Ep 35: Our Relationship with Food with Dr. Amy O'Hana

How would you describe your relationship with food? In today’s episode, Expert-in-residence Dr. Amy O’Hana, licensed professional counselor and Assistant Professor, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, at University of Western States, challenges our thinking around using the word “relationship” when talking about food. 🤔

Dr. O’Hana underscores that we, as humans, have relationships with people. Ethical vegetarianism/veganism arguments aside (and acknowledging those are important and valid thoughts/feelings/opinions), in general food, at the point we consume it, is an inanimate object—it does not nurture you, respond to you, hold you or talk to you, therefore it is not something you can have a relationship with. 🤯

In this episode, Mike, Helena and Dr. O’Hana discuss:
🎙️The idea that we do not have relationships with food, because food is not a person
🎙️Food as a unit of energy and/or a unit of pleasure 
🎙️Food as psychological energy and physical energy (like Helena’s always saying: Food is function!)
🎙️Ending unhealthy attachments to food by shifting our perspectives and definition of how we interact with food 
🎙️Key questions to ask yourself: What need does this food fulfill? Does this food give me energy? Does this food give me pleasure? How much energy or pleasure do I really need to feel topped-up? 
🎙️Using food as a punishment or reward 
🎙What’s behind the “treat yourself” movement 
🎙️Orthorexia (the restriction of foods deemed unclean and disgusting)
🎙️Addressing internal narratives 
🎙️Helena’s process of understanding a client’s food pattern 

Dr. Amy O’Hana is a licensed professional counselor (LPC) in Oregon and an Approved Clinical Supervisor (CCE). She has been a full-time counselor educator for 19 years, manages her own private practice and has been the director of two counseling training clinics. Her clinical expertise is in ethics; diagnosis and assessment; career and vocational counseling; grief, loss, and adjustment; and clinical training in practicum and internship. She has taught at UWS as a full-time CMHC faculty member since July 2021.

Amy’s research interests are human potential and motivation, Erotic Intelligence (Er-I) (which isn’t necessarily about sexuality), spirit-body-mind integration, and spirituality. She is the author of two published books, When Your Child is Grieving (2019) and Beyond Burnout: What To Do When Your Work Isn’t Working For You (2020). In addition, she has authored or co-authored many other professional publications and presentations, including a website.

Amy is an expert in career and vocational issues, including burnout and secondary traumatic stress (e.g., stress and trauma due to occupation, such as military or first responders). You can find Amy on LinkedIn and www.amyohana.com. 

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