A Weight off My Mind
Overweight. Big. Fat. Large. Trying to lose.
Words that I am saying goodbye to and I'm writing this blog today to help you start to as well.
You see, it's these types of words that circle constantly around the brain of people who are over their 'ideal' weight and they cause so much harm.
Negative thinking about how we view ourselves keeps us where we don't want to be.
I say 'we' because to any woman reading this who is unhappy with their weight - I'm there with you. In fact I'm quite overweight at the moment and I promise that is the last time I use that word to describe myself.
What a less critical and less judgemental person would see when they look at me and know what I've been through this year, is a woman who has struggled with a recent set of obstacles thrown at her by life and has turned to food for comfort and fulfilment. She has been there before and will probably go there again, this is not new to her.
Nothing else. It hasn't changed who I fundamentally am nor does it need to define my future. It is my past and my present.
I have a lot of baggage associated with my body image and I know many others do as well.
I also feel less authentic in my profession as a naturopath as I feel I should embody a picture of health. It's unfortunate that 'health' is associated with the slim figure but it is.
I don't place any more value or view as more healthy in 'skinny' over 'plump' when I look at others, so why should I judge myself so critically?
Because that's what we do.
That is the whole problem.
I'm not advocating a certain weight to be more healthy - it's our state of mind that needs to get healthier.
So here is a promise from me to you and I want you to make one in return to me.
I know you don't know me personally, but I am just like you.
Full of doubts, insecurities, self admonishment.
I'm hard on myself and I treat others better than I treat myself.
But my main glimmer of hope right now is this awareness.
I need to love who I am at all my stages in this life.
If my outside did not reflect my struggles, my heartache, my achievements, my faults, then what would I use as my yardstick to know what I need to work on?
We have to love this vehicle that houses our very imperfect self and treat it with the utmost kindness and love - just as we would treat our friends, our family, our partner, our sons, daughters and anyone that crosses our path that needed our help.
So this is my promise.
I will love my less than ideal weight.
I will love whatever I become, even if that means smaller or bigger.
I will love that I'm still standing after two pregnancies and still learning to take care of all of my hearts since we have multiplied so quickly.
I will love that I will know what it's like when people come to me with similar issues.
I will love that I know how to help them.
I will love the person that is trying to hide from photos and the world until she is where she thinks she needs to be.
I will love being recognised for what I do and not what I look like.
I will love you if you allow yourself to start loving you too.
I hope you all will return the promise I am making to you - we can all help each other see our beauty whatever our size and if we want to change how we look in any way - we can!
But not by beating ourselves up and certainly not by withholding love from ourselves until we reach that ever elusive 'perfect' as there really is no such thing.
If you need any emotional support via the flower essences on your weight loss journey then I highly recommend the Let it Go pack which contains blends to help with the emotions commonly surrounding weight issues.
Yours in Health,
Alisha xx
A Weight off My Mind
Overweight. Big. Fat. Large. Trying to lose.
Words that I am saying goodbye to and I'm writing this blog today to help you start to as well.
You see, it's these types of words that circle constantly around the brain of people who are over their 'ideal' weight and they cause so much harm.
Negative thinking about how we view ourselves keeps us where we don't want to be.
I say 'we' because to any woman reading this who is unhappy with their weight - I'm there with you. In fact I'm quite overweight at the moment and I promise that is the last time I use that word to describe myself.
What a less critical and less judgemental person would see when they look at me and know what I've been through this year, is a woman who has struggled with a recent set of obstacles thrown at her by life and has turned to food for comfort and fulfilment. She has been there before and will probably go there again, this is not new to her.
Nothing else. It hasn't changed who I fundamentally am nor does it need to define my future. It is my past and my present.
I have a lot of baggage associated with my body image and I know many others do as well.
I also feel less authentic in my profession as a naturopath as I feel I should embody a picture of health. It's unfortunate that 'health' is associated with the slim figure but it is.
I don't place any more value or view as more healthy in 'skinny' over 'plump' when I look at others, so why should I judge myself so critically?
Because that's what we do.
That is the whole problem.
I'm not advocating a certain weight to be more healthy - it's our state of mind that needs to get healthier.
So here is a promise from me to you and I want you to make one in return to me.
I know you don't know me personally, but I am just like you.
Full of doubts, insecurities, self admonishment.
I'm hard on myself and I treat others better than I treat myself.
But my main glimmer of hope right now is this awareness.
I need to love who I am at all my stages in this life.
If my outside did not reflect my struggles, my heartache, my achievements, my faults, then what would I use as my yardstick to know what I need to work on?
We have to love this vehicle that houses our very imperfect self and treat it with the utmost kindness and love - just as we would treat our friends, our family, our partner, our sons, daughters and anyone that crosses our path that needed our help.
So this is my promise.
I will love my less than ideal weight.
I will love whatever I become, even if that means smaller or bigger.
I will love that I'm still standing after two pregnancies and still learning to take care of all of my hearts since we have multiplied so quickly.
I will love that I will know what it's like when people come to me with similar issues.
I will love that I know how to help them.
I will love the person that is trying to hide from photos and the world until she is where she thinks she needs to be.
I will love being recognised for what I do and not what I look like.
I will love you if you allow yourself to start loving you too.
I hope you all will return the promise I am making to you - we can all help each other see our beauty whatever our size and if we want to change how we look in any way - we can!
But not by beating ourselves up and certainly not by withholding love from ourselves until we reach that ever elusive 'perfect' as there really is no such thing.
If you need any emotional support via the flower essences on your weight loss journey then I highly recommend the Let it Go pack which contains blends to help with the emotions commonly surrounding weight issues.
Yours in Health,
Alisha xx
