Joanna Poppink

Current

author at Conari Publishing
psychotherapist in private practice at Eating Disorder Recovery
Owner at Joanna Poppink, LMFT

see less...

Education

Gloria Kamler MBSR
InsightLA
Allan Schore, Ph.D. private seminar in affect regulation and neuroscience

the Hsi Lai University Buddhist Psychology and Counseling Research Center
UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute
Antioch
University of California, Los Angeles
Northwestern University
Glen Rock High School

see less...

6 more...

Recommended

8 people have recommended Joanna

Connections

97 connections

Industry

Health, Wellness and Fitness

Websites

Joanna Poppink’s Summary

I am a Los Angeles psychotherapist in private practice (since 1980) working with people striving to recover from eating disorders.

I'd like to share with you my definition of recovery, which has evolved over the years.

For more details, listen to a radio interview where Steve Kovacs interviewed me on this subject.
paste this url:

http://www.thruoureyes.org/podcasts/wtoe040809kovacsPod120.mp3

Recovery is a noun that describes a continuing process. To begin recovery is to begin a journey.

To be on that journey is to be on your path to health and emotional and intellectual development. Your path leads to your true self, to your inner resources of courage, creativity, self respect, strength and ability to be committed and dedicated.

Recovery from bulimia or anorexia or binge eating or compulsive eating is not just about making peace with food and developing healthy eating habits. Recovery is not just about developing or forcing yourself into living with a realistic sense of your body.

Recovery involves living a balanced life. It means feeling all you can feel and digesting your feelings so they inform and enrich your entire personhood. They don’t spill out for others to take care of. They don’t create such distress that you need to use food or drugs or sex or shopping or high drama or manipulations or dissociation to get relief.

Recovery is about being real in the real world. It is about having the ability to live, cope, adapt, work, love, play in freedom. It means being responsible for yourself and your actions. It means respecting and honoring boundaries so you can truly take care of yourself while respecting and being in relationship with others.

It means more serenity, joy and smiles in your life. And it means being able to eat and enjoy food in freedom.

Recovery is an endless journey where life continues to get better as you go.

Your questions, comments and suggestions are most welcome.

Joanna Poppink’s Specialties:

Below relate to level and stage in recovery:

psychoanalysis
guided imagery
affect regulation - right brain communication
religious & spiritual practices
creative arts: writing, painting, movement
healthy communication in relationships
mindfulness practices
self empowerment
creativity development
dream work
journal keeping
effect of companion animals
parenthood
healing from nature
life transitions: career, age, health, relationships

Joanna Poppink’s Experience

author

Conari Publishing

(Health, Wellness and Fitness industry)

April 2009 — Present (9 months)

Conari Publishers offered me and I accepted a book contract.

Currently I am writing a self help book on eating disorder recovery with an emphais on the experience of the adult woman.

The book is scheduled to come out early in 2011.
psychotherapist in private practice

Eating Disorder Recovery

(Health, Wellness and Fitness industry)

August 1981 — Present (28 years 5 months)

I work as a private practice psychotherapist seeing adult individuals who are affected by an eating disorder and want thorough recovery.
We go far beyond symptom reduction and move into developing the person more fully so she can live a full, vibrant, competent and free life.

I also work with parents of a person with an eating disorder to help them develop an understanding of attitudes, habits and behaviors that can help their child's recovery work.

Increasingly over time I see that the stages of healing and becoming a more authentic person in eating disorder recovery work is applicable to many adults, both men and women, who do not suffer from an eating disorder. My practice is expanding to include people who want to develop more depth, expand awareness and build both strength and personal creativity to cope with new challenges.
Owner

Joanna Poppink, LMFT

(Health, Wellness and Fitness industry)

August 1980 — Present (29 years 5 months)

Private practice providing psychotherapy to adults affected by an eating disorder. This highly personal and profound work involves far more than addressing and easing or limiting active eating disorder symptoms such as those associated with bulimia, anorexia or compulsive eating.

The person I'm working with needs encouragement, support, guidance and inspiration as she develops into the authentic, creative, competent and lovable person she always was - deep down.

These qualities, which were blocked or severely inhibited by the eating disorder, emerge and need to be integrated into what feels like the new person she has become. She's really becoming her authentic self at last.

Laughter and tears, awe and anger, sorrow and growing wisdom are all part of what we share together. Eventually an undercurrent of trust, joy, caring and sense of vast possibilities develops that enriches both of us.

Lately, as I write my eating disorder recovery book, I realize that this recovery journey holds much teaching and wisdom for all women, regardless of the presence of an eating disorder in their lives.

Clearing and healing the wounds of the past and then developing the true heart and soul, mind and skills, lovability and compassion of the woman who is now free to grow and be is my job, my pleasure, my dedication and my privilege.

Joanna Poppink’s Education

Gloria Kamler MBSR

mindfulness 2009 — 2009

This program continues to inform and inspire my professional psychotherapy practice and my personal life.

Gloria is a superb teacher.

Activities and Societies:

Eight week program, Mindful Brain Stress Reduction
developed by Jon Kabat – Zinn
InsightLA

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction MBSR 2008 — 2008

I took this class twice to reinforce and develop my own self care practices and to be better able to help my eating disorder patients to discover self caring methods that are far superior than anything an eating disorder can offer.

Activities and Societies:

The MBSR Program consists of 8 weekly classes & one all-day class with 30 hours of direct instruction. http://www.insightla.org/

Based on work of Joh Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. and the Stress Reduction Clinic (1979) at the Univ. of Mass Medical School.

"an intensive training that asks participants to draw on their inner resources and natural capacity to actively engage in caring for themselves and finding greater balance, ease, and peace of mind. "
http://www.umassmed.edu/content.aspx?id=41252
Allan Schore, Ph.D. private seminar in affect regulation and neuroscience

Neuroscience, left and right hemisphere brain function, affect regulation 2007 — 2008

Activities and Societies:

Affect regulation: Allan Schore led private seminar for clinicians covering psychological development; consequences of trauma; effective psychotherapeutic based on new knowledge, evidence based, that shows the dominance of right brain function; necessity of right brain to right brain communication for successful therapy.
the Hsi Lai University Buddhist Psychology and Counseling Research Center

Mindfulness, Buddhist history, philosophy and meditation styles 2001 — 2003

Recommend

Joanna Poppink, MFT gave many contributions to Hsi Lai Univ Buddhist Psychology & Counseling Research Ctr in Rosemead., CA. Since our founding in Nov. 2001, she has been connected to our research and workshop operations.

She was a research advisor and shared case studies integrating spirituality into a psychotherapy practice.

Ms. Poppink attended our 2002 conference: July 23 on Eastern & Western Psychologies, Oct 19 on Humanistic Buddhist Practices, Benefits in Our Daily Life.
and spoke Nov. 9 Overcoming Eating Disorders from a Buddhist & Western Perspective within the frame: Eastern &Western Psychology, How They Can Work Together.

Her work was positively accepted by the 135 clinicians attending. Their evaluations gave Ms. Poppink high marks.

We at BPCRC wish to thank Ms. Poppink for her many positive contributions, insights and experience and look forward to her future work with us.

Dr. Richard Kimball, MFT
Director of HLU, BPCRC
rlkimball@hotmail.com

Activities and Societies:

Acted as advisor to research projects;
Contributed to effort of integrating mindfulness and spirituality into psychological healing;

Attended classes and conferences
which explored how to bring together philosophies of East and West in order to live a better and healthier life;
Gave a presentation to a gathering of psychotherapists: “Overcoming Eating Disorders from a Buddhist and Western Perspective”.
UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute

guided imagery 1980 — 1986

In this group we shared clinical information, grew as professionals and often presented together and separately at conferences around the country. The first few years in my private practice people came to me specifically for guided imagery work one on one privately or in the guided imagery groups I led.

Activities and Societies:

Ongoing weekly seminar, led my Marielle Fuller, supported by Robert Stoller, M.D. and attended regularly by experienced mental health clinicians, doctors and anthropologists from around the world. Studied myriad of aspects involving guided imagery and how it could be used effectively and in depth with patients suffering from chronic pain, serious illness, terminal patients, emotional and psychological disorders, alcholism and eating disorders.
Antioch

M.A. , Psychology , 1977 — 1978
University of California, Los Angeles

1974 — 1977
Northwestern University

Journalism 1959 — 1963

Activities and Societies:

School Newspaper
Glen Rock High School

1956 — 1959

Additional Information

Joanna Poppink’s Websites:

Joanna Poppink’s Interests:

My interests: mind/body/spirit connection based on current discoveries in neuroscience, left and right brain hemisphere function, creative writing, drawing, painting, positive mutual health benefits between companion animals and humans, connections between being in healthy natural environments and being in a healthy body with a healthy mind, various ways of bringing joy to life as well as increasing and sharing joy.

Joanna Poppink’s Groups:

Academy for Eating Disorders (AED), American Anorexia and Bulimia Association (AABA), American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT), International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (IAEDP), National Eating Disorders Association; www.edap.org