My First Session with The Food Therapist

You can't make better, more consciously driven food decisions that are in line with what you really want for yourself and ultimately reach your health and bod goals if you don't examine the roots of this vital relationship. - Shira Lenchewski, MS, RDI finally started reading The Food Therapist today, and there is already so much to digest (pun intended)! Through a quiz that is included in Chapter One, I've identified that I have three main food-related hang-ups:

1. Trust Issues - I feel like I have no willpower and I don't trust myself with certain foods (and booze). I feel like I can't keep certain foods in the house for fear that I will eat them in one go. I often eat things I shouldn't, and/or eat too much.
2. A Craving for Control - I am a rule-follower, so I get mad at myself when I overeat and follow that with a heaping serving of guilt. When I do stick to my food rules (i.e. staying within my daily and weekly Weight Watchers points), I feel like I'm winning. When I don't, I feel ashamed, guilty, and depressed.
3. A Dependence Issue - I "treat" myself with food in both good times and bad. I eat when I procrastinate. And in all of these moments, I tend to overeat which of course makes me feel worse than I did to begin with (or makes me feel bad when I had been feeling great).

The goal is to accept that I have these tendencies, dig deeper to understand them, and then figure out how to manage them. Hmm. Ok, I'll play.Shira provides a neat little Venn diagram to show the forces behind our behavior around food. According to her diagram, my food issues (trust, control, and dependence) are both emotionally-driven and mistrust- and negativity-driven. All true! I have used food to self-soothe ever since I can remember. I was never taught about proper nutrition and had a crappy diet as a kid, so I have basically never felt nutritionally empowered or in control of food. And I am also a veteran negative self-talker. So there you have it: 37 years of food issues, summarized in one short paragraph! Am I done? Am I cured of my food woes? No?"... these forces will always be there, so it's up to you to get better at anticipating them and identifying your personal vulnerabilities in order to start making conscious eating choices that are in sync with your ultimate goals." - Shira LenchewskiAh, ok. So this is gonna take awhile.The forces will always be there, she says. I will always have emotions. I will have triumphant days and garbage days and I will feel feelings about all of that. Will the mistrust and negativity always be there? Ugh, I hope not. But realistically, and certainly for the foreseeable, yes. It will take a long time to build trust in my relationship with food. And negative thoughts will inevitably creep in.I'm feeling hopeful, though. This is going to take a LOT of work - this is only Chapter One! - but I am worth it. I don't want my kids growing up with food hang-ups like mine. Tonight at dinner my son asked me what I was eating - spiralized butternut squash - and my daughter said, "That's so healthy. Mama always eats healthy stuff." Eureka! There is hope! For me and for my kids (and maybe even for my husband)! And maybe one of these days some of those squash spirals will end up on my son's plate without an epic battle ensuing. A mom can dream. And in the meantime, get herself sorted.