Dear Friends,If you've read some of my other posts you'll remember that my sister is a meth addict.It's ruined her health and driven away everyone who ever cared about her.Addiction has taken a young girl who was a piano prodigy and turned her in a crippled hag. Her self destuction has been hard to watch over the years. A few months ago I took a really hard look at her and then an even harder look at myself. It hit me that we shared more similarities then differances. I have used food much the same as she has meth. How could I be angry with her when I was doing the same thing to myself? I ultimatly had to ask myself "how much did I want to live" and "what kind of quality did I want my life to have." By seeing food as an addiction it's changed my attitude towards it. The example of my sister has made me militant towards not allowing myself to go down a similar road.I've realized the quality of my life is in my hands and it's worth fighting for.I'm 40 lbs lighter and still have a 100 to go.
A very good post. I think we overlook the fact that being overweight can be just as crippling and life threatening as doing drugs or smoking. The problem is that when we are younger it doesn't affect our lives (healthwise) as much. Most of us can carry a lot of extra weight and still not have any health problems. However as we age these problems start showing themselves even as they were developing when we were younger and thought we were healthy ie high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes. And I don't think I need to go into the mobility problems that we face if we break a leg or have some other kind of accident. Good job with the 40 lbs!
Yes I have come to the same conclusion in my life. My dad was and alcoholic and my addiction is food. I drink a couple beers here and they and have no problem but put pizza in front of me and I have a real battle going on. It's really hard beating this. A drug addict can quit all together and does not have to be around the drug. We have to continue taking our drug.
My best friend is a recovering alcoholic. I always knew we shared many personality traits -- one of the reasons we get on so well. When I started this serious project 3 years ago I was struck over and over again about how much these traits are common to people who have addicitions, and how much his recovery process has been like my journey to reshape my life.
I agree with you Pam - whilst not everyone who is obese is struggling with a food addiction - it is certainly the case for many of us, myself included.
I concur. And, I also think it bites that, like Howie said, we have to keep taking our drug over and over and over. We have to see it and be around it constantly, and it's socially exceptable to "do food." Ahhhh!
Food is my addiction
on the 40lbs.!
