Hello Friends and Family!
By way of announcement: I have tummy issues.
And the more I talk to people about it, the more I find that a large percentage of the population, or at least of those with whom I become acquainted, are in the same boat. Something about this doesn't quite seem right... Eating shouldn't be painful--physically, emotionally, grammatically, or any other -ally. So what is to be done? That is a fabulous question which I have explored the hard way for a few years now. I've been on all sorts of diets to help diminish the pain. Some did more good than others. And some did more harm than good. I've lost unhealthy amounts of weight. I've swung to the other extreme and gained it all back plus some (keep in mind these were not intended to be weight loss diets). And often the harm I did to myself was not to just my physical body. Extreme diets are mentally exhausting and socially isolating. I cowered from dates or lunch get-togethers for fear that I would have to be an inconvenience or have to draw attention to all the things I couldn't eat. I traveled Europe for 2 years but couldn't try a single baked good! Sometimes I handled it better than others, but in the end, I still had tummy issues.
After spending my honeymoon either curled up in a ball in pain or trying to get in to see different doctors, I was put on my most extreme diets yet. Then the craziest thing happened. I didn't feel physically better, but I did feel emotionally worse. I had stuck so rigidly to rules about food that it became the boss of me. Wait a second. Food isn't alive. It doesn't have a brain. It can't move. It is an inanimate object. And its sole purpose is supposed to be to serve me. So what was I doing letting it control how I felt? I decided to try what could be the hardest diet of all-moderation. I started learning about what I was putting into my body and how it could affect me. I started cooking my meals from scratch and using whole ingredients. I started to be the boss again. Because I do have brain-unlike the food. I stopped being afraid of "the rules". I still eat processed food when someone wants to meet up for lunch or when I have a hankering for some ice cream. But I pay attention to how I actually feel and what I actually taste when I do put something in my mouth. And when I cook, I challenge myself to see how many veggies I can seamlessly incorporate into any given dish, usually without my husband's detection.
So I don't have an earthshattering solution or a trendy diet to vouch for. But I've had a lot of people ask me about tummy issues in the last year, and all I can say is God knew what he was doing when he made food pop up out of the ground as if by magic. And it's not meant to hurt--emotionally, physically, grammatically, or any other -ally. Nor is it meant to be the boss of me.
By way of announcement: I have tummy issues.
And the more I talk to people about it, the more I find that a large percentage of the population, or at least of those with whom I become acquainted, are in the same boat. Something about this doesn't quite seem right... Eating shouldn't be painful--physically, emotionally, grammatically, or any other -ally. So what is to be done? That is a fabulous question which I have explored the hard way for a few years now. I've been on all sorts of diets to help diminish the pain. Some did more good than others. And some did more harm than good. I've lost unhealthy amounts of weight. I've swung to the other extreme and gained it all back plus some (keep in mind these were not intended to be weight loss diets). And often the harm I did to myself was not to just my physical body. Extreme diets are mentally exhausting and socially isolating. I cowered from dates or lunch get-togethers for fear that I would have to be an inconvenience or have to draw attention to all the things I couldn't eat. I traveled Europe for 2 years but couldn't try a single baked good! Sometimes I handled it better than others, but in the end, I still had tummy issues.
After spending my honeymoon either curled up in a ball in pain or trying to get in to see different doctors, I was put on my most extreme diets yet. Then the craziest thing happened. I didn't feel physically better, but I did feel emotionally worse. I had stuck so rigidly to rules about food that it became the boss of me. Wait a second. Food isn't alive. It doesn't have a brain. It can't move. It is an inanimate object. And its sole purpose is supposed to be to serve me. So what was I doing letting it control how I felt? I decided to try what could be the hardest diet of all-moderation. I started learning about what I was putting into my body and how it could affect me. I started cooking my meals from scratch and using whole ingredients. I started to be the boss again. Because I do have brain-unlike the food. I stopped being afraid of "the rules". I still eat processed food when someone wants to meet up for lunch or when I have a hankering for some ice cream. But I pay attention to how I actually feel and what I actually taste when I do put something in my mouth. And when I cook, I challenge myself to see how many veggies I can seamlessly incorporate into any given dish, usually without my husband's detection.
So I don't have an earthshattering solution or a trendy diet to vouch for. But I've had a lot of people ask me about tummy issues in the last year, and all I can say is God knew what he was doing when he made food pop up out of the ground as if by magic. And it's not meant to hurt--emotionally, physically, grammatically, or any other -ally. Nor is it meant to be the boss of me.
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