“The truth without kindness is not the truth.”
~Marc David, Founder of the Institute for the Psychology of Eating
Category Archives: Inspiring Quotes
You Will Get There
A good friend sent me this quote last summer and she was right, I am getting there…in my own time over which I have no control. What I mean is that being frustrated over things not going fast enough (i.e. losing weight) is futile because it will happen when it happens, when you’re ready and not a moment before. There is a Divine flow to things in life that can’t often be explained – it just is. This is a great test in patience for me but when I “relax, breathe, and be patient” a sense of calm comes over me and everything is OK again.
“Happiness is a Journey…”
I can’t say it any better. Enjoy, live and love, M
TGIF
Remote Control
One of my loyal readers sent me this image in response to Tuesday’s post about control and I thought it was so funny so I wanted to share it! Enjoy, live and love, Michelle
Healing
Mary O’Malley writes in The Gift of our Compulsions:
“Healing is about becoming yourself – not an idea of what you should be, not an ongoing project that always needs to be better or different, but truly and authentically yourself – alive, joyous, trusting and full of love.”
Heaven or Hell
“The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.”
~John Milton
I love this quote because it perfectly describes the power of the mind and reminds us to use it with great care. We can think ourselves in and out of positive and negative perspectives despite the reality of any situation. Of course, we have emotions which cannot be ignored but healthfully managing them can be the difference between joy and pain, acceptance and suffering. This is a staggering revelation and it’s unbelievable to imagine that we have this magnitude of power over ourselves. Happiness and joy are within our grasps but only if we’re brave enough to think ourselves to make and stay in Heaven.
Enjoy, Live and Love, Michelle
Compulsions
I have a need to intellectually understand my binge-eating disorder so I read A LOT! One of the books that is really resonating is by Mary O’Malley entitled The Gift of Our Compulsions. Ms. O’Malley writes:
“We live in a story in our heads that is always trying to get us to “do” life, telling us we need to make ourselves and our lives better or different from what they are. In our endless trying, we have forgotten the awesome power of simply paying attention to what we are experiencing in this moment. We have forgotten how to be. We have also forgotten how to trust ourselves, to trust our lives, and to live in joy. So we turn to our compulsions to numb ourselves out from all our struggles, only to find ourselves struggling with our compulsions.”
Mindfulness
I became very interested in Buddhism when I began to see a therapist who uses mindfulness as one strategy to treat me and my Binge-Eating Disorder. Thanks to her, I practice mindfulness meditation once a day and mindfulness throughout the day which is at the heart of Buddha’s teachings.
Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who writes, “When we are mindful, touching deeply the present moment, the fruits are always understanding, acceptance, love, and the desire to relieve suffering and bring joy.”
Since I started practicing mindfulness (and when I remember to focus on the present moment!), I find myself less stressed out, less annoyed and more tolerant. Focusing on the present moment allows for thoughtful processing of situations instead of knee jerk reactions causing regretful behavior. As with most things, I work at this everyday but it’s not a burden, it’s my blessing. Enjoy, live and love today!