How NOT To Freak Out About Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving: The time of year that we come together and celebrate with food. So many of my clients have a lot of anxiety leading up to this holiday. For some, they fear “ruining” their hard-earned progress. For others, they fear holidays that revolve around food because they are recovering from disordered eating. Add on the stress of traveling, cooking the turkey, or dreading the conversation at the dinner table (How’s school? How’s work? Why are you still single?…) and it can all feel very overwhelming.
But, you shouldn’t freak out. Why? Because one meal is not going to ruin your progress. PLUS, as much as people like to bad-mouth Thanksgiving food, many of the traditional foods are very nutritious. And guess what? You can have these foods whenever you want. Stuffing and turkey are always in the grocery store. You can have mashed potatoes any day of the week. Pumpkin pie? Yup, year round.
A big mistake a lot of people make is that they skip breakfast or don’t eat all day to “save” their calories for the big meal. This is NOT a good idea because you will most likely overdo it later on. Have a high fiber, high protein breakfast to kick start the day and to keep your blood sugar levels in check. Think of Thanksgiving dinner as any other dinner: protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates. They are just in different forms than the usual. Would you skip meals on a non-holiday day? No. So, don’t do it on Thanksgiving either.
Don’t deprive yourself. If you’re dying for Grandma’s stuffing, put it on your plate. If you tell yourself you can’t have something you’ll want it even more, and may wind up overdoing it in the end because you won’t feel satisfied. Leave what doesn’t really interest you (don’t put the potatoes on your plate if you’re not really into them). Same goes for dessert. Take a small dessert plate and fill it with desserts that you really enjoy. Then move on.
Don’t get so caught up in the food that you forget the real reason you’re gathering for this holiday: to make memories with friends and family and celebrate the gifts in our life.
I want to remind people the importance of enjoying the holidays and being present, because there were many years that I “checked out” and missed out on what is really important. One Thanksgiving, I pushed my food around and ate mostly vegetables. For two Thanksgivings after that, I made my own “tofurky” because I was vegetarian (totally fine for anyone vegetarian, but cutting out meat was another way to “hide” my restrictive behaviors). At another Thanksgiving, I avoided all carbs and I stared at the stuffing at the table for 90% of the meal. Pretty sure I ate an entire bowl of broccoli and felt terrible the rest of the night (hello belly bloat!). At yet another Thanksgiving, I weighed and measured my food to make sure it wasn’t “too much” – whatever that means. Know what I remember at all of those Thanksgivings? The stress of restricting my food intake. I cannot recall who was there, what the conversation was or what we did the rest of the evening. That’s no way to live – it’s honestly not living at all.
It took me quite some time to come to a Thanksgiving meal where I actually didn’t think twice about what I put on my plate. So, if you’re thinking “there’s no way I’m eating a carb at dinner this year”, I hear ya. But, I promise it’s OK and that there is so much more to life and to YOU than controlling your food. It is possible to come to a meal where you don’t see food as “good” or “bad” and where you have a trusting relationship with your body and your mind.
The point is: I want you to know that you have full permission to eat what you want on Thanksgiving. Partner with your body to let it tell you when it’s hungry and when it’s full. If you go past the point of “full”, that’s OK too. Join in on the dinner conversation. Choose foods that feel satisfying and nourishing. Be thankful that there is food on the table each and every day. And if someone comments on the food on your plate, throw a pumpkin pie in their face (I kid, I kid)! OK, just tell them, “I know what foods feel appropriate for my body, thank you very much!” Then, change the subject.
I wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving!
