Day 7- Find a Helicopter

Even though we are older and probably not feeling the the strong holds of peer pressure, we are still subject to  the habits of those around!  At times, we can even be our own worst enemies by the situations we place ourselves in, the thoughts we think and the sensory stipulations we are subject to!

Weekends in my house are the easiest days for me.  I am not exposed to people making food choices different than mine or smells of foods that I choose not to eat!  If I go to the mall… The sights and smells at the food court are killer!!  Even though I tell myself I do not want that food..I can visualize it, I can taste it and of course I can smell it!

School days are often the most difficult! People bring in candy, donuts, pastries and junk food they empty out of their own cupboards! Lunchtime brings it’s own challenges! Fellow teachers bringing in McDonalds, pizza, Arby’s…pretty much any fast food you can think of they bring it in! I should be excited that my meal is happy, but instead I find myself looking longingly at what they have knowing it is so unhealthy but tastes so good!

In the midst of these daily eating challenges, I have been able to identify people who help me stay on track when the struggle is staring me in the face!
My cousin Melissa and my psychologist Rich both encourage and walk me through the valleys. I found the following image helpful when I ran into a bump in the road last week. I emailed Rich last week to ask for some tactics to get past the thoughts I was having! He seemed to know all the right things to say to get back on track! He said to “Think of me as the helicopter flying over the traffic jam. I look at the big picture.”

It is sad but a few of my good friends asked my why I would give up sugar and claimed it was crazy and they would never do it! I never expected this kind of response from them. I even know some that would walk into my classroom eating a cookie and say “oh I would offer you one but it has things you can’t eat.”

I often wish people would be a little more gentle and a little less crass. But at the same time, gentleness doesn’t always provide the opportunity to build strength! I pray that each person can find their own “helicopter” to help identify bumps in the road, ways to work through them and positive encouragement on days when things are flowing smoothly!