Interview with Aracos Nutrition & Psychology

In psychoactive we like psychology, but we are also passionate about all those interesting combinations that it can cover.  Today we have the pleasure of interviewing the Aracos Nutrition & Psychology team led by two professionals with great prestige in both fields.  We talk about Elena Martín, a general health psychologist and personal coach. And Alberto Martínez, psychologist and dietitian.

First thank you very much for granting us part of your time Elena and Alberto, a pleasure. We start.

When your project was born and how does the idea of ​​this combination arise?

The project was born throughout 2019, in full pandemic and confinement we dedicate part of the time to raise how we could respond to the demand that arose both in our professional and personal environment to issues related to lifestyle habits, especially in nutrition and management of stress. During the Christmas of that year we finished profile the website, refine the details of the mission and vision of what we wanted to convey, until we finally launched it in February 2020, from Soria. We both spent long seasons in this province, the fact that Aracos was forged and started from there, facilitated the decision to carry out our service online, being able to reach more people from anywhere.

We are both curious and passionate about health, we are motivated to be able to help other people to meet and take the reins of their own care. The combination of nutrition and psychology arose from a conversation similar to this:

• Elena: Alber, in all the sessions that I have had today I have talked about conscious food, real food, chronobiology, metabolism ... I have the feeling that without the reasons for consultation being strictly "eating disorders" (TCA), all We need to review the relationship we have with food and learn about nutrition and how the body works, because there are real trouble and much misinformation.
• Alberto: Yes. In the end there can be no mental or psychological health if the most basic is not covered: nutrition, rest, exercise ... but, during my consultations I see all the time, eat for anxiety, be sad or peck and peck, eat for almost any reason that is not merely nourishing; And in the end it is a loop of emotional poor management and bad relationship with food.

We cannot forget that the human body requires different stimuli similar to those obtained in its original environment (sun, good rest, move, make efforts, get tired physically, have sex, interact with others ...). At present, and especially, with pandemia, exposure to the sun, movement and relationship with others has fallen, which makes it more complicated to manage stress and any of our emotions. One of the consequences of all this is to resort to food (which in itself is a primary reinforcement for the human being) as a source of pleasure, making us no longer eat to nurture if not, not to get bored, calm anxiety or cover the anguish we feel. Thus we end up taking products or anything palatable instead of food as such. And so Aracos arises.

What is the difference in nutrition and psychonutrition?

Actually, none. For us the term psychonutrition is only a theoretical concept to address the common part between Nutrition and Psychology. But naturally, nutrition cannot be understood without the psychological part of nourishing, which has to do with the reward, the function of behavior and associated emotions. In the same way it happens to the contrary, there is no psychological health without a good relationship with food and adequate food.

Using the term psychonutrition facilitates that the client understands what he is going to work is not exclusively on the dish "," as in 5 minutes anything because I'm in a hurry "," I don't stop thinking about whether to eat this or the other "..

We understand health as a holistic concept in which emotional management, nutrition, rest and exercise intervene. Using the term psychonutrition allows us to jointly intervene the well -being of people, that is, through a specific concept, we approach a much broader one, health.

¿You believe that both terms can lead to confusion?

Yeah. That is why we like to be able to explain it as different concepts only at the theoretical level and to facilitate the understanding of what we do in the consultations. In fact, on our website we have a section in which we define with examples if the client may be interested in the psychonutrition plan. The difference between one and the other concept in our work, lies exclusively that in the psychonutrition plans there are consultations with both and the follow -ups are elaborated together.

In the psychonutrition that part is more important? Psychology or nutrition?

This question only makes sense if the human is understood as the sum of parts, which is not so. What is more important, the right eye or the left? What is more important the body or mind?

We do not believe that is the question, but, both are terms to be able to fragment and specialize treatments, again, at theoretical level and to facilitate understanding, but our approach is holistic. We are left alone with the useful part, as to be able to name things, but we do not understand one without the other, just like without the sun, movement, rest ... health encompasses all this. Many times it is not taken into account that our body remains that of an animal.

Why did Elena want to dedicate yourself to psychology? What would you have dedicated if it hadn't been to the field of mental health?

In the second baccalaureate I had an optional subject of psychology, I liked it, it caught my attention and the teacher was the same as in philosophy, of those teachers who transmit, who know how to teach. I knew I wanted to study a career and was clear that I had to be related to the health field.

At that time Alberto and I were only known, but he was already in the degree of Psychology, he told me what he studied on group psychology and psychopathology and seemed super interesting. In addition, with 12 and 14 years I was on the other side in a psychology consult today.

My second option when doing selectivity was nutrition, chance? I had no focus on integral or evolutionary health at that time, but in my closest family nucleus there has always been a “natural” essence, how important it is to breathe, move, run, go all the weekend to the mountains ... This today is vital in my way of doing therapy and at that time the only thing I was clear is that I wanted to understand human functioning in some way and dedicate myself to working with other people in this same line.

Why did Alberto want to dedicate yourself to nutrition? What would you have dedicated if it would have been to this field?

I really started in psychology out of curiosity, to understand more of the mind and how sensations, emotions and others, our actions govern. But it was mere curiosity, when I had to start specializing I threw towards HR branch and personal. Even once the degree was finished, I took out the prevention technician's master's degree. There I started working in construction, well, rather in the demolition and although I was not upset, I seemed to lose my life in something that did not give me more than a salary.

Luckily life sometimes gives you little push when you do not dare to do something on your own and after several adventures in the world of demolition, I decided to get the titles that needed me to exercise in the field of nutrition. It turns out that since I finished the degree of Psychology, I had not stopped reading, investigating, trying it in me, being updated ... in all these issues. So it was a matter of only bureaucratic to get the title, since the knowledge was left over. Truly studies to obtain it do not contribute practically useful, they are even outdated in most aspects.

But the truth is that it is my passion so I went for it.

You as a psychologist Elena Why do you think this synergy is necessary and what can contribute to people?

Starting from the fact that my way of doing psychological therapy is from a holistic approach, I consider that multidisciplinary approach is necessary and enhances any treatment. Specifically, the synergy nutrition-psychology appears naturally in the sessions, the most common is that a bad relationship with the food of anxiety and fear appears (to be rejected by our physique, for not fitting, committing some error, not meet beauty standards ...).

I do not remember any therapeutic process since I began to see patients in which we have not talked about nutrition, "not because sadness closes my stomach", "I do not stop eating because I am nervous", "I have given a binge I feel fatal, "" I don't want to gain weight "," I'm on a diet, I don't like my body "," Everything feels bad since I have more stress "... The union of both disciplines always appears because we are a whole, just like there is no The body-mind division has to theorize about it, there can not be health without mental, physical, or digestive health. Health specializations have opened an enormous field of possibilities for specific treatments that is tremendously beneficial, but makes us lose the focus that the human being is a whole and attend only to specific parts or areas is insufficient.

For me, health is divided into 4: emotions-autocation, rest, nutrition and physical-moving exercise. Working with Alberto together in two areas of the four (which we also approach) also facilitates the therapeutic process, is like enhancing what we do separately because it makes much more sense to unite it. In fact, more and more of the intestine is spoken as a second brain and the intestine-corebro axis, and if there are digestive pathologies, the anxious-depressive paintings and any psychological problem are significantly aggravated, we cannot have health if any of those four areas It is touched.

You as dietitian Alberto Why do you think this synergy is necessary and who can contribute to people?

As Elena has said, the brain knows at all times how the rest of our body is and in fact, first hand, because the intestine is in direct line with the brain, most serotonin are synthesized in it ... if not There is intestinal health there can be no full health in the rest of the organism and vice versa.

It makes no sense to worry about the fuel of a vehicle and then, putting anything to the body. The problem usually lies in the fact that there are many products that are sold as food and are not, they are "edible" products that do not kill you today, but they will end up getting sick. It is key to understand that communication between both organs is essential for feedback. A sick microbiot will claim things that do not benefit from you and a touched reward system will do the same.

What kind of customers/ patients usually go to your consultation?

What we receive most are people between 20-40 years.

People who are interested in nutrition plans exclusively have some type of digestive pathology (diagnosed or not) and share interest in learning about what foods are the most appropriate.

In psychology consultations, the age range is broader, from adolescents over 16 years to 70-80 years. The most common consultation reasons are anxious-depressive paintings (with or without diagnosis) and grieving processes. Quite frequently, by advancing in the therapeutic process and being achieved the proposed objectives we expand the work focus on general health, at that time it is usual for me to derive patients to Alberto to work in the nutritional part or choose some of the plans of psychonutrition.

Do you remember your first client/patient?

• Alberto: Yes, in reality the first person with whom we launched the psychonutrition plan was Elena's mother. It helped us with "guinea pig", we saw that the union of both disciplines and the type of work we were raising made sense.
• Elena: With her we had talks separately, Alberto prepared a nutritional plan that was simple I dedicated myself to sharing concepts such as conscious food, intestine-corebro axis, the relationship of emotions with food, how to distinguish if I was hungry for truth or bored ... and today is delighted, it has done all this A lifestyle.

When we visit your website  https: // www.Aracosnutripsico.com/ We can read about: We create a unique method, can you tell us why it is unique?

What we have created is unique (or at least we have not found anything the same so far) for how it arises and how to develop it. We are a couple who work in the health of other people, both psychologists interested in nutrition, in which one has dedicated themselves to studying very in depth the dietary and the other part psychological therapy, but we share the comprehensive health base approach and evolutionary. This is what makes us different, the evolutionary approach in both fields, nutrition understood as: "eat to nourish you with what your body expects, respecting the ancestral design" and the psychology used to: "recover what we already had, use Emotions as a guide ".

Especially in psychology it is less frequent to find this type of perspective, and by joining both disciplines we create something new that does not focus on temporary changes, short -term relief of symptoms, reduce anxiety (and already) or restrict food without more, but that We start that the human being loses health for not acting, thinking and feeling like a human. Our plans are aimed at lifestyle changes that are actually, recover what we had or always need. On the one hand, eat what the body needs to nourish and maintain a healthy relationship with food, on the other, learn to listen others; without losing sight of the rest of health components, physical exercise and rest. The consequence of working these areas in this way is to recover health in every way: without digestive discomfort, look aesthetically well, be able to take care of oneself, feel good, gain strength and vitality ... see well -being.

You offer some type of training and if the answer is yes in what modalities?

We currently do not offer training. In consultations, we dedicate a section for "psychoeducation" and the same in nutritional terms. In addition, we have a resources section on the web where anyone can download materials for free to learn about concrete issues and implement them in their day -to -day basis.

Your combination of services is extremely interesting, but do you plan to expand the range of services or offer more combinations?

Not at the beginning. The combination of psychology and nutrition in the term "psychonutrition" allows us to the holistic and evolutionary approach that we want to reach and help people, we do not believe that it is necessary to make more combinations that end up talking about the same with another name and hinders More than facilitating.

Yes we continue to expand our training in everything that has to do with improving health to be able to offer a more extensive range of tools in consultation and stay updated. In addition, we want in the not too distant future, to offer training for those who do not require therapy or treatment as such but are interested in learning about both fields.

When we play other issues related to health, such as physical training or pathologies that leave our scope, we work within our knowledge and derive or recommend other professionals if necessary.

The c.VITAE OF THE TWO IS VERY COMPLETE Without a doubt, within your services, which one can say that it stands out more?

Elena: The reasons for consultation that I attend are really varied, but two that always appear and in which I have more experience, anxiety and grieving processes could be highlighted. Especially, in adult population, I would dare to say that in 90% of cases work duel processes, and specifically, during the pandemic there has been an increase in sessions dedicated to treating duels for death. In addition to this type of grief, it usually deals with others such as couple ruptures, diagnoses of chronic diseases, suicide, loss of vital projects ..

Anxiety symptoms are undoubted. And again, during the last year, with pandemic and confinement, there has been a remarkable increase in the demand for psychological therapy "for anxiety", by the hand of an increase in recipes and sales of psychopharmopharmaceuticals in general and especially anxies.

The whole frame of techniques that I use to work anxiety is probably what stands out most within my services, and within this framework especially the mindfulness stands out as a basic tool for self -knowledge and stress management, accompanied by relaxation exercises and creative visualizations; together with the work of emotional wounds of the past, their impact and how to heal them in the present. The paradigm in which I add all my work is based on behavioral psychology and third generation therapies, added to the vision that previously commented on “recovering what we already have as a basis, calm, balance, anxiety as a survival mechanism And emotions as a guide ". I put the focus on teaching the person on himself so that he can understand where the symptoms come from and manage them, but we do not limit ourselves to relieving them without more, if not understanding the importance of emotional, physical and spiritual self -care to recover complete health.

In addition, I offer among my services a coaching program "Self -knowledge and action", which bases the sessions in the work of 6 specific components: emotions, conscience, objectives, relationships, time and responsibility. On my website (which can be accessed from Aracos) I describe the differences between coaching and psychological therapy, since the terms usually generate some confusion https: // elenamartinpsico.com/.

Alberto: In my case I mainly meet people who want to lose weight, learn to eat what best or directly with some pathology that they want to improve. And truly everything is related, there is no health without a lifestyle like the one who expects our body.

There will be people who introduce me in one way or another, sometimes for fear or shame. For example, when a client tells me that he has a bad relationship with food, which is binge ... he usually knows that something is not right, but they no longer know what to do, and they even look unable to change it, that they escape and Many times desperate. It is key to treat people as such, have empathy and validate emotions, with all that, we started working.

Lately it is true that there are more and more people interested in feeding well and that makes my task very facilitates. When someone is willing to learn, to explain how the body works, that the interests of the industry among others do not go with our health, there are the best results. Someone who was willing to change something not to do the same and wait for another result. The truth is a satisfaction to see how the changes and improvements that occur, are able to change the person completely, even their way of seeing the world and knowing themselves. It seems incredible as inflammation lowers, how they feel unbush, they get up rested and with energy ... and when one day they take something that feels regular, they are able to recognize it and even take measures, which was previously unthinkable, because it occurred Normally.

Alberto has caught our attention a fact that we can read in his services, such as the ketogenic diet, can you tell us something about it?

Basically it is a power style that can help us recover some forgotten mechanisms, that the body has not used almost, for the modern lifestyle. In a very summarized way, it is about promoting a more lipolytic and less glucose -dependent metabolism.

It will be very helpful to improve diabetes, metabolic syndrome, overweight, insulin resistance ..

We are going to reduce the intake of hydrates by increasing that of fats, so that the body has to use fats as the main source of energy. This will carry many changes and benefits, especially when it is used to eating very industrial things, based on flours, bread, pasta ... it is very practical as a tool, because many people are released from food, they no longer feel craving, they are Feeling, more awake and happy to see that he is no longer a slave of food. From that point everything else is worked much better, although the hydrates are then reintrated again.

Not everyone will react the same, but most people would benefit from doing a few weeks a year with this power style. Well, it was normal in winter times and with current food, the body receives information from an eternal spring. We can be 20 degrees all year for air conditioning or heating, we have available foods that are not seasonal and even from the other part of the world and endless comforts that are fine and you have to know how to take advantage, but our body expects certain stimuli that we must give so that everything goes well, because in the original environment there was no other possibility. We must keep in mind that we are children of scarcity and that is why this environment of opulence makes us so easy.

I personally find myself more comfortable following this type of food in my day to day, but as I usually comment, it has to be affordable for the person, something that is sustained in time as a habit. That is why many times I use it as a punctual tool in my patients and then adapt something more in the long term or or even, depending on the case.

The theme is quite complex, but we have some podcast giving some details in case you are interested in the topic https: // www.Ivoox.com/Podcast-ana-Nutrition-SAMP-PSICOLOGIA_SQ_F11266071_1.HTML

From you Elena catches our attention, the psychonutrition is very demanded this service in psychology?

It is not very demanded in itself, it is a term that generates some confusion and takes a short time among the concepts we expect from a psychologist. However, it always appears indirectly, for example, during the first sessions when I evaluate the person's general state of the person in each area and we talk about food, it is common to listen to “UF, that issue… I try to eat healthy, but I can't "or" bad, I'm diet ".

When I explain my work form, which means psychonutrition, the importance of general health for our mental health ... and the possibility of joint sessions with Alberto increases demand. In addition, in cases where there is health, but it seeks to enhance (as in coaching processes) or people who want exclusively psychological therapy, I start what has been learned in my nutrition formations and introduce in the psychology sessions referring to psychonutrition as conscious food, basic concepts and myths of nutrition and the emotions-food relationship.

Do you have more common projects thought?

We currently want to develop to the maximum, completing it with the possibility of formations as we mentioned above. We are also working in dissemination through social networks and in this field we do have more joint plans, so far we have created a podcast and a blog, the following will be most likely monthly videos about both disciplines.

On the other hand, Alberto is a singer and I am a guitarist, we like the same musical style and perhaps this can be a land on which to draw another branch of aracos, hehe.

Well, it has been a pleasure to interview 2 professionals like you. A hug.