Those of you who share my weakness for all that is sugar and sweetness can relate I'm sure. There were times in the past when I have literally counted pennies just to get a candy bar or ice cream sundae. And the worst part of that is it doesn't stop after one slip. For me, if I had one, I wanted another. And another. And another. That craving never seemed to go away. But guess what-it does go away! No, you can't change your thought patterns completely and banish the thoughts of ice cream forever. Yes, you will still have to be around someone eating ice cream at some point in your life. You can however make it manageable. I found that the longer I went without sugar in my diet, the less I craved it. Eventually, in about two weeks I would say, the physical craving was gone. I say physical because that part of it is very real. Once all traces of the refined bad guy were out of my system I no longer had the highs and lows that accompany crazy glucose levels.
Now when I say no refined sugar, I mean pretty much none. This includes anything white. White bread, white flour, white sugar. All that stuff just turns to sugar inside you. I also became a label reader. There are so many different names for sugar today that I could never list them all. My suggestion is that you check out what they are and keep a list handy. There are some great apps out there with this type of information and some are free. The physical craving is not all you have to deal with though.
For me the toughest thing about giving up sugar was the mental part of it. You have heard the saying "comfort food"? Well, that pretty much describes anything high in sugar calories for me. Talking about my childhood will more than likely bring back certain memories for me. Unfortunately a lot of those memories surround tables of food. I grew up in a close knit Irish-Italian family that sort of revolved around food. I say that with lots of love. I had the best childhood anyone could have and I wouldn't have traded it for anything. When I think of all the holidays and birthdays that we spent together I also think of all the cakes, cookies, breads, appetizers and main dishes we shared. There was always so much food. Way too much food, really! It was like a small army would be joining us only they never showed up. Maybe it came from a time when my grandparents were young and there wasn't always enough to eat. Maybe instilled somewhere inside my grandmother's head was the thought that there would not be enough for everyone, so she always made extra. Then she passed that mind set on to her daughter and son, and they in turn passed it on, and so on. And then it got to me.
It is amazing how hard it is to break patterns of thought that were put there when you were a child. It's really got to be the hardest thing I have had to do on this journey. To somehow disassociate food with love is a tough call. Somehow I had to replace my love for food with my love for myself. I had to love myself enough to do the right thing for myself. That my friends is not always easy. I needed to learn to put my health first, before the desires of my loved ones. I had to convince myself that I was worth all this trouble and I had to fight for the right to do it. Most of us women have spent years taking care of others, be it husbands, children, older parents, or sometimes even strangers. Many times we come last and it is time, I tell you, to put ourselves first. I deserve to be healthy and happy just as much as anyone else does.
Having come to that conclusion I would encourage you to really listen to your heart and soul on this one. It takes a lot of daily work for me to remember how special I am. That's right I said it. I am special! Shout it from the rooftops. Well, maybe we don't have to go that far. Maybe just saying it out loud to ourselves or writing it down or meditating about it would be enough. It's up to us each to figure out what works best for us and then follow through with it. I have gone on and off more diets than I can count, and it took me this long to figure out that there really is no such thing as going on and off a diet. It is a myth. The reality is that the only thing that really works is to listen to ourselves, to our own bodies and then give it what it needs to be healthy. Then stick to it. Each day. One day at a time. Start with simple changes and go from there. Eventually the mental part will fall in line with the physical part. When that starts to happen it can be amazing. Just try it. Do it for yourself.
Peace & Courage,
Laurie
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