Intuitive Self: IFS + Intuition + Spirituality with Natalie Deering

Healing Your Relationship with Food Through IFS + Intuitive Eating with Dr. Kim Daniels

Intuitive Self: IFS + Intuition + Spirituality with Natalie Deering

Show Notes

What if your relationship with food isn’t about willpower… but about the parts of you that have learned to use food as protection, comfort, control, or survival? In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Kim Daniels, Clinical Psychologist, Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapist, Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, and author of Heal Your Love-Hate Relationship with Food: An Intuitive Eating and Internal Family Systems Workbook, for a powerful conversation about healing our relationship with food by understanding the inner system driving our eating behaviors. Together, we explore how diet culture and societal messaging deeply shape our beliefs around food, body image, and worthiness — often creating polarized parts that keep us stuck in cycles of shame, restriction, emotional eating, and disconnection from our bodies. Dr. Kim shares what inspired her to write her new workbook and how combining IFS with intuitive eating offers a compassionate path toward true healing. We also dive into the critical role of Self-energy in helping us build trust with eating parts, why traditional approaches to food often overlook the emotional and protective functions behind our behaviors, and how parts work can help us move from a love-hate relationship with food into greater freedom, connection, and self-compassion. In This Episode We Explore: • Dr. Kim’s inspiration behind writing Heal Your Love-Hate Relationship with Food• The impact of diet culture and societal messaging around food and body image• Understanding eating disorders through the lens of Internal Family Systems• How protective parts influence our eating behaviors and relationship with food• The role of Self-energy in healing food-related struggles• Why intuitive eating and parts work are powerful when integrated together• Moving beyond shame and toward healing your relationship with food About Dr. Kim Daniels Dr. Kim Daniels is a Clinical Psychologist with a private practice in Hartford, Connecticut. She is a Certified, Level 2 trained Internal Family Systems therapist, an approved clinical consultant, and a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. Dr. Daniels is the author of Heal Your Love-Hate Relationship with Food: An Intuitive Eating and Internal Family Systems Workbook and host of the Emotional Eating (and Everything Else) Podcast. She specializes in working with clients struggling with food and body concerns and especially enjoys supporting fellow IFS therapists in their own personal and professional growth. Connect with Dr. Kim Daniels Website: https://www.drkimdaniels.com/Book: https://www.newharbinger.com/9781648487286/heal-your-love-hate-relationship-with-food/Podcast: https://www.drkimdaniels.com/podcast __________________________ Want to work with Natalie for Intuitive Parts Therapy or Spiritual Consultation? Contact her below Website: https://www.ndwellnessservices.com/ Contact: https://www.ndwellnessservices.com/contact Instagram: @nataliedeering _____________________________

Help Support the Podcast by Donating Here!

You can also support the podcast by following, rating, and leaving a review!

More from Intuitive Self: IFS + Intuition + Spirituality with Natalie Deering

Oct 5, 2026

What if your Human Design chart could offer a map to both your authentic Self and the parts of you that have learned to adapt and protect? In this episode of Intuitive Self, I’m joined by Caitlan Siegenthaler, an IFS-trained therapist and Human Design Guide, to explore the intersection of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and Human Design. We discuss how Human Design can deepen self-understanding and serve as a powerful tool for identifying parts, accessing Self-energy, and cultivating greater compassion for ourselves and others.

Sep 14, 2026

What happens when shame becomes part of how we see ourselves—and what changes when we begin meeting it with compassion? In this episode I am joined by Executive Coach and certified IFS Practitioner Trevor Bird for an honest conversation about shame, masculinity, vulnerability, and IFS. Trevor shares his own story of shame, including how it fueled the managing parts that helped him find success in the restaurant industry. He also opens up about his strained relationship with his father, the shame his father carried, and how it impacted their relationship.

Sep 1, 2026

In this episode, I sit down with Kay Gardner, one of the original “mothers” of Internal Family Systems (IFS), to discuss her new book, Calling Ourselves Back Home: The Spiritual and Energetic Lens of IFS. Kay shares her journey with IFS and what it has been like to finally take the “lid” off the spiritual and intuitive aspects of her work. We explore legacy and cultural burdens, the historical oppression of the divine feminine, and how these burdens can impact our ability to trust and express our intuition. We also talk about the power of imagination, reconnecting with our innate intuitive nature, and what it means to remember the spirituality that has always been within us. Kay and I dive into guides—what they are, how we might notice them, and how they can support our journey. And in a fun and unexpected moment, we discover that Kay and I share a guide!

Aug 17, 2026

What happens when your body forces you to slow down? In this episode, I sit down with therapist Hannah Smith for a deeply honest conversation about her unexpected experience with three strokes—and the profound personal and professional lessons that emerged from her healing journey. Hannah shares what the experience taught her about the costs of striving and productivity culture, the importance of listening to our bodies, accepting help, and allowing ourselves to rest. We also talk about the incredible support she received from her physical therapist and how community became an essential part of her healing. As an EMDR- and IFS-informed therapist specializing in women's mental health, Hannah also shares how volunteering during an EMDR training unexpectedly shifted the trajectory of her healing and how integrating EMDR and IFS supported her recovery. Together, we explore what it means for therapists to do their own inner work, recognize when we're overriding our needs, and create more space for rest, connection, and nervous-system regulation. In This Episode We Explore:

Jul 29, 2026

Is anxiety something to overcome—or could it be inviting us into a deeper relationship with ourselves? In this episode of The Intuitive Self Podcast, I sit down with trauma therapist John Clarke to explore anxiety through the lenses of Internal Family Systems (IFS), nervous system awareness, and trauma healing. Together, we discuss why anxiety is unique to each person, the burdens it often carries, and how approaching it with curiosity and compassion can lead to profound healing. We also explore perfectionism, shame, masking, supporting others with anxiety, and how to discern the difference between fear and intuition. In This Episode We Explore:

See all episodes →