Are you food guilty?

 

It's time for Food Guilt.

Not only is today a day after a holiday, but it's a Monday!  (I wrote this on Monday...)

This translates into an early-start to the "OMG! I NEED A DIET" posts on social media.  You're overwhelmed with what you might have taken in yesterday and and time between then and Thanksgiving and you are deep in The Guilt.   "THE FOOD, IT'S IN ME!"

Reminder:  It's just food.  Food is not bad.  Food is not evil.  Even cupcakes. 

bad ¹ [bad]  Show IPA adjective, worse, worst;

1.not good in any manner or degree. 2. having a wicked or evil character; morally reprehensible: There is no such thing as a bad boy. 3. of poor or inferior quality; defective; deficient: a bad diamond; a bad spark plug. 4. inadequate or below standard; not satisfactory for use: bad heating; Living conditions in some areas are very bad. 5. inaccurate, incorrect, or faulty: a bad guess.

 Food cannot be bad. 

Food is a required part of life, and your part of life is to learn how to manage your own relationship WITH FOOD so that you don't see FOOD AS EVIL.   Calories may not all be created equal, you can make better calorie or food choices, but food, cannot physically be BAD.

  

Even if you ate more than two days worth of calories yesterday -- LET IT GO -- it's just food.  The statuses that you will see online today and for the next few weeks: 

• "OMG HOW MANY CALORIES ARE IN HALF A CANDY CANE?  I'm SUCH A COW." 
• "I am a pig, I ate _____________."
• "I need to work off that ___________."
• "Starting today, I'm back on my diet."

Quit it.

Self-loathing is not pretty.   Self loathing is an extreme self-hatred of oneself or your own actions.  "I can't believe I did/ate that, I'm such a loser."  For post weight loss surgery patients -- learning to live in a new body and successfully live as normally as possible -- it only makes us stand out more if we create food drama!  Just stop it.

Didn't you have weight loss surgery to be "normal?" As morbidly-obese individuals we stood out plenty, and life after weight loss surgery, we can reach a normal body weight and just BE.

You don't have to hate on yourself.  You don't have to deny yourself every pleasure of food, either.  You don't have to comment on other people's food choices or their size.  It's their cannoli, just shut up. 

Part of the holidays is (for many people, including your family and friends...) celebrating with/around food. You're going to have to get used to that -- if you want to be part of their "normal." 

Celebrating with food or around it not be what you want anymore, but for much of the population it is what they want.  If you do not want to partake, you have a choice to find something else to do or make your own good choices.  But, it is not our duty as weight loss surgery post op individuals -- to become the food police for everyone. 

(Note:  Do not do this to your family and friends.  They are not you, and they do not necessarily require your special diet or care.  I have learned that food policing does not work and often backfires It's up to each person what they are willing to do to take care of their own health.)

It's just food.  You make your own choices.  And never, ever... apologize for FOOD.

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I just read this on your site... so glad you posted it here, too.  We have to stop giving food any power over us... it's not good, or bad.  It's just sustenance... some more nutritious than others.

So you ate some chocolate?  Well, own up to it... and MOVE ON.  Make a better choice next time... be determined to choose what you put in your body, not letting some mindless hunger for a certain for taste or texture rule you.

Thanks for the reminders... ALWAYS important to hear.


tori

 I think it benefits us all to remind ourselves.........

Nope...no food guilt. Food bloat? Yes. Guilt, nada.

Thank you so much for this post. Food guilt is a major part of my life. I love the statement about "Not giving food power" I do that all the time. Sometimes food has complete power over me. I wish I could say that veggies are a part of that food, but of course it's all the "bad" foods. I am going to adopt this statement, and work hard to not let food have that power over me.

 Wow,so happy you posted this I used to have a lot of food guilt,the past 
Few years not so much,but I am only five weeks post op and have been
Invited to a new years eve party,and my first reaction was to say I am not 
Going because of the food and drink that will be there and I can not have 
Any of it!!
But your post has inspired me to go....I have to face food in public some time
So why not sooner rather later,.
Tx 

Guilt? Nope. I feel empowered. Empowered by my choices and portions. Were they the best? Nope, but they could have been a whole heck of a lot worse. A bite of a cake pop that I made with my 3 kids isn't going to kill me. I felt empowered that I didn't feel the need to eat the whole plate. LOL A bite of a cookie for Santa, empowerd again..not 12 cookies. I am making memories with my kids and it feels wonderful to be in control. 

 Hang on to that feeling.

It's great that you have it so early on!

 A good resource along this vein: "Intuitive Eating" by Tribole & Resch. While not specific to WLS patients, can give some good tips from RDs on how to break that guilt cycle.

 Thank you.