NEGATIVE THINKING.....total health mind + body
I started to highlight areas of interest to me..then thought...nah! read it, don't read it...implement tools available, don't implement em...like my kitchen library lo carb cookbooks....tools sittin collectin dust, and me *****in to DH cuz Im in a food rut ....whats up with dat? Im
physician heal thyself! lolA MIND CAN BE A TERRIBLE THING TO WAIST!
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Expand Your Mind, Shrink Your Tummy
FRIDAY, MAY 06, 2011 | POSTED BY DR. GOULD
What if I told you that there was not only a way to grow new brain cells and lose weight, but that you could also add vitality and optimism to your life? It is possible, however it's not as magical as taking a pill or as invasive as having surgery. It requires doing some serious psychological work. But it's worth it! And it comes with a lifetime guarantee.
There is now enough evidence from neuroscience to proclaim that when you change a "comfort habit" your brain actually creates new cells and new pathways. In our case, this means that when you end your emotional eating habit, your mind will be free to think about love and life in a new way, rather than endlessly obsessing about food. We start this process by "pausing" the emotional eating habit long enough to garner new insight about your own personal development.
Here is an example of overcoming shyness or social anxiety. One patient shared that she was terrified of going to her daughter's school functions. She was so anxious about not having anything interesting to say that she would hide out at the buffet table with a mouth full of food. Then, she didn't have to worry about any boring comments seeping out. Now, that she's "pausing" and making better food choices she was uncertain about how she would handle the next function without the respite of the buffet. When the time came, she actually did fine talking to another mother and making a new friend.
By taking risks and trying new behavior, she accomplished three things. She didn't consume excess calories by needing the comfort of the food. By talking to people a new world opened up and that gave her new hope. And by accomplishing those two things and breaking her "comfort habit" of avoidance and eating, her brain was actually growing while her belly was shrinking.
Social anxiety and/or shyness is just one example of being stuck. There are many others that may apply to you like carrying on a role you adopted or were assigned in your family. For example, the black sheep, or the caretaker, or the angry one, or the rebel, or the "good girl", etc. Maybe you are afraid to succeed, or assert yourself, or set boundaries, or try something new, or be more independent, etc.
What is the connection between emotional eating and personal development?
I understand that getting "unstuck" can be a daunting task, but that's what you will need to do if you want a refreshed brain and a smaller stomach. The alternative is not only living with the limited brain power and the expanded body that you currently have, but living within the constrictions of social anxiety and self-doubt about whether you are "interesting" enough, and all that that implies.
In previous blogs we talked about the divided self: the dilemma of deciding whether the emotional eating habit was a blessing or a curse for you. Whether it was something you wanted to keep or something you want to shed. Today, we take a peek below the surface of that conflict and see that it is really a question about whether or not you are ready to grow out of some old defensive pattern, and take charge of your life in a new and different way.
At the root of most emotional eating is a pessimistic thought that you won't ever be able to transcend those defensive patterns you adopted earlier in life that have become constrictors of your life right now. When you feel powerless to grow beyond some invisible but potent constricting defensive pattern (e.g. shyness, social anxiety, etc), you become excessively hungry, and eat too much to blot out your frustration and pessimism.
Whenever you eat too much to shut off your mind, you deprive yourself of the self-knowledge that would allow you to change the restrictive pattern. You do away with the signal that tells you to challenge this pattern. As long as you continue doing this, you can't make the necessary changes in yourself that will give you the refreshed vitality that every person wants and needs.
Given all of this, I hope you will have a better understanding of why I emphasize the importance of the pause technique every time there are signs of an impending emotional eating episode. That's the potential moment of change when you have an opportunity to derail this self-defeating cycle of eating every time you feel frustrated. If you shut off the first signs of frustration too quickly, you can't pursue the remedy.
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As EnVogue would say..........FREE YOUR MIND...and THE REST WILL FOLLOW!!
the start of my brand new life was on 5/28/10
