Yes.  I way over-indulged in chocolates when I was upset, tonight.  Doesn’t do a thing for my self-esteem and I will probably feel sick, later.  I think Tana said that we are doing okay if we eat healthfully 90% of the time, though.  How did you do?  Are you frustrated because you are doing a good job of denying yourself, or frustrated because you are giving in more than you really want to?

Thanks for sharing your challenges!  I really understand and will be thinking of you and sending all the good energy to help you keep yourself healthy and strong!  Happy Holidays to you!!!  Find the things you can truly enjoy and pursue them with all your heart!

Talk about a challenge this Christmas! I will unfortunately have to call it what it was, a personal attack on me by a family member. I was being gossiped about, and it was just such mean things that were said about me in a text to my other family members. I was really hurt. But then I remembered, it is gossip, and it was an opinion, it was meant to be hurtful, and it was UNTRUE! I did my ant work, and do you know this worked (over a period of time)? I had a few other family members express surprise, shock, and disgust at the comments, and this helped me. But really, why do people do this? I don’t know, but at this point I don’t care and I am thinking about pleasant things like my dog and my upcoming trip to Myrtle Beach, as well as the wonderful time I had with my friends and some of my family members this Christmas.☺

Help! I have at least 3 family members who are very difficult people, period. This one person visited recently and was just plain rude to me, and it was very hurtful. But I decided to take the high road and did not argue with her because I knew where that would go! And do you know I kept on with my day, and she left! Thank God. However, I did not realize I was feeling such unfair guilt over it until I did my ant work. Thankful for the ant exercise, as it removed the unearned guilt. However, what she said was nasty and hurtful, but ar least I see it as her problem, not mine. Whew!

Thank you, Brennie, for your support. Yes, toxic people do hurt our brains and hearts, so that’s an excellent reason not to engage with them. It makes me sad, though, that some people feel the need to be hurtful. I wonder what motivates them. I think I know in this case it is their desire to either have control or be in control over others. Once I recognized this, I realized the importance of letting go and moving on.

Thank you for that, Brennie. It helps to know others have similar challenges with family members. My realization is that I also may never have positive, healthy relationships with them, and if so, I will have to learn to be OK with that, too. It certainly was not due to my lack of effort, though.

Releasing the entanglement is key. Then there is some perspective, distance, and saved energy that can be used to love from a distance. Thanks I think that will help me.

I never eat choc. and if I do it’s dark organic. but I’ve been going a little nuts on this choc. peanut butter cup icecream . in a week I have eaten 2 boxes. I can’t believe myself. I can’t move out of this house fast enough.

This exercise can really help if you feel you are eating for reasons other than hunger:

The next time you are in an emotional eating moment, pause and ask yourself “What do I really need right now?”. Often we will come up with another answer besides food! Maybe you need to laugh, to relax, to get a hug, to talk to someone, to take a walk, to journal, to listen to some music, or otherwise give yourself the real need! It’s kind of amazing how this can work. Try it the next time you find yourself reaching for a “treat”, and see if you still eat it, or if you eat less of it!