A little bit more about myself,
I was born and raised in Japan, a country where the prevalent culture of enjoying meals together, in respect and gratitude, often with even three family generations together is common. At the table, we would always honor those who prepared the meal by saying ‘Itadakimasu’ with our palms pressed together in front of our hearts. For urbanites today though, it is becoming less common to have three family generations under one roof. Myself, after living alone for many years, I truly appreciate and love having meals with family, friends and loved ones. It is definitely one of the most magical ingredients/seasonings for soulful joy and mindfulness!
My passion for mindful-eating stems from a personal requirement. I was diagnosed with severe eczema when I was 2 years old. Very frustrated while growing up, I searched and searched, but could not find an alternate solution for my chronic eczema. Throughout young adulthood, I surfed my way through intensive studies in diet and nutrition. I studied numerous clean-eating methodologies, and managed my condition through: macrobiotic, vegetarian, vegan, raw food, alkaline diet, and diverse cleansing programs. All of them had a positive effect on my condition. During the experiment, I also learned that you are not only WHAT you eat, but also HOW you eat and live, which heavily impacts your health. Lifestyle, living environment, stress management, etc… these are all holistic channels for healing. My interest in these, plus my curiosity for anatomy & physiology, led me to immerse myself in the world of yoga therapy, where I eventually completed a yoga therapist training certificate.
Our mind-body is innately intelligent. It knows how to self-heal, but we sometimes tend to forget that. There is so much contradictory information about diet and health, so finding the right solution for your individual needs could be extremely overwhelming. This is precisely why I feel compelled to share my story on how mindful-eating has facilitated my eczema healing, and delivered such joy in my relationship with food.
photo by @Willekemachiels