It's Lent Again!

Although I am not a particularly religious person- I've always referred to myself as being more spiritual than anything- one good Catholic girl tradition I try to observe every year (other than the mandatory Christmas and Easter services) is to give something up for lent. By sacrificing something for a while we challenge ourselves to not indulge in behaviors/things that are either bad for us in the first place or not necessary in our lives. In some respects, I guess with the recession this year a lot of people are learning to "do without" on many different levels, so by observing this small Catholic tradition while I am (still) gainfully employed (knock on wood) can actually give a bit of a sense of humility in some respects. That might be a bit of a stretch, but if you think about it even such a small action can bring you down to another person's level. Having sacrificed so much last summer for the sake of my health by giving up gluten, dairy, meat, my beloved ice cream (still 6+ months sober, thank you), and other foods I over indulged on I have already experimented with the whole sacrificing thing. And boy did it give me a new perspective on friends with celiac and other severe dietary restrictions. It also made me grow as a person by learning different food choices and healthier food choices, and the payoff was tremendous- you really can't complain about losing 50 pounds and no longer being hypertensive or hypersensitive to the planet.

So, for my health, and to get back on track with my healthy lifestyle I am using lent to re-detoxify myself from a few of my food vices I began to take for granted again and were probably the catalyst for my recent health setbacks with gallbladder/liver flare-ups. The past month or so I have blogged about the addictive nature of these items and I think the coming weeks through Easter will help me reconquer those challenges I have with food addiction. No more chocolate or Starbucks for me, and you know what, I think this might be a little easier than I anticipated. I can already feel my body thanking me.