Control Freak
Learning to let go helped this college prof beat her snacking habit.
That September afternoon I was in my lab going over research topics with grad students I supervise at Cal State-Fullerton.
I’m a psychology professor, and since my area of expertise is industrial/organizational psychology, the ideas focused on people’s behavior in the workplace. But I wanted my students to be open to other possibilities.
“Is there some aspect of human behavior you’ve been wanting to understand?” I said. “Psychology can be applied to any problem to find a solution.”
Wait a minute. Was that reminder for my students or myself? Because there was definitely a problem I wanted to find a solution for. My weight.
Actually, the extra 30 pounds I carried was just a symptom. My real problem was overeating—compulsive snacking, to be more precise. I never thought this was something I’d have to deal with. Most of my life, people teased me about being too skinny.
In high school my parents made me drink weight-gain shakes. I even used to joke with my sister, “One day I’ll write a book about how to stay thin.”
Keeping eating under control didn’t seem like a big deal—I ate because my body and brain needed fuel to function, but I didn’t even like food that much.
That all changed after my husband, David, and I had kids. I wasn’t just a professor with a full load of teaching and research. I was a full-time mother too, with two young children. And I helped with our women’s ministry at church.
Even with the system I’d worked out—a calendar where I meticulously wrote in every chore, sports practice, school function, class, church meeting—staying on top of everything was draining.
My energy level crashed in the late afternoon. The time of day when my kids, 9-year-old Grace and 5-year-old Jack, had been home from school long enough to get restless, and I still had a ton of things to cross off my to-do list before David got back from work. So I’d put out snacks to keep the kids occupied and I’d grab some for myself. A few cookies, a handful of chips or cheese crackers, just enough to keep me going.
That was how my snacking started, with a little here and there. Before long, I was reaching for those pick-me-ups constantly, depending on them to give me a boost and sustain me through all my to-dos.
I found myself eager for my daily snacks—me, who never used to like food!—craving the taste of them, especially my favorite, buttercream cake frosting. Just yesterday I’d polished off a jar. That’s right—a jar. I couldn’t keep track of how many times I dunked my spoon into that rich, sugary frosting while I was doing the dishes, putting the kids’ toys away, letting the dog out. It was like my hands had a mind of their own. I couldn’t stop.
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Comments
You story is so similar to
You story is so similar to mine, yet my numbers were bigger than even the second member's were, and are. I started out at close to 400 pounds and through time and frustration, I was finally able to hear the Voice of Truth. I was able to see that my overeating problem was not an eating problem but a spiritual one.
I found the program First Place 4 Health on line. I investigated it and they teach along the same spiritual lines as my belief system and so with the blessing of my Pastor, began offering the program at my church. Since the Bible studies associated with the program are 12 weeks long, and since we were just embarking on our next (current) study when I stumbled (?. pul-ease!) upon your program, I have meshed the two. In a FP4H meeting there is a segment called "Wellness Spotlight," and each week I make your program my subject. It has been inspirational, affirming, and positive reinforcement for all of us. I share many of the change articles and exercise suggestions and inspirational stories like yours.
A New Healthier You underscores the need to address becoming a healthier person on the four levels we read about in Mark 12:30. First Place 4 Health does as well. Praise God I have lost more than 150 pounds since beginning my journey to put Christ first. Although I still have a ways to go, I am confident and assured that total health is only time and obedience away. I have grown spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and yes, believe it or not, physically. I am stronger on all four levels and I am so grateful for A Healthier New You for enriching our program. Keep up the good work. I know you are pleasing God, and so are we.
I wish someone would develop
I wish someone would develop one of those bracelets mentioned in the article (D.I.E.T.) Do I eat this? I would buy a bunch of those, keep one for myself and give others away. If anyone hears of a bracelet like this or knows where I could have one made, please let me know
Thanks for sharing your
Thanks for sharing your story, and congrats on losing the weight! You make some excellent points. So much of dieting is about control -- restricting portions, avoiding trigger foods, changing the situations in which you find yourself in order to avoid temptation -- that it is much easier to control your behavior with the rules of a "diet" than it is to analyze the impulses and feelings behind your urges to overeat. Dealing with the root cause of unhealthy eating is the only way to take weight off permanently. At my peak, I had almost 90 pounds to lose -- pounds that I had put on by eating to numb my stress. I have 60 pounds left to go, but I am definitely finding that behavior modification, while effective, can only do so much. Finding new ways to deal with stress is the key. All the things you mention -- prayer, time with your family (doing a non-food-related activity, of course!), and physical activity are all great ways to deal. Thanks!
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