DIETING/LOVE
When I fell in love, I’d lose weight and then when the relationship failed, I’d gain it back. Food and heartache are intertwined within me.
With many of us, food is intertwined with all sorts of emotions. We are sad or nervous, frustrated or empty inside, and we seek the comfort of food. We are elated and in celebratory spirits, and we reward ourselves with a delicious treat.
When food (or cigarettes, alcohol, or drugs) becomes our adult pacifier, we have a problem. We need to know that food cannot fill the void inside us or relieve our stress. It cannot make up for love lost or thwarted ambitions. When we look to food in difficult times, we actually create a new problem for ourselves: unhealthy dependency. A weight gain makes plain our lack of control and diminishes our self-esteem. Feeling down, we eat more and the cycle continues. Let us leave food to nourish and delight us, the things it does best.
Call to Action: On this day, I pledge that if I find myself in a funk, I will determine what could make me feel better without hurting me at the same time.
