I will first share the source of this insight. It is a website called Surrendered Hearts Ministries, and it is run by a Christian lady called Heleen. She is a woman who has struggled with this issue, and found help with it. What she had to say has really affected me. She talks about how she overcame her problem of binge eating by trying to solve it one year at a time, rather than one day at a time. And how the problem came from the perfectionistic attitude of trying to make each day perfect, and then feeling defeated when we don't make it (which is often.)
So the key, according to Heleen, and I agree, is to look at it as a long-term problem, and needing a long-term solution. Shoot for having a good year, and not just a good day. If you have a bad day, just start again, and go for the year. This approach works for me. When I try to have perfect days, and don't, I get so discouraged that I want to give up. One of the main causes of binging, Heleen points out, is discouragement, and this discouragement comes from not being able to eat right. Can anyone say viscous cycle?
She also recommends doing one positive thing for ourselves every day, for our body, soul and Spirit. I really like this ministry, and the approach, and have signed up for the updates by RSS. I admit I have a problem with using food as a crutch when I am stressed. I also know beating myself up about it doesn't help. Going for the goal of having a good year is such a good approach for me. A good year one day at a time.
