The person I'm closest to in all the world is a SAD eater: Bacon, potato chips, pop tarts...

Lately I seem influenced by their habits. Sometimes I suspect foods are put in my path to tempt me. Some of my specific favorite See's candies have been left open where I will find them. This stuff is poison to me and if I give in it usually (or always) sends me on a wicked, long roller coaster ride. These and other foods have caused me so much misery in so many ways. I know I don't want to go back there.

I'm unhappy w/ some of what I've been eating especially on weekends. I know it's me doing it and no one else. I'm not feeling able to be around this stuff until I get stronger. It's so much nicer when I stay raw.

The person I mention is actually the best person I've ever met, just not the most helpful to me in this area at this time. Plus they don't appear to be as dramatically effected as I am by unhealthy food. I see health issues on the horizon for them but for now it's not my place to convince anyone of anything. The day may come when I have to break away just to save my health.

Straightening out my diet is a big priority.
Two obstacles are 1) this person
2) my job which is demanding enough that it seems I can never truly detox since it doesn't allow much rest.

If I get these obstacles out of the way I'm scared because it'll be ALL up to me then. I wont have these excuses.

Thank You for allowing me to spout off at length here. I don't know any raw fooders in person. I know a few vegetarians but they still eat things like fish, dairy, eggs, & cooked.

I'm not giving up. Blessings to you all for improving your health.

Kit

-I hear you.

-You will NOT be overly 'tempted' by things which are ABSOLUTELY contraindicated according to YOUR goals. Without those 'laser-beam' goals, it becomes a losing battle to fight temptation. When you have VERY clear goals/intentions......and you ACCEPT that the world you are seeing is a direct result and path to those goals that YOU have chosen.....you can accept the GREATAEST temptation....and allow it to pass by you......as just another pole on the side of the toad.

-You can only do the VERY SMALL things on a day-to-day basis that you are PREPARED and MOTIVATED to do....realistically. Worrying about anything else....or some guru's 'ideal'.....or even what your own brain is telling you......is to waste the valuable currency that IS your thoughts.........

....and to be frustrated by choreography....when you should be dancing.

-Just my thoughts / opinions.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

As always,
you are inspirational
mr. david z mason

the most grounded fruitarian I know

xxpeisi

~I've tasted of the fruit,
it's opened up my eyes...~
-Infected Mushroom

David Zane Mason wrote:

"just another pole on the side of the toad."


LOVE THIS!

Next time I encounter an obstacle I'll remember that its "just another pole on the side of the toad."

Brilliant!


khale

HA!

hi kit,
here one way you can handle it : decide that you will eat whatever is tempting you AFTER you have eaten all kind of raw food you have around ( nice things though!!). Big chance the bulk of your hunger will be quite gone after that so the candies, or other cooked food, won't be able to fuel your cravings so much and you will find yourself at peace and not wanting them (whatever cooked) after all.
That little trick has always been working for me. Good luck!!
let me know how it goes for you
Cynthia

you know cynthia, you just reminded me of something. i posted this not to long ago but here it is again. when i was first transitioning to raw if i got a craving (usually for chocolate) or something was there and irresistable, i let myself have it BUT i only chewed it up for taste, then i spit it out. so, i satisfied the craving in a way, but never ingested the stuff. some people think this is totally crazy but another poster here tried it and had success with it so there you go. it worked for me.

That is a good idea, to tell yourself you can eat it AFTER eating some raw stuff. Another thing you can try is to drink a large glass or two of water; this often helps to switch off (or at least reduce) many cravings. Make yourself wait a few minutes after eating or drinking; it takes the brain a little while to fully register the increased fullness.

Another thing that helps is to simply remind yourself that most cravings pass after a short while, and tell yourself you can go ahead and eat it, if you still want it later (maybe after ten minutes, or half an hour, or whatever works for you). The odds are if you let the most intense initial craving pass, you will find it easy to resist after the time is up. This way, you are also training your mind that you CAN resist temptation if you choose to, and over time you will build up the ability to "just say no", in spite of those residual cravings.

An extension/variation of this idea is the "one hour at a time" approach: tell yourself you are strong enough to stick to your diet for "just one hour"... and then repeat that formula each hour of the day. This can be extended to the famous alcoholics' approach of "one day at a time".

In the meantime, make sure that the raw diet you are eating contains a good variety of very nutrient-dense greens and veggies. Getting enough nutrition to meet all the body's nutritional needs in itself eliminates many cravings (which are disguised cries for needed nutrients) and gives the body a better ability to deal with the more "chemical" dependencies and withdrawal symptoms.

Exercise often helps to shake off those cravings. The increased circulation can help reduce/eliminate the subtle withdrawal symptoms and the "feel good" endorphins that are produced can offset some of the emotional factors. You might tell yourself that you can give in to the cravings AFTER you have walked around the block briskly six times, or swum 20 laps, or just done ten pushups -- whatever challenges you enough to get a physiological response, given your current state of fitness.

Perhaps try having a serious talk with this person who is leaving these things around. Explain to them, in a sensitive and caring way, the things that you wrote in your post; that perhaps even if to them you are being silly, to YOU it is different, and important - EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that you NOT be subjected to these temptations! Appeal to their feelings for you; if they care enough about you, then they should respect your desires enough to try to stop putting these temptations in your way. IF they know it is important enough to you to even consider leaving them for this reason, then perhaps they will realize just how important it is to them. Relationships are MUTUAL things; if they are leaving them out like that,it is much the same thing as putting cocaine out around a cocaine addict, and they should realize that is not a fair nor moral thing to do!

I've also done the "take a bite and spit it out" thing. I makes me feel guilty though in various ways so I try not to do it anymore (have only done it abt. 5 times tho really)

Just keep strong and on your path.. do not beat yourself up if you fall off. It is a hard journey to be 100% at all times for the rest of your life. Also too, if you must cheat, please do it with healthy cooked foods, not the processed stuff; that will really inhibit your health... maybe some steamed veggies and baked potatoes to get you through this transition.

Perhaps you could ask this person you are close with to support your 'raw food'journey by taking their cooked food and candy elsewhere and eat it away from you. Especially when you are starting you don't need the temptation. I find after I've been raw for so long (no I'm not 100% everyday, but most days I am)...I am not tempted by junk or processed food. But I was so inspired when I first went raw, nothing could stop me from doing it (my husband, and my family friends are all SAD). I know nobody that understands this journey.

By the way, true vegetarians do not eat fish (um, I don't think they can call themselves vegetarians if they are eating animal flesh).

Good luck with this journey. It is so worth all the hard work.

Hang in there. Do the best you can and let the rest go.

When I find myself craving cooked foods, what I am usually craving is flavor. I have experimented with raw alternatives that incorporate various flavors that I miss. Yeah, I know that there are people who think garlic is as toxic as diet Coke and curry is evil. But every now and then I miss the flavors of cooked food. There are some who will tell you that this is a sign of my inner toxicity and that they can live on water and apples. Whatever works for you.

I had a friend who had an eating disorder and she used to chew candy bars and spit them out so the spitting food out thing is too weird for me. For me. Whatever works for you.

There are people who can live with SAD spouses. I wasn't one of them... but the non-support of my lifestyle was just a symptom of the problems in our relationship. My spouse and I could not work out the food thing because we couldn't work out the supporting each other thing.

I hope this helps.

Lee

Wow-Thank You everyone for all your responses. It's like throwing a net out and coming home to see what you've caught.

David,
As fate would have it I'm a pretty good dancer, at least according to me Perhaps I can ease up on technical aspects of certain steps.

I like that you put in the word realistically. I have many times read of others people's experiences going raw w/ comments like "My body just told me what to do and I've never looked back" and "It was so easy, I feel fabulous"

Those comments do not describe the experience I am having. I am experiencing improvements enough to know that this is where I want to keep going. I'm also experiencing that I must work, work, work at this. Maybe to expect the same smooth sailing as some others is not realistic.

It may not be realistic yet for me to grasp what you mean when you say "you ACCEPT that the world you are seeing is a direct result and path to those goals that YOU have chosen". But I can think of a way to proceed. Thank You indeed Mr. Mason.

I'm responding to DZM here because I need to run out & vote before I get to read the other posts!

Kit

i'm glad u vented
i think its healthy to get good ideas from others

and i like your analogy about throwing a net
and then catching all the little fishies

good board this is

truly a gem

cynthia,
Good tip to try-I'm glad it's been working for you. I don't know about you but most times I can resist temptation, it's just those few dangerous times.

coco,
I'm not turning away any suggestions, thanks.

Arkay,
Water is good, it's easy, harmless and obviously hydrating.
I also like your idea of training the brain that you can resist temptation. Telling yourself you can give in AFTER accomplishing something else could be helpful.
I agree with your analogy of a cocain addict situation. In the past I have probably been like squirrels at a park or even bears. I've been fun to feed. Ultimatly it really isnt fun for me though. It's me who must change this situation one way or the other - oy. Now I don't mind having food come my way if it's fruit and veggies!

lemoned,
You tried the 'bite and spit' and that's the best way to see how it works for you, right.

ferg,
Yes, beating up myself can be the worst part. And I will allow just a few non raw things but See's candy is not one of them! I was eating cooked rice for awhile but it wasnt agreeing with me so I discontinued it.

Lee_123.
Letting the rest go is the ticket, isnt it. That's something for me to work on.
Thank You for giving me a good laugh when you wrote "There are some who will tell you that this is a sign of my inner toxcicity and that they can live on water and apples" It struck me somehow.
I know what you mean about flavor. When I was cooking and baking I got fairly skilled at flavoring. But Rawrrr! has a good point when she says "Nothing tastes as good as health feels"
It sounds like it was best for you when you split from your spouse then? I hope so.

la_veronique,
You're a sneaky one. You are working your way into my heart.


Thank You so much everyone,
Kit