A Time for Everything? Is There Really? by Joan Kent, PhD
In Ecclesiastes it says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”
Well, food addictions may be an exception to this guiding rule.
When I was running my weight-loss program, a woman in the class objected to the food rules. She viewed them as too strict. “I want eating to be natural,” she said.
The rules seemed fairly natural to me:
- Eat when your body gives you the signal that it needs and is ready for food — hunger.
- Stop eating when your body gives you the signal that it has had enough — hunger is replaced by comfortable fullness.
- Avoid addictive foods, which throw off the first two rules.
But these rules didn’t feel natural to her.
So what was she really looking for? Possibly she wanted the go-ahead to eat whatever she felt like eating with no thought of the consequences. Or no consequences at all.
She and another woman in the group complained to our strength-training coach that they wanted a day off.
Impatiently, the coach replied, “There’s no day off. This is it — the way you eat, the way you train — all the time.”
So what does this have to do with the Ecclesiastes quote at the beginning?
With food addictions, certainly with sugar addiction, sliding off the plan with no consequences can’t really happen. There’s no opposite: say, a time to comply, a time to eat sugar. Nope.
Instead, when we realize the magnitude of the decision we’ve made, what happens is sadness.
It’s a big step. It’s okay to feel sad. We can grieve and mourn the old way of eating and the junk we used to eat. All of which made us need to go through this big change in the first place.
Through the deaths of my entire family, I found out that grief shows up whenever it wants, not when it’s convenient.
When you are sorrowful, look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight. – Kahlil Gibran
Your Grief Tip: Allow yourself to feel sad over the loss of sugar, other junk, and food binges. Then let go.
Get lost in your new process. Accept giving up foods and eating habits that once had emotional significance for you. Talk with like-minded people who are giving up the same things and will understand what you’re facing. Better things are on the way.
If you see it through, you’ll probably reach the opposite of the time for mourning: A time to be free.
That feeling of freedom is what I wish for you. If you’d like help getting there, perfect! That’s what I do. Just visit LastResortNutrition and grab your free Power Eating Consult. Find out how easy, painless, even enjoyable quitting sugar can be!
Brought to you by Dr. Joan Kent, best-selling author of Stronger Than Sugar.
