I'm "happy in my skin" is the theme for the homework today. So often we see ourselves negatively and angrily, and have bad self-image tied in with our food issues. We'll wait "until we lose the weight" to seize the moment. So today we are going to explore the deeper parts of being happy in our skin.

Its not as simple as being happy when you are thin, I'm not thin yet, and may always be somewhat of a voluptuous babe. It is difficult to be happy in one's skin when you weigh over 200 lbs, people do react to you differently. Even though technically, I'm still obese, I am happier with myself than I have been in almost my whole life.

The actual homework is this: (kinda lifted from a thread on the Good Eats Fan Page)

If you found out you only had a year to live, what would you do differently? How would you approach things to be happy with yourself and your life?

For me, I would continue what I'm doing now. I would buy a house, but try to create something lasting, maybe set up a scholarship at my boarding school and college, buy land to be protected, I would foster a couple of older kids. I would seize the day with respect to my art, and make beautiful things. Food would take a back burner in many ways, but I would take the time to have delicious meals, savor every bite. Food is not just to satisfy hunger.

I would go visit my family in this country, call them, talk to them, tell everyone what they mean to me...forgive all my ex-bfs!!

Catherine

quote:

Originally posted by kiki:
So now I am doing what I want and I have hope for the future because now I am investing in myself and the future. If we listen to our heart of hearts and get really quiet, then we can hear to our true heart's desire. I am immensely happy in all other parts of my life. How I fuel my body and how I work out is improving (really just needed to be "tweaked") without being self critical about it. I have committed to utilizing this forum at least once a month as a gut check to keep me on track. I am happy in my skin and every day I look forward to what that day will bring. It sometimes takes a significant emotional event (or the two I just experienced) to bring us to that place of honestly doing what we dream about. I also made a list of the top things I want to do in life and I'm doing them! Why wait???

That's terrific! I really like the idea of the "things I want to do" list. Maybe I'll work on that this weekend on the plane.

quote:

Originally posted by cobismom:
I can't say that I am "happy in my skin" to be honest, I hate the life I am living, and don't see much change soon. So what I would do with the one year I have left, is to move that clock forward to the time when I can make those changes. I would move to the mountains, build my house and then just enjoy some peace. My life hasn't been calm and peacful and more than anything, I want that for me. My family deserves that too, but you have to be ready to be at peace and calm. They are still too caught up in living a life....me I am ready to settle down and enjoy quiet, peace, calm and life. No more hassles.

I'm really sorry to hear that things are so bad for you. Is there any way that you and your family can work toward some kind of compromise where your needs are also getting met?

I have that "fast-forward" urge a lot myself. I'm working on a degree and starting to feel like my life is on hold while I'm finishing it. But that's not really true, my friend reminded me how many things I've done in the meantime while "waiting" for that to happen. I need to work on focusing on the moment instead of worrying about the future.

I'm happy in my skin. I just confronted this very issue about thinking if I had a year to live what would I do differently. Just before Thanksgiving my uncle, in his 50s, strong and healthy, dropped dead at work. My beautiful cousin, who has been thin and fit all her life, who had a clean bill of health at Christmas, found out last month that her breast cancer has come back and it has spread to her brain. These two event had me recently seriously reevaluating my life and I thought about what am I not doing that I really want to do. And the answer surprised me...I want to go back to school. I had been looking and didn't commit because of the huge expense involved. Even though I really believe that we should invest in ourselves, I just couldn't seem to plunk down all that $$. I know that I'm worthy...that wasn't it. What I found was a program that, due to a generous endowment, isn't costing me a dime! How fortunate! So now I am doing what I want and I have hope for the future because now I am investing in myself and the future. If we listen to our heart of hearts and get really quiet, then we can hear to our true heart's desire. I am immensely happy in all other parts of my life. How I fuel my body and how I work out is improving (really just needed to be "tweaked") without being self critical about it. I have committed to utilizing this forum at least once a month as a gut check to keep me on track. I am happy in my skin and every day I look forward to what that day will bring. It sometimes takes a significant emotional event (or the two I just experienced) to bring us to that place of honestly doing what we dream about. I also made a list of the top things I want to do in life and I'm doing them! Why wait???

I'm happy in my skin right now.

I'm more happy with the leg brace on (which is like a recently aquirred second skin) than with it off.

I'd do what I'm doing now...

I'd pull my DS out of school and "homeschool" him by traveling the world. I'd run up my credit card if I had to, and then my DH could pay it off with the life insurance money.

When I wasn't traveling, I'd spend time with family and friends (as in extended family, I would hopefully be traveling w/my immediate family.)

Dawn

I can't say that I am "happy in my skin" to be honest, I hate the life I am living, and don't see much change soon. So what I would do with the one year I have left, is to move that clock forward to the time when I can make those changes. I would move to the mountains, build my house and then just enjoy some peace. My life hasn't been calm and peacful and more than anything, I want that for me. My family deserves that too, but you have to be ready to be at peace and calm. They are still too caught up in living a life....me I am ready to settle down and enjoy quiet, peace, calm and life. No more hassles.

If I could, I would take disability retirement from my job so that I could have time to do the other things on my list!

I'd spend a good bit of time traveling. I'd like to see Europe, but would definitely want to get back to Hawaii at least once more. I have never felt more alive or more in awe of God's work than I was when I was in Hawaii.

I'd look up old friends and tell them how much they meant to me, how much fun I had with them, and how sad I was that things went awry with our friendship (or that we just drifted apart from neglect).

I'd do volunteer work--something where I could really feel that I was making a difference in the lives of people not as fiscally or otherwise fortunate as I.

I would tell the people I admire and love how much they mean to me and how happy I am to have crossed their paths.

I would spend time with my niece (take her on a trip with me if she wanted to go) so that she gets to know me more.

I too would write journal and leave videos for my dh and dd.

I would spend as much time with my family as possible.

I would definitely travel more.

I would continue to workout reguarly because I love the way it makes me feel.

In all honesty, I would eat more desserts and try to get out to my favorite restaurants more than just once per month.

My first thought - "I wouldn't clean my house!" But then, I thought about somebody else having to clean this place up! On second thought...

I would hope I would visit a couple of school administrators and point out how there methods affected others!

I would make spend more time with those I love. I would write letters and make videos for dh and ds.

I would probably continue to think that maybe it wouldn't work out that way - in other words, I would hope.

I would probably eat Deep-fried mushrooms!

Linda

Catherine,

I wish I could be as altruistic as you'd like to be with strangers; however, I am not. With one year to live, I would be sure to set things up so that DW would have what she needs to continue financially. (She has her own career, but every little bit helps.) Then I would travel. I don't necessarily want to see the world (although that would be great); I want to taste the world. And I'm also not talking about fancy restaurant foods here (although that would also be wonderful). I'm talking about the foods of the people, everyday meals that common people eat. I guess street food would be a good phrase for describing it. Maybe better would be festival foods. After all, how many celebrations do we know that do not include food? I can't think of one.

Bill