Choose the Healthier Unhealthy...

I’m not going to tell you what to eat.  That would be a waste of everybody’s time, because you’re going to eat what you want.  So here’s seven ways to eat what you want, but in a more sane way.

1.  Big change is less scary and way more manageable when it occurs slowly.  Institute one  small daily change per week, like drinking one cup of sugar free green tea a day.   A great book about the power of small changes is, One Small Step Can Change Your Life, written by Richard Maurer, PhD.

2.  Educate yourself.  Learn how to read nutrition labels then read them.  Check out http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/ConsumerInformation/UCM078889.htm for more help.  For dining out, download applications for your iPod like Nutrition Menu which reports the Calorie, fat, fiber, and carbohydrate information for most major food chains including Starbucks.  When you know what’s on your plate, you’re more likely to choose wisely.

3.  Plan ahead.  Have a game plan for big stressors as well as minor irritators, and write it down.  Even tiny things can derail a day of good eating.  Create a strategy for dealing with situations in which there may be limited access to food.  You’ll be less likely to buy that Moon Pie at the gas station if you keep an apple in your bag.

4.  Let other people do the hard work.   Invest in a subscription to a healthy eating magazine like Eating Well or Cooking Light.   They contain a multitude of tasty recipes for commonly prepared meals with considerably less calories.  Also, the Eat This Not That books and website shortcut you to healthier options; they’ve done the comparison shopping for you.  

5.  Choose the healthier unhealthy option.  If you must have pizza, pick the vegetarian kind.  Just can’t resist the candy bar?  Throw half away and eat what’s left or pick the one made with dark chocolate.  Eventually you’ll find yourself pausing longer before you eat, which is sometimes long enough to talk yourself into that banana instead.

6.  Eat mindfully.  Sit silently and chew slowly.  Savor your food and savor the moment.  You’ll feel fuller and be happier.  (Or you’ll realize these chips are really greasy and gross.)  Thich Nhat Hanh, who is one of my favorite authors, lovingly details the joy of eating a tangerine in his wonderful book, Peace Is Every Step.  Another great resource is Eating Mindfully by Susan Albers, PsyD.

7.  Make this transition about more than just you.  Consider how your dietary choices affect those around you.  Set the example for your kids.  Lessen your footprint on the planet.  Edible Communities Publications are available for about 60 cities or communities.  They contain great information about local farmer’s markets and festivals as well as recipes for healthy eating and green living.  www.ediblecommunities.com.

A Fresh Perspective

What you believe determines what you experience.  We've all heard that before, but it rings true.  A fear based perspective begets the thing you fear.  Do you want to focus your precious time planning for a life you do not want?  If your perspective on a healthy lifestyle dredges up fear, guilt, dread, boredom, starvation, restriction, and misery, what are you likely to be seeing in your life?


What is a perspective?  It's the lens through which you see a particular situation.  What you see then determines how you think, how you feel, and how you behave.  For example, if you see that you have absolutely no options, you will fail to consider other options, you will likely feel defeated and uninspired, and you will find yourself sitting in exactly the same place.


How do you know if you are stuck in a failure perspective?  Well, you keep repeating the same old behaviors that end in dissatisfaction. When you think about your wellness journey, you hear yourself say defeatist things like, "I have no choice; I just have to deal with it." You may even be completely disowning your power to change by blaming others for your lot in life.


If this has been your experience, consider creating other perspectives from which to view health and wellness to shake up your thinking.  Be open to other realities than the unhelpful one you've been clinging to. Here are some suggestions to get you started.


*Imagine the lens through which someone you admire would view your situation.  Consider the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors this person might demonstrate.  Try them on for a day and brainstorm new ideas.


*Keep a touchstone or other reminder close at hand to remember that you always have another choice.


*Ask yourself whom you need to forgive so that you can let go of victimhood and empower yourself to make change.

Shifting to a new way of seeing your life takes effort.  Living in your old perspective is like wearing around stinky old sneakers, unpleasant but comfy.  If you simply can't make the leap into forgiveness or opening your mind to other possibilities than the ones you've explored, seek the help of a religious practitioner, therapist, or coach.

A Prescription for You

I am a medical doctor. I am also called an allopath, someone who practices “Western medicine.” We allopaths like data, proof, science, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. We want to know the “mechanism of action.” We want someone to prove that yoga or medication or some procedure actually helps your depression or blood pressure or headache and that these treatments are safe before we prescribe them. We feel more confident about our treatment plan that way, and let’s be honest, we’re less likely to lose a lawsuit if something goes awry.

Here’s something you might not know. Most of us don’t like prescribing pills. If there is a safe, natural, noninvasive solution to your problem, we’d prefer to use that. Shocked? Consider this: the more pills you take, the more potential adverse reactions are possible, the more responsible we become for a bad outcome.

It surprised me recently when a well educated accountant accused me of being a pill pusher. He said, “We all know you doctors get a kick back from the drug companies for every prescription you write.” Say, what?!! Not only is that extremely immoral, it’s illegal.

Actually, the more medications we prescribe, the more money we lose. Think about the time involved in deliberating the risks vs benefits of prescribing a medication for someone. Then consider the time involved to evaluate possible drug interactions with your other medications. Then consider the liability we assume for the possibility that you might have an unforeseen reaction to the medication which results in injury or death. And don’t forget the time and hassle of writing and faxing and calling in and haggling with your insurance company over your prescriptions. Prescribing medication is not a money maker.

Occasionally prescribing medication is gratifying, when you see a severe infection resolve or watch someone’s pain improve. I am sure an oncologist feels great when a patient’s chemotherapy cures his cancer, or it is gratifying to the rheumatologist when his patient’s rheumatoid arthritis improves. Medications are absolutely crucial to treating and occasionally curing disease.

In my opinion, most medications prescribed in the primary care setting just allow people to avoid taking responsibility for their own well-being. Those cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar pills can prolong your life, but they won’t make you happy or well.

I don't have any randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials to back me up, but I am going out on a limb here. I believe that most people don’t need more pills.

What they really need is permission to live long, healthy, happy lives. Sounds silly, right? Yet I’ve seen it over and over. My clients and patients repeatedly sabotage their best efforts to adopt healthy lifestyles because they just don’t believe they can or deserve to be happy and well. They’re waiting for someone to give them permission, for someone to say, “Yes! You absolutely deserve it!” So until you can give that permission to yourself, I am writing you a prescription: a healthy dose of joy, wellness, inner peace, and satisfaction to be taken as many times a day as needed. Number of refills: infinite.

Melanie Lane, MD

The American Dream - Hijacked!

Your American Dream has been hijacked! Remember “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness?” Gone! It’s been warped into “Work, Stress, and the Pursuit of the Almighty Dollar.” I don’t know; maybe it’s always been that way, but it seems worse to me - a lot worse.

People are sick and overweight because their priorities are askew. All I ever heard when I practiced clinical medicine was people making excuses, excuses which they wholeheartedly believed. They couldn’t exercise or eat healthy food because they didn’t have time, they didn’t have the money, they didn’t like it, or they were just too tired. It sounds true, but it’s not.

The American Dream has been distorted by a hallucinogenic cocktail of TV, fast food, and a hugely overstuffed schedule of things that have nothing to do with life, liberty, or happiness. I believe most Americans are so far out there, they don’t even live within their own bodies. Occasionally they notice when they feel pain or when their pants get too tight. Sometimes it takes a full blown heart attack to grab their attention. But then they go back to doing the same old destructive things. They won’t let go of their complicated nightmares to trust the simplicity of the Dream.

Here are some suggestions:

Life - Step back into your body. Eat right. Sleep plenty. Drink water. Move your body around. Don’t smoke. Don’t drink much. Thank God/Spirit/Universe for your amazing human form.

Liberty - Step out of your comfort zone. Laugh. Question your routine. Dare to do something you love. Turn off the TV. Leave work early. Eliminate the word “should” from your vocabulary. Ask God/Spirit/Universe to help.

Happiness - Step into the present moment. Meditate. Pray. Do something to celebrate your calling. Envision what your life could be. Reconnect with yourself, your community, and your planet. Reconnect with God/Spirit/Universe.

The Wisdom of a Hummingbird

Not too long ago, I noticed a collection of hummingbirds hovering around a feeder outside my office. They buzzed and charged at each other, each vying for a spot at the fount. I directed my attention back to my work. A short time later, a spot suspended in the middle of the open doorway caught my eye. I turned to see a tiny hummingbird hanging limply from it’s beak which it had trapped within the screen door upon flying into it.

Very slowly I walked toward it, inwardly praying that it wouldn’t jerk it’s head or flap it’s wings. It looked so frail that any sudden movement might break it’s neck. I could see it breathing rapidly as I approached, but it made no movement. Gently, gently I applied pressure to the tip of it’s long, sharp beak until at last it was free. It zoomed away.

What a smart little bird! I felt so inspired by his courage. The next time I find myself in trouble, seemingly trapped by whatever accident or creation of mine, I will remember the wisdom of that hummingbird. Rather than thrashing about creating more misery, I’ll sit still, breathe and be willing to let the bigger forces at work in the universe to come to my aid.

Wake Up!

There you sit in the dark, tub of Ben and Jerry’s almost devoured, mouth hanging open, nothing but the blue glow of the television lighting up your face. You are completely entranced. From the well worn canyon in the sofa which cradles your butt, you heave yourself forward so you can read the number flashing on the midnight infomercial. “A MIRACLE CURE TO END YOUR WEIGHT TROUBLES!!!!” Maybe it’s a pricey powder with exotic South American berries that will magically melt the fat away if you sprinkle it on your tater tots. Or perhaps it’s a spring board, “used by the astronauts on the space shuttle to zap your flab in just 8 seconds or less a day!”

“I have to have that! That’s what will fix me,” you think. You scramble for your credit card, fumble with the phone, but suddenly you pause as you look at the dial... “What am I doing here?” asks another voice in your head - a moment of clarity alights.

FREEZE! You just woke up, my friend! This instant, this moment of clarity is precious, for it is only now, in this very moment, that you can set yourself free. There are many, many other things you can do to take care of your painful feelings than numbing yourself with food or torturing yourself with another diet. In the present moment, you can breathe in and breathe out. In the present moment, you can have a conversation with your body about what it needs and listen quietly for the answers. In the present moment, you can step back, survey the big picture of your life, and ask what’s the most important thing you want to be doing. In the present moment, you can marvel at the magic of your own authentic self awareness. In the present moment, you can feel your feelings, tend to them, then let them go.

When you wake up you claim your power to live your life the way you can only dream about when you lull yourself to sleep with distractions. Life unfolds all around us all the time. It takes courage to stay present with feelings, to be with the ups and downs of the flow of life, but an authentic life is way more satisfying than any tub of ice cream. Wake up!

Whom Are You Becoming?

When you set your life affirming intention to lose weight, whom do you imagine yourself becoming? Spend thoughtful time with this essential question, for you can then ask that person, your Future Self, to guide you on your journey to body harmony. Sustainable weight loss cannot be accomplished without deeper awareness of the dream to be realized. Understand that reconciliation with your body doesn’t come from a fad or a pill, it begins in your soul. Sit quietly, look deeply, and listen.

To fully envision living into your potential, you must first make introductions to your wise Future Self. Who is this wise Self? It is you at your core, and it’s been standing guard over your hopes and dreams, waiting for you to take notice. Where does the wise Future Self live? It does not live in the intellect; although, the intellect becomes a very powerful tool when placed under its reins. Neither does it live in the heart, but destructive emotions diminish and joyous feelings bloom when they are entrusted to someone wiser than the ego. The Future Self is a spark of divinity living inside each of us, perfect and whole. Perhaps you have forgotten yours or you were never taught to look deeply within, but your wise Future Self does exist and eagerly looks forward to your consultation. Sit quietly, look deeply, and listen.

Why does this matter? Every moment spent embracing your Future Self reveals a moment of freedom. You don’t need another restrictive diet, appetite suppressant, or pricey gimmick; you just need yourself. With the counsel of your Future Self you can construct the bridge to your most thrilling, authentic life. That Self is waiting for you, an endless reservoir of wisdom, courage, creativity, and resourcefulness. When you listen to it, you allow joy and success to unfold. Please, sit quietly, look deeply, and listen.