Denial's not just a river in Egypt.
Many of us bear imagined perceptions of ourselves that do not exactly match up to the reality. That can go either way. We can sustain both overinflated or devalued images of personality or physicality that is all in our heads.
In terms of weight, at least a third, if not more, of America are lugging around more pounds than is advisable. Even the author of the article confesses to self-delusion regarding her obesity.
As I was walking through the gym the other day, I caught a glimpse of an overweight woman across the room. But then I did a double take, and then another. The woman was me — I had seen my own reflection in a distant mirror and, for a split second, hadn’t recognized myself.
Denial is a frightening response since it does not allow necessary change. If action is vital, denial procrastinates. Then the moment of unavoidable truth is much more painful than it had to be.
I hope I can always be conscious of reality (and not just in terms of weight).
She may have been in denial, but unlike most of us, she discusses her weight problem on one of the most prominent sites in the world, under her real name. She's not a poster child for denial, IMO.
ReplyDeleteOf course she is admirable! She is confessing her own previous willful non-knowledge of the situation, and that takes a lot of guts.
ReplyDeleteDid I call her "a poster child for denial"? I'm simply quoting her own article, where she talks about denial.
I loved the quote that you posted! We do that SO often with so many other things. We can easily look at others and judge or see things that we don't like, but in reality, what we are seeing, are things about ourselves...
ReplyDeleteExactly. The human mind has an amazing ability to shut out when it wants to, or reach amazing heights when it wants to.
ReplyDeleteI really honestly believed that I looked just fine.
ReplyDeleteIt was pictures that DID ME IN!
That just couldn't be me. I had become fat and I had noone to blame but myself.
Now that I'm paying for all that denial with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc., I do not have the luxury of denial anymore.
Tovah: You can do it! You can tackle it now! Just by switching to a more healthful eating plan can do wonders. Like my yams (drool).
ReplyDelete