Monitor Your Journey

A diary can play many roles. It can be a confidant, a vehicle of self expression, a tool that facilitates clarity of thought, or a repository of dreams.

A diary can also be a powerful source of comfort during challenging or traumatic periods. When you record those insights and incidents that clearly demonstrate you are on the right track, you can return to your words days, weeks, or months later and find uniquely soothing reassurance.

A diary with a specific purpose can be a good tool for keeping track of experiences before the passage of time can skew your perception of events. It reflects the immediacy of your life and thus provides you with a landmark to return to when you begin to doubt yourself. If doubt does arise, simply open your diary to reaffirm your experiences. The confidence, surety, passion, and bravery you felt in a single moment is preserved, giving you a means to recapture those feelings in any place, at any time.

Your diary serves as a repository of personalized encouragement. Your recollections will create a positive feedback loop that helps you cope with doubt and challenges in a constructive way. Reading back through your diary when life seems uncertain can show you that your misgivings are unfounded. As you draw consolation from your uplifting words, you will know without a doubt that you are indeed living your life, your way.

Shame

Shame is the motor behind compulsive behavior ~Anonymous

Shame. Even the word is stark. When we feel shame, we feel utterly worthless, not because of what we've done but because of who we think we are. We think we're unlovable, incapable of giving love. The more our compulsions worsened, the more out of control and powerless we felt. That's when we found shame waiting in the chaos. We wanted to be invisible, to disappear.

But, really, there was something we wanted more: a way out. We found it by hanging onto the knowledge that we have dignity because we have life. It was given to us by our Creator who loves us unconditionally. We no longer need to use things (food, drink) or let ourselves be used. Instead, we live in grace and with dignity and in peace.

~~

Irrational Beliefs and Challenges #12 of 13

Irrational Belief #12: Eating poorly and stupidly makes me a rotten, stupid person.

Challenges:

• Eating poorly and stupidly makes me a person who is now behaving poorly around eating and who can change and eat better in the future.
• My value as a human being is not dependent on my eating behavior.
• My intelligence has nothing to do with my eating.
• People at every IQ level can behave badly around food AND people at every level can behave appropriately around food....regardless of my IQ, I have a choice how I behave.
  

Behavior: Keep a log of incidents of eating poorly and stupidly, then note how you challenged your irrational belief and how you successfully managed your food plan following the incident.

Irrational Beliefs and Challenges #3 of 13

Irrational Belief #3: I am worthless because I am overweight.

Challenges:

• Although I prefer to have less body fat, I am not worthless because of my size.
• I am as worthwhile as the next person.
• Self-worth is not defined by looks or amount of body fat.
• There are other important things that demonstrate my strengths.
• Self-worth is developed from within, and not by approval from others.
  

Behavior: Practice positive self-talk. Engage in activities and behaviors that you feel good about that help increase self-esteem, such as calling a friend, attending church, doing a hobby, etc.