Last week I talked about how to build an amazing relationship with yourself. In that blog, I listed some things you should work on with yourself in order to have the relationship you desire.
I’ll be going through each one in the next few weeks, talking about why it’s on the list and how to make sure you’ve got it.
The first one is acceptance.
Do you wish you were different? Do you think you shouldn’t have to deal with binge eating? Do you ever just try to ignore the fact that you have a problem in hopes that it will just go away?
If your answer is yes to these, then you are not accepting.
You are arguing with reality and when you do this, you lose.
You can wish, ignore, and hope all you want, but these won’t inspire action. You’re just sitting there, waiting for things to happen instead of making them happen.
You can think you shouldn’t have to deal with this, but you are. This is your current situation, so let’s deal with it.
Right now, you’re someone who is struggling with binge eating. Right now you are the person you are. Right now you are in the body that you’re in.
This is what’s happening right now and getting upset about it isn’t going to change anything.
Getting upset will cause struggle within you and most likely lead to you eat.
Accepting will bring you to a more neutral place, a place where you can see clearly what needs to change and how to change it.
There is a misconception that if you accept where you are then you can’t change. But this is untrue and accepting your starting point is an important first step to take before making a change.
Accept that this is your current circumstance, these are the current facts, and this is where you currently are.
If you don’t, then you’re coming from a negative place, and thinking negatively about what’s going on with you is not going to drive positive action.
Think about how you feel when you think, “I wish things were different.” Does it drive you towards actually making a change? No. You feel sorry for yourself and sit in self-pity. Or what about, “I shouldn’t have to deal with this.” Makes you feel angry or frustrated. Do you ever binge when you feel angry or frustrated? And when you ignore the problem then you’re definitely not taking any useful actions.
Work on bringing yourself to a place of acceptance. This is your truth right now. You can absolutely change this truth, but start with looking at the reality of your life without judgment and without argument.
“I am someone who is struggling with binge eating. This is where I am right now. This does not mean I have to be this way forever, but this is my current reality.”
Each day this week, recite these thoughts, or your version of them.
Accept where you are, then you can move towards changing.
