I’ve been thinking a lot about the role of pleasure and food this week. One of the challenges with diets is that they can box us in regarding our food choices.
If you are following a “diet” ask yourself:
- How do I feel about these guidelines?
- Do I feel supported, nourished and calm?
- Do I feel like I have choices that please me?
- Does the food taste good?
- Am I feeling boxed in by what I can or can’t eat?
- Am I following what my body is drawn to — or am I following someone else’s rules?
- How are my moods? Am I angry, bitter, upset, frustrated? Or calm and satisfied, even joyful about my food?
Many years ago, I was caught up in calorie counting, frustration, following other people’s dietary guidelines and rarely feeling calm or satisfied after a meal. I had cravings all day long. I felt ruled by them. I counted, measured and kept a mental list that was in charge of whether I felt good or bad about myself. Numbers — of calories, on the scale of how much I ate of this or that — numbers were in charge of me. Food — the very fuel that is meant to nourish and support our bodies — felt like poison in my body.
Medical Mysteries
I went to doctor after doctor to find out how to heal my digestive system with no answers. I was a medical mystery. Every meal felt something like torture.
And then I began to realize that just like a life crisis or spiritual crisis, my lesson was to go within and find out what my body needed. Yes, I researched and yes, I read all the books by the experts. I went to medical intuitives. Many things worked and many other things didn’t work. It wasn’t until I dropped to my knees and said, “it’s time to go within and see what MY inner voice guides me to do,” that I really started to heal.
I Listened to My Body
I took the wisdom from others that seemed to work, went into my body and modified it for my needs. I listened to my body. I was kinder to myself. I wrote a peace treaty between myself and my body. I learned to digest life better. In essence, I did what all spiritual traditions ask us to do — find the answers within.
All of life is asking us to listen. We are all unique. From a scientific perspective, the human genome project (looks at genetics), has found that we are all very different when it comes to our genes. People studying the microbiome (gut bacteria) have told us that these good bugs are auxiliary DNA — the can switch on or switch off our genes. What we eat matters to our genes and to our microbiome…but we are all different. A whole new field, called nutrigenomics has come forward — which matches your food to your genetic expressions (symptoms) so that you can heal. This is what I practice with my clients — along with lifestyle shifts, energy healing and supplements.
We Need Pleasure in Our Food
What I’ve found in my own health and the health of my clients is that we all need PLEASURE in our food. If we are to awaken to nourishing ourselves well, there must be pleasure and satisfaction, not rigid guidelines that box us in and make us feel bitter.
The more we learn to listen to our inner guidance — to our bodies — the more we learn to trust our bodies — the more we make peace with the whole process of nourishment, the more we heal.
Sending you all big love and a big dose of pleasure today and every day!
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