Day 8- Struggles

Day 8 – Share Something You Struggle With

Geeze, this is getting personal isn’t it? I guess I can trust you though; right? Sure I can, we’re all friends here.

I’m not sure exactly what sort of struggles to write about because sadly I have plenty to choose from.

Physically, I struggle with heart disease, type II diabetes, and fibromyalgia. As bad as it sounds I am really very blessed because I have survived cervical cancer in 1990, a heart attack in 2013, and fibromyalgia for 19 years. But I have survived! And now, I am eating a healthier diet and exercising almost every day and I feel so much better than I have in years.

I don’t really “struggle” with any of that now really, except the fibromyalgia, which is a daily adventure on its own. Sort of like Forrest’s box of chocolates, I never know what I’m gonna get.

One of my bigger struggles is with over eating, especially when I am upset or angry or sad; basically, emotional eating or using food as a source of comfort. And the guilt that follows… oy vey!

See, I know that gluttony is a sin, and I know that wasting food by eating more than I need or even want is just wrong and sometimes, even knowing these things, I feel powerless to stop it.

I know, I know, it sounds like a lot of hooey to someone who doesn’t have any addictive tendencies, or even to those who struggle with “real” addiction like cigarettes, drugs, or alcohol but believe me when I say, the struggle is real.

See, food is the addiction that has historically been accepted socially. It is even fostered. Don’t believe me? What do you do when someone dies? You take the grieving family a casserole or a bucket of chicken. When someone is celebrating a milestone in their life, wins a big game or is victorious in some other way, how do you celebrate? Usually with a dinner or at the very least, a cake.

I guess the point is we all struggle with something. We can’t quantify someone else's struggle because we don’t feel what they feel. What is excruciatingly difficult for me might be a piece of cake (no pun intended) for you, and what may be easy for me might be a stumbling block for you. We have to find a way to be at peace with ourselves, then with others, because you never really know what someone else is going through.

Peace and love y'all-

TheWritingMommy