Paging Dr. Freud

"It's not what you're eating, but what's eating you"? One of the best things I've done for myself in the past year is to start psychoanalysis. The real Freudian kind. I found an amazing neuropsychologist who has done extensive work with TBI (traumatic brain injury) patients, and has a phenominal understanding of how the brain works. He's an expert on epigenomes, and I love the theories he has on how our brains develope. But, that's a book, not a blog. My kids and I have done lots of CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), which is left brain work. Psychoanalysis is different because it's right brain work. Our right brain processes 80% of all input we receive, and affects our behavior and feelings significantly more than our left brain, so it makes sense to work there to get better. Yes, this is "blame your mom" therapy, and believe me, I've been on that end of it! While it's not possible to go back and fix your past hurts, trauma, whatever- it is really possible to go back and reprocess the feelings about those experiences. I don't talk about weight or weight loss per se in my weekly sessions, but getting better mentally is certainly going to help treat whatever emotional issues have contributed to my obesity. There is so much to this, and I'm not doing it justice, at all. But, I will absolutely be sharing more of what I've learned, for those who may be interested. I think this therapy has contributed as much to my weight loss as my band. That's saying something.

On the subject of feelings... I am very sad for the experience Dinnerland had on her blog a couple of days ago. I don't know what happened (and don't need to), but it makes me really sad that one or our own doesn't feel safe with us. I can't imagine the hurt and betrayal she must have felt. One thing I really cherish about blogging and receiving comments... is that we all are different. Learning happens at the crossroads of diverse thoughts. We can all believe and do different things on our weight loss journey, and that's ok. I know I'm preaching to the choir here, so please forgive me. I just wanted to share my concern for our friend.

Spontaneous:
I didn't do this, but my husband did. I came home from therapy last night, and my husband asked me to follow him, because he had a surprise for me. WELL! While I was gone, he had set up my entertainment center in our workout room!!! He routed cable from another room where we don't use it, and now I have tv (it's not a flatscreen, but it is a big screen), music, weights, and a treadmill. I'm all set to watch American Idol (my guilty pleasure) AND work out! Happy Birthday to ME!!!

Food:
I'm going to start specifically listing what I eat again, for the sake of newbies. Today, I'm meeting Mr. Wonderful for lunch, so it's not going to be an ideal food day... but that flexibility is what helps me to keep losing weight. If I eat my protein first, I can't do much damage, even at a restaurant. I sometimes make healthy choices when eating out, but I sometimes don't (because that's more fun!). It's just the amount that I eat is within reason, and weight loss parameters. Yeah band! I'll let you know how it goes.