Re: A Successful Day

[Guest guest]

Congratulations, Kayla!

Sometimes life gets extra stressful and we have to respond in kind. After

reading your post I was struck by what you said about giving yourself a gift.

What an amazing truth. Life is full of so many amazing things for us to taste

and touch and experience. When we diet, we are limiting our experiences. I also

feel that that whenever I tell myself I can't have something, regardless of what

it is, I only want it and truly OBSESS about it more.

Right now, I am in an incredible place with I.E. I'm re reading E.A.T. (Eating

Awareness Training) by author Molly Groger. I love this book; it was written

well over 20 years ago and I still find 95% of it timely and extremely

insightful. You can buy it used on amazon.com for under $10. Anyway, although

I've read the book quite a few times, in the past I just wasn't willing to let

go of tv watching or book/magazing reading while eating, which is one of the

requirements when learning to eat with full awareness. So last week I decided to

try it: I began eating at my table for each meal and snack, usually by myself,

and while I found it odd and kind of boring at first, now I look forward to

enjoying my food. Because of how strongly in tune I am with my food when eating

like this, I find that I am able to repeatedly ask myself if I am truly hungry

before and during my meal or snack. While I am eating I savor each bite, remind

myself to eat slowly, and I sort of talk to myself about the texture, taste,

what I particularly like, etc. I remind myself that each meal is an OPPORTUNITY

to experience something amazing, even when eating a simple meal or snack.

While it may seem strange to some people, eating with no distractions has been

working well for me. I only hope it continues to be helpful to me.

Take care, Kayla. Good to hear from you.

Jodi

>

> I just wanted to share a success I had today with Intuitive Eating.

>

> I woke up so late for my tax appointment that I didn't have time to eat

breakfast. Then my tax guy told me that I owed $400 to the IRS, which is a lot

of money for a student working part-time. Yesterday, I had promised myself a

pastry because I am NOT DIETING GOSH DARN IT, and so after the terrible tax

news, I stopped a great bakery a couple streets over.

>

> I had to buy $5 worth of food so I could use my credit card, leaving with not

only the one raisin scone I wanted, but also another scone and two cupcakes. On

the way home as I ate my scone, I toiled over my troubles. And then the I

finished the scone. " BUT WAIT! " I thought, " there's another scone in this bag,

plus two cupcakes! " I paused, thinking of my options on a full belly. On the

one hand, I could eat the rest of the baked goods and then feel guilty, tired,

and sick the entire day. I could try to soothe these worries away with food even

though I know it doesn't work in the long run. Then I thought of how proud of

myself I'd be if I were to refrain, how much better I'd feel, and how I'd have

left over pastries for another day.

>

> Today, I gave myself a gift. Instead of scolding myself for eating a scone and

then eating the other pastries out of dieter's guilt and financial worries, I

paused, thought, and decided responsibly. Today I'm proud!

>