A Pivotal Conversation About Health

Twenty years ago I was struggling to digest food.  I had a lot of pain and bloating.  Clothes did not fit comfortably.  There were problems with my liver and gallbladder function that needed addressing.  I had GERD and IBS. I had given up eating milk products during college because I seemed unable to digest them.

I remember a pivotal moment during an appointment with a dietician I saw for help.  We talked about the difference between hunger and appetite.  She told me I was misreading my body’s needs.  Hunger doesn’t require a particular flavor for its need to be quenched. Appetite is about preferences in flavor. You have to be aware of both needs and preferences in order to nourish yourself well and be in control of your health.

“I know you have a stressful job.  Many Americans try to satisfy emotional appetites with food, shopping, alcohol or other things, instead of addressing unmet emotional needs. But you need to get in touch with your emotional needs because they aren’t going to go away. You need to learn better ways of handling self-care.” Self-care? What was that? I was focused on my job.  

That day I chose to walk through a doorway of learning. It required openness, courage, willingness to change, gaining a lot of new self-knowledge and sound nutritional advice. I love the life I have created from that choice.