293: Why Weight Loss Doesn't Heal Shame — And How Faith + Brain Science Creates Lasting Freedom

She lost nearly 100 pounds. And the shame stayed.

That's where Leanne Ellington's story starts — and where most women's healing has never actually begun. In this episode, self-image scientist Leanne joins Dr. Tabatha to unpack why no diet can fix what's actually broken, what brain science and biblical truth do together that neither can do alone, and why you can't out-pray a pattern you're actively reinforcing every single day.

This is the conversation the weight loss industry doesn't want you to have.

In this episode:

• Why shame doesn't leave when the weight does
• The step before the step — you've been solving the wrong problem
• How neuroplasticity is God's design (and what that means for your healing)
• Why begging prayer keeps you stuck — and what partnership prayer looks like instead
• The integrity gap: the distance between who God made you and who you're watching yourself show up as

Closing scripture: John 8:32 "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

Connect with Leanne Ellington: Free preview of the Stressless Eating system: stresslesseating.com 

Ready to go deeper?

The women who hear this episode and feel something shift — they belong in the Fast to Faith Sisterhood. This is where faith, functional medicine, and identity work come together with a community of women who are done managing symptoms and ready to lead from healing.

If you feel called to take that even further — to guide other women through this exact transformation — the Fast to Faith Coaching Academy is where that calling becomes a career.

Become a certified Fast to Faith™ coach →

Weekly live mentorship with Dr. Tabatha

Not ready for the academy yet? Start here: 5-Day Empowered by Faith Challenge ftf.fasttofaith.com/empoweredbyfaithdiy

Shop Dr. Tabatha's supplement line: Use code PODCAST for 20% off your first order: shop.fasttofaith.com

Get the book: Fast to Faith: A 40-Day Awakening: book.fasttofaith.com/bonus?am_id=fasttofaith5413

Fast to Faith is hosted by Dr. Tabatha Barber — OB/GYN, functional medicine physician, and founder of the Fast to Faith Sisterhood and Coaching Academy.

Transcript

Why Shame Outlasts Weight Loss

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Why doesn't shame leave when the weight does? The weight was never the problem. The weight was just a symptom.

Dr. Tabatha 0:12

If you're tired of doing all the right things and still feeling exhausted, stuck in your body, and disconnected from God, this podcast is for you. I'm Dr. Tabitha, a triple board certified functional medicine physician, and I help women stop fighting their bodies and start healing them God's way. Let's get into it. Welcome back to the Fast of Faith podcast. Ooh. Hey girl. Hey. Hey. How's it going? Oh, it's going. I am not loving the snow, but you know what I am loving? This new song by Katie Nicole called Have Your Way. It is like I was belting this out, and I have no voice to be singing this song, but that's what the car is for, right, ladies. Like, Lord have your way in my life, in my heart, in my soul, and my mind. Lord have your way every time. And she talks about just raising her hands, bowing down on her knees, and just singing, Lord Have Your Way with me. And I was like, this is the anthem for today's episode with our guest. And I was just, I wanted to hit it on replay like so many times because I was feeling it in every cell of my being. So yeah, I love that.

Ashlee 1:34

I love a good car worship session. Yeah. Always fun. Yes. Yeah. I also think it's funny that you're talking about snow because this episode's not airing for a while, and it'll be summer here and it'll be beautiful. And so, in fact, actually, this morning I walked out, let to let my dogs out, and I was like, they always say, move to Michigan, it's beautiful in the summer, but they forget about the constant snow.

Dr. Tabatha 1:56

So, yes. So, what I love is walking out there and just thinking of the verse, Lord, you took my scarlet and you made it pure as snow. And I just feel super cleansed today. So that's what's getting me through this cold, cold weather. Yeah. So let's dive in because today's conversation is super important because we get women coming to us who are struggling with food. Um, if you are struggling with lack of discipline, this episode is for you, or you feel like I just don't have enough willpower, or I'm

Meet Leanne And Her Mission

Dr. Tabatha 2:32

not even motivated at this point to change. I'm just losing hope. Um and the truth is we're trying to fight a pattern that's going on in our brain. And God is not trying to take away these issues, He's trying to navigate it, navigate us through. So I'm excited about this conversation. When uh Christy connect us with Leanne, um, I was like, yes, this is my girl. I want to introduce Leanne Ellington. She is a self-image scientist, a writer, a podcaster, and creator of the stressless eating system. Gosh, I love that name. She helps women break free from toxic thought patterns, food obsession, and shame. And not through more dieting, but through rewiring the brain, the identity and the nervous system that's at the root of your issues. So doesn't that speak so deeply to you?

Ashlee 3:29

It does. And it's such a crux of where we what we do every day in Fast of Faith. But I think what was most powerful when I was reading your story, Leanne, was that you've lost a hundred pounds and that you went to Weight Watchers at eight years old. But when you lost that 100 pounds, you didn't lose the shame and all the other things that come. Those things were still a part of you. So that's what I'm excited to hear that side of your story today.

unknown 3:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:54

Awesome. So welcome. Thank you so much for that beautiful introduction. And I love the the intersection of the work that we're doing and how where this conversation is going. I'm excited for God to just let him lead the way.

Dieting Since Childhood And The Cost

Dr. Tabatha 4:08

Yeah, I want to hear more about this Weight Watchers at eight years old because obviously so much of our programming happens as children before we are even cognizant of like the thoughts we're having. So is that what really started it out for you?

SPEAKER_02 4:25

Yeah, I mean, honestly, I never set out to do this work. You know, I was actually, you know, girl, teenager into a you know, grown adult woman, standing in my kitchen eating peanut butter straight out of the jar, swearing I would be good on Monday for the thousandth time. Um, because I had been on every diet since I was eight. You know, Weight Watchers, it was called Atkins at the time, you know, the appetite suppressant, you know, trend, um the fasting, all of it. And I could lose weight, um, but I'd always gain it back plus more. It would come back with interest. But I was always also, um, interestingly enough, that when we're talking about the faith piece of this, um, I am a Jewish gal. So I didn't grow up with faith. And so I was carrying all of this shame and self-hatred and nowhere to put it, you know? And then it really came to a head in my early 20s. I now call it the cost of skinny because I ended up on an operating table at the Cleveland Clinic needing major spine surgery because I had been essentially abusing my body and punishing it and treating it like this thing that I was stuck with since I was a child, instead of something to be taken care of and learn to get on the same team as and something that was actually precious.

Surgery Recovery And Nervous System Healing

SPEAKER_02 5:38

And the surgery changed everything for me because during recovery, I started discovering the nervous system. I was telling you guys, I didn't even know what the nervous system was at the time. It was out of uh requirement. I needed to learn what it was out of my own healing journey because there was a lot of stuff that happened off the back of that surgery. But that's when I realized when we're talking about the nervous system, it's not just this physiological nervous system, it's mental, it's emotional, it's spiritual, right? It's all interconnected. And so um, you know, within that time, I literally had to learn how to walk again. And in that process, I learned that my body wasn't the enemy. Um, and and again, that's when I started stumbling into the research side of neuroscience and about neural pathways and and how it related to stress eating, because I didn't realize that the two could be interconnected. And so I was like, it made me realize, wait a minute, my brain was just doing what I trained it to do. Because again, even though I was helping other women lose weight in my in my first career, I still behind the scenes was, you know, drastically reducing calories and working off every cupcake and all of the things. And that's when I realized, oh, I just trained it. I fired and wired it a certain way because I didn't know what I didn't know. Um, and that this isn't about willpower. Um, and so then on in parallel to that journey, a few years later, I, you know, this bacon loving Hebrew speaking Jew stumbled into a

Faith Meets Neuroplasticity And Identity

SPEAKER_02 7:02

church. Um, and I was looking for God for the first time. And I discovered that the God that I never knew actually loved me in all of that mess. And that it wasn't about, you know, God loving me when I was thin and not when I was good enough, but like right there in my brokenness. And that is what it all really came together and clicked that, you know, God designed our brains to change and that neuroplasticity is his design, and that I wasn't broken. I just needed to learn how to partner with how he made me. Um, and so the obsession continued. What started out just studying, you know, the neuroscience-based everything and nervous system regulation and like the neuropsychology, neurobiology piece of it, that's when the faith piece of the puzzle really filled in the blanks of all the stuff I couldn't, you know, personal develop my way through. Um and that's where, you know, along along this journey, I was I was kind of my own guinea pig. Um, but it it all just transformed me. Not just the weight, but my whole relationship with my body and food completely transformed. And now I guide women through the same process. I've been doing it for 15 years, but really inviting the faith piece of it wasn't present until about six years ago. Um and it turns out that when you combine brain science with faith, that's when you can finally receive, because it's under we we understand it logically, right? But actually receive that no, God's not mad at you, he's not punishing you. Your brain can actually change and you can partner with him and invite him into that process. And that is where the magic happens.

Dr. Tabatha 8:36

Oh my gosh, this is so good, girl. I am telling you, our stories are so parallel. And I was doing all of this healing work helping women, and God really put it on my heart. You have to nourish their soul, you have to add this faith piece. And for me, it was the game changer because it's like we can diet and we can force ourselves or we can, you know, follow a plan for just so long, especially if we get results. We're we're more apt to want to stick with it longer. But at the end of the day, if you are not renewing your mind and becoming a new creation in Christ, you will fall back to your old ways, to your old habits. And I would love for you to speak to like what is the first thing that you tell women, this is where we need to start. This is the beginning of the process.

The Step Before The Steps

Dr. Tabatha 9:37

Is it getting in the word? Is it praying differently? Like, what is your secret, Scott?

SPEAKER_02 9:44

Yeah, you know, it's it's almost like the step that happens before the step would be my answer. Because before we can get into the how and the what and what we're gonna do to transform your mind and renew your soul and and and completely change the wiring in your brain, first you have to acknowledge that we that there, that this is the problem that needs to be solved, right? Because a lot of women, at first, they come to me and they think they have a food problem, a weight problem, a self-sabotage problem. And the first thing I need to help them realize is well, actually, no, that's all downstream from what's causing it, which is up in the brain. But when I say brain, I mean yes, the physiological, the nervous system, the firing and wiring and the circuitry and that side of it, but then also what our mind has trained our brain to become, right? So the self-image, the identity, the beliefs that are shaping the behaviors. And as long as women are looking at it as just a habit shifting or behavior change conversation, they're in the wrong conversation because they're going to be chasing the wrong rabbit hole, so to speak, right? So the first thing is getting them to identify, like, no, this is I'm I've been solving the wrong problem, and that's why all of this stuff hasn't worked. It's actually been designed not to, you know, it's not that these systems failed me, it's just they were never designed to address the real issue. So that's the first piece of the puzzle. And then I believe it's a matter of saying, okay, this is where I'm ready to take radical responsibility and take back my power. And when I say my power, I don't mean a self-sufficiency conversation. I mean a conversation where it's like, okay, this is where I go use my free will to take radical responsibility of what's going on in between my ears, because that's the part that God can't do for us, right? And then we invite him into that conversation of the soul-based, the spirit-based, all of that, so that what we know about scripture to be true, because we know it logically, but it can actually be received in our head and in our hearts. So really that shift has to go from realizing that this is not a physiological problem, even though they're it's manifesting physiologically and they think it has to do with their body and food itself, and showing them that no, that's actually downstream being caused by what's going on upstream in the head, the heart, the nervous system, the brain, the wiring, the circuitry, the self-image, all of that. But then also getting them to say, okay, I am done. I'm at that point where, and it doesn't have to be a rock bottom, but I'm done, you know, recycling the same pain. I'm done going down this definition of insanity. I'm ready to do the part that I haven't done, which is use my free will to go rewire my brain and then invite God into that conversation. So that's why I say it's kind of like the steps before the steps.

Dr. Tabatha 12:19

I love that so much. And as you're speaking, I'm thinking of 2 Timothy and like God did not give us a spirit of fear and this spirit of like being timid and afraid. We have to take action and you know, go after it. And I love that you mentioned free will because that is the piece that a lot of women don't understand or realize. Like, yeah, you have to be available and able, but you also have to be willing, a willing participant. And so I I love that you're speaking to like creating a new identity. That's what we talk about. Like, what is your Christ-centered identity? How are you showing up through his eyes? And that is how you can start

Prayer Versus Spiritual Bypassing

Dr. Tabatha 13:08

to shed off a lot of these lies and limiting beliefs that women have. I would love for you to speak to prayer because, you know, I know for me, I used to beg like a poor pathetic girl who didn't realize she had any power or authority in this space. And so it would be like, please, God, please take this away from me, fix this person, um, give me this. And it's really pathetic looking back at it now, but that's how we are taught to pray, I think, in society. And if you could just speak to like what that is doing to us um mentally and emotionally.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

Absolutely. Yeah, this is one of, I think, the game changers. Because, like you said, you learned it too. You learn like if I just pray hard enough, then maybe all of my, you know, worst, you know, habits will be taken away from me and I'll be transformed just through prayer. Um, and I'm not diminishing prayer, right? Because it's a massive part of this, but we have to learn how to use prayer under the laws of how our brains actually work and how they transform. And this is the biggest roadblock I see. Women praying for decades, but they're un inadvertently actively refusing God's help, right? And we all heard the drowning woman paradox, right? Or drowning man, like a man is caught in a flood, water's rising, he climbs to the top of his roof and praise God, please save me. A neighbor comes by in a canoe, right? No thanks, God'll save me. That's what he says. And then the water keeps rising higher, higher. A rescue boat arrives. It's a beautiful rescue boat, right? He's like, Nope, I'm waiting for God to save me. And then finally, a helicopter drops a ladder, right? And he's like, Nope, waiting for God to save me. And so the man drowns. And as this, you know, this parable goes, or whatever you want to call it, in heaven, he asks God, like, why didn't you save me, God? And God said, I sent you a canoe, I sent you a boat, I sent you a helicopter. What more did you want? Right. And so we're relying on things that are outside of us, right? The raft is that book that could have helped, but we never actually applied it. We tried to information our way through an emotional problem. Or the boat was the the friend who actually found freedom and tried to share it, but we we weren't listening because we were like, nope, God's gonna do this for me. Or, you know, the helicopter is the the actual program you went through and said, no, I'll just pray harder, right? And so when we say I'm waiting for God, and I mean this with so much love because you know, we again you're saying you've done it, we've all done it. This is what like this is why we want to speak about it. But when we say I'll I'll wait for God to do it, to me, that is spiritual bypassing, right? We are literally drowning while pushing away the rescue, right? And God's up there being like, I'm sending help, why won't you take it? Right. And this is where we were talking about free will earlier. And I believe that there's a hard truth about that that we need to understand, which we touched on earlier. But it's like, yes, God gave us brains that can change neuroplasticity, a thousand percent. That's his design. No question about that. But like we were saying before, he cannot, and I will add in, will not, override our free will. Because love, love for ourselves, love for our health, it requires choice. And when we are praying, praying, praying, and we are not taking action, that is what I call delusional optimism, right? It's like praying for a garden but refusing to plant the seeds, you know, faith without works is dead. James knew about neurowiring. I truly believe that. And so you can't just pray harder and expect different results. That's literally that what we hear, the definition of insanity, right? So, what's the alternative, right? I believe it's a partnership model, right? And so, you know, when we like I said, God provides the neuroplasticity, the miraculous ability to change, right? And we have to provide the daily practice and the showing up differently. And that's where a lot of us need a map because we don't know what we don't know. But the problem is our, you know, I call it the diet brain, which is that short-term gratification trap. Give me weight loss, give me quick-term results, right? That diet brain keeps repeating the old patterns. The diet brain is also not just a food-based thought process. It's your beliefs, it's your self-image, it's how you see yourself, it's how you perceive yourself in relation to yourself, in relation to other people, in relation to what you think other people think about you. Like there's so much going on up there, right? And so that old brain keeps repeating the same patterns, repeating the same patterns because it's all it knows, right? And so that's where, yes, we definitely need proper guidance and accountability to break that cycle, like physical therapy for the brain. Um, and and that's where God often works through others, like you guys are doing with this podcast, right? That is the body of Christ. Um, but this is where you need, in my opinion, like an intensive an intensive period of rewiring versus what we're seeing a lot out in the world is like endless years of therapy or talking about the problem or going back and going back and recycling the past and rehashing the past and psychoanalyzing what happened when we were five, which is valid. It's all great data, but most women just need don't want to go back and live old thoughts and theories and stories. They want to learn how to not bring those patterns into their future with them, right? And so, bottom line, to put our wrapper around this, like you can't pray away neural pathways that you are actively reinforcing every single day. And so every day we stand in that pantry or we commit to the next diet or whatever it is, we're just repeating the same pattern and in turn strengthening those pathways. And I believe God is waiting for us to just pick up the tools that He's already given us, but we also need a new way of thinking because He's not gonna go override your free will, but He's given us a brain that can change and then often sends people and paths in our way to help us. But then the question again, full circle, becomes like, are you going to get in the boat?

Meta-Awareness And Taking Thoughts Captive

Dr. Tabatha 19:28

Yes, absolutely. I love this so much. So just to reiterate, the first thing is you need to take every thought captive. You need to have this meta-awareness and and notice your thoughts. When you're thinking a thought, you have to be able to step back and notice it and be curious. Does this serve me? Is this kind? Is this necessary? Most likely not. And then we need to rewrite that story, rewire our brain. And, you know, Ashley's our coaching director for the academy, and we get a lot of stories from women. And it takes a while to start to change that narrative and you know, really rewrite that story from God's perspective. Um, I was wondering, Ashley, are you thinking of anything right now as it pertains to this?

Ashlee 20:21

Yeah, I am actually. I actually am thinking about so we had a we have a meeting that we do every week um with uh all of the people in our our current group. And one of our coaches actually wrote in um the chat yesterday that she heard from God and God told her that if you're not trusting your body to heal and change, it's like you're not trusting me. And that was so like, I was like, oh my gosh, that makes so much sense because she could be continuously praying for change, but if she's not trusting that that change is gonna happen, she's not rewiring her brain. And so I think it kind of wraps all of this up in a with a big bow that it is so important that we trust God that He is gonna give us what we need. And He already gave us this amazing body, and we all look different for a reason and for a purpose. And so it's super powerful. I text her afterwards and I was like, thank you for saying that. Like, I don't know who you said it for, but it meant a lot to me. And then I was preparing for the show this morning and reading everything, and I was like, Oh, now I know why she said that yesterday. This all makes sense. And so I wanted to make sure I shared that today. But yeah, I mean, we we see it every single day in our groups and our coaches see it every day that women have to trust, but they have to take the step and use the tools. And if they just keep making excuses, they're not going to

Why Shame Stays After Weight Loss

Ashlee 21:41

change.

Dr. Tabatha 21:41

Well, and then the shame piece of it, like we we want to, but Leanne, I want you to talk about this because you say, like, you lose the weight, but the shame doesn't automatically leave with it. So I think that's where women get stuck, right? Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 21:58

Yeah, and it does have. Into what you were just saying as well, this trust piece of the puzzle. Um, and then why doesn't the shame go away? So part of it is what I'm experiencing from my work, and this is just what I'm not saying like this is what it is, but this is just what I believe based on the experiences I've had and the work that I've done. The trusting in God process is a symptom or a result of we don't trust ourselves. There's an integrity gap between what we're saying and what we're doing, what we believe and what we know to be true, and then what we're witnessing ourselves showing up as. And so there's this version of us that we all have that it's like, this is who God designed me to be. This is what I know is true, this is who I am, who I know the best version of me would be showing up as. And then we have that version that we're witnessing every single day, day in, day out, and we're witnessing ourselves show up out of alignment with that version. And the gap in between those versions of ourselves, that is where the deepest shame lives, right? And so if we don't go through a process of earning back our own trust, earning back our own self-respect, and not just in a fluffy, frilly way of like, I am trustworthy and I believe myself when our subconscious self-image is gonna call BS on that, right? Um, if we don't go through the process of earning back our own trust and respect, that trust that we know logically that we can give and have within with our within our relationships with God will never fully feel aligned. And so that shame piece of the puzzle dovetails into what you just specifically asked. Like, why doesn't shame leave when the weight does? Right. And so I first discovered this. This this one's personal because this is what I lived. You know, I lost close to 100 pounds in my early 20s, I did everything right, um, right in air quotes, right? I controlled my food, I exercised obsessively, I white-knuckled my way to a smaller body. Um, and I thought, when I'm thin, then I'll finally feel good enough, I'll feel worthy, I'll feel free. But the shame didn't leave with the weight. And so I had this newer body, but I still hated myself. And I was still obsessed with food, right? Only this time it was like, oh my gosh, if I don't keep controlling it, I'm gonna go back off the deep end, I'm gonna gain a bunch of weight, all the things, because subconsciously I knew that I hadn't really healed the real problem. But that being said, that's because the weight was never the problem. The weight was just a symptom. The real problem was my identity and the belief system that I was operating from. And not just the like, yes, there were the more obvious ones, like the belief that I, and some would say these are the least obvious ones, but like the belief that I wasn't enough or that I was too much, and that if they really got to know me, I would be too much for whoever they they were. But also I learned that I had to earn love and I had to perform to get approval and worthiness. And then in the midst of that, I learned that I couldn't be trusted around food and that my body was the enemy. There were just so many different like threads of stories that were interwoven into one. And that's what I mean when I say self-image. It's the lens that we're seeing ourselves through. And when that lens is distorted, everything is distorted, right? And so now working with women, here's what I see. Same thing. They think that if they just lose the weight, everything is going to be better. But then a lot of them come to me after they've lost the weight, right? They're at their goal weight and they still feel anxious and they're still obsessed and they're still using food to cope because they don't know how to be emotionally and spiritually available to themselves in those moments instead of relying on food or wine or Netflix, right? Because the problem is they change their behavior, they change their habits, but they didn't change their brain. They didn't change their identity and they didn't heal the root. And so what does it look like to actually heal it at the root, right? Because I just said a minute ago, like what I don't believe it is, is us going back and like unpacking and psychoanalyzing and regressively just like looking backwards at the past, aka focusing on the problems. So, what does it look like to heal at the root? Well, first we talked about that identity transformation, right? You it's not just enough to lose the weight. You've got to stop seeing yourself as the woman who struggles with food, or as the woman who this is who I am no matter what, right? You have to start seeing yourself as the woman who is free, not someday, but like has the ability to be free right now, independent of how long you've been this way. Right. And you've got to anchor that identity before you talk about behavior changes, in my opinion, or else you'll always end up right back in alignment with what your self-image believes to be true about you. And if your self-image believes to be true about you, that you're the woman who struggles with food, or that you're the woman who no matter what happens when stress get goes up, she her, she self-abandons or she goes out the window, right? Even if these aren't conscious, right, you'll always end up right back in alignment with what you believe to be true about yourself, right? So, and then obviously we, you know, things like nervous system regulation, because most emotional eating isn't about food. It's about a very dysregulated nervous system and using food to just soothe a numb and cope. So you've got to learn how to regulate that. And then the belief rewiring comes with that, right? The identity piece of the work is a part of that is identifying the subconscious beliefs. Cause again, a lot of them aren't conscious, um, and go rewire them. Like, and like I said, not just cover it with positive affirmations, actually rewire them at the neural level. And so, how do we rid ourselves of the shame? That's what I believe is the work. I know it's not the sexy stuff that like everyone on the internet is trying to sell. It's because it's not a quick fix, but I believe it's the only thing that creates lasting freedom. And notice it was a bunch of things. It's a three-dimensional process, it's not just one-sided.

Ashlee 27:56

I think so. Listening to that, here's what I heard was it's it's almost easier to lose the weight. It's the internal work that no one can see because no one's praising you for getting rid of your shame. And so there's not constant affirmation, but when you start to change your look, people notice that. And so I think that's where what the work you're doing and the work that Tabitha is doing is so important because that is what we are doing, is we are praising women for changing that shame and letting go of that weight. I think that is that's the game changer right there. So that's what I heard the whole time you were talking. Absolutely. Is it's it's the work no one sees, right? It's the almost like thankless work that you're doing. Um, especially if you're someone that strives off of affirmation and you don't get that.

SPEAKER_02 28:43

Sure. Yeah. And and spot on what you just said, so well said. And and that's why I believe, and that's why one of the things we do within my work is we've got

Building Internal Worth And Self-Endorsement

SPEAKER_02 28:52

to change the definition of success, right? Because our definition of success is like chasing skinny, chasing a a smaller size, and maybe it's not even just weight, it's like more money in the bank, more compliments, more likes on Facebook, whatever it is. We all have our own things that we've chasing. I've used them all, right? So there is no shame about it. But that's when we are, when that is what we are using. If all of our our eggs, metaphorical eggs in the self-worth basket are these external factors and we never learn to create an internal currency, it's always gonna feel empty and meaningless. That's why when we get everything that we ever wanted, but we don't do that internal work, it feels empty and meaningless because it is, because it'll never fulfill your soul. And that's where, again, I believe it's the beauty of inviting God into it, not down the road, but like from day zero, from day one, having God invited into that conversation so that, you know, again, these external quantifiables that we're using to dictate our success, and that's in turn what other people notice, that is what's driving the bus. And that's what leaves us feeling empty and meaningless. And the beautiful thing is that when you change this currency that you're using, so it goes from an external currency that you're looking for other people to validate to this internal currency, I call it self-endorsement, being able to receive the beauty of who you are, the awesomeness of who you are, the amazingness of who you are, and not from this cocky self-righteous place, no, from the place of like God sees you this way. When are you gonna get the memo? Yeah, you know, kind of way to actually receive it and stand in the knowingness of it. And when you stand in the knowingness of that, the compliments and success and and weight change and all of that, those are they're they're fun to have. They're icing on the cake because we're human and like that stuff feels great. But you want it, but you don't need it to survive. You want it, but you don't need it to know who you are to survive, to to know who you are and the knowingness of who you are, to to the reflection of your self-image finally aligns with what God says about you. And it's not that you won't care what other people think, because you will, we're wired to care, but you what you believe about yourself and what you can now receive from God, you'll care way more about that.

Dr. Tabatha 31:07

So good.

Sponsor Break And GLP-1 Context

Dr. Tabatha 31:09

Real quick, I just want to interrupt this conversation for something super important. Even though we need to take care of ourselves spiritually, emotionally, and physically, we do have to take care of ourselves at a cellular level. And that is why I have my Fast to Face supplement line. So let's just take a minute to hear about something that might be the game changer that you need in this season.

SPEAKER_01 31:37

Here's one of the things that the GLP1 drugs don't do. They don't increase your metabolism, and they don't also increase your body's natural production of GLP1. What metabolit will do is it's a combination of plant extracts. So it's lemon verbena and hibiscus. Now, those two have been researched, studied, and patented together as a duo to increase GLP1 by 55% in the body. It's doing it naturally. It's gonna naturally help you lower cravings and you're gonna feel a little bit fuller. In the clinical trials, they studied obese and overweight patients. The obese patients lost on average 10 pounds over two months, and overweight it was eight pounds over two months. So this isn't gonna get you to the point where you don't ever want to eat. You're just not gonna feel as hungry. You're just mildly full. But you're still gonna be, you know, consuming food and then also increasing your metabolism as well.

Dr. Tabatha 32:39

This conversation is so necessary right now in society because women and men are dropping weight like nobody's business on these GLP ones, and nobody is addressing any of this identity stuff, and nobody is working on rewiring the brain, and the pendulum is gonna swing back hard, and these people are going to be searching for this uh answer, for this understanding. So I'm so grateful that you're doing this work and you're getting this message out there because millions of people are needing it and they're about to really need it. I I love God is so good, like He knows what's coming. You just have to trust because I tell you, like a year ago, we were thinking this message is not gonna be received. Like, we're gonna have to bait women in with weight loss and then, you know, spring this on them because here's the real truth of what you need to do. And God kept saying, Nope, you know, just trust me that this is what needs to happen, this rewiring. And so he was revealing it ahead of the need. I think it's so beautiful, and I'm just excited to see you're out there doing this, and you are helping so many women with your podcasts. Please share with my listeners where they can find you and work with you,

Where To Find Leanne And Free Tools

Dr. Tabatha 34:10

all of the things. I love that you have more than one podcast. Like, this is such a good topic. You're like, I'm tackling this all over the place.

SPEAKER_02 34:18

Well, that is a God thing as well. I did not seek out to be a professional podcaster, but iHeart found me and gifted me with the opportunity to for their support and them to rally around. So uh one of my podcasts is called Out Way, and I co-host it with Amy Brown from the Bobby Bones show. Um, and we talk about all things food and body-related, disordered eating, self-image, body image. Um, but it is a more secular-based podcast. And then where um iHeart has also gifted me the opportunity is to now invite Jesus into that conversation. But all, you know, because again, like I said, I was a skeptical, cynical, bacon-loving Jew who uh kept Jesus at an arm's distance because, you know, we Jews grew up hearing that Jesus was the Easter bunny, like more or less, you know. So it was a process. So what's God got to do with it is a place to have all of those same conversations, the self-image, the body image, the identity-based conversations, but through the lens of what's God got to actually do with it, right? And that's where we invite um these faith-based conversations into the mix, really where the intersection of faith meets neuroscience. So both podcasts are very neuroscience heavy because that's how I came to Jesus, right? Um, but so those are two great ways that you can find out more about me. And if you just want to see a sneak behind the curtain of the system that I teach my clients about how to heal from the all-or-nothing mentality through the lens of the self-image and the body image and the identity-based thinking um and and how that involves with this within the circuitry of the brain, you can check out my my free sneak preview over at stresslesseating.com where I just literally peel it back and teach the exact system that I teach my clients. So stresslesseating.com is where you can find that.

Dr. Tabatha 35:56

Ooh, so good. Thank you. That I'm definitely gonna check that out.

Ashlee 36:01

I've I know that there, I can think of like five women that I'm coaching right now that are struggling with the all or nothing mindset. So I'm excited to be able to send them your way.

Dr. Tabatha 36:12

So good. Oh my gosh. If you are listening to this, I hope that you are really starting to like take on the knowing that you are not broken, that you just have some patterns that need to be rewired, that they can change. And I wanted to share, I always end the conversation with a scripture

Scripture Meditation And Closing CTA

Dr. Tabatha 36:37

for someone to meditate on. So, ladies, today we're looking at John 8, 28 to 32. And I was reading this this morning, thinking about Leanne's work. And, you know, here I am, a functional medicine physician, and I am endorsing everything you're doing. Like I am absolutely loving it. And I just was thinking, like, what would Jesus think about all of this? And how would he tell women to renew their mind? How would he tell us to rewire? And the answer was in here. He, the Pharisees are challenging Jesus about who he is, and he says, I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him. And I thought, that's the answer. God wants us to know the word, renew our minds with the word, and speak and live and act as Jesus would act. Like it does not rocket science, right?

SPEAKER_02 37:48

Absolutely. It's just about removing the blocks that are keeping that from being possible, right? It's it's knowing the word, aligning the word, and getting everything out of the way that's that that Satan is sending or that our the worldly thoughts have been infiltrating that keeps us from receiving and believing that it's true. So yeah, spot on it and even funnier, I was just in John this week as well. So it's crazy.

Dr. Tabatha 38:14

So good. Okay, so go meditate on John 8 32. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. Thank you, Leanne. Oh my goodness. These are such a good thing.

SPEAKER_02 38:25

Thank you guys for doing the work that you're doing because um, you know, 15 years ago when no one was talking about this and I thought I was crazy, like there were people that were receiving it. And so the world is primed and ready for everything you guys are delivering. And the fact that you're even seeing that means it's even more important to get out.

Dr. Tabatha 38:41

Ooh, so good. All right, everybody listening, go be Christ's hands to serve. Meditate on John 832. God's got you. We'll see you next week. If you like that episode, I have one favor to ask, maybe two. Can you hit subscribe and give me a heart? I want Apple to know that this is important information to you because when we tell them that, you will get more of it. So use your voice. Hit subscribe, hit the like button, share with a friend. And the other thing, I want you to download the five day challenge and get started on it. Take imperfect action. I will see you in the Fast of Faith Sisterhood. Till next time.