Re: Denial (WAS: , SAD seasonal affective disorder)

December 29, 2001

--- , I was in denial that I even had diabetes even though I

knew I did. I would not check my numbers thus by not doing so it

didn't exist. Yet I certainly knew it from the doctors reports and

by the way I felt. So, yes I believe one can be in denial and still

know what is truth. Not sure this makes sense to anyone but me!!!

Positive thinking to me is looking at the bright side of everything

but also doing all the right stuff to make a bright side! If anyone

understands what I am saying you win!! Don't know how else to

explain it!

madge

In diabetes_int@y..., " j459g " <j459g@y...> wrote:

>

> > > I refused to accept this subconsciously

> > > and hoped it would go away.

> >

> > Isn't that what is sometimes called positive thinking?

> >

>

> > No, I think that's called Denial. Vicki

>

> Oh! I thought denial was refusing to accept something consciously.

I

> don't see how anybody could hope something would go away and at the

> same time deny that it was even there.

>

> That's too subtle for me, I am no philosopher!

>

December 30, 2001

> So, yes I believe one can be in

> denial and still know what is truth.

> Not sure this makes sense to anyone

> but me!

Sure it makes sense. A woman I once worked with had to work two jobs

to keep her mother in special medication after she had had her

cancerous larynx removed and used a synthetic voice box to speak

with. This woman was still chain-smoking and admitted that she knew

she would end up the same way as her mother but still denied that it

was sufficient motivation to stop smoking.

But the biggest group of " deny " -ers I know are the heavy-weights, who

must know what their overweight is going to do to them later (and is

doing to them right now) but can still waddle through a supermarket

loading up their basket with all that fattening stuff! Now that is

denial with a big D!

> Positive thinking to me is looking

> at the bright side of everything

> but also doing all the right stuff

> to make a bright side!

Yeah - behind every silver lining there is a dark cloud!

December 30, 2001

> Are you talking about me again??? ) (j/k)

No, Rick, I was thinking about me. I once reached the stage at

which I needed two baskets which I tied together with a plastic

bag and towed behind me through the supermarket like a tugboat.

I also noticed that overweight people don't walk the way normal-

weight people walk - they can't! - and I even wasted some time trying

to practise walking like I was thin while I was still fat. That was

an affected waddle even!

Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!

December 30, 2001

> I am not so sure that a person who

> is overweight is in denial. They are

> aware of the problem but I think become

> so depressed or filled with such low

> self esteem that food seems to be the only

> comfort.

Maybe sometimes, Madge, but I have met many overweight people who are

anything but depressed or full of low esteem. They were totally

convinced that, in their case (there were still no signs of any

effect on their health) it didn't matter what they weighed, they had

simply inherited that size figure and the weight they were was the

weight they were meant to be. Isn't that " denial " ?

A neighbor of ours was an enormous size, and even though she was a

good 6' tall, she was way, way, overweight. That lead to all kinds of

complications in her life which she complained about continuously but

refused to listen to anybody who said she would be better off

lighter. One day when we were visiting, we saw a large tin of sweet

chocolate biscuits under her bed, real calorie bombs. She insisted

that they did't count - only the calories that get eaten at regular

meal times make you fat, she claimed. Surely also a case of " denial " ?

In my case, I used to work in radio stations in different parts of

the world, many were on high hills or even mountains and some could

only be reached on foot and then there were antenna towers to climb.

So I could always eat hearty meals without putting on any weight.

Then I got a desk job but carried on eating as before and my weight

slowly climbed, so slowly I didn't notice it happening. On top of

that, my wife's hobby was cooking and I was the main test person.

Nobody ever told me that I needed to lose weight, not even when I was

diagnosed with diabetes. Then when I changed doctors, the first time

the new one saw me, he told it to me like it was and I went straight

home and started to lose weight right away. But that was more

ignorance than denial!

I have heard and read hundreds of reasons why people are overweight

but none so far have claimed that it was because they used food as a

comfort zone.

December 30, 2001

<< Two can't be down at once. Someone has to be up and

running or we'll be in a boat with no paddles. One paddle is hard

enough to row with.

Madge >>

So how's your foot, Madge? Are you up and about? Does it look better? Vicki

December 30, 2001

---Weight problems existed in my family tree as well but existed

because of the eating habits high in calories. Diabetes runs rampant

in my family and I know had I listened years ago to watch my weight

and eat right, I could have forestalled this disease more than likely

but back then I thought I was immortal! Never going to be old or

sick. Hind sight is always 20/20! So, now its a mad dash to do what

is right and try and hold off the complications as long as possible.

My husband has enough of the complications so I can't afford to have

them too. Two can't be down at once. Someone has to be up and

running or we'll be in a boat with no paddles. One paddle is hard

enough to row with.

Madge

In diabetes_int@y..., Phyllis Norwood <phyllis@t...> wrote:

> And in my case, I have never over-eaten. I know now that because of

> heriderity that my body cannot utilize carbs the way other people

do. If

> you saw what I ate in one day on or off Atkins, you would be

shocked!

>

> Also, if you are not sick and alot of overweight people are not

sick and

> do not become sick, I say eat all you want. It's up to you. I know a

> couple of people that weight over 300. They can out work me, out

run me,

> out swim me and they are not sick at all.

December 30, 2001