The Power of Being Vulnerable
Being vulnerable is one of the bravest things you can do.
Show up perfect.Hide all your flaws.Have everything figured out.
Those are the messages we are told every single day. But we can never grow if we refuse to be vulnerable. Imperfection is the gateway to growth. Without it, we can't go anywhere.
I remember the first time I shared about my own struggles with food. I was in college at a bible study one evening and we were talking about things we keep in a box. Not a literal box. But things that we don't want the world or even God to know or mess with.
For me, this was my relationship with food and exercise. I wanted to keep everything perfect-seeming on the outside. I had a reputation as the "fit girl", the "healthy girl" and I wasn't supposed to have issues with food.
But I felt a deep pull in my soul to share what I was struggling with that night. Maybe you know the feeling you get when that happens. Your heart starts beating faster. You start to get hot and sweaty. You start to feel sick in your stomach.
Yep, those are all the things I was feeling.
To be honest, I wasn't going to share. But then another girl in the group shared about her own struggles with food and specifically binging and restricting.
My jaw dropped. I couldn't believe that someone else struggled like I did with food. I no longer felt alone. That girl sharing her struggles gave me the courage to share about my own struggles.
This was the first time I really admitted to anyone (or to myself) that I was struggling with food.
And though there were many steps between that moment to full freedom and confidence, it was the first stepping stone.
Vulnerability is powerful stuff, ya'll! This week's podcast is all about vulnerability and having the courage to admit failure (remember, failure is necessary for growth) and own your struggle. I got to talk with Tory Stroker, an RD and fellow intuitive eating counselor, all about her own experience with vulnerability. Tory was a practicing dietitian when she realized she, also, needed help with her relationship with food. She shares about making the choice to seek help and now is able to be that help to so many women! She also shares about her experience as a dancer for 20 years and how that influenced body image and food for her.
Here's more about Tory and how to connect with her.
Tory Stroker, MS, RD, CDN is an anti-diet registered dietitian and Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. She is the founder of Tory Stroker Nutrition, a private practice, coaching women virtually who are exhausted from dieting and want to feel “normal” with food and improve their body image.
Tory completed her Bachelors of Science degree at Skidmore College, where she studied dance and business. She then went on to complete her Dietetic Internship and Masters of Science degree at New York University, with clinical rotations at Montefiore Medical Center.
Connect with Tory on her website, https://www.torystrokernutrition.com/ and on Instagram @torystrokernutrition .
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