Koko, Day t-minus-four
Today was an excellent paleo day but this evening finds me sad, wracked with pms and regret and an empty bowl that until moments ago held frozen raspberries, spiced coconut milk and a fistfull of chocolate chips pulled from the way-back of the freezer. So tonight I am learning the same valuable lesson I've learnt countless times before: if I don't want to consume it, it can't be in my house. Also? I tend to be a bit of an emotional eater.
Which brings me to feelings*.
Lolo and I had a brief chat this morning about the relative merits of sublimating hard stuff like heartbreak and disappointment into meal planning and taking charge of our health. I'm not going to lie- it's been a Capital-H, -on wheels, Hell of a year for both of us. So there is a lot to sublimate if you happen to swing that way. Lolo does amazing work with people around food and psychology, so I am very eager to read her thoughts on the subject if they come up.
For my part, I notice that meal planning and writing these blog posts gives me something productive to think about instead of dwelling in the mind-space of Emo Koko: Now with Kleenex Action Grip! (I mean, here it is not even Day 1 and I am already overposting like a maniac.) There is an element at work of controlling food when everything else feels out of control. And I wonder about the wisdom of intentionally not feeling my feelings. Is it smart to distract my brain with meal plans and prep work all day if nightfall brings sweet dreams that dissolve into waking tears?
Will a healthy body lead to a strong mind, as the Buddha said? Or am I deluding myself a la Operation Ivy?
What do you think, Lolo? What do you think, Ghosts of the blogosphere?
Yours,
Koko
*holy COW this clip well and truly knocked me out!
Koko--
ReplyDeleteI think that you make a very, very good point about doing things such as stuffing feelings (bingeing) avoiding feelings (starving) or rejecting feelings (purging) by using food. And, of course there is the restrictive and careful diet that can cause us to completely transmute our feelings into an obsession. So, I propose, that in order to Paleo in a healthy way, we include emotional processing in the blog, that way we deal with mind, body and spirit all the way. And we remain conscious, so if we think that we're beginning to avoid our "selves" we pull ourselves back in. Ultimately, I think that concentrating some effort into health and well being is good medicine and good for healing. It's more about care of the self.
Kisses my Love,
Lolo