Letting go to enjoy the holidays

 


I wrote about this on December 15, 2015.  This is the time of year when most people are celebrating the holidays – whether it’s Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, etc.  Often these holidays promote bringing family together as well as eating festive foods.  For some people this is a very joyous time to catch up with their family and friends that they have not seen during the rest of the year.  It can also be a time to give and receive gifts with the ones that they love. 

Then there are others that struggle with these holidays, as for some it can be depressing as they do not have anyone to celebrate with.  It can also be hard for those that are not as well off financially; as they are not able to provide the gifts they want to give.  There is also another group of people that struggle with social situations and eating the festive foods during the holidays.

I tend to fall into a few of these categories.  I recently went to a Christmas party for a building I live in and before I went to it I didn’t feel nervous.   Once I got there and saw the food they had and realized they didn’t have much I could eat I got anxious.  I didn’t want to look out of place, or seem like I’m a picky eater to everyone there.  I also didn’t know anyone there so I decided to take some food and go back to my home as I felt more comfortable there.

I find for myself that I do better with celebrations when I know the people and the types of foods that are going to be served.  For me having at least one person or more that I can talk to or that wants to be around me makes a difference.  I get overwhelmed when there are a lot of people in the room.  My heart pumps fast and my eyes dart back and forth to find that one person I can talk to.  Finally when I do I can relax.

This past weekend I went to a celebration with my husband’s family.  It went well as I am starting to get to know them better.  I even played hide and seek with one of my husband’s niece.  It was pretty funny at times, as I would be standing in plain sight and she would walk right past me.  Then when she saw where I was we both laughed.  I find being able to laugh really makes me relax and have fun.

The other things I have struggled with in the past are both eating in front of people as well as eating all the tasty food prepared for us.  I use to be anxious about people watching me eat and what they would be thinking about that.  Often I would abstain from eating at a celebration or not go at all to make things easier for myself.  The past year or two I haven’t been letting it get to me as much.  I was able to be at my in-laws holiday celebration, relax and tell myself that it’s ok to let go and be ok with eating a little more food.  Normally I would worry about what I was eating and wonder if I would gain weight, but I decided NO I am not going to let the Eating Disorder try to take over.  I decided I just wanted to eat, have fun and enjoy the time with my family and I did as I let go of the anxiety in me.

Patricia <3 J

 

Joshua 1:9    Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

 

Here’s a song about wanting an awakening in our spirt and our soul from our one and only Lord, and that His will be done in us.  That He’s the light in the darkness, and that as we listen to His voice that is where our awakening is.

 

“Awakening” by Chris Tomlin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfBdazc4eUQ&list=PL3whQX319DaB37iB8NZpJe206iSdpe3kc&index=110

 

 

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