I MISSED YOU! DID YOU MISS ME?

When I first started to blog, I really wasn’t sure I could produce a blog every week, but I scheduled it and I tried. It worked.

Until New Year’s Eve.

I had been reading this novel. Then someone on TV when the ball dropped said something. And I knew I had to change the blog. So there I was at 1:30 in the morning, deciding I needed to withdraw this blog from my website and redo it. Well, the email provider who sends my blog out did not much like that. And I did not really know what I was doing. And my husband, the computer guru, was already in bed. But I did do something.

And the blog did not go out.

And the whole website got screwed up. And there was no longer a blog page.

And the next morning, can you imagine my husband’s sigh of resignation when I told him what I had done?

“Why did you not just wake me???” he said. “That would have taken me two minutes to tell you what to do.” Well, I did not want to bother him. He was, after all, safely asleep.

After two hours my husband gave up. We called the lovely lady who created the site.  She was busy with family things and could not get to us right away.

Meanwhile, y’all know what issues I have been having with secretaries!

So, this was a tough beginning to the new year for me. The I fell in the first snowfall and the kind orthopedist told me that I would need another surgery. (My Sixth; February First)

I had all kinds of plans for programs and events this year. I had decided that this was going to be my “intentional year” and that I was going to take time to finally focus on the things I wanted to do for you and with you in my practice; and what I wanted to accomplish in my life.

Now I could just walk away and do nothing. Or I could get back to figuring out how to fix things and make this become the year I accomplish my goals, anyway.

What does this have to do with you?

How many times have you made a mistake with your food plan, then given it up and gone on a binge? How many times have you said, “I will get back on track on Monday”? How many times have you not called a support person because “I don’t want to bother her?” How many times have you had a great idea that you really wanted to do, but when the beginning got messed up, you gave up?

I have, too.

But it did not get me anywhere.

It did not get me what I wanted.

Learning to change your behaviors around food is a difficult project – there are so many behaviors and situations. And there are so many feelings attached to food and eating behaviors. And everyone who loves you has feelings about what you should eat. And there are so many diets out there that it is hard to choose just one. And then it does not work or you have trouble following it. And your family wants you to go back to the old way of eating.

You know I have been a dietitian working with people with eating disorders and food addictions and diabetes and other medical problems for thirty years. May I have permission to tell you what I think?

Your food plan should not feel like a straitjacket; it should feel like a comfortable sweatshirt.  It is safe and warm and nurturing. It is what you look forward to putting on after a long day at work. It does not have the foods that set off your brain chemistry and drive you up the wall with cravings and obsessions. It makes you feel safe and warm.

You may have to experiment till you find or create the right one. And some days you may need to wear a tuxedo or a ball gown, and that causes adjustments to your food plan.

And your shoes! Your food plan needs to be like comfortable sneakers or hiking boots. They support you when you travel over rough ground. You would not wear 3-inch heels when you’re going to be climbing a mountain, you’d put on your sneakers and be safe. And if, when you come in, if there is a blister on your toe, you do not cut off the toe, you check what’s wrong with the shoe and fix that.

And has anyone ever called YOU for help and you found it a bother? That hasn’t ever happened to me. I’d rather my clients and friends call me when the problem is little, rather than when it has taken over their lives. So, this week, I hired a new secretary. And then I called three women (two more are on my list) and asked them to support me in what I have to do this year. They all said yes. So, I will have six women (one paid) whose job it is to keep me on track and help me get my year back to what I intended.

I am finally ready to make certain changes in my life. I am determined to do this. It may not be perfect, but I am not giving up. How about you? Will you let me help you with the food?

Next week I am going back to my plan. First, I will teach you how to read food labels. Then I will show you how to figure out what foods to kick out of your food plan. And I will teach you how to make a food plan that feels more like a sweatshirt than a straitjacket.  And I will show you how to adjust things for weddings and such, and how to eat the foods that keep your body healthy and well-nourished and satisfied. And maybe we will get back to the Abstinence Pendulum. And good recipes.  And maybe we can work on some of those eating disorder behaviors that keep tripping you up. And maybe we can have some guest bloggers who are focused on one or two areas of this process. How will that work for you?

Will you comment below and tell me what you think and what you need? And will you share this with anyone who needs it? And, if you pray, will you keep me in your prayers; and I will keep you in mine? And will you tell me what you think of this plan and which part you need the most?

Have a lovely and productive week!

Blessings to you,

Theresa