Let’s Do A Holiday Check-In

10 Gentle Holiday Check-In Prompts for Parents Healing Food & Body Image

The holidays have a way of turning the volume up on everything.

Food rules get louder.

Body awareness becomes sharper.

Old family dynamics and grief resurface.

And the pressure to “make it magical” can quietly override your own needs.

If you’re pregnant, postpartum, or parenting while trying to heal your relationship with food and your body, this season can feel especially heavy. Not because you’re doing something wrong—but because you’re navigating a lot.

This is not a checklist to fix yourself.

It’s a gentle check-in—a way to notice what’s present and remind yourself that you matter during the holidays, too.

1. Check In With Your Hunger — Physical and Emotional

Are you eating regularly throughout the day, or waiting until you’re depleted and overwhelmed?

Beyond physical hunger, ask yourself:

• Are you craving rest?

• Connection?

• Quiet?

• Support?

Food meets real needs—but so do pauses, boundaries, and care. Honoring both matters.

2. Notice Your Body Expectations

Are you expecting your body to look or feel “normal” in a season that is anything but normal?

Pregnancy, postpartum, winter, disrupted routines, and holiday stress all impact bodies. If your expectations haven’t adjusted to your reality, that mismatch can create unnecessary shame.

3. Name the Rules You’re Carrying

What food rules, body rules, or holiday “shoulds” are showing up louder right now?

Things like:

• I shouldn’t eat this.

• I need to make up for that.

• I’ll start over after the holidays.

Awareness isn’t about judging these thoughts—it’s about recognizing what you’re carrying so you don’t unconsciously pass it down.

4. Tune Into Your Nervous System

Are you stuck in go-go-go mode?

Or are you building in moments to slow down, breathe, and regulate—even briefly?

Regulation doesn’t require long meditations or perfect routines. Sometimes it looks like sitting down to eat, stepping outside for fresh air, or lowering expectations.

5. Listen to How You Talk About Food Out Loud

What messages are being modeled around food in your home—especially in front of your kids?

Are guilt, compensation, or body criticism creeping into conversation? Or is there room for enjoyment, neutrality, and flexibility?

This isn’t about being perfect. It’s about noticing and gently repairing when needed.

6. Plan for Your Capacity — Not Your Potential

Are you planning the holidays based on who you are right now… or who you wish you had energy to be?

Your current capacity deserves respect. You don’t need to push through exhaustion to prove anything. Scaling back is not failing—it’s caring.

7. Acknowledge Old Grief That Resurfaces

The holidays often stir up old grief, even when everything looks “fine” from the outside.

Childhood experiences.

Unmet needs.

Complicated family dynamics.

If something feels tender, that doesn’t mean you’re ungrateful. It means you’re human.

8. Check In With Your Need for Support

Are you telling yourself you should be able to handle this alone?

Or are you allowing yourself to lean on help—emotional, practical, or professional?

Needing support does not mean you’re failing at healing. It means you’re listening to yourself.

9. Allow Moments of Joy Without Earning Them

Are you letting yourself enjoy food, rest, or celebration without planning to compensate afterward?

You don’t need to earn pleasure.

You don’t need to justify rest.

Joy is not a reward—it’s a need.

10. Reflect on What You Want to Do Differently — Not Perfectly

What’s one small pause, repair, or choice that feels more aligned than the patterns you grew up with?

Healing isn’t about doing the holidays “right.” It’s about doing them more consciously, one small moment at a time.

A Gentle Reminder for This Season

This check-in isn’t about fixing yourself.

Not about doing better.

Just about noticing.

If any of these prompts brought something up for you, that doesn’t mean you’re behind. It means you’re paying attention—and that matters.

You are allowed to:

✨ eat consistently

✨ let your body take up space

✨ rest without earning it

✨ enjoy food without compensating

✨ ask for support

This season isn’t a test.

And you don’t have to navigate it alone.

If you want support with food, body image, or the emotional weight of the holidays, I’m here. You can book an intro call here.