Making Peace With Food

My trip to Toronto, a few weeks ago, was planned so that I could attend a one-day workshop at the convent of the Sisterhood of St. John the Divine, a protestant (Anglican) religious community established in... Toronto...(of all places!) in the 1880s, to bring health care to the city's poor.

It wasn't my first visit to the convent. I often go there once a year, for a few days, to take a little break from my normal life.








 

This year, I attended a one-day presentation, by a dietitian, on making peace with food. All of us - including the presenter - had one health issue or another that made us constantly consider what we should and shouldn't be eating. Living with those "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts" inevitably involves a lot of guilt. (Why did I eat that?! Now I'm paying for it!)

The dietitian covered a number of topics, such as healthy eating, what makes us hungry, stress, and dealing with situations when we shouldn't be eating what others are eating.  

The presiding message was: Be kind to yourself. You're worth it!

One of these days, I want to go over the hand-outs again. In the meantime, I found it refreshing to be reminded that I wasn't alone in this "eating battle" - watching my diet in order to stay healthy.

In spare moments everyday I also got out and walked.