living one day at a time

When I first got sober, I was concerned because I wouldn’t be able to drink at any of my son’s weddings.
They were SIX at the time.

Seems so crazy to me now.

At the time I truly couldn’t imagine having any fun if alcohol wasn’t involved. I honed in on every occasion where I wouldn’t be able to drink in the future and was immediately deflated.

I’ve had similar thoughts with food and my eating habits.
All too often I’ve thought, “I won’t be able to have cookies around the holidays” or “It’s pizza night on Friday and I’ll be stuck eating a salad”.

Have you ever had those thoughts?
When I have had them I was so discouraged and anxious that I wanted to load my face with pizza and cookies right there and then.

I’ve had to create healthy eating habits which includes adopting the same philosophy I use with drinking:
focus on one day at a time.

Every morning I start my day with this thought, “I’m going to do my best to eat healthy today.”
This is so much more manageable.

I used to think, “I messed up yesterday so I might as well eat what I want today”. This is another example of how “one day at a time” thinking works – the focus will only be on the day ahead, not yesterday’s mistakes.

Any positive change in our lives can be daunting. Whether it’s the need to eat more nutritiously, exercise, quit smoking, get more sleep, WHATEVER. It doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a series of 2 steps forward, one step back.

There is a poem found in 12-step meetings, all around the world. It’s called “yesterday, today and tomorrow”.
There is one line in particular that stands out,
“Any man or woman can fight the battles for just one day. It is only when we add the burdens of those two awful eternities⏤yesterday and tomorrow⏤ that we break down.”
Read the entire poem

How freakin comforting is that? I read that and feel my shoulders untense!

Each day we get a new opportunity to start over. We can’t allow ourselves to be weighed down w/ guilt (pun intended) over what we ate yesterday. Likewise, we can’t worry about we can eat tomorrow. All we have is today.

Most days this philosophy keeps me on track.
I’m far from perfect but I’ll take eating healthy 80% of the time!

Five years later, I don’t worry about drinking at my son’s weddings. I can’t even imagine doing so and not being fully present for one of the most important days of their lives.

I remind myself of my drastic change of heart when I’m struggling to stay in the moment and goals seems so far away.

If you find you’re struggling to eat healthy, especially around the holidays, I encourage you to focus solely on the day ahead of you.
Remember, you can do anything for just one day.