Women Food and God: An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything

I have binge eating disorder and I find Geneen Roth's ideas very useful indeed. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to deal with their eating disorder by starting from within and doing this very effective personal development work.Some of Geneen's writing I have found confusing and I was wondering did she endorse over eating but she explains this topic in the early part of this book very well and I now understand that she has never really advocated overeating as a way of ending compulsive eating.When you're trying out different foods at the beginning of recovery you're meant to eat mindfully and eat slowly and sitting down. I have also bought one of her other books called 'why weight? how to end compulsive eating'. I have spent twenty years trying to normalise my relationship with food and I feel excited by reading her books as there is so much to be learnt in them.

I have been dieting on and off for 10 years. This book speaks to me in such a way that I was in tears reading some of the chapters. Geneen's real life examples could have been taken from my own life!Anyone who diets, binges on food, eats compulsively or suffers from comfort eating (or all those put together!) should read this book.I have also bought one of Geneen's workbooks called 'Why Weight' which is a more detailed explanation into her Eating Guidelines with lots of written exercises.I keep re-reading both books and I haven't dieted for a month and a half. I'm eating what I want, I'm learning to stop when I feel satisfied and I haven't put on any weight, in fact I've lost 2 lbs.

I bought this book after seeing the author on Oprah and having heard that it was a groundbreaking book that would change my life. While it does contain some food for thought, I was not impressed with a lot of the content. There is a lot of Eastern spiritual philosophy incorporated into the authors ideas, which in this context, comes off a bit self-important. I wanted to love it and buy copies for all the women I know but after reading it I was quite disappointed with it's message. The whole book builds up to a crescendo that never comes. That said, it is worth a read and some of its ideas will certainly stick with me, however I don't think this spells the end of impulsive eating for most readers.

I loved this book. I was initially put off by the reference to God in the title. I needn't have been, there is no religious preaching. This book is such a brilliant insight into why we do what we do with food even when it makes us unhappy. It also makes you consider all aspects of your life, not just your relationship with food. I really enjoyed the format of the book and I liked that there weren't paper exercises to do. You are encouraged to really think about things that you do and why you do them. It seemed very 'grown up' to read. It made a lot of sense to me and I particularly liked that the guidelines come at the very end. I can't recommend it enough!

I love Geneen's writing - clear, witty and so good at getting her point across. I downloaded this book years ago and have just read it again and just found it to be profound. This book is for all women and especially those who are finally ready to stop with the daze of dieting.

I ordered this book for my Kindle and within two days I had read it all. It's one of the best books I've come across, and I've already started to implement Geneen's ideas and noticed an amazing difference. Not only do I feel lighter, I feel happier! This is a major leap for someone who has spent the last twenty five years or more lamenting the size and shape of her body!The book is sprinkled with Geneen's humour as well as down to earth guidance for how to use the power of your mind to change your outlook and your life. Forget dieting, this is the way to overcome emotional eating and negativity.

I struggle with attention deficit, but although it took me longer than it would if it were smutty fiction, I still got through it (yay me). This was an amazing read!

The basis of the book is nearly so obvious you wonder why you never thought of it before.Its simple and so striaght forward. Well written without being over powering with information.It makes you question why we eat the way we eat, and the simple and they really are simple steps to just 'stop' and think why we over-eat.One of the main things that struck me was that it helps you in so many other ways in your life.The only advice I could give is that its the type of book you need no distractions with because you need to absorb what the message in the book is.Enjoy x

El libro está genial, recomiendo totalmente a quienes quiera explorar du relación con el comer emocionalmente.

A primeira metade do livro é bastante repetitiva, mas quando chegamos na segunda entendemos que a repetição foi necessária para poder entender as mensagens principais do livro.Dica: os 7 passos são descritos ao longo do livro e estão listados no epílogo.

*****Geneen Roth hits a home run with her latest book about overeating and so much more in "Women Food and God". The theme of the book is that the way we eat, the way we think about food and handle ourselves around it is the way we do everything. The author then shows us how and why this is the case. She describes the food retreats she runs and the women who attend them, and as a reader you will surely identify in some way with every single person--and with the lesson she illustrates from their lives. This is a more complex book than her earlier books because of the spiritual dimension; she sees problems with overeating as gateways to spiritual enlightenment. She convinced me (and will convince you as well) that instead of trying to get rid of or fix our eating problems, we need to use them to see within ourselves, to learn important spiritual life lessons from our feelings, and to grow and heal so that we will end up eating as a spiritual practice. And so that we'll have a permanent end to the misery of always struggling with our weight and self-image, and always striving to improve our relationship with food.The book is so good that for me, just reading it was like a spiritual awakening in this area of my life. I found it motivational, inspirational, and scary in a good way--and the author makes the whole process doable with descriptions of practices that can be used on the food healing/awakening journey such as meditation, inquiry, and eating guidelines. These practices are all specific to the process and they are described in detail. This spiritual dimension is generic and does not require a particular religious belief, or even any religious belief. It would be compatible with any type of spirituality. The type of eating practiced is intuitive eating (listening to your body to discern what it wants), and no matter what your way of eating, you can apply an intuitive approach to it--this book is about a way of living and relating to food, not about a food plan.If you have read the author's other books (as I have) you will find much new information here. Other key themes of the book include mindfulness, presence, and feeling your feelings. The author is brutal but honest in describing how destructive the dieting industry is to women. Again, this is definitely not a diet book or eating plan, but instead a way of experiencing life which allows you to be present and aware so that you are able to listen to your body and choose food based on nourishment and self-care.Although it is a quick read (I read it in one evening), this book is so valuable that you will want to refer back to it, highlight it for future reference, take notes in the margins, and use parts for journal prompts. There is only one negative, and it is a biggy: the paper in this hardback book is similar to super cheap mass market paperback-type paper. I have never seen an actual book of any type with such paper, though! I tried to highlight sections and the highlighter not only would bleed through to the reverse side of the page, but sometimes onto the previous page! It is hard to describe how frustrating this was---a book that is a true keeper on throw-away paper. I highlighted anyway and my book is a mess, but I decided to rebuy it on Kindle when it comes out. I've never done this before, but it's that good of a book--worth months (or maybe years) of therapy. I also would buy it again if it is reprinted (and I'll bet it will be) with a paper that matches the quality of the book.That flaw aside, I'm so glad I bought this book. I have read many, many books on overeating, diet and nutrition, self-help, styles of eating, and more, and this book stands apart from the crowd. The message is an important one for any woman who wants to handle her relationship with food, her weight, and her spirituality in a healthy way, and to become whole. If that is you, you will not be disappointed, I promise.Highest recommendation.*****

I really connected with this book and it made me think about my relationship with food over the last 30 years. I've had a difficult time in the past with food restriction, bingeing and seeing certain foods as good/bad. This book has helped me to recognise that during these times I'm usually hungry for something more than food. I eat much more mindfully now and I have started shedding my guilt around food (day by day). The author's empowering words are like those of a close friend, someone who understands. So I'm grateful that I heard of this book and I have a much healthier relationship with food now since I first started reading it (last year). I'll also add that though I'm not under or over weight I have still had body/food issues for my whole life. So I think this book is useful for any women who have ever felt not good enough in their own skin. Love and best wishes to all. You are beautiful! xox

I found this book interesting in some parts, but very repetitive in others. I think there are many other books which develop this subject in a more engaging and rich way