Donna Fish is a licensed clinical social worker with a private practice in Manhattan, where she lives with her husband and three daughters. She graduated summa cum laude from McGill University in Montreal, and with honors from Columbia University. She has been an adjunct faculty member at the Columbia University School of Social Work and is an affiliate staff member at the Center for Study of Anorexia and Bulimia. Ms. Fish is a guest lecturer for the departments of social work and psychiatry at Mount Sinai Hospital and Bellevue Hospital in New York City. She is a frequent consultant to the private and public schools, and to New York City's Administration for Children's Services, Head Start, and Child Advocacy Services of Manhattan, and a presenter at the Renfrew Center's Annual Conference on Eating Disorders. Ms. Fish co-wrote the script and was the on-camera spokesperson for a show on anxiety disorders produced for LIFETIME TELEVISION. She was also the expert for a show on body image on National Public Radio's 'The Infinite Mind', has been interviewed for the parenting column of the CBC Radio, Canada.

With the publication of her book: Take the Fight out of Food: How to Prevent and Solve Your Child's Eating Problems, Ms. Fish has been interviewed for many publications, including Better Homes and Gardens, Parenting, In Touch Weekly, ParentGuide News, First for Women, Today's Parent, USA Today, USA Weekend. Interviews on multiple radio shows include NPR's show 'A Chef's Table' on WHYY, NYC's 1010 WINS, NYC's 106.7 lite FM's current affairs show, as well as many national newspapers. She has presented her lecture "Creating Effective Eating Habits in Children and Teens" to the Tenafly School District in New Jersey, the Parent Action Committee of Long Island, Wellesley College Early Childhood Center and Dept. of Education, Sarah Lawrence College Early Childhood Center, Georgetown University, and she has trained the Head Start Staff of NYC in her "Take the Fight out of Food" program. Television appearances have included the WEEKEND TODAY SHOW, FOX NEWS CHANNEL, AND MSNBC.

A former dancer, Ms. Fish has served as a consultant for the staff at the School of American Ballet and the professional training program of the Steps Dance School in NYC. She is available for lectures on eating issues to audiences that include schools, (teachers, students, and parent associations.) college campuses, medical facilities, and community centers.

Blog Entries by Donna Fish

Eat Drink and Be Merry! How to Keep from Gaining TOO MUCH Weight Over the Holidays

Posted December 10, 2009 | 11:25 AM (EST)


I need to put my two cents in here. (Those of you who follow me, know that of course, I always have an opinion.)

It never fails to amaze me, how, during the holidays, there are millions of tips out there, for how to "NOT GAIN WEIGHT'.

Forgive my inner,...

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Feeding Your Toddler And Preschooler

Posted November 16, 2009 | 08:27 AM (EST)


THE FOOD DEMANDER and THE TROUBLE TRANSITIONER

Anyone out there have a kid who now is demanding food, or sweets a lot of the time?  Worrying...

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How Obnoxious Are the Voices in Your Head?

1 Comments | Posted November 5, 2009 | 07:29 PM (EST)


I think we could safely say that when any woman steps into a dressing room to try on clothing, her inner dialogue is not exactly complimentary.  Am I just speaking for myself, or do we tend to get fairly self-critical, and focus on the negative, vs. the positive, when left...

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Your Child May Be Denied Health Care Coverage Unless You Can Get on The Today Show

3 Comments | Posted October 22, 2009 | 05:17 PM (EST)


Anyone catch that outrageous story yesterday of the little girl who was denied health care coverage because she was too skinny?!  Her parents were on The Today Show stating that she was on “her growth curve," is a picky eater, had a bit of a gag reflex problem that was...

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Help! My Daughter's a Vegan

11 Comments | Posted October 14, 2009 | 01:42 PM (EST)


Am I supposed to be happy about this?  For the first time as a parent, I find myself almost getting into fights about food.

I know it pushes my buttons, because it seems dogmatic and obsessive.  I hate thinking about food too much; I love to eat but I have...

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Flipping the "Off"- Switch: Teaching Your Overeater How to Stop

Posted September 30, 2009 | 03:18 PM (EST)


 

Nothing like having kids to reinforce the nature part of the nurture debate when it comes to personality traits.  Forget things like hair and eye color; any parent with more than one kid knows how different and unique their personalities and temperaments are, from Day One.

I broaden this...

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Kids and Self Esteem: The Real Deal

1 Comments | Posted September 21, 2009 | 10:09 AM (EST)


What parent doesn’t want their kid to feel good about themselves?  If I see that commercial one more time, with the little kid batting the ball saying:  “I am the best hitter in the world!”  or , “I am the best pitcher in the world!”,   with the ‘happy soundtrack’ in...

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The Ever Expanding Umbilical Cord, or Tweens and Independence

Posted September 12, 2009 | 06:29 PM (EST)


Boy did I love having infants, and boy do I love that my kids are now more independent and can get around on their own! With two teenagers and one 10 year old who is beginning to ask to walk to school on her own this year, I am really...

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Inherent Personality, Inherent Eating Style

1 Comments | Posted July 18, 2009 | 12:27 PM (EST)


This weekend the New York Times Magazine's cover story is by Frank Bruni, the Times' restaurant critic, and is titled: "This Boy's Appetite". Given my work in the field of eating disorders and prevention with kids and eating problems, I read it with relish.

I thought of the parents who...

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Supreme Consciousness

Posted July 15, 2009 | 10:38 PM (EST)


Today's quotation of the day in the New York Times has to resonate with every single analyst across the land: "Life experiences have to influence you. We're not robots who listen to evidence and don't have feelings. We have to recognize those feelings, and put them aside."
JUDGE SONIA...

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Culture and Kids in NYC

Posted July 10, 2009 | 10:42 AM (EST)


I am walking away from my 15 and 10 y/o daughters this morning laughing to myself, thinking how in so many 'things parenting'; what ends up happening is rarely what you plan.

Off I went this morning musing on the blog I was going to write today: "Raising kids...

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Canadian New Yorkers Unite

Posted July 2, 2009 | 05:56 PM (EST)


Do you get to buy a SUBWAY sandwich, where the owner of the shop is one of the most acerbic, sarcastic, 'salt of the earth' and hilarious women on the planet! You might think in fact that you have landed at Caroline's Comedy Club rather than your local sandwich shop!...

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Sisterhood of the Spandex and One Degree of Separation

Posted June 29, 2009 | 04:34 AM (EST)


This past weekend I attended the Body Design by Gilda reunion in NYC. In the former basement studio (now turned club), where we used to lead hundreds of women to push themselves one more rep, one more jump we convened; but no, not in spandex.

In 1982 I moved to...

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Michael Jackson: The Superstar and The Vulnerable Human Being

Posted June 26, 2009 | 04:27 PM (EST)


A few years ago during his trial for child molestation, I was asked by several national radio stations to comment on Michael Jackson's psychiatric status due to my work in the area of body image distortion, eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorders. Right after several interviews were set up however,...

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Yes, the Public Schools are Oversold; Please Don't Hold Your Seat!

Posted June 25, 2009 | 09:05 AM (EST)



It is one day from D-Day for parents who still don't know where their kids are going to kindergarten in the fall. This is the last week of public school! This from one parent and child: "It just sucks. School year's over and my son keeps asking...

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It's June: Do You Know Where Your Kid Is? Going to School, I Mean?

Posted June 18, 2009 | 11:52 AM (EST)


In the last two days I have been thinking about what things are particular to living in New York City. Coming home on the subway yesterday, there were the usual 'hawkers'; people selling anything from newspapers, candy, and of course the mariachi musicians. (I am sorry, I don't even want...

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Ode to Meatballs

1 Comments | Posted June 15, 2009 | 12:34 PM (EST)


I have a confession that for some reason comes a surprise to the audiences I speak to, (not my friends and family who know this well!). I am a massive 'foodie'. I love, love, love to eat, and to eat well. I can get ridiculously excited about the prospect of...

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TWEENS AND BODY IMAGE: THE REAL DEAL

Posted June 1, 2009 | 10:23 PM (EST)


As I have pondered this request for a piece on tweens and body image for several weeks now, I realize that I need to present you with the brutal truth: Most adolescent girls' body image 'sucks.' According to the hundreds of tweens I have worked with over 20 years and...

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Love and Hate in the Time of Parenting

3 Comments | Posted May 10, 2009 | 10:21 AM (EST)


I had to write this in honor of Mother's Day.

I lift a glass and salute all of you mothers out there who can be real and down with your intense negative feelings towards your kids at times.

With all of the love love love, think positive self-help mantras out...

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The Dinner Wars: Parents' Fighting Over Feeding the Kids

1 Comments | Posted May 7, 2009 | 10:22 AM (EST)


The other day I was counseling a couple who came to me over their own fighting over their kids' food. He: "I think Karen defers to the kids too much. They should eat what is on their plate, and finish it all!" She: "I refuse to make my kid eat...

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