The Weight Obsession Confession

my friend, Kelli, on the left, me on the right

Side note: I was NOT athletic. I threw shot put.
I didn't qualify for an event ever. You had to
be able to throw the ball a certain number of feet
to qualify and I could never work up enough oomph. 

Tara started the discussion about it with last week's post (read it here) and I'm jumping on her bandwagon because it's a topic I know too well.

The weight-obsession-confession. I admit, I'm guilty. I have spent most of my life worrying about my weight- even when it wasn't a problem. That picture of me on the right? I hated it. My arms were fat, my legs were thick...I looked like a beefalo. Or so I told myself.

Looking back, I'd love to have that body again! What the hell was I thinking? Obviously, I wasn't. I was too obsessed with constant worry to be logical.

This picture was taken my freshman year of high school. At a family reunion that spring, a great-aunt told me she was glad to see I had meat on my bones.

Teen-brain translation...I'm a cow.

After I had my first son, I had an epiphany. My body was more than an image. It created and sustained a life. It was disease free and every part was in reliable working condition.

Some people aren't that blessed, so I decided to stop dogging the blessings and count them instead.

I stopped worrying about weight and the scale stayed steady.

Then life hit me upside the head with a stick. A series of family crises left me off kilter and stressed for time and energy. The abandonment of healthy eating for fast food and easy to grab junk combined with the stress left me feeling double-chinned and miserable.

The obvious solution was to diet, which was the worst choice for me. When I diet, my brain is focused on food and all of the old insecurities come raging back like a beast in search of cookies. I gained more weight.

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Now, I'm going back to square one. No easy fixes. No quick losses. This is my only body, and I want it to last a while, so I must take care of it.

It's time to readjust my thinking-- again.

How about you? How do you find the healthy balance?

When people are divided...

I am a HS teacher
I am a HS mom
I hate guns and violence
I am pro 2nd amendment

These things seem to contradict one another when each one should place me on one side or the other of a highly controversial debate.

When people are divided by a fence, I look for a gate.

I'm not going to say any more about this issue. We don't like to get political on this blog. What I want to talk about is COMPROMISE. It's time to start mending fences...

I've heard many outrageous theories and knee-jerk "solutions." I've also heard many thoughtful comments and sane conclusions from both sides - because I'm willing to LISTEN.

As a teacher, I have the privilege of observing every kind of person thrown together in one place. My number one goal is to help teens succeed through school and become better adults: able to deal with real problems when they enter the harsh world of reality.

That should be EVERYONE'S GOAL! The sad truth is, not enough adults are willing to become parents who need to teach children that life isn't always going to go their way and discipline them when they break the rules. Give kids perspective and life lessons and friends from every walk of life -- these things are so much more valuable than useless, dust-collecting trophies.

We need to LET THEM FAIL sometimes and show them how to LEARN FROM IT! They need to be taught how to listen to someone with a different opinion and have a civil discussion rather than fight or resort to violence!

I could go on, but like I said, I don't want to incite a controversial war... My final thoughts: Every problem of this world has to start somewhere and the solution can usually be found in the same place - IN THE HOME.

Thanks for listening. Hope you have a positive week!