"Bedrick’s insights strike, and suddenly, in that moment, I see everything. I see that in spite of the pressures of patriarchy to make ourselves small in every sense, we are mighty. He shows us a way to engage with our bodies and our desires for food in a wholly different way, a way that teaches us what we yearn for in our lives, not just in our bellies.”

- Ann Pierson D’Angelo, Litigation Support Manager, ACLU

Watch Intro Video

Inner Criticism, Sexism & Shame

A Different Way Forward


The weight-loss industry is a $70 billion industry that banks on women's inner criticism, sexism, and body shame. And it fails most of the time as 95% of women don't sustain any weight loss after a period of time.

 

So why keep trying? Why keep taking their advice?

Or, more importantly, why do we keep looking at ourselves, evaluating ourselves, and criticizing ourselves through eyes that not only steer us in the wrong direction, but worse—eyes that sear and burn? Eyes that injure. 

We need another way. 


This program was created for looking at your body through a different lens than what others have created.  A lens that sees deeply instead of shames.

 

And when you look through a lens of love, not shame, you will see:

  • Internalized oppression that distorts your view of your body, creating unconscious resistance to health and weight-loss programs, waiting for your personal empowerment and self-advocacy.
  • A body that holds deep intelligence and wisdom, wisdom waiting to be heard and loved.
  • Hungers that are deeper than the hunger for food, waiting to fuel your life’s desires and paths.
  • Moments of criticism, shame, and abuse, stored in the trauma body, waiting to for your story to be known and told.


The aim of this program is to radically change your relationship with your body from one of objectifying, shaming, criticizing and altering, to one of listening to its messages, dancing with its beauty, fulfilling its deep hungers, and embodying the power locked in its resistance to voices that malign, condescend or assume authority.

 

 

What You Get:

  • One live introductory session with David discussing shame, the body’s wisdom, how to access it, along with introducing the format for the program.

  • 6 Live Ask Me Anything Sessions: These occur at the end of each month. In these sessions you can bring your questions, feelings, and difficulties. David will also model skills and techniques.

  • Live sessions will take place on Zoom at 12pm/noon MST. These sessions will be recorded with replays available if you are unable to make it live.

  • 17 Pre-Recorded Sessions: There will be two the first month and 3 each of the following 5 months. Each session will have teachings, stories, inner-work exercises, readings, and journal promptings for you to tell your own story.

  • A digital copy of the book, "You Can't Judge a Body by Its Cover".

  • An online room for participants to connect, share and dialogue.

Did you know?

  • 97% of women have negative voices in their heads about their bodies every single day. When these voices are not countered, self-esteem, empowerment, and agency are drastically diminished.

  • Women, as well as men, have learned to treat their bodies as objects - something to be measured, evaluated, critiqued and altered. This view dismisses the profound intelligence the body carries - intelligence about our gifts, our feelings, our truths and what we are truly hungry for.

  • The intersection of trauma and the body is profound. We now know that the body records and holds traumatic stories and their impact in somatic experiences, weight gain or loss, as well as our impulses to eat or not to eat. When we ignore the body’s messages, the harm we experience gets dismissed, amplifying our shame and suffering.

IN THIS PROGRAM YOU WILL:

  • Learn how to counter negative voices, build a boundary - a protective mechanism, so that you can reclaim your power and see your body size and shape in a new way.

  • Learn how to treat your body as a messenger with great intelligence about who you are, what you truly feel, and what you really need and desire in our life.

  • Learn to listen to and tell your personal story of trauma, insult, and objectification, bringing healing and self-love to your life and life path.

95% of people who try to lose weight, don’t sustain any weight-loss at all. In this program you’ll not only learn the secret behind your seeming “failure,” but how to embody the power held within your body’s rebellion to living in a society that fetishizes thinness and shames authenticity.

enroll now

“In his uniquely gifted way of seeing the world, Bedrick lays out a case for the deep and surprising intelligence held in our bodies that doesn’t cry out for changing or fixing, but rather, understanding, and integration."

- Tanya Taylor Rubenstein, story coach

“With deep compassion, precise awareness, and great skills, Bedrick elicits what is truly behind women’s “failure” around dieting."

- Ayako “Aya” Fujisaki, PhD, LPC

Course Curriculum

  • 1

    GETTING STARTED

    • What You Need to Know

    • You Can't Judge a Body by Its Cover - Digital Copy
  • 2

    Month One

    • REPLAY from Session One - Welcome Live Class

    • Session Two: Resistance to Weight-Loss Programs

    • Session Three: Coming Home to Your Feelings

    • REPLAY of Session Four - Month Review
  • 3

    Month Two

    • Session Five: Conditioned to Shrink Part One

    • Session Five: Conditioned to Shrink Part Two

    • Session Six: The Impulse to "Fix" or Making Things "OK"

    • Session Seven: The Power of What You Won’t Let Go of

    • Session Eight: Month Review + Ask Me Anything
  • 4

    Month Three

    • Session Nine: Codependence – Being Subject to Other’s Addictions

    • Session Ten: Inner Criticism and Internalized Oppression

    • Session Eleven: The Need for Safety

    • Session Twelve: Month Review + Ask Me Anything
  • 5

    Month Four

    • Session Thirteen: Parental Abuse and Shame

    • Session Fourteen: Depression and the Abandoned Self

    • Session Fifteen: Trying to be Beautiful: Sexism, Racism and Social Harm

    • Session Sixteen Month Review + Ask Me Anything
  • 6

    Month Five

    • Session Seventeen: Breaking Out of Smallness

    • Session Eighteen: What You Really Live For

    • Session Nineteen: Fighting Back

    • Session Twenty: Month Review + Ask Me Anything
  • 7

    Month Six

    • Session Twenty-One: Saying What I Really Want

    • Session Twenty-Two: Your Inner Authority

    • Session Twenty-Three: Celebrating Your Erotic Self

    • Session Twenty-Four: Ask Me Anything + Celebrate

Meet Your Instructor

David Bedrick

David Bedrick, J.D., Dipl. PW is a therapist, attorney and speaker. He is the author of Talking Back to Dr. Phil: Alternatives to Mainstream Psychology and Revisioning Activism: Bringing Depth, Dialogue, and Diversity to Individual and Social Change. His latest book is You Can’t Judge a Body by Its Cover: 17 Women's Stories of Hunger, Body Shame and Redemption. About his new book, Publisher’s Weekly wrote, “Bedrick celebrates 'the deep wisdom held in... hearts, minds, and bodies' of women in this powerful collection of profiles.” David is the founder of the Santa Fe Institute for Shame based Studies where he teachers and works with individuals around the world.

What People Are Saying:

A Loving Witness

Aimilia Markouizou Gkika, MA, Psychologist, Systemic Family Psychotherapist, IC&RC Certified Drug Counsellor

"David Bedrick, as a process worker/therapist/trainer, has vision; and passion; Highly developed process work skills; and competence to work with the body and its wisdom. [David's work] has helped me enormously to: deal better with issues of shame from my childhood; understand more the mechanism of shame; learn process work tools to deal with shame on a somatic level; experience the value and the power of the “loving witness”, David Bedrick’ s most important asset."

Transformation

Blaire Lindsey, Somatic Coach

"In a space where many women were actively reckoning with ruptures they've experienced with men, David's perspective helped them to feel seen and understood in a way that many had never experienced before. Tears were shed within 10 minutes of him speaking. Lightbulb moments were had by all. Many women's relationship to themselves and their bodies shifted forever. It was beautiful to be witness to David's unique heart-wisdom come through in his sessions. The impact, healing, and transformation that I and my students received was nothing short of beautiful. Thank you, David, for your commitment to you work and all that you are because of it."

His Understanding is Palpable

Jan Dworkin, PhD, author, Make Love Better

“Bedrick’s understanding of the impact of sexism, female socialization, and internalized oppression on the emotional and physical health and wellness of women is palpable on every page and woven through every story [of his new book.]"

Shifting the Cultural Landscape

Fannie LeFlore, M.A., Psychotherapist and Writer

“David Bedrick is one of the most brilliant voices in modern psychology today. His authenticity and credibility aligns with previous trailblazers with significant expertise in psychology, like M.Scott Peck, Carl Jung, Erich Fromm and Abraham Maslow. Thinkers like David Bedrick are making a difference by promoting broader consciousness to positively change lives, and modeling what intellectual courage looks like among those positioned to ultimately help shift the cultural landscape.”

FAQ

  • What dates does this program run?

    This program runs for 6 full months beginning May 7th, 2021

  • Do you offer any payment plans?

    Yes, you have the option to pay the enrolment fee in 1, 2 or 3 payments over the first 3 months.

  • What is the format of the program?

    This program is a combination of live, interactive video session done via Zoom, pre-recorded video lessons and written exercises to support you through the work. The first month begins with a 2 hour live session, introducing the program, answering questions, modelling techniques, teaching about ways to access the body intelligence. Week 2 and 3 are video sessions, replete with learning objectives, exercises, and guidance to connect with your own story. The final week is a second live session, answering questions and modelling new techniques. During months 2-6, weeks 1,2 and 3 are video lessons, replete with learning objectives, exercises, and guidance to connect with your own story. Week 4 is always a live session, answering questions, modelling new techniques.

  • What if I can't attend the Zoom classes live?

    All live sessions are recorded so you will have access to the replays within 24 hours of the call.

  • How long will I have access to the course?

    This course begins on May 7th, 2021 and runs for 6 months. You will have continued access to all of the course content for an additional 6 weeks after the course ends to catch up on any of the material.

  • Do you offer any scholarships?

    Yes, we do offer some partial scholarships. To apply please email David Bedrick before enrolling at dbedrickspeak@mac.com.

  • Do we need a copy of David's book, "You Can't Judge a Body by Its Cover" for the course??

    All participants will be getting a digital copy of the book as part of the course. The seventeen stories within the book will accompany the weekly sessions in order to give participants examples of how to think about and tell their stories.

Pricing options

"If you’re ready to make friends with yourself, redefine your idea of beauty, and listen to the parts of you impatiently waiting for you to notice them and let their wisdom launch you forward, You Can’t Judge a Body by Its Cover is for you."

- Crystal Andrus Morissette, author of The Emotional Edge, CEO of Simply Woman Accredited Trainer Institute