Ever wondered why you have some of the eating patterns and habits that you do?
Why you truly can't seem to stay away from "junk food" or make "healthier choices"?
How about why you can't seem to commit to those new year resolutions of "getting fit" or meditating every day, or being "more organized"?
Well, today I'm here to tell you that some of those things might not just be a lack of willpower but something extremely more complex entirely.
Oh boy, what in the hell are we getting into today?
We all have an origin story.
How the state of our health and our habits came to be.
It is only through telling and releasing that story, can we begin to truly understand the nature of our being and behaviors. How we got to where we are today, why we have the habits and eating patterns we do, and what to do in order to un-learn those habits and patterns that are keeping us from stepping into our highest self. Some of which you might be surprised to learn, have been ingrained in us since before our conception even took place.
So if you're sitting there scratching your head saying holy mother of Ruth Bader Ginsberg (RIP 🙏🏼), my habits are not "just me"? - let's explore four ways your relationship with food and some of your habits goes deeper than stopping college intramural sports.
Your relationship with food and your daily habits can be correlated with:
How your parents ate, their habits, stress levels, etc. BEFORE you were conceived This one is probably the most complex point I will attempt to explain today and also one of the most eye-opening (I'd definitely sit down for this one). We all know we each are made from the DNA of both our parents, right? But let us think about that for a second, we are literally formed from the collection of each of our parent's cells. And how were their cells made, upkept and regenerated? Through the nutrients they consumed. Through their mental and emotional states. We also have enough evidence that supports our traumas are stored in our bodies and become embedded in our DNA if they are not processed. So thinking about what experiences your parents had, what their relationship was like with each other, their stress levels, their nutrition, their routines, and habits, etc. It all gets passed down through their seed in order to create another living being (that's you). It's quite a mind-blowing thing to ponder and when you go even deeper than that considering what their parents ate/ did, and their parents, and so on and so forth. So not only are you a product of your parents but you also house within you your ancestral habits/ traumas etc. This is where knowing your parents'/ grandparents' stories as well can give you so much incite to compare and contrast who you are now. (*Important to Note: consider this information and all information presented here today with grace and gentleness towards yourself and your loved ones. It is not meant for you to feel bad or at a disadvantage, if your parents didn't eat so well, struggled with hardship, or didn't have a great relationship before you were born. My hope here is to simply help you explore and make those connections in relation to understanding the role your history plays today)
What your mother ate when she was pregnant with you As the point above demonstrates the nutrients consumed are a vital part of creating and developing a fetus. So while what both your parents ate and did before you were conceived played a huge role, so did the nutrients and habits of your mother while you were in utero. As our cells are made up of the nutrients we consume, thinking about the nutrients you were being fed as you developed, how were your mother's stress/activity levels, etc. - all played a part in forming your core tastes, preferences, relationship with food, and habits.
Your home and school environment during utero & childhood This is where knowing and releasing your story becomes vital for conceptualizing the theme(s) surrounding your relationship with food and habits. The best way to explain this I feel is by sharing a bit of my story. Growing up my family and I experienced a long period of financial hardship when my father was on the receiving end of a devastating series of layoffs via the oil & gas industry in Texas. It was a time of chaos, tension, and the underlying theme was "not enough" for myself and my family. Not enough money, not enough time, not enough resources. Through doing the hard self-work and seeking professional guidance & support, I've been able to identify how that manifested into my skewed view of money, feeling like there was never enough, and eventually from perpetuating this agreement with myself it turned into feeling like I was not enough. So thinking about this story and examining what experiences was your mother going through during her pregnancy with you and what experiences of your childhood come up for you still today, and what themes from those have perpetuated in your life?
Foods that were used as "Rewards" or "Punishments" during childhood Your grandma baking your favorite brownies when you made an A on a test or your mom taking you for ice cream when you won a volleyball game. Verses the flip side of that, not being able to leave the table until you finished your meal, being forced to eat all your veggies or you'd be grounded, etc. are all examples of experiences/ interactions that become a bonding relationship with food and can form our habits. While our parents had the best intentions for us by carrying out these actions, they can each manifest in our adult lives in all sorts of different ways including overeating, meal anxiety, eating disorders, emotional eating, cravings, etc (watch my talk on Cravings, Sex & Self Destructive Habits here if this topic interests you!). These experiences from our childhood become ingrained in our behaviors and ultimately shape and influence our eating patterns and habits.
Truly fascinating and I wholeheartedly believe unpacking these experiences, consciously understanding these behaviors that have been ingrained in us for decades leads to fully trusting, caring, and loving ourselves. All that's needed to begin exploring is to be curious enough and prepared to fully know and accept without judgment the origin of our health. From knowing this story we can free ourselves from our pasts and learn to tell a new more empowering story that supports our gifts, our health, and our healing.
So how do we begin doing this work, making sense of our health origin? The answer is, we must first begin by telling our story, identifying what theme(s) have perpetuated into our adult lives, accepting the past, forgiving, and releasing that old story that no longer serves us.
To learn more about how I can be your guide through this process click here for info on my Origin Series offering. And if you found this blog post helpful, I think you'd really enjoy my free monthly wellness guide (sign up at the bottom of the page) where you can continue diving deep into your health with supportive rituals, workouts, recipes affirmations, and more.
Until next time -
AML (All my love),
-Kamela
[ Sources: James, C., MA. (2020). Reclaim Yourself. Lecture presented at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York, New York. Judith, A. (2006). Eastern body, Western Mind Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self. Kolkata: Alchemy.]
Hi, I'm Kamela! Former high school volleyball athlete, ballerina, anorexia warrior, Holistic Wellness Coach, and Personal Trainer. I've been helping millennials just like you with their well-being for the past 7 years. Reach out to work with me and for even more free helpful content let's be insta friends :)
See ya soon!
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