Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Food

Welcome to the Pursuing Private Practice podcast!

Join Jennifer McGurk, the CEO of Pursuing Private Practice, and Sumner Brooks, the founder of EDRDPro, co-author of How to Raise an Intuitive Eater, mom of two, and dog-loving RDN. Sumner shares her advice on raising children to become intuitive eaters, drawing from her personal journey in motherhood and her professional expertise. We discuss her three keys framework for fostering a healthy relationship with food and body image in children, and explore the challenges and triumphs of “balancing” motherhood as a business owner. 

Whether you're a parent, a dietitian, or someone interested in Intuitive Eating, this episode is packed with wisdom, tips, and resources to inspire and support you on your journey. 

1. Writing "How to Raise an Intuitive Eater": Sumner shares her collaboration with Amee Severson and the process of writing their book, expressing gratitude to her mentor, Elyse Resch.
2. The Three Keys Model in the Book: The book's framework includes three keys, unconditional love, flexible feeding routine, and intuitive eating voice, that interconnect to support intuitive eating.
3. Advice for Dietitians Working with Families: Sumner advises dietitians to understand intuitive eating with adults first and emphasizes the importance of listening skills and checking biases.
4. Balancing Motherhood and Business Ownership: Sumner discusses her personal experience with prioritizing and managing time to balance work and family life.

Sumner’s insights offer a powerful reminder that supporting intuitive eating in families starts with understanding, compassion, and balance - both at home and in business.

 

Timestamps: 

• 01:11 Discussion on Intuitive Eating and Parenting: Sumner shares her framework from the book and offers practical tips and resources for parents.
• 03:25 Sumner's Professional Journey and New Podcast: Discussion of Sumner’s new podcast, "What the Fuss? Parenting for Food and Body Image," aimed at addressing parents' questions.
• 05:16 EDRD Pro and Professional Development: Sumner talks about EDRD Pro, an online platform for continuing education in eating disorder care, and its supportive community.
• 08:15 Writing "How to Raise an Intuitive Eater": Sumner shares the journey of writing the book with co-author Amee Severson and the influence of mentor Elyse Resch.
• 16:20 The Three Keys Framework Explained: Discussion of the three keys framework, emphasizing the importance of each component in raising intuitive eaters.
• 22:43 Advice for Dietitians Working with Families: Tips for dietitians interested in working with families on intuitive eating, highlighting the importance of listening skills.
• 32:35 Balancing Motherhood and Business: Reflection on the challenges of integrating motherhood with business ownership, sharing personal insights and strategies.

Raising intuitive eaters and running a business both require flexibility, self-awareness, and a strong foundation of support, whether at home or in your professional community.

 

Sumner is a mom to 2 amazing kids, an avid reader, and a dog-loving registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) based outside of Portland, Oregon. She has been working in the eating disorder treatment space since 2009.

As the founder of EDRDPro, Sumner’s professional focus is on bringing innovative eating disorder training to fellow dietitians and students through weight-inclusive and diversity-affirming models of care. By marrying her passion for helping people heal with her entrepreneurial drive, Sumner’s goal in building EDRD Pro is to ensure accessible, top-quality training is available to dietitians in the eating disorder space. She is also the co-author of How to Raise an Intuitive Eater: Raising the Next Generation with Food and Body Confidence.

 

Want more from Sumner? 

Follow her on Instagram @intuitiveeatingrd 

Visit EDRDPro’s website. 

Purchase her book: How to Raise an Intuitive Eater: Raising the Next Generation with Food and Body Confidence.

 

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