12 - Filling Up Your Emotional Bank with Jeanine Miles

Hey There! Welcome back to the Slim & Satisfied podcast. I’m really excited about today’s episode because I’ve brought on my first guest, Jeanine Miles.

Jeanine is a licensed professional counselor (LPC) who helps women with their mental and emotional wellness as they navigate through their weight loss journey. Jeanine has been counseling women for over 15 years and provides an eclectic approach to treatment with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy as the theoretical foundation.

I have brought Jeanine on the show today since women with PCOS often struggle with depression, anxiety, low self esteem and sometimes even disordered eating. One of the ways Jeanine helps women overcome such issues is a concept called The Emotional Bank, which was first presented by Dr. Stephen Covey.

Her version of an emotional bank centers around the idea that we have control over the deposits and withdrawals we make from our emotional account. This means giving yourself positive affirmations every once in a while and avoiding negative comments towards yourself.

If you’re able to refocus your energy into feeling more confident in your life, things like weight loss and general wellness will follow. Rejecting the idea that you need to justify taking care of yourself and show love towards yourself, everything else becomes secondary. We’re so programmed to focus on the negative that it takes real self-awareness to reframe struggles into positives.

So, how can an emotional bank help with weight loss specifically?

Jeanine shares three tips:

When you have the confidence to be yourself, weight loss will come naturally. If you’re telling yourself positive affirmations, eventually you’ll start to believe them. It doesn’t have to be big or even physical, but be sure to notice your accomplishments.

Don’t beat yourself up over being imperfect. Slipping up is human. Try to shift away from the all-or-nothing mentality that traps you in the mindset that you don’t deserve to look good.

Be nice to yourself! Don’t get caught up in unrealistic expectations!

What about women with PCOS?

Because women with PCOS have a higher incidence of anxiety and depression, Jeanine offers insight into how an emotional bank can help. She says the key here is learning to love yourself and accept who you are, where you are. She suggests taking 5 minutes just before bed or before you start your day to self-reflect and think about anything positive you’ve done or will do. Remember, these don’t have to be big wins every single day! Small stuff is just as meaningful.

What you’ll learn in this episode

In this episode, Jeanine and I talk about the concepts of an emotional bank and how we can utilize a positive mental attitude to help women with PCOS navigate through their weight loss journey. She gives tips on how we can practice self-affirmation and how to carry that momentum into other aspects of our wellness and mental health.

Links:

Information about Jeanine can be found on this website:

https://ctrfamilyguidance.com/

And via phone at: 856-261-6829