Many conversations have come up lately around perspective. My nephew is two years old right now and so ultimately his perspective of the world thus far is all he knows (and to him is totally correct). I have had heated arguments with my parents in the past all based off of what we both were perceiving as truth in the moment when, let's face it, there is no universal truth.
I have come to realize that sharing my perspective in the moment is actually quite vulnerable. I am sharing how I perceive the world and define myself in that moment. We all have our own perspectives that can bump up against each other and no one's perspective is ultimately "correct." How we view the world or a situation is just a chance to get to know ourselves in the present. It is when a perspective becomes a belief so strong that it cannot be challenged or questioned that I think we start running into problems.
It has particularly been this past year that I have begun to question the things I told myself I believe in and the things I have refused to question in the past. This has kept me stuck in my own development and growth as I often find myself going through the same thought processes over and over again. By questioning my own perspectives on things, I have been able to see others perspectives more and then ask myself if this is something I want to believe or not while still respecting the other person's perspective and that what they think is true for them even if it turns out it is not true for me.
Let's take dietary theories for example. In the past I am someone who would demonize certain foods and tell myself and others that those food items are never to be touched. After years of working with others and their relationship with food, I have come to realize this advice really really doesn't work. We need a little space in our diet to let ourselves have fun and eat something that is outside of what we typically eat on any given day. I see my clients now having more success in being able to eat whole nutritious foods more often, consistently, for a longer period of time because sometimes they allow themselves to eat whatever the hell they want!
This is so crucial to beginning the process of tuning in to your body, tuning in to your gut brain and listening on a deeper level, what does my body need in this moment? (not what I think it needs). I find that when individuals get so stuck on eating a certain way (vegan, vegetarian, paleo, high carb, low carb, high protein, low protein, etc, etc, etc) it actually causes more harm than good. When we get stuck in eating a certain way, we miss out on the opportunity to tune in to the body and ask it what it wants. Our minds override our guts and tell us logically if I am defining and perceiving myself as strictly a vegan then I cannot eat that piece of fish that my body is asking me to eat.
Lately, I have tried to get out of my own perspective on what I deem as "healthy" and listen to my bodily response after a meal to see how my gut liked what I ate. This takes away the judgment or worry around what I am eating because any time I eat something it is just an experimentation. If I eat some nut butter and get really emotional and lethargic afterward then that is just information for me on how I respond to that particular food. I ultimately feel empowered afterward because I now have the information to choose on any given day how I would like to feel based on what I know of how my body will respond to certain foods.
The next time a repetitive thought pops up in your head, ask yourself is this really true? Challenge your perceptions, challenge your thoughts. If you find yourself eating the same things every day out of fear that this is the way you must eat, then perhaps challenge that perspective and try something new that you haven't eaten in awhile and notice your bodily response. There are no "wrong" choices, it is just a matter of learning and listening to what works for you and only you.
I have come to realize that sharing my perspective in the moment is actually quite vulnerable. I am sharing how I perceive the world and define myself in that moment. We all have our own perspectives that can bump up against each other and no one's perspective is ultimately "correct." How we view the world or a situation is just a chance to get to know ourselves in the present. It is when a perspective becomes a belief so strong that it cannot be challenged or questioned that I think we start running into problems.
It has particularly been this past year that I have begun to question the things I told myself I believe in and the things I have refused to question in the past. This has kept me stuck in my own development and growth as I often find myself going through the same thought processes over and over again. By questioning my own perspectives on things, I have been able to see others perspectives more and then ask myself if this is something I want to believe or not while still respecting the other person's perspective and that what they think is true for them even if it turns out it is not true for me.
Let's take dietary theories for example. In the past I am someone who would demonize certain foods and tell myself and others that those food items are never to be touched. After years of working with others and their relationship with food, I have come to realize this advice really really doesn't work. We need a little space in our diet to let ourselves have fun and eat something that is outside of what we typically eat on any given day. I see my clients now having more success in being able to eat whole nutritious foods more often, consistently, for a longer period of time because sometimes they allow themselves to eat whatever the hell they want!
This is so crucial to beginning the process of tuning in to your body, tuning in to your gut brain and listening on a deeper level, what does my body need in this moment? (not what I think it needs). I find that when individuals get so stuck on eating a certain way (vegan, vegetarian, paleo, high carb, low carb, high protein, low protein, etc, etc, etc) it actually causes more harm than good. When we get stuck in eating a certain way, we miss out on the opportunity to tune in to the body and ask it what it wants. Our minds override our guts and tell us logically if I am defining and perceiving myself as strictly a vegan then I cannot eat that piece of fish that my body is asking me to eat.
Lately, I have tried to get out of my own perspective on what I deem as "healthy" and listen to my bodily response after a meal to see how my gut liked what I ate. This takes away the judgment or worry around what I am eating because any time I eat something it is just an experimentation. If I eat some nut butter and get really emotional and lethargic afterward then that is just information for me on how I respond to that particular food. I ultimately feel empowered afterward because I now have the information to choose on any given day how I would like to feel based on what I know of how my body will respond to certain foods.
The next time a repetitive thought pops up in your head, ask yourself is this really true? Challenge your perceptions, challenge your thoughts. If you find yourself eating the same things every day out of fear that this is the way you must eat, then perhaps challenge that perspective and try something new that you haven't eaten in awhile and notice your bodily response. There are no "wrong" choices, it is just a matter of learning and listening to what works for you and only you.
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