Dear Jazz:

You wrote that you “feel nothing or too much, in the way of anger and sadness”. When you feel too much in the way of anger and sadness, what is your anger about? What is your sadness about?

anita

Dear Jazz:

You are welcome. My input:

A habit has been formed: treating yourself to calorie-packed food following stress. Once a habit has been formed, it is difficult to break.

You have experienced a sense of lack of adequate control and power over too much of your life circumstances and experience, for too long.

Eating these calorie packed foods gives you “a moment of happiness when not much else does.”

I think that the first thing to tackle is the issue of control and power. The serenity prayer includes the following: “grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference”-

The “things I cannot change” are those outside your control. The “things I can (change)” are the things in your control. It may be helpful for you to make a list of these two categories. You can do it here, if you’d like.

It will definitely help you in the long run to assert your power in areas where you are not currently asserting, such as in relationships, be it personal or at work.

anita