I Love You and I Care What You Put in Your Body
On a typical Sunday at the grocery store recently, I got to witness an age-old exchange between mother and child regarding Twinkies. The child was trying to convince mom it was a good idea by pleading, “BUT MOM, I WANT IT.” Usually when I hear this argument, the response is something like, “No you can’t have it; it’s bad for you.”
These words mean basically nothing to a kid. They don’t hear that and think “Wow, she’s right. That’s not good for me. I shouldn’t eat it.” They think instead, “I want it and my mean mom won’t let me have it, so now I really want it,” and launch into the temper tantrum that invariably results.
But this mother had a much better and very unique response: “I love you and I care what you put in your body.” The child didn’t respond to that answer, and I was really impressed. I had never seen anyone tie the idea of love to not eating something. Usually, it’s “Happy birthday! I love you and here’s your chocolate cake that shows how much.” This is how, at such a young age, kids learn to associate the ideas of love and sweets, and that’s one of the reasons we learn to love sweets so much. Not only do they taste good, but they remind us of times when we felt loved.
I remember as a kid one of my classmates had diabetes and couldn’t eat cake and other sweet foods. When it was his birthday, his parents invited the entire class over for a party. In place of the usual chips, punch and ice cream, we were greeted with footballs, a soccer ball, lots of games and fun physical activities. Oh, there was food, but it was healthy and not the focus of the party. Instead, the party was about my friend and all of us spending time together playing games. At the time it seemed a little strange not to have cake, but looking back it was one of the most fun birthday parties I went to as a kid. Love and connection rather than punch and cake.
I love you all and I care about what you put in your body, so make life-affirming food choices and celebrate your victories with friends and family rather than just food.
Jill Thomas CCHT
Healthy Habits Hypnosis
760-803-2841
www.healthyhabitshypnosis.com
On a typical Sunday at the grocery store recently, I got to witness an age-old exchange between mother and child regarding Twinkies. The child was trying to convince mom it was a good idea by pleading, “BUT MOM, I WANT IT.” Usually when I hear this argument, the response is something like, “No you can’t have it; it’s bad for you.”
These words mean basically nothing to a kid. They don’t hear that and think “Wow, she’s right. That’s not good for me. I shouldn’t eat it.” They think instead, “I want it and my mean mom won’t let me have it, so now I really want it,” and launch into the temper tantrum that invariably results.
But this mother had a much better and very unique response: “I love you and I care what you put in your body.” The child didn’t respond to that answer, and I was really impressed. I had never seen anyone tie the idea of love to not eating something. Usually, it’s “Happy birthday! I love you and here’s your chocolate cake that shows how much.” This is how, at such a young age, kids learn to associate the ideas of love and sweets, and that’s one of the reasons we learn to love sweets so much. Not only do they taste good, but they remind us of times when we felt loved.
I remember as a kid one of my classmates had diabetes and couldn’t eat cake and other sweet foods. When it was his birthday, his parents invited the entire class over for a party. In place of the usual chips, punch and ice cream, we were greeted with footballs, a soccer ball, lots of games and fun physical activities. Oh, there was food, but it was healthy and not the focus of the party. Instead, the party was about my friend and all of us spending time together playing games. At the time it seemed a little strange not to have cake, but looking back it was one of the most fun birthday parties I went to as a kid. Love and connection rather than punch and cake.
I love you all and I care about what you put in your body, so make life-affirming food choices and celebrate your victories with friends and family rather than just food.
Jill Thomas CCHT
Healthy Habits Hypnosis
760-803-2841
www.healthyhabitshypnosis.com
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