How did everyone's Thanksgiving go?
Mine was good! As mentioned, one of my jobs is working at a Bed & Breakfast. Because hotels are open 365 days a year, my co-workers and I have to take turns working the holidays, so I worked this Thanksgiving. It was actually nice - the B&B looked beautiful, the guests were great, and there was a peaceful, warm hustle and bustle of friends and family members coming by to pick their loved ones up for dinner. I normally go out to my friend Dana's house in Woodland Hills for the holidays - she has a huge extended family and there are often 30-40 people over at her house so I was definitely missing them (and her Aunt Ruth's potato salad and especially her Cousin Bill's brownies!) but I was encouraged by what a reader named Chris posted on my blog last week. Chris talked about not having family in town, so for Thanksgiving she was going to do something that made her happy - something she loved to do, which in her case, was hula-hooping down by the Santa Monica Pier. Chris got me thinking - if I couldn't make it out to Dana's this Thanksgiving and I couldn't be with my own family, how could I still make Thanksgiving special and fun for my husband, Tom, and me? How could I do Thanksgiving "my way" this year?Here's what I decided: there are these pumpkin pancakes that I've been wanting at IHOP for over a month now, so we decided we would go to IHOP for Thanksgiving brunch. A little back story: About 2 years ago I contracted an auto-immune disease which affe
cted my knees and eyes to the point that I could barely walk or see. I had to be at the doctor's office 2-3 times a week for quite awhile. I went to a fantastic eye doctor whose office was right behind the IHOP, so Tom and I spent A LOT of time at this particular IHOP and it got to feel like "home" to us. When I had an appointment but Tom wasn't able to drive me, I'd take a taxi and then go to this particular IHOP after my appointment, where the staff , knowing I could hardly see, would read the menu to me.Now that I can walk and see (and semi-begrudgingly work out!), Tom and I continue to love this IHOP. So - I finally got to have the pumpkin pancakes - and YES, they were as amazing as I had hoped! Because Tom is a "naturally thin/ in control person" like Kiana, he suggested we split an order of the pumpkin pancakes and split a vegetable egg white omelet so "we'd have some protein to balance out the carbs and the sugar." I reluctantly agreed, but in the end was happy with this plan because a) I felt full from the protein and b) felt satisfied from the 1.5 pumpkin pancakes! I was also very thankful that I could read the menu myself this Thanksgiving!
Okay, now it's your turn : I would love for you to tell Kiana and me how your Thanksgiving went, both in terms of the food choices you made and in terms of your emotions when it came to being (or not being) with family members for Thanksgiving. Any connection between how you were feeling on an emotional level and the food choices you made? Just wondering....)
Rebecca Hill is the author of “Confessions of an Innkeeper” and “Don’t You Worry, Don’t You Cry.” Her writing has appeared in Redbook Magazine and she frequently contributes to Chicken Soup for the Soul. Her most recent story appeared in the new Chicken Soup for the Soul book, “Thanks, Mom!” She has worked as coordinator on high profile projects including: Kiana’s Flex Appeal, American Idol and Scooby Doo the movie.
Rebecca - loved your story - thankfully, thanksgiving is past and I have not seen my favorite pumkin treat: pumpkin cream cheese muffins at Starbucks.
ReplyDeleteI like the way you got what you wanted, loved it, did it your way, and still did not over eat.
I am a fan.
Susan
Obviously food is a very emotional thing for you. The way you equate in your mind those pancakes with the kindness of strangers speaks volumes. Foods eliciting emotions and memories. I understand. I'm an emotional eater, too.
ReplyDeleteNot everyone is though, and the people who aren't just don't get it. To them, it's like gassing up the car - it's fuel. It's a way to stop their stomachs from growling long enough to get other things done. Their lives don't revolve around craving and consuming food. I wish mine didn't.
Sadly, for me food is comfort. It is security. When I'm depressed or anxious, I skip the booze and head straight for the cupcakes. Got dumped? Grab a giant tub of ice cream and a spoon and go to town. Stuck in a dead-end soul-crushing job? Pizza makes it all better. Family drama? French fries will fix it! Those yummy carbs (and yes, it's ALWAYS carbs and sugar) just melt the pain and stress away.
It's not all in your imagination, either. There is some chemistry involved. When you eat carbs, your body releases seratonin which makes you happy. Not a lot, but just enough to notice. Unfortunately, just like drugs you gradually need more and more food to feel that little lift. Soon two Hershey's Kisses won't cut it anymore and you've graduated to pop-tarts. When those stop working you move up to donuts. Before you know it, you're downing half a cheesecake just to get the same "high" your skinny friend across the table got with just two bites. And what does that do? That's right, it makes you sad. And what do you do when you're sad? Well, there is still half a cheesecake left! :)
Love it, Rebecky! The Inn always stays cozy, regardless of the day or holiday. It's a great place to be when you are away from your own "people!" Love and miss you lots! Meg
ReplyDeleteHow true! I remember when I could eat just two or three Hershey Kisses and be satisfied. And then it becomes one more and one more and then the whole bag. Glad to know there's some serotonin issues to blame and not just my own lack of willpower. That's why I wonder for us overeaters, if just staying away from the trigger foods completely is the answer, at least until we can manage to eat sensible portions.
ReplyDeleteSusan, thank you for your kind words. Yes, that's one of the big challenges with the holidays - all of the "special treats" that are around. Sometimes I get in a frenzy thinking I might never see the pumpkin cream cheese muffins or the Christmas sugar cookies again and I eat them so fast I don't even really taste them. While one is my mouth, I'm thinking "okay, I can have at least 3-4 more." So, thank you for being happy that (thanks to Tom!) I enjoyed my pumpkin pancakes without over-indulging. Let's hope I keep it up over the next few weeks of holiday parties! Good luck to you too - STAY AWAY FROM STARBUCKS, SUSAN ...pumpkin cream cheese muffins - really!?! ...wow, how (deliciously) evil!
ReplyDeleteSamantha - yes, you hit the nail on the head; I am, most definitely, an emotional eater. It is only by reading through Kiana's website, attending weekly Weight Watcher's meetings and working at Curves, that I have seriously begun to think about "food as fuel" rather than it serving (filling? soothing?) some sort of emotional need. (I usually use food to "calm down" when I'm feeling upset. Sometimes I eat sweets to celebrate but the real abuse (the 6 cupcakes, the 5 cookies, the candy bar followed by the large fries, etc.) usually only happens when I'm sad, mad or frustrated.) I hope you and I will continue in our evolution and learn how to deal with uncomfortable emotions with-out food. Thank you for taking the time to post a comment (and thank you for making me feel as if I'm not alone on this issue.) - Rebecca
ReplyDeleteYes, I wonder that too, Megan. What do you think Kiana? Should us overeaters stay away from trigger foods completely (is that even possible?) For me, I can eat certain sweets and stay in control (like peppermint patties, yogurt, etc.) but I go absolutely nuts when I eat baked goods (i.e. - cookies, brownies, doughnuts, cake, etc.) Not sure what the answer is, Megan, but I'm glad you raised the issue. ANYONE ELSE? WHAT DO Y'ALL THINK? Stay away from trigger foods completely or try (and, in my case, try again) to eat them but in sensible portions?
ReplyDeleteYes, stay away from the Fit Mom Devil, the Red Flags or as I used to call it "Crack." (I have heard that one puff of crack cocaine and you are an addict and have to have it all of the time.)
ReplyDeleteWe all know what our own vices are. We all know that we simply cannot take 1 bite, sip, slurp, taste or "that's it." Do NOT take that one bit. Period.
I know, I know, it sounds so easy. And I know it is not easy at all.
For Ex., I know that if I taste a piece of Sees Candy I will seriously inhale the entire lb. box and then, beat myself up about it for days or weeks. After 20+ years of this roller coaster, the fastest fix is do NOT have it in the house. End of story.
Try it. Toss out anything that you don't want to eat. See if that works. Do not go into Starbucks first thing in the a.m. when the smell of fresh muffins is in the air. Treat yourself to a Lb. of Starbucks Beans and make your own Starbucks at home with your Fit Mom Oatmeal/Egg white and Berries breakfast.....It's worth a try right?
Kiana - I love the line "toss out anything you don't want to eat." I think we often kid ourselves that we can have trigger foods in the house (for the kids, for the hubby, etc.) and "just not eat them" - but, at least in my case, that rarely works. Many years ago a friend gave me an entire chocolate cake as a gift. When Tom saw it, he said "Oh, no." But the friend said "Oh, Rebecca will love it - come on, be nice." And I promised I would only eat 1 piece a day. That night at 2 a.m. Tom heard me out in the kitchen (and knew what I was doing) - he yelled "Come back to bed, hon." At 4 a.m. he heard me in the kitchen again and this time came out, grabbed the entire cake and threw it in the trash can. A few minutes later, he got up and took the trash all the way outside (to the trash can on the street). When he came back to bed, he said "I don't trust you." So, longish story (kind of) short, thank you for the reminder that "THE FASTEST FIX (FOR NOT EATING JUNK FOORD) IS DO NOT HAVE IT IN THE HOUSE. END OF STORY." (If your kids and/ or hubby want it, they can go buy a single serving at the store when they want it. I think that's reasonable. Do y'all think that's reasonable?)
ReplyDeleteYes, we have all been there done that with something. Yes, even yours truly. I am sure we all beat ourselves up about it for days/weeks. I think it's ironic that women obsess about gaining 5 lbs., yet the heavy set balding man with the huge belly thinks he looks hot and tries to hit on the 20 somethings. What does that tell us about the differences between self confidence and the sexes? Hm.
ReplyDelete