SOPHIE GRENHAM talks to KARINA MELVIN about healthy eating, LASTING WEIGHT LOSS and EATING FOR PLEASURE …
Photograph by Sean Cahill
Karina Melvin is a psychologist, counsellor and the brains behind Artful Eating: The Psychology of Lasting Weight Loss. The highly original work reacquaints readers with the idea of eating for pleasure. Far from a quick fix, the book is a joyous mix of life lessons, practical tools and delicious recipes, backed up by in-depth medical research. The ultra chic volume, filled with luscious photographs, is a refreshing change of pace – working from the inside out.
Indeed, Karina’s refreshingly achievable plan contains no intensive exercise regimes or fad dieting. Her core message is this – successful weight loss is not what you eat, it’s about why and how you eat. The result is a relatable manual which approaches self-improvement from a new angle.
Karina has her own practice, Sandymount Psychotherapy. Fascinated by the inner workings of the mind, her ten years of formal training include an MSc in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy from the UCD School of Medicine and an MA in Addiction Studies. She lectures in Psychotherapy at the UCD School of Medicine in St Vincent’s Hospital and is a member of the Association for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy in Ireland, the Psychological Society of Ireland and the Irish School of Lacanian Psychoanalysis.
Karina Melvin lives in Dublin with her husband Liam and their daughter Claudia. She is currently a PhD candidate in Psychoanalysis.
Artful Eating: The Psychology of Lasting Weight Loss (€14.24 at Easons) is published by Black & White Publishing and available from bookshops nationwide. For more information and a free cognitive audio bundle, visit www.artful-eating.com.
On home
I’m based in Sandymount on the sea front, which I love, as the Irishtown Nature Park is a short walk away. This is my favourite place in Dublin as it’s a little bit of the country in the city and I walk there every day with my dogs. My favourite shop in the village has to be Butler’s. They all know us in there as we regularly pick up a rustic baguette and/or a chocolate brownie, both of which are freshly baked each day and traditionally made, so very much in line with my Artful Eating principals! I always share the treat with my husband, as half is the perfect amount.
On roots
I grew up in north county Dublin and was very much a country girl as a child, which I suppose is why the nature park is so important to me. We grew up down the road from our working farm and my father was always interested in growing his own food. So the smells I cherish are the smell of pulling carrots from the ground, or in the late summer, going into the glasshouse and being immediately hit with the smell of the tomato vines. We had a very large garden then, so mowing the lawn took all day and I adore the smell of freshly cut grass. It’s such a refreshing and familiar smell.
On work
I run my clinic, Sandymount Psychotherapy, from my home and I have to say it is such a joy. I have two dogs and a cat and love that between clients I can pop in and out to them, or take the dogs for a walk. My workroom is a small space, but very welcoming. I only see clients in this room and never write there – I’m not sure why, as it’s quiet and comfortable. But I love to write or do research either on my couch, a very old green velvet Chesterfield which looks out onto our garden, with the dogs or cat curled up beside me, or at our huge old Bankers desk where I can spread everything out and make a bit of a mess. I love that desk; it’s got lots of secret compartments and feels so sturdy. I do a lot of work there, prepping lectures, writing articles or working on my book.
On bookshops
My favourite bookshop was always the Winding Stair on the quays. When I was a teenager I would spend hours there, first perusing the books, then I’d go to the beautiful coffee shop on the top floor and read all afternoon nursing a herbal tea because that’s all I could afford! They’d play Edith Piaf or Chet Baker and I’d feel very sophisticated, reading or writing or chatting with a pal. I was devastated when it was turned into a restaurant, but I’m heartened that there is still a really great bookshop on the ground floor. I suppose it’s some saving grace that the restaurant in its place is excellent and one of my favourites in the city.
On her nightstand
Jacques Lacan’s Seminar VIII On Transference, which is full of post-it notes and coloured tabs as I’m lecturing on it in UCD at the moment. Lacan is a psychoanalyst and his writings are notoriously challenging to read, but so worthwhile.
I also have Nigel Slater’s The Christmas Chronicles which is a gorgeous book. It’s a diary of the winter months and I read an entry a day corresponding with the days date. It’s a marvellous, rich read and I’m definitely going to gift it to a few lucky people, as I adore any writing based around food. I love reading seasonal books. For instance, around Halloween I’ll always read a gothic novel – Dracula and Frankenstein are my favourites so far. I think it really helps to bring the book and the season to life when you read something that corresponds to the time or place you’re in. If I’m travelling I’ll always try and read a book based in that place or city. For example, I read The Old Man and the Sea while in Cuba, Shantaram when motorbiking around India, The Shadow of the Wind while visiting Barcelona, and any time I’m in Paris I always bring a copy of A Moveable Feast with me!
On escapes
Paris is my “special place.” It’s always been the epicentre of my three great loves, aside from my husband and daughter of course! Art, psychoanalysis and food. I originally studied Art History, and Paris certainly comes up trumps for art lovers. Also, there is a vibrant psychoanalytic community in Paris based around the works of Lacan. As for food, need I say anything at all? So I aim to make an annual pilgrimage and usually stay in Montmartre. Just walking around the city is relaxing, or getting lost in the Musée D’Orsay for a couple of hours. I also love sitting in a café and watching the world go by. This is especially enjoyable on a Sunday in Montmartre; it has a village feel and the views of the city are stunning.
On Artful Eating’s genesis
There were a lot of little “bread crumbs” which amassed over time to come together in the form of Artful Eating. I think the penny really dropped for me though in Barcelona. We were there for a long weekend and I was really struck by the mini versions of everything. Their cortados, which are sort of micro lattes or the una caña which is a very small beer – and of course their tapas. We ate like kings over the weekend, not denying ourselves anything, but also never over indulging. I’d been to Spain before; in fact I spent a wonderful summer in Madrid when I was 16, so I was familiar with their approach to food, but the inspiration to create Artful Eating happened while I was away that weekend. It was actually my 33rd birthday, now that I think of it! Around that time I had been noticing how so many of my clients, regardless of their size, were struggling with their relationship with food and their body and the idea hit me like a lightning bolt in Barcelona that I had to do something about it. After a lot of research and trials I created an online program and it was through the course that I got approached to write a book!
On therapy
It can often take people quite some time before they realise that they are struggling in some way. Therapy is an extremely worthwhile investment in yourself and I would encourage everyone to go at some point in their life. The majority of people who engage in therapy say that they gained so much from the process, though often people wait until things are in crisis before they seek help. If you’re not feeling at ease in yourself, and I know this will resonate immediately with you if you aren’t, then seek professional help. You may only need a session or two, or perhaps you might find a desire to engage fully in the work of therapy, either way it will certainly be worth your while.
On diet trends
I feel very strongly that one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to our relationship with food, our health and sustainable weight loss, so I developed Artful Eating as a response to the extreme approaches out there which are typically very challenging to maintain in the long term. “Dieting”, as in focusing on what we eat, trying to maintain calorie control and limiting food, is doomed to fail as we are fighting seven million years of evolution! Our bodies are designed to hold on to food, especially when we start to control and dramatically limit our food intake. As a psychologist I recognise that by focusing on the symptom – our dissatisfaction with our weight and the food we eat – we have completely lost sight of the cause, the underlying emotional and behavioural issues which fuel our decisions around food. We need to shift from a focus on deprivation to privileging pleasure when eating and, indeed, in all things. That is the key to sustainable weight loss and a positive relationship with food and our bodies.
On what’s next
We have lots of exciting things planned for 2018 and 2019, some I can talk about and some I’ll have to keep under my hat for the moment! I’m starting an Artful Eating podcast, which I am incredibly excited about and it’s available in all the places you listen to a podcast now. I’m also expanding my mission to end dieting through my online program At the Table, which is a master class in how to live the good life, enjoy food and stop dieting for good, while losing weight of course! I’ll also be running Artful Eating workshops in the new year. These are going to be a celebration of pleasure and enjoyment – so absolutely not what you’d expect from a weight-loss workshop… lots of champagne, chocolate and delicious food. You can find out more about them on my website. Finally, I’m already working on my next book which will be out either late 2018 or early 2019, so I am really looking forward to the new year.
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