Accepting and Making Change

I have been thinking some about change.  I for one, love change. I thrive on it.  I change my furniture around, repaint walls, redecorate.  I love change.  I love for things to be different. It challenges me, my thinking, my confidence, my comfort.  These are all short changes... they only take a day or two.  When it comes to long lasting commitment changes, that is a bit different.

Why is long lasting change so difficult?  This is my own exploration..so bear with me. 

In my mind, I see my self as a healthy, energetic, busy mom.  I see myself in the yard working.  I see myself teaching my kids to play volleyball the way I used to.  I see myself walking 4 miles/hr like I did when I was a teenager.  I do not see this overweight sluggish person, who allows negativity to take over.  So, how do I get my physical being to match the mental one.  When I look in the mirror at my physical, it seems so foreign.  Like it doesn't belong to me.  Like I'm looking at someone else.

I have allowed myself excuses.  "hey, I'm the mom of 4 kids, I'm gonna be fat.  I had my gallbladder out, that has affected my digestion permanently.  I'm a nurse on a very stressful unit.  I'm tired.  I deserve to eat whatever I want.  blah. blah. blah.

But the reality?  NONE of those excuses are reasons.  Everything I deal with is reversible.  I can be healthy, energetic, and clear thinking.   I CAN heal my body, mind, and spirit.  It will take time.

I often tell my patients who are overwhelmed with their disease process, "take it a day at a time, or a minute at a time, whatever is manageable".  I need to apply this to my own experience.  Change is a progressive thing.  It won't always be easy.  But to live without fear of death/disease...now that is WORTH IT!

So, it seems to me that long lasting changes starts today...and ends at some indeterminate point in the future.  But, just like finding the motivation to redecorate a room, you have to start.  Once the ball starts rolling, it is easier to keep it rolling, than it was to get started.  Some days it will take just a little nudge for me.  Other days it will probably be more like a kick in the seat of the pants!

First:  I need to get and keep my head in the right place.  I need to feed my body.  I need to feed it for me.  I need to feed it for my kids, and my husband, and my parents, and my siblings, and my inlaws.  I need to feed it for my church, my coworkers, my friends, my acquaintances.  I need to take care of ME, so no one else has to!  I need to teach my family, and friends how to take care of themselves, so no one else has to. 

This concept keeps going over and over in my mind.  We don't put water into a car gas tank and expect it to run properly.  Why would be put chemical food into our body, and expect to stay healthy?  When I have started to understand what our food supply really is, well, it has been clear to me, it is no wonder that people are sluggish, cranky, miserable, drowsy.  This all leads to obesity and disease.  If you are obese...guess what is around the next corner?  And then the next, and the next.  It is a journey towards death, and not a healthy one.

So, I want to renew my commitment to my health every day.  What can I do today... to make a lifetime of a difference??