Dr. Hollis' Weight Loss Solace: Yoga, Overeating, and Drugs

Hi! I’ve just had the opportunity to attend The West Coast Symposium on Addictive Disorders.
I want to tell you about some of the workshops I attended. It was just fabulous. First of
all, in the morning I attended a lecture on the use of yoga in development of recovery
programs and there is a yoga retreat that you as recovering people can attend. I found
the speaker quite interesting and informative, and I will tell you more about him if you
want to give me a call. But you know, for years I have been recommending and doing yoga
as part of an overeater recovery program. You know the problem in any of these things
is that we tend to think that one thing is the answer. I think that yoga practice is
part of the answer, and very good. In the twelve step model we’re asked to do prayer
and meditation. Well yoga is a way you can practice your meditation as well as being
in touch with your body. And it’s very healthy for your body and can help heal that mind-body
split. Also, yoga is a form of exercise that you can do at any weight. There’s even chair
yoga now. If you give me a call I’ll let you know some more about that. Now during
the lunch break for this symposium I attended a panel discussion where people were talking
about issues for professionals about how can you be more than a glorified sponsor. What
is the relationship between one’s twelve step recovery program and what you’re doing
as a professional. That also was quite interesting and brought up many new ideas with me as I’ve
struggled with this issue quite a bit being a recovering person as well as a treatment
professional. At that time I had the opportunity to meet Bobby Mooney who is director of the
Willing Way Treatment center which is father had created. And their staff believes, much
as I have throughout these years and when I created the nation’s first eating disorder
unit, and that is that we do not promote drugs as a solution to the drug problem. So I think
Willing Way is one of the last places in the country that is still totally drug free in
its treatment. I admire them greatly for continuing with this. As many of you know, part of the
reason I closed my treatment centers any years ago was that insurance companies were requiring
use of drugs at that time because of course that will help the person get out much earlier.
My thought about that and what I told my patients was that if they were in a hospital setting,
that’s the place to really fall apart. This is the place where were we have the rubber
walls and you can bounce off them as needed. So that wouldn’t be the place where I recommend
using drugs. Let’s get the person totally clean t see the person that’s down there
way deep down. Another workshop I attended was led by Jean Campbell, a great psycho-dramatist,
who I’ve worked with in New York. She’s now here in Los Angeles, and as you know I’m
in Palm Springs. And she did af great job of doing a pscho drama about the theories
for change and the stages of change. Well worth seeing and looking up Jean if you get
the chance. The last workshop I attended was led by Terrence Darrel Sholeman who has written
a number of books about overspending, debting, and stealing. Excellent presentation where
I really learned a lot. This interests me because often, people who give up vomiting
turn to shoplifting which was one of his topics. And the reason that shoplifting become prevalent,
I believe, is the same thing that involves bulimia anorexia, or vomiting. And that is
that the person gets to get away with something. So when you take the vomiting away from that
person, they still crave that feeling of getting away with something. My case is different
and so shoplifting is a way to act that out. Terry Sholeman has a very good handle on this
sort of thing. He’s also a colleague of another great person that I work with quite
a bit and all these people are well worth looking into. If you want to know more about
any of this call me at 800-8-ENOUGH or contact me through the web page.