

Ken W

Ken W

Bianca is an excellent counsellor and she made me really comfortable and I found it easy to talk to her. I feel really better now and highly recommend it

Christine L

Christine L

Bianca was very professional and thorough. She gave me what I needed. Will be going back again. She was very accomodating

Natalie P

Natalie P

I spent three weeks with Bianca and felt calmer and more centred after my very first appointment. She is knowledgeable, professional and creates a safe environment.

Ian B

Ian B

I had a consultation with Bianca. I wasn’t sure what to expect. She shares the space with my Chiropractor, so I thought I’d give it a whirl. I used to chew my tongue when I concentrated. In one session I have stopped. After the session I was aware when I started to do it, and after about a week I completely stopped. I can heartily recommend Bianca and her services.

Lee B

Lee B

I absolutely loved my sessions with Bianca and found them invaluable. I went in expecting just Hypnotherapy, instead I got a fantastic therapist in addition to the Hypnotherapy. Bianca helped me with strategies to move forward with what was bothering me and really helped. I would highly recommend Bianca to anyone needing help, in particular with weight issues like I did.

Linda M

Linda M

Bianca is an excellent practitioner. She is knowledgeable and was able to assist me with my concern both in the short and long term. I would not hesitate in recommending her. Thanks Bianca.

Bianka V

Bianka V

Bianca helped me discover a lot about myself. She is very calm and very knowledgable in her practice. I would highly recommend Bianca's counselling and hypnotherapy.

Blake T

Blake T

I am a very logical person and somewhat skeptical I was curious enough to try it out. After explaining thoroughly and answering questions I had, we did 25 minutes of hypnosis on basic relaxation (felt like 10). What was interesting was I felt fairly normal through most of the session. However once we stopped and Bianca “pulled me out” I realised how heavy and comfortable I felt. Like waking up from a long nap but without any grogginess. More like a ridiculously sense of warmth and the tension I didn’t realise was in my forehead was gone as well. Really hard to describe!! But if you’re at all curious I highly recommend having a try and seeing Bianca, you don’t need a “problem” as such to go and benefit hypnotherapy.

Kate A

Kate A

Really enjoyed my sessions - found them to be relaxing, professional and educational (also got really great results!)

of

Follow Freedom from Food on Instagram @thehaeshypnotherapist

Welcome Here logoANZAEDASDAHproductproductproductGoAHproduct

logo

We would like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri people who are the Traditional Custodians of this land upon which Freedom from Food operates. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present of the Kulin Nation and extend that respect to other Indigenous Australians, past, and present.


Web design by Cultivate Digital