http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.violetagaddum.com en-us Wed, 06 May 2026 19:03:19 +1200 Rocketspark http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116842/gemmas-fight-against-an-eating-disorder-episode-ii-the-cat-is-out-of-the-bag/ In our first episode, we met Gemma, a teenager who is struggling with an eating disorder. But she doesn’t know that yet. She believes she is just dieting and eating healthier; she hasn’t realised that she has been spending more and more time thinking about food, that she has become preoccupied with what her mum is cooking for dinner, and that she has started to carefully investigate the calorie and fat content on food packaging. This is what people do when they are on a diet, right? Parents ... Thu, 25 Jan 2024 17:50:20 +1300 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116842 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116843/gemmas-fight-against-an-eating-disorder-episode-iii-family-therapy/  It is part of my job to support people and families at very difficult times in their lives. It wasn’t different with Gemma and her family. While dad looks through the office window and Gemma fixes her eyes on her shoes, mum tells me about the changes that have taken place in their lives over the recent months and how the family is functioning now. Gemma then snaps at mum. - I should have the right to choose what to eat and not to eat! My life is nobody's business – she says. Mum bursts... Wed, 26 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116843 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116841/gemmas-fight-against-an-eating-disorder-episode-i/ ... Mon, 27 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116841 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116840/you-are-not-your-choices-here-is-why/ I took my children to the town market last weekend. The first stall we saw happened to be a toy one, more specifically a Legoman one. There were hundreds and hundreds of Lego men, it was quite overwhelming for me, so you can imagine what happened to the mind of a 6 year old boy! I said he could choose two. Two out of hundreds? How could he possibly make a choice? He chose two, then changed one, and then the other, and then repeated the process around 7 times. Then the Lego me... Mon, 13 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116840 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116839/how-bad-is-your-anger/ Have you ever caught yourself, or witnessed your partner, having an anger outburst? They can be pretty scary for whoever is on their receiving end. And because anger can look so frightening from the outside (and sometimes the inside), some people believe that anger is a bad feeling, a feeling that should be avoided and not expressed. But experts suggest a different way of looking at it. There is no such thing as a negative emotion, although we may all agree that some feelings are more uncom... Mon, 06 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116839 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116838/is-it-time-for-a-change/ Can you think of something you would love to change in yourself and wonder why it is so difficult? It can be a behaviour, a thought process, or a pattern of communication; we, humans, have quite an ambivalent relationship with change.We will most definitely resist change if it is prompted or requested by someone else (sound familiar?). Raise your hands if the arguments with your partner, or parents, or children circle around that topic! We can see very clearly where the other person needs to cha... Tue, 30 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +1200 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116838 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/post/116844/gemmas-fight-against-an-eating-disorder-episode-iv-how-to-support-their-journey/ In the previous episodes, I spoke about Gemma’s family’s journey until getting to my office. This last chapter focuses more specifically on how parents can support Gemma in three main aspects of her recovery journey: the nutritional one; disentangling food and feelings; and the ambivalence between building a bigger life and sustaining an illness that shrinks it. Psychoeducation about the illness to both Gemma and her family is an important first step. An eating disorder (ED) is a solution th... Mon, 09 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.violetagaddum.com/blog/#post116844