Kansans and Friends In Weight Loss

Emotional Eating 101:Day 2

28 04 2008

Try to pinpoint the times when you were tempted to break your diet or overeat. What were the main causes? Were you anxious or angry?How about depressed or stressed? If you do eat during these times, how specifically did it make you feel? Content or safe? Numb or detached?How many distinct patterns can you identify?
The most recent incident that I wanted to overeat but fought it was when I found out that my sons father had been approved to be released back to the woman he was with when he committed the crime that landed him in prison. I found out that the parole plan had been approved back in Nov. of 2007. I was furious that they did all of this without considering what kind of impact it would have on his son. I was even more anxious when I found out that I would have to be facing him this coming month so soon after his release to have to go before the court to settle child support. Again no one told me a damn thing about any of this until I had to call for information and no one told me that the judge had revoked the warrant for his arrest in Douglas county so he could do work release. It feels like the parent in prison has more rights than the parent out in the world trying to work to make it for her son. I was glad that on both of these occasions I was broke and also had a pretty slim selection of food here at the house to medicate myself. If there would have been ice cream here the whole half gallon would have been gone in one sitting I would have really felt crappy afterwards but that is the reality of the situation.

Beside emotional eating patterns, what evidence for food addiction can you find in your life? Your weight might be one piece of evidence, but there is probably more if you think about it. Try to think of at least a few things besides your weight that show food addiction plays a major part in your life.
I like chocolate and ice cream.Those are my two food weaknesses. My other addiction is Diet Pepsi.I really am hopelessly addicted to that I have to have a case in the fridge at all times. I know all the caffeine isn’t good for me especially when I am trying to wind down at the end of the day, but due to all the medications I am on that make me sleepy I have to have one thing that keeps me awake and alert albeit artificially.
You undoubtedly have positive motivations to lose weight. What are these positive motivations? Try describing what you would feel like if you reached your target weight. After you’re done, ask yourself why these motivations aren’t strong enough to carry you to success?

My big motivation is that I want to always be healthy. I do not ever want the life many relatives on my mothers side of the family have had. So many have had heart problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, cancers the whole lot. I just don’t want that for myself ever. I don’t want to be 60 yrs old and taking insulin injections instead of going out and taking in a movie because the insulin is taking more of my money to live and I can’t afford to do other things I want to be doing. I want to live long enough to see my son grow up to be a good man and find a good woman if he wants. If he chooses to have kids I want to live long enough to see those grandchildren and I want to have the energy to keep up with them. I want to be healthy so I can make clear headed decisions for my son right now at this moment in time. I would say I want to look nice in clothes but I don’t look bad in the clothes I have right now, I could look better but feeling better and having more self confidence still outweighs that.If I were to lose the weight that I need to lose I would feel even better than I do right now. It isn’t necessarily that these motivations aren’t strong enough it is that too often even with the help of Zoloft depression takes hold of my brain and I can’t shake the fog that settles there even if I try very hard to shake the cobwebs. This will be a process for me for the rest of my life.