This video is profound.
https://youtu.be/5yzkeFAn4mI I watched it to learn about Psych-K, but I got so much more out of it. I encourage you to watch it. I recently visited my family in Florida for two weeks. I reverted to my old lifestyle patterns and just went nuts. I drank soda, ate fast food, three plus meals a day, got very little exercise, etc. Needless to say, I gained some weight. I developed some pain in my feet that made it hurt to walk. A massage therapist told me I had crystals in my feet. My dad has gout, so that is pretty concerning.
When I got back home I immediately went to a dance retreat for 4ish days. I ate low carb food/drink except for one party one night. I drank lots of water. I got more exercise. When I got home I went down to one low carb meal a day. Now I'm going to fast for 48 hours. I've lost 9 pounds in 5 days. My foot pain is going away. Go me! I feel so motivated! I don't expect I'll ever be perfect. I probably will screw up from time to time. But the time between the "screw up" and "when I start taking good care of myself again" is getting shorter. And I "screw up" much less often than I used to. I'll focus on those achievements and praise myself for my progress. My old mentality would've beaten me up for "screwing up" and thought, "Oh well, you've already screwed up, so you may as well have the food you want right now." I was hopeless and had no confidence in my ability to actually overcome my weight problem, so I didn't try most of the time. Besides, food is good. Food made me feel good in the moment, and I felt terrible. These old patterns are sometimes hard to recognize in myself, but once I do recognize them, it's easier to change them. I've just read, "Brain Over Binge" by Kathryn Hansen. I highly recommend this book if you have gone to traditional psychotherapy or Overeaters Anonymous (OA) and they have failed to stop your eating disorder. It was really helpful to have someone explain why those programs didn't work for me, and then give me another way to look at things that I could try. Informative and empowering. Yes!
Kathryn explains why the philosophies of both traditional psychotherapy and OA are disempowering. They both foster dependence rather than independence. You are encouraged to rely and put your trust in outside help (the therapist or OA group), versus tapping into your vast inner potential. For some of us, this is unhelpful at best. If you've gone to traditional therapy or tried OA and they haven't brought an end to your eating disorder, I recommend you read this book. It will be comforting to read a book by someone who has been where you are and overcome it. She can point you toward a possible way out. Best wishes. I'm currently reading, "Taming the Feast Beast" by Jack and Lois Trimpey. Jack Trimpey is the founder of Rational Recovery (RR), a self-help alternative for addiction.
Unlike 12-step groups, RR requires you to admit that you are powerful, not powerless over your addiction (or you can be). You will not be asked to rely on a higher power in RR, either. You are to rely on yourself and your cognitive abilities to tame the "beast" in your mind that encourages and tricks you into using your substance of choice when the "real you" wants to quit. The idea of there being a separation between "you" and your "beast" (addiction) is quite useful. It's good to watch him weaken the more I say, "no" to him. I find RR to be an empowering approach to addiction. I learned a lot in the 12-step groups with which I have worked, and I don't discount those experiences, but ultimately the groups were not for me. I didn't enjoy the meetings, and I took issue with some of the 12 steps I was required to follow. I felt as if telling myself that I am powerless was the last thing I needed to do. I also struggled with "turn your will and your power over to your higher power" concept. I don't like to let other people/entities make decisions for me. If something appeals to my inner wisdom, it resonates with me and I act accordingly. Just doing what I'm told without running it by my inner wisdom doesn't work for me. This is my life. However, I encourage people to try 12-step programs if they feel called to do so. Your mileage may vary. RR is more of a solitary journey, but then again so is addiction. I am more comfortable with the concepts of RR. I highly recommend this book if you struggle with addictive tendencies with food. |
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March 2020
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