As I have been researching and studying and trying to come up with answers for myself on why I do things the way I do concerning food, I have heard it said that we all have a relationship with food. At first I was kind of perplexed thinking, really!?! It seems so one sided. As I have begun to explore this, I have realized it to be truth. I am beginning to realize it is not one sided at all.
I am an emotional eater, and as such, used to believe that food was my best friend. It would comfort me, rejoice with me and soothe any emotion I had. I felt like it was a friend, who didn't talk back, or hurt me. A friend that was completely accepting. I am learning though, that the foods I would choose to emotionally eat with, are not my friends at all! They are wolves dressed in sheep's clothing! How so? Well they act all nice while I'm eating them and I feel like they are helping the situation but in fact, the actual emotion is only temporarily numbed. Put another way, I am just temporarily distracted from feeling it and then it is back. Also, this horrible food (comfort foods) are making a sneak attack! They say they are healing me emotionally while attacking me physically. I think deep down most of us know this when we emotionally eat, but some how can not seem to break free from this lousy friend we have found in food.
I've also heard it said that our relationship to food is the same as our relationship with all other things. I'll give you some examples from my own life. My relationship with food seems to cycle (I'm working on breaking this btw). I'll eat really healthy then something will through me off track (holidays, visitors, traveling, other people's comments) and so then I will eat very naughtily. This can be for one meal or days or weeks. During this time, I'll start to feel guilty. The guilt will get to me to the point where I can start eating healthy again. It is quite similar to the pride cycle that we see in the scriptures actually. It is kind of this binging and purging cycle, control/out of control cycle...however you would like to name it. So anyway, I have noticed that I do this with spending and saving of money. I do this with organization and cleaning. I will declutter our house amazingly and then go on a mini shopping spree over the next couple of months. My personality is very black and white. I am a perfectionist. Are you seeing the pattern? It is all exactly the same to my relationship with food. I'm either on the wagon or off to put it another way.
So 2 things..1) If we examine our relationship with food, we can better understand, love,and accept ourselves. 2)We can also know how to work on and balance the other areas of our lives as well.
So how do we do this exactly?
Some things that have helped me on my journey have been:
1. Relying on the Lord through Prayer, Scripture Study and Journaling on certain versus.
2. Following a 12 step program for food addiction
3. Keeping a food/mood journal
4. Following Geneen Roth's eating guidelines
5. Eating mostly raw, clean, organic foods.
Part of this process for me is to get outside of myself and help others who are struggling as well. Through my website, www.believeandachievehealth.com , I will be offering a Spiritual Eating Support group as well as (Coming Soon) a Freedom from Food Game for those of you who find healthy competition and earning $ great motivation to help you reach your goals and conquer your battles.
Go ahead...Examine your relationship with food. You'll be amazed at what you learn about yourself!
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Monday, August 26, 2013
My Integrative Nutrition Experience and How it Opened my Eyes
Today I took my last test for The Institute of Integrative Nutrition. I will officially graduate on Sept 6th, 2013 and will be a Certified Health Coach. I originally went into the program all for myself. I was pretty sure raw food was the way to go but I wanted to make sure I knew everything about nutrition that I possibly could. Plus, I was finding it hard to afford raw food for a family of six and they really didn't want to be 100% raw vegan. Also dealing with traveling and holidays was very difficult for me. I needed answers so I could cure myself from obesity and my constant battle with food and weight.
As I went through the program, I struggled. Learning so many different dietary theories that ALL sounded correct really messed me up. Each week, I would tell my husband and kids we had to eat this way or that way or yes to this food and no to that one. I drove them as Crazy as I had become. I had really thought I had conquered all my food issues, eating disorders and yo yo dieting. The program truly brought to the surface for me that I still had a problem. The program talks a lot about helping others and coaching. After getting past just helping myself, I originally wanted to work with women who were stressed out and needed to lose weight. This discouraged me as I was still up and down with my own weight. How was I to help anyone? They say you only need to be one step ahead of the people you coach, but really? Who would listen to someone who hadn't succeeded in this area herself?
As I dove deeper into the program some of the lecturers really spoke to me, One of them being Geneen Roth. I also learned about Marc David, owner of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating, this has and will continue to change my world forever. Through these individuals, my mind and my focus has changed. I realized how much work I need to do on my own food addiction and my need to emotionally eat. I have been doing a lot of internal work on these issues along with relying on my Lord Jesus Christ, who I believe will deliver me from my bondage to food. My focus then changed to not only helping myself overcome this but reaching out and being of service to all food addicts and emotional eaters who like myself, knows exactly what she needs to be doing but has not yet opened the door to find out what has caused these symptoms.
Do you know what your body, your weight, your disordered emotional food addictive cravings and behavior are trying to tell you?
I have been on an amazing path this year that has opened the door and I am figuring it all out. Have I reached my ideal weight yet? No. I am still on my own journey. It is a process. It takes time (I know none of us want to hear that). I am learning to love myself just the way I am at this moment and love the process and what this glorious body is trying to teach me. Most of my success so far has been internally with my thoughts and feelings. I've learned some amazing tools to help myself and others with these issues. If you would like my assistance, because you struggle with these issues as well visit me at Believe and Achieve Health (little did I know when I picked this business name a year ago what a profound affect it would have on me.) For those of you who still need a little bit of proof, follow me regularly as my Emotional, Mental, Spiritual and Physical being transforms completely over this next year. I assure you that you will be as amazed and as excited as I will be. But for those of you, who are sick and tired of struggling and fighting with yourself and with food and don't want to wait another day to see someone else completely heal and recover, contact me today and I can simultaneously help you along your journey as well.
I am grateful for all the amazing teachers I have had so far along this journey and as a chapter closes for me today a new and continued journey begin. I believe in the ability to be happy and healthy, I have achieved so much already and will continue to achieve it.
Will You?
As I went through the program, I struggled. Learning so many different dietary theories that ALL sounded correct really messed me up. Each week, I would tell my husband and kids we had to eat this way or that way or yes to this food and no to that one. I drove them as Crazy as I had become. I had really thought I had conquered all my food issues, eating disorders and yo yo dieting. The program truly brought to the surface for me that I still had a problem. The program talks a lot about helping others and coaching. After getting past just helping myself, I originally wanted to work with women who were stressed out and needed to lose weight. This discouraged me as I was still up and down with my own weight. How was I to help anyone? They say you only need to be one step ahead of the people you coach, but really? Who would listen to someone who hadn't succeeded in this area herself?
As I dove deeper into the program some of the lecturers really spoke to me, One of them being Geneen Roth. I also learned about Marc David, owner of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating, this has and will continue to change my world forever. Through these individuals, my mind and my focus has changed. I realized how much work I need to do on my own food addiction and my need to emotionally eat. I have been doing a lot of internal work on these issues along with relying on my Lord Jesus Christ, who I believe will deliver me from my bondage to food. My focus then changed to not only helping myself overcome this but reaching out and being of service to all food addicts and emotional eaters who like myself, knows exactly what she needs to be doing but has not yet opened the door to find out what has caused these symptoms.
Do you know what your body, your weight, your disordered emotional food addictive cravings and behavior are trying to tell you?
I have been on an amazing path this year that has opened the door and I am figuring it all out. Have I reached my ideal weight yet? No. I am still on my own journey. It is a process. It takes time (I know none of us want to hear that). I am learning to love myself just the way I am at this moment and love the process and what this glorious body is trying to teach me. Most of my success so far has been internally with my thoughts and feelings. I've learned some amazing tools to help myself and others with these issues. If you would like my assistance, because you struggle with these issues as well visit me at Believe and Achieve Health (little did I know when I picked this business name a year ago what a profound affect it would have on me.) For those of you who still need a little bit of proof, follow me regularly as my Emotional, Mental, Spiritual and Physical being transforms completely over this next year. I assure you that you will be as amazed and as excited as I will be. But for those of you, who are sick and tired of struggling and fighting with yourself and with food and don't want to wait another day to see someone else completely heal and recover, contact me today and I can simultaneously help you along your journey as well.
I am grateful for all the amazing teachers I have had so far along this journey and as a chapter closes for me today a new and continued journey begin. I believe in the ability to be happy and healthy, I have achieved so much already and will continue to achieve it.
Will You?
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