Learn to Be Thin: Following Shirley: November 2014

Monday, November 10, 2014

Fear of Deprivation

So, my husband's getting going on his diet so I guess that means I have to get going on mine. So what's it going to take to get me going again?

Lately I've been feeling like I want to treat myself and comfort myself and the easiest way to do that is with food, or so I've been reasoning. But I keep gaining weight because I'm no longer tracking my intake and telling myself that's okay.

What can I substitute for the comfort I get from food? Well, first of all, it's not the food that's comforting me but my brain, associating food with comfort and rewarding me with good brain chemicals. What can I do instead to reward myself with good brain chemicals? I don't know, but it's scary to think about leaving my treats behind.

About this blog

Many years ago, when I was launching one of my many campaigns to lose weight, I found an interesting book in the library, Learn to Be Thin, by Shirley Simon. At the time, I was working as a mental health counselor and was intrigued because the author was using behavior modification as her weight loss method. I had been studying behavioral psychology then and thought Shirley had a great idea. Soon I was working the program, and in four months I lost 20 pounds and felt strong and happy.

Unfortunately, I didn't continue to the maintenance part of the program and soon gained the 20 pounds back. From time to time over the years, as I've gained more and more weight, I've tried to go back to that plan and start over, but without much success--probably because it's a tough program to stick to. But it's the only one I've ever seen that directly addresses the issue of behavior change, what I consider to be the central issue in weight control. Without that, I believe, there's not much hope of permanent change.

So here I am starting over again with Learn to Be Thin, and feeling a bit fearful of my chances for success, especially since I am heavier than ever with some pretty alarming eating habits.

But I'm hoping that this time, by reporting about it on this blog, I'll have more incentive to stay with it. I plan to start at the beginning of the book and go through the chapters one at a time, working the program and writing about my efforts here.

If you're reading this blog, perhaps you're also struggling with your weight and destructive eating habits. I recommend getting a copy of Learn to Be Thin (I think you'll find used copies on line) and see what you think. Maybe you'll give it a try!

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Monday, November 10, 2014

Fear of Deprivation