📚 A Bookish Chat with Alli Spotts-De Lazzer Author of MEANINGFULL: 23 LIFE-CHANGING STORIES OF CONQUERING DIETING, WEIGHT, & BODY IMAGE ISSUES @meaningfullread @therapistalli #Interview

Alli Spotts-De Lazzer is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, and eating and body image specialist with a private practice in Los Angeles, California. Alli has presented educational workshops at conferences, graduate schools, and hospitals; published articles in academic journals, trade magazines, and online information hubs; and appeared as an eating disorders expert on local news. A believer in service, she has co-chaired committees for the Academy for Eating Disorders and the International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (“iaedp”), facilitated an ongoing eating and body image support group, and created #ShakeIt for Self-Acceptance! – a series of public events sparking conversations about self-acceptance. She was named the 2017 iaedp Member of the Year, and Mayor Garcetti recognized July 13, 2017 as “#ShakeIt for Self-Acceptance! Day” in the City of Los Angeles. MeaningFULL: 23 Life-Changing Stories of Conquering Dieting, Weight, & Body Image Issues was inspired from both Alli’s personal and professional experiences.

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Welcome to The Writer's Life! How did you come up with the idea to write your book?

Over 20 years of personal experience and 13 years of professional experience as a Marriage and Family Therapist who specializes in eating and body image issues provided plenty of impetus. However, the proof of concept was an unusual fusion of genres, so it took years of workshopping MeaningFULL: 23 Life-Changing Stories of Conquering Dieting, Weight, & Body Image Issues to find the most potentially effective formula.

How would you describe your book’s ideal reader?

Reviews have described MeaningFULL as applicable to “anyone” who has had a stressful relationship with food or body image.

What part of the book was the most fun to write?

Definitely the Thank You section. There was a large community who contributed, and in alignment with staying authentic, I included a personally embarrassing, ironic moment.

How did you come up with the title?

Years ago, I was invited to write a book. I noticed that its title had been developed by using popular search terms, which I thought was effective. Most of this title JUMPED out at me then: popular search words that people seek help for (dieting, weight, body image) with a primary anchor of hope (meaningFULL). For a long time, it was MeaningFULL: Stories of Conquering Dieting, Weight, & Body Image Issues. Yet, I knew something was missing.

Weeks before the final book was due, a student called to complete an assignment of interviewing an experienced therapist. During our meeting, I shared about my title-dilemma, and she said, “So it’s kind of like Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. It’s about MORE than the topic.” YES! This is where “Life-Changing” entered the title.

What’s one fact about your book that would surprise people?

How generous the storytellers and all who proofread and fielded questions were.

What advice would you give to a writer working on their first book?

Persistence + Passion = Possible.

How do you use social media as an author?

As authentically as possible.

If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?

Lin-Manuel Miranda, the composer, playwright, actor, and author.

Finally, what message are you trying to get across with your book?

With the goal of improving food and body image issues, traditional plans, programs, and recommendations from health professionals may not be a reader’s personal solution for living a meaningful, truly healthy life. This view is also supported by science.

Thank you again for this interview! Do you have any final words?

Appreciation for the opportunity to have this interview: thank you.

MEANINGFULL: 23 LIFE-CHANGING STORIES OF CONQUERING DIETING, WEIGHT, & BODY IMAGE ISSUES is a blend of motivational self-help, memoir, psychology, and health and wellness. Alli Spotts-De Lazzer is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, an expert in eating and body image issues, and a woman on the other side of her own decades-long struggle with food and body.

A $702 billion global diet/nutrition and weight loss industry shows that people worldwide are devoted to achieving maximum health and their desired bodies. Yet mainstream approaches are failing these individuals, and sadly, science proves this. Intent on gaining the “health” and “happiness” that diets promise, consumers keep trying. They become sad and frustrated, believing they’re failing when they’re not. They simply need a legitimate, alternative path, which MeaningFULL offers. Through the contributors’ diverse, real-life mini-memoirs followed by Spotts-De Lazzer’s commentaries, readers will learn about themselves and discover their unique, unconventional formulas for conquering their issues. Along the way, MeaningFULL will also guide them towards more self-appreciation, wellness, and fulfillment.

PRAISE

“Have you ever thought that the painful experiences you’ve had after falling off a diet or being uncomfortable with your body are yours alone? No one else could have ever felt as sad, frustrated, or disappointed as you have! No one else could have struggled with self-esteem or a lack of inner trust as you have! The truth is that these feelings and experiences are universal in a world of diet culture, that only values you for an idealized size or shape of your body and judges you for your eating choices. MeaningFull is a relatable, down-to-earth book that can help you to not feel so alone and isolated in your relationship with food and your body. By reading the stories of a multitude of people who have found their way out of the trap of diet culture and by reading the clear and valuable guidelines and advice that Alli Spotts-De Lazzer presents, you will finally find the hope for a future of joy and satisfaction in your eating and a sense of respect and dignity for the miraculous body that is yours.”

-Elyse Resch, MS, RDN, CEDRD-S, FAND, Nutrition Therapist, Author of The Intuitive Eating Workbook for Teens and The Intuitive Eating Journal, Co-author of Intuitive Eating, The Intuitive Eating Workbook, and The Intuitive Eating Card Deck

In “Meaning Full” Alli Spotts has put together a trove of inspiring stories for anyone interested in tackling problems with eating, weight and body image. The various contributors in the book take readers on a summary of their own healing journey providing useful ideas and strategies that others can apply where appropriate. Readers not only get honest, personal, accounts, but Alli’s summary at the end of each case provides clarification, cites research, and gives further resources on the various subjects brought up. It is refreshing to read a book where individuals dealing with weight and body image struggles describe overcoming their plight.

-Carolyn Costin, Director of the Carolyn Costin Institute, 8 Keys To Recovering From An Eating Disorder

For parents who have a child struggling with any kind of eating or body image issues, it’s common to feel isolated, scared, confused, and even ashamed. The stigma and stereotypes around these issues and sometimes serious illnesses add an extra burden for so many families, and it can be hard to find other people who truly “get it.” Parents looking for hope, insight, and connection will find many poignant stories in MeaningFULL. Caring for a young person through healing from these issues-from seemingly minor self-image problems to serious eating disorders-can take an emotional toll, and families often need a lot of support. Alli Spotts-De Lazzer’s collection of diverse personal stories can help parents feel less alone, shed the guilt or self-blame, and start to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

-Oona Hanson, MA, MA, Educator and Parent Coach