Life is Hard, Food is Easy

On Thursday (June 1), I received a book that I had ordered some time ago (I heard about it on the yahoo group Graduate-OSSG) and I was immediately captivated by it. This is unusual for me. I know that many of us are already experiencing the difficulties of what we eat, when we eat, and why we eat it. I thought that I would mention this book just in case it is what one of you is looking for. I am greatly impressed with it and plan to finish my reading today and then I will begin again and work the program that she has in it. In fact, I like this book so much that I have ordered three more and will be making gifts to some special people in my life. For me, it is imperative that I make sure that I deal with any head/heart hunger issues so that I am not eating when I am not hungry. I need to eat for fuel to keep my blood sugar from crashing and I need to make sure that the food I select is enjoyable (within the parameters that I set for myself). I have had a 16 pound bounce back over these past six months and that is disturbing enough to me. But, I recognize that as I approached 190 pounds (my low was 193) I began to feel trepidation about becoming thin. What the heck was that about?! I never reached 190 pounds. Looking back I can see where my grazing came to be part of my day. I still have to sort out how much, if any of the weight stall/gain is related to other health factors. However, I can't do that if I am sabotaging myself at the mouth end of things. When I had my surgery 30 months ago I knew that I was providing myself with a tool to lose weight and I also knew that the "head stuff" had to be worked on. I felt I had a good handle on my "head stuff" and I have, but as with anyone I have not had complete success in that area. I did make one commitment to myself about never eating sugar and chocolate again and I have honored that commitment. I knew that to do so would immediately undo my surgery benefits. My whole life has been about having difficulty recognizing my feelings. I tend to be a "stuffer" of feelings. What you do not feel, you do not have to deal with - right? Only problem was I did have to deal with it and ended up with gastric bypass. I feel that my gastric bypass had two components to why I needed it, first would be the fact that my body was malfunctioning and using food improperly plus genetics AND second would be how I related to food when I had difficult moments to get through. Beginning with my childhood and not enough food or nurturing, my life has been stuffed full of difficult moments. But, I do not for a moment believe that makes me unique in our population. Okay, from the book (with author's permission) - Life is Hard, Food is Easy by Linda Spangle, RN, MA. I purchased mine via Amazon, but here is a link to a site that she has: http://www.foodiseasy.com/. Five Steps to Conquering Emotional Eating Step 1: What's going on? I want to eat! (Or, I already at) Is it head hunger or heart hunger? Head Hunger - chewy, crunchy food. ........Pressure feelings - anger, stress, frustration. ........What do I want to chew on? Heart Hunger - unsure what I want to eat, soothing, comfort food. ........Empty feelings -- sad, lonely, bored, restless. ........What's empty or missing right now? Step 2: What do I feel? Open my eyes to my emotions. Do exercise "I feel ... because ..." What's really bothering me? Am I sure? What else am I feeling? Step 3: What do I need? Where's the gap in my life? What do I need? How could I get it? Which needs are my highest priorities? Step 4: What's in my way? What are my excuses? Am I tired, overwhelmed, stressed? Tired of working on it? How badly do I want to reach my goal? How can I push past my roadblocks? Step 5: What will I do? What's my specific intention? What will it take? Which solution fits? Nurturing? Calming? Uplifting? What one goal I can do now? What else do I need to do? What I get from the book is that I have a lot of work ahead of me so that I can approach my food relationship in a healthy way, plus actually make progress on dealing with those deep down feelings. I have made a lot of progress over the years, but I have more to make. The author provides a lot of descriptive words in various parts of the book to help give you an example of feelings that you may not recognize. It helps with the brainstorming of the right descriptive word for what is going on inside your mind. Frankly, I can see her process being of help if someone has other issues in life that are not food related (alcohol, drugs, etc.). She provides a number of exercises for you to do as you work your way through the book. I suspect my copy will become very worn over time as I refer to it and work the program. Will I become thin as a result? I have not got the foggiest idea, but I do know that I will benefit with learning how to identify my feelings and working on how to deal with them in a productive way that benefits me. If this message helps just one person I will be ever so grateful to have played a small part in that progress. Sandy I have permission from the author to quote from her book and I have no financial interest in this (just emotional interest).

Sandy! Oh My Word! Thank you, not just this post But your www is awesome! I Love your bibliography for WLS Folk. May I add it to my collection? I'm gathering a list of useful publications To have my local libraries order. And a Bibliography page to stick on to my eventual profile page. Great Info!!! Once again, thanks for passing on..... Best Wishes - Dx

Feel free to add it to your collection. I need to go through my library and update as I have added many books since I put that page up. Thank you for checking out my web site. Sandy

Thanks, Sandy. I can TOTALLY relate to your post (as well as other recent ones you've posted). You've written about "my issues" very eloquently! I already had the Life Is Hard, Food Is Easy title written down from one of your other posts and intend to buy it. It was really helpful that you posted a brief idea of the book contents. Thanks, also, for the website, which I've bookmarked. Best wishes to you as you "keep on keepin' on"! Jo

I ordered the book a few days ago (along with 3 others on the same subject). I guess you know what problems I'm struggling with right now. Thanks for posting! I'm really looking forward to reading it. Deb

Sandy you ARE a saint. I was just "coaching" a new WLSer and sharing in this VERY struggle. I am 33 months post op and am up 12 pounds myslef. I cannot wait to stop by Borders and get my copy! Thanks again! Keep us posted on how you do with it as well! Love & hugs, theresa

This is perfect. It is exactly what I am experiencing right now. -=db=-