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  • Writer's picturePaige Smathers

124: Performative Health vs. Embodied Wellbeing


This podcast episode dives deep into some of the most critical and core concepts within the realm of health and healing. I spoke with Dr. Lilia Graue, who is both a physician as well as a psychotherapist, to dive into the distinctions between performative health versus embodied wellbeing.

Lilia Graue, MD, LMFT, is an eating disorders specialist and clinical supervisor; mindfulness, compassion and mindful eating instructor; and Certified Body Trust® Provider. With 18 years of clinical experience, she is intimately familiar with bodies and minds and our healing processes, and how we relate to, nourish and take care of ourselves and our bodies in ways that bring us closer to wholeness, radical presence, fierce embodiment and joy. Lilia practices at the intersection of different healing modalities, centering lived experience and the body as a source of knowing. Her own life experiences with developmental and complex trauma, depression, anxiety, chronic pain, and a healing journey through psychotherapy and mind-body practices, have shaped her approach. Her practice is trauma informed, and rooted in intersectional feminism. She is Mexican and provides services in both English and Spanish.

Lilia loves working with providers navigating the challenges of advocating bravely for body liberation, embodiment and freedom from performative health who wish to cultivate and honor boundaries that allow for their self-care and replenishing empathy and compassion. Lilia is an avid amateur cook, baker, and foodie. She and her partner share their home with their beloved cats, Thomas and Ziggy.

In this podcast, we explore what the word "holistic" actually means and talk about the power of reclaiming words that get co-opted by gimmicks. We also discuss the concepts and frameworks of performative health versus embodied wellbeing and explore metaphors of how to distinguish between these two approaches. We talk about the incredible work of Niva Piran and her work on the theory of embodiment. We warn against approaching health and wellbeing with an all-or-nothing mindset. And, we close the conversation by exploring the power of joy and pleasure in health.

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