Updated: Apr 27, 2021
In part one of this series, I revealed the biggest obstacles to overcoming an addiction to overeating. Today I want to share how I am living out my desire to be free from this addiction, and to live soberly around food while still enjoying it.
About four months ago, I began following a program which has really highlighted my unhealthy emotional attachment to food. I cannot say that I have lost the desire to overeat, but I have put into place some game-changing tools. Before I go on, I want to assure you this eating plan is 100% sanctioned by my doctor, and while it seems shocking, I want to ask you again to keep an open mind.
The program uses a very simple protocol. Intermittent fasting with 23 hours fasting, and about an hour for a meal. The meal is high-quality - usually large quantities of greens and protein, along with (often homemade) dressing full of healthy fats, and I also enjoy a "legal" dessert.
Some of you are thinking, "NO WAY!" So did I, honestly. This seems nearly impossible at first thought, but I promise you it is not. The hardest thing for me has been changing my mindset. I have had to decide every day that if I want a new life and attitude around food, I will need to make it happen. So I began telling myself this is who I am now. I began kindly reminding myself that if I want to be free from this curse of food addiction, I need to walk out of it intentionally by refusing to engage it. By limiting the amount of times I think about, prepare, and consume food, I am limiting the amount of energy I expend pursuing food.
After a few weeks of doing this, I began to need less food in my 1 hour window. I was throwing away food that just weeks ago I would have scarfed down. I began to be aware of my body's full signal, and once I had reached that I would enjoy my dessert and be done for the next 23 hours. The scale result of that change is a loss of about 1-2 lbs per week. That is a healthy rate of loss, and comes with no unpleasant side effects, so I know my body is getting what it needs in that hour.
But mainly, this is about finding a way to function soberly around food. This is my ticket to freedom from the compulsion to overeat, and while I am grateful for the ability to lose weight (which before had eluded me for many years), arriving at a set weight is not my goal, because I have no idea where my body wants to settle at! And I am not about to start obsessing about that, either!
What I know is that this is the only time in my entire life that I have been free from food obsession. I've been thin, I've been heavy, but I have always obsessed about food. Choosing to change to this way of eating has given me space and time to let go of the need to eat constantly, to "feed" my emotions with food, and has given me hope where before there was none for me.
Once I reach a healthy weight, I've decided the way I am eating likely won't change much, because this is not a diet program, but a compulsive-overeating recovery program, and just like avoiding backsliding with any other addictive tendency, it is something I will have to work at for the rest of my life.
If you can relate to anything you read here, leave a comment or message me from my contact page. I will pray for you and am glad to answer your questions.
Next time I'll talk more about obsession with food and the difficulty of taming that beast, but I'll leave you with this one thought: The battlefield is the mind.
If you would like to comment, I hope you will not mind signing up for my site. I don't use email to send you requests for anything, but making an account allows you to interact with me here and get an email when I post in this blog. No monthly newsletter or anything like that. I hope you will let me know your thoughts on what I'm sharing.
Blessings, Friend.
Updated: Mar 15, 2021
If you've seen me since spring, you know I've lost weight. Forty-four pounds is a lot of weight to lose, but the story is really much more about the internal changes than the external ones. I want to invite you to lean in and listen as I talk with you about the journey I am on. I ask you to keep an open mind as I'm going to be as transparent as I can stand, and you might feel uncomfortable. I hope you will gain understanding of the struggle, and leave with the ability to connect with, support, and encourage people who live with an addiction to overeating food.
Living with food addiction is complicated. I want to scream that, but I'm holding back. It is only God's wisdom and mercy that has allowed me to have four months of sobriety around food. If you have ever dealt with any addictive tendency, you'll have little trouble believing that compulsion can be applied to most anything. When that compulsion drives a person to use a destructive substance, we consider it to be a disease, something that must be treated, something that is the result of deep wounds, and we recognize there must be intentional, immediate, drastic changes in the world of the person, if they are to gain victory over that substance.
But what if that substance is something necessary for survival? What if that substance is used every day, sometimes several times a day, and what if the person addicted to using it inappropriately is surrounded constantly by that substance? What if people who love that person bring that substance to them, inviting them to indulge in it; actually shaming them for NOT using it with them? What if that person has to prepare, monitor, and moderate that substance to which they have formed an unhealthy attachment? What chance does that person have of acquiring and maintaining sobriety from the substance to which they are addicted? Little to none, honestly. You can trust me. I've struggled with it my whole life, and so have countless others.
In Part Two of this series, I'll give you a peek into my experience with compulsive overeating, and share what is giving me hope that I might live above this addiction for the rest of my life.
Meanwhile, as you go about your day, and you interact with people who must wear on their bodies, the signs of surrender to the compulsion of overeating, I hope you will try to see them through my eyes. Those of us who fight to live with, but not UNDER, food addiction must face each day with great courage. The ability to moderate the amount and frequency of use takes a warrior's heart. You likely won't see their efforts, and you may have no ability to truly understand their struggle, but I hope you will see them a little differently today.
If you would like to comment, I hope you will not mind signing up for my site. I don't use email to send you requests for anything, but making an account allows you to interact with me here and get an email when I post in this blog. No monthly newsletter or anything like that. I hope you will let me know your thoughts on what I'm sharing.
Blessings, Friends.
When I read those words, I am moved to tears. There was a time when I knew, I mean REALLY KNEW I was none of those things. I don't know how I could believe that lie, but I'm not alone. Maybe you read those words and hear a voice telling you you are not worthy, that you are alone. But you are NOT. If you are seeking proof of your value, you need only look at the cross and reflect on the possibility that someone might die for you. And then that someone who was without sin, without blame, would go to hell and back for you. Jesus Christ died for you. His journey to the cross must have felt hopeless. The Father had turned His back on Jesus, in order that He alone might bear this burden - the weight of the sins of all mankind. But He would have done this if you were the ONLY person in need of salvation. Hear me, friend. YOU are LOVED, CHOSEN, CHERISHED. You are valued above life itself. Your value is in the price that was paid for you. The ransom for YOU was priceless. YOU are priceless. If you need prayer, please use the contact me form and I'll pray for you.
Read I John 3:16. It is a little different than John 3:16. It is actually my favorite verse.