Embody Lib

🎉 Embody Lib’s 2025 Year In Review -

🎉 Embody Lib’s 2025 Year In Review As I continue to witness the collective hardship this moment in our history brings, it’s hard to believe that 2025 is coming to an end. This was an incredibly difficult year for public health, human services, and the broader social impact ecosystem. Still, I am deeply moved by the courage and comm...

Hey EL fam 👋🏽

I hope you are all doing your darn best coping with *gestures broadly* but I wanted to hop on here really quick and share a life update.

After living in DC for 12 years, my husband and I decided to make the move back to the Midwest. It was a difficult decision that was driven by a number of factors, but we are happy to be getting settled into our new home of…St. Louis!

I went to high school and college in the Lou and look forward to getting reconnected to my community here.

If you are local I would love to know: who are your favorite values aligned small businesses, changemakers, grassroots organizations, and organizers I should connect with?

Sound off in the comments!

Hey Embody Lib fam 👋🏽

It has been so amazing to see so many in my community mobilize to make sure others are fed during a time when our administration has abandoned us. So, putting my 15 years of professional experience in the food security space, as well as my lived experience as a former SNAP recipient and someone who has spent most of my adult life living paycheck to paycheck, I have created a (hopefully) easy-to-use action guide for those who want to help.

You can access the PDF at www.embodylib.com/keeping-each-other-fed-community-action-guide

What is most helpful for you? Let me know in the comments

Yours in community,
Your friendly neighborhood body liberation advocate

In case you've been wondering:

Embody Lib is short for “Embodying Liberation.”

The name came to me almost immediately back in 2018, when I had an increasing number of opportunities to publicly share my lived experience with an eating disorder and how it intersected with my years of work in public health nutrition.

At the time, I was living the harmful impact of weight-centric models across healthcare, food systems, and public health spaces. The exclusion and marginalization of higher-weight, trans, and disabled People of the Global Majority wasn’t just happening because of individual bias; it was deeply embedded in the structures, policies, and practices that shape our lives.

I knew we needed more than a mindset shift. We needed a movement.

One that could disrupt harmful systems, reimagine what health and well-being look like, and create conditions where everyone (regardless of body size, ability, gender, or how they are racialized) can access care, dignity, and health on their own terms.

But for that to happen, I couldn’t just study or talk about liberation. I had to live it.

In fact, I had to embody it.

“The moment we choose to love, we begin to move toward freedom, to act in ways that liberate ourselves and others.” – bell hooks

To embody liberation is to recognize that our bodies don't only hold our struggles. They hold stories. Histories. Legacies.

Our bodies, the way they are perceived and treated, are shaped by ideologies like racism, poverty, ableism, and anti-fatness.

Our bodies are not separate from these realities—they carry the weight of them every day. (pun intended)

But they also carry the possibility for change.

This process has been far from easy. It’s meant unlearning internalized narratives about food, health and well-being. But it’s reshaped how I move through the world, how I care for myself, how I relate to others, and what it means to build a world where all bodies are treated with the dignity they deserve.

And it’s reminded me that real liberation is both personal and collective.

There have been times when I’ve wondered whether the name “Embody Lib” feels too aspirational, too out of reach for those who feel stuck in the status quo.

But maybe that’s the point.

Maybe what we need right now is something that helps us imagine a future where liberation is not just possible but already underway.

If any of this resonates, I’d love to hear from you.

In your current work, what would it look like to move toward liberation for yourself, your community, and the people you serve?

Additionally, I invite you to join me for the Body Lib Basics Learning Series starting this Wednesday on May 28th, at 8 PM ET. You can learn more and register here:

LinkedIn This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

It’s time.⁠
⁠
After 7 years of sharing, learning, and growing with you all, I am stepping away from this platform. ⁠
⁠
I started this account in January 2018 as a way to scream into the void of the algorithm—hoping to find others who shared my experience with eating disorder treatment.⁠
⁠
What started as a way to process my relationship with food and my body turned into something I never could have imagined…⁠
⁠
What did I find instead? I found YOU. What became the Embody Lib Fam. ⁠
A space for honesty, healing, and liberation⁠
⁠
Over the past 7 years, I:⁠
✨Shared my path to recovery and healing⁠
✨Grew as an advocate, activist & educator⁠
✨Evolved as a human being⁠
✨Connected with so many incredible people⁠
✨And so much more...⁠
⁠
But over the past year, something in me has changed… and so have my views and expectations for this platform. ⁠
⁠
Movements evolve. Spaces transform. And so do we.⁠
⁠
What was once a central point for finding connection, the performative and extractive nature of this platform had me at odds with the vision and ⁠
message I want to share with the world. ⁠
⁠
And I’ve realized… that the connection I seek is no longer here.⁠
⁠
💭💜 This space gave me so much, but the time has come for me to continue growing this movement and work elsewhere. ⁠
⁠
💌 If you want to stay in touch, you can find me:⁠
📧 Through my mailing list⁠
📍 On my blog (Buy Me a Coffee)⁠
💻 On LinkedIn for updates⁠
⁠
You can find these 🔗 in my bio⁠
⁠
Thank you for everything. Onwards & upwards.
🚀✨

My dear friend is in the process of recovering from multiple health challenges (including an injury that makes it difficult for her to walk). She requested meal support over the next month for her and her family as regular food shopping and preparing nourishing meals are difficult for them. ⁠
⁠
You can donate to the general food fund, buy her a gift card, or, if you are in the Austin, Texas area, deliver a meal.⁠
⁠
Learn more by visiting: https://mealtrain.com/01gz45 ⁠
⁠
or visit Link in Bio.

Even though I am trying to be away from this and all Meta Platforms this week, I couldn’t quite bring myself to skip posting this. I have been posting this since 2019, so why stop now? Especially when we need to be reminded of our history more than ever. ⁠

FROM THE ARCHIVES
I am glad to see so many people interested in uplifting lesser-known and circulated quotes and ideas from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I originally shared this post 6 years ago. Suffice it to say, it wasn’t popular. ⁠
⁠
If you take the time to read MLK Jr’s work more closely, you quickly start to see that he:⁠
⁠
💡Increasingly acknowledged the role of capitalism in perpetuating systemic racism⁠
💡 Was pro-Union and pro-UBI (Universal Basic Income)⁠
💡Against a carceral police state⁠
💡 Heavily critical of the white moderate liberal ⁠
💡 Viewed silence as complicity, not as peaceful or nonviolent ⁠
⁠
Below are 7 of my favorite (continued in comments):⁠
⁠
“We must recognize that we can’t solve our problem now until there is a radical redistribution of economic and political power… this means a revolution of values and other things. We must see now that the evils of racism, economic exploitation and militarism are all tied together… you can’t really get rid of one without getting rid of the others… the whole structure of American life must be changed.” - MLK Jr, Report to SCLC Staff, 1967⁠
⁠
“And when white Americans tell the Negro to ‘lift himself by his own bootstraps’, they don’t, oh, they don’t look over the legacy of slavery and segregation. I believe we ought to do all we can and seek to lift ourselves by our own bootstraps, but it’s a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps.” - MLK Jr., 1967⁠
⁠
Continued in Comments.... ⁠
⁠
(Want to stay connected while I am off IG? Sign up for my mailing list. Link in Bio)

Do you consider yourself a Body Liberation practitioner? How grounded do you feel in your ‘praxis,’ which means actively applying ideas, theories, and concepts to your everyday life and work?⁠
⁠
Introducing Body Lib Basics, a transformative five-part series designed to equip you with the tools to challenge body hierarchies, reclaim ancestral wisdom, and foster liberatory practices in your personal life, activism, and professional work.⁠
⁠
💡 What to Expect:⁠
-Thought-provoking discussions⁠
-Interactive activities like reflection exercises and somatic awareness⁠
-Actionable strategies to create change—personally and collectively⁠
⁠
✨ Whether you’re looking to build community resilience, reclaim nourishment, or envision a future free from systemic oppression, this series is for YOU. With sessions offered at no cost or “pay-what-you-can,” it’s designed with financial accessibility in mind. ⁠
⁠
🔗 Ready to learn more and join us? Check out the details here: www.embodylib.com/events⁠
⁠
Let’s work together to build a world where all bodies are truly valued. 💪 ⁠
⁠
Image Description 1: The graphics eatures a muted gray and beige background with a circular image in the center showing a silhouette of a person walking in a dreamy, abstract landscape with flowers and text overlay. The text reads “Body Lib Basics” “Develop Your Praxis” and “Register Today.”⁠
⁠
Image description 2: A graphic for “Beyond Body Positivity: An Introduction to Body Liberation and the Need for the Collective Healing,” part of the Winter 2024 “Body Lib Basics” series that features a stylized black-and-white brushstroke figure in a meditative pose, placed on a beige background with curved gold and gray accents. The event details are listed below the title, including the date (Wednesday, January 29th, 2025, at 8 PM ET) and a registration link. The Embody Lib logo is at the top of the flyer.⁠
⁠
Image descriptions continued in comments...

Do incorporate Body Liberation into your personal practice and/or community work?

First, I want to take a moment to thank all of those who have supported me and the Body Lib Basics Learning Series by attending and sharing with your communities and networks. ⁠
⁠
After careful consideration, I have decided to postpone the two remaining sessions of the series. I am doing this because I am being called to redirect my energy and time toward organizing efforts in my local community here in DC as we prepare for the new federal administration’s inauguration and beyond. ⁠
⁠
If anyone paid for their registration for either of these sessions, you will get a full refund. ⁠
⁠
I encourage you to sign up below to stay updated on the new session dates and registration information. (Link in Bio)⁠
⁠
Thank you again for your support and for your understanding.⁠
⁠
In Solidarity,⁠
⁠
Patrilie⁠
⁠
Embody Lib Founder

🍽️ What does it mean to truly nourish yourself?⁠
⁠
Nourishment isn’t just about food—it’s about meeting our psychosocial, cultural, and spiritual needs.⁠
⁠
When we reconnect with our ancestral foodways, we:⁠
🌾 Honor the wisdom of those who came before us.⁠
🌍 Build a sense of cultural belonging.⁠
🤝 Strengthen our communities by sharing and celebrating food traditions.⁠
⁠
In times of crisis, these deeper layers of nourishment help us come together, heal, and organize for change.⁠
⁠
Join me for Body Liberated Nourishment: Connecting with Our Ancestral Foodways, a 90-minute session where we’ll explore the power of truly nourishing ourselves and our communities.⁠
⁠
📅 December 11, 2024 | 8 PM ET⁠
💸 Pay what you can (financial assistance available).⁠
⁠
Let’s discover how food can heal, connect, and inspire liberation.⁠
⁠
💻 Link in bio to register.⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠.

🥗 Nourishment is more than just nutrition.⁠
⁠
When we think about nourishment, we often picture nutrients, calories, or diets—but it’s so much more than that. Nourishment is about fueling every part of ourselves: our bodies, minds, and connections to our heritage. 🌱⁠
⁠
In my upcoming session, Body Liberated Nourishment: Connecting with Our Ancestral Foodways, we’ll dive into the deeper dimensions of nourishment, exploring how it:⁠
⁠
✨ Supports physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.⁠
✨ Builds a bridge to our cultural identity.⁠
✨ Can give us a ‘softer place to land’ during times of collective crisis.⁠
⁠
It’s time to shift the narrative and reclaim nourishment as a dynamic and liberatory practice. Are you ready to explore this journey with me?⁠
⁠
📅 Join us on December 11th at 8 PM ET. Pay-what-you-can pricing available!⁠
💻 Link in bio to register.⁠
⁠
⁠
⁠
Image description: A fat, Latine femme with dark curly hair stands in front a restaurant sign with the name “Comfort Kitchen” They are wearing a black dress and a sweater.

Posted • .ca This was just one of many impactful quotes shared by Patrilie Hernandez () in yesterday’s webinar, Stratifying Food, Body, and Health: Exploring Socially Dominant Narratives Across the Community Nutrition Landscape.

Although we like to say that “healthy doesn’t have a look,” the socially dominant narratives that we have grown up with have probably created an image in most people’s minds. When we don’t critically consider these values and beliefs that we have developed individually and as a society, we can cause harm, often to those who are most vulnerable.

In addition to knowledge and wisdom, Patrilie shared some thoughtful reflective questions to consider when it comes to our own positionality, as well as in planning community nutrition education initiatives.

Get the recording at https://weightinclusive.ca/project/community-nutrition (Link in bio and story!)