Taking care of myself is not selfish!
All my life it’s been drilled into my head that the most honorable course of action is to always put myself last. I grew up trying to be invisible and was taught that to focus on myself and to ask for my needs to be met was WRONG. This is my biggest hurdle to taking back my life. Taking the time to take care of myself is not wrong. Maybe I can tattoo this on my forehead or something. So, I took the time to make myself breakfast-oatmeal with added flaxseed-and had some herbal tea with it. I haven’t been writing the last few days but I have still been writing down what I eat. So why do I still feel guilty? I feel guilty because my grandmother passed away a few days ago. She was 94 and up until last year she was a dynamo. That woman was such an inspiration to me. She would want me to take care of myself I know. I grieve her passing and I miss her terribly. This year has been a tough year on my heart: my father passed away in May. I know in my heart that now more than ever, I need to be good to myself and to take care of myself and live life to the fullest! Little steps and little goals do add up I know. My goal for week 1 was just to be aware of what I ate, rather than eating for emotional reasons. I’ve been writing down what I eat and slowly adding more activity/more movement each day. My goal was to lose 1 pound in the first week, and I ended up losing 2 pounds-yay! So now I know that I can do this and I’ll keep doing it. I grieve for my grandmother but also I honor her by taking care of myself!
December 13, 2007 at 8:39 am
Hey chick, I know how you feel. But there comes a time when you have to stop doing that (and you have taken the first step, which is a GREAT start!). It may feel like you are being selfish for a while (and that’s where you feel guilty), and people will TRY to make you feel guilty, because you’re not doing what THEY want anymore. But DON’T! Your life is your own, and you don’t want to look back and regret it, but say that you LIVED it to the full and were HAPPY in doing so. Ignore the negative and focus on the positive. Believe in yourself, and surround yourself with SUPPORT and like-minded people. Learn to value yourself, and love who you are. if you let others ‘control’ your life you will just end up tired and drained…Keep on this path of taking care of YOU!!!
December 13, 2007 at 8:40 am
Keep up the good work. You won’t be able to take care of anyone else unless you have your being taken care of first. Drop a pound or two a week & soon you’ll be the dynamo that your grandmother was.
December 13, 2007 at 10:42 am
I’m sorry to hear about your losses
…it’s amazing that with your most recent loss so soon-you’re still aware of your nutrition and didn’t let it cause you to binge(which would have been understandable no doubt).
You’re doing great so far!!!!
A little suggestion tho(from someone who lost a lotta weight): Try not to focus so much on pounds lost-I got obessed with it for a while, checking the scale like twice a day. I lost 8 lbs my first week…and THEN didn’t lose ANYTHING for like the next month!!! I got discouraged, but then my trainer helped me to see that I was still being re-shapedi.e. inches) it just doesn’t always reflect in weight-loss.
Good luck hun, and keep us posted!!!!!
(hug)