Words of Wisdom from Katie Jay

strawflowers
on 3/12/08 11:55 pm - Lino Lakes, MN
Shared this with close friends and one suggested posting this out here: More food issue insight.  I love this woman, Katie Jay.  The paragraph: Switch from condemning yourself for failed attempts to congratulating yourself for having the determination and courage to try and fail.  can be applied to all aspects of life. Enjoy       How to Solve Your Eating Problem by Katie Jay, MSW, CTA-certified Life Coach Director, National Association for Weight Loss Surgery www.nawls.com

Hannah is baffled by her eating. In our coaching session a few weeks ago, she talked at length about how frustrated she is about her afternoon grazing -- and how embarrassed she is.

Her coworkers have been watching her WLS progress, and she believes a couple of them are looking for her to fail.

"I spend all afternoon obsessing about eating, but I try not to do it because I don't want to give those women the satisfaction of seeing me eat. But then, I go to another floor, to the snack machine, and eat potato chips in the stairwell. It's crazy."

Hannah feels out of control.   She is stuck in a pattern of behavior that is self destructive. But what can she do about it?

As I have said before, there is no magic wand to wave over Hannah and her situation. Many of us battle the grazing monster in the afternoons and evenings, and frankly many of us lose those battles day after day.

The only way out is through.

I think in Hannah's situation, that saying comes into play. Hannah is frustrated and wants her problem to just go away, but the only way she will overcome it is to work through it.

How do you work through a problem? Here is what I do:

1. Own your role and responsibility in the problem.

Hannah was focused on how her coworkers made her feel and was blaming them for her obsession with food and unhealthy eating.

But as we talked, she realized that no matter what her outside environment, she would be looking for reasons to eat. She had to own the fact that she is the one with the eating problem and it's her responsibility to work on it.

2. Entertain solutions.

Before she made any changes, I encouraged Hannah to list ten solutions she could try, even if she didn't want to try all of them. As she struggled with her list, we even came up with the idea for her to write the list as if she were giving advice to a friend she loved deeply.

That helped Hannah get some perspective on her situation -- and she got very creative. As she wrote her list, she says she began to see that her situation was not hopeless, that there were things she could do.

3. Fail as often as necessary.

Just because you've identified a problem and considered solutions doesn't mean you'll solve it overnight. Switch from condemning yourself for failed attempts to congratulating yourself for having the determination and courage to try and fail.

Hannah has tried two of the solutions she came up with. The first one failed miserably. The second one worked better. And now she is on her third attempt.

Remember, no one is perfect.

Sometimes people look at others and see success, while bashing themselves for being failures.

The people who are successful have a quality that I admire and emulate. They simply get up when they fall.

Your assignment:

GET UP!!

Select a problem you want to work on and follow the three steps I discussed above.

And let me know how it goes :o)

*****************************************************************

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National Association for Weight Loss Surgery, 609A Piner Road, #319, Wilmington, NC 28409
Sandra N.
on 3/13/08 1:18 am - MN
AWEOME POST!!!  Thank you!

 ~Sandie~ -147!!WLS:12-12-06:Preop 268,Ht.5'4",BMI 44.9
  Click on link to see my journey!!! 
http://www.onetruemedia.com/my_shared?z=2bfaca5561a1d558fceb
87&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

"Do unto others as you'd have done to you"~ The Golden Rule to Live by!
You are what you EAT and WHO you hang out with!  Choices=Outcome~ what's YOUR choice??
I'm not perfect but I am going to die trying!!!

 
  



Connie D.
on 3/13/08 4:08 am
Thank you so much....this is great!!! Hugs, connie d
Cindy B.
on 3/13/08 11:37 am - Rosemount , MN
Thanks for posting. This one is going in my binder. Or maybe framed above my bed. THANK YOU!! Cindy
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