Getting What You Want Won't Make You Happy

Don't be shocked by the title of this post, I am a full blown optimist! But it wasn't until after I had experienced a life threatening illness, years of clinical depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts for me to realize what the heck happiness actually is.

As a child, growing up in America I idolized material culture without even realizing it. Spending time watching TV and movies informed me that success and happiness only comes from external sources like material wealth and  'things' that we can buy. We have all heard the saying, "Money doesn't buy happiness," but I'm not sure any of us reaaaaaly believe/d it. Of course money would make me happy, it sure as hell would make life a lot easier! But living in a culture that promotes the idea of external happiness through material wealth has seriously perverted our understanding of what happiness actually is and how to attain it.

First of all, let me just say, happiness isn't attained. It just IS. Happiness is the balanced and original state of humanity and life. Think of yourself as baby, rather - think of any baby you have ever come in contact with. Babies are the purest form of life. They exist in the state that we are forced to forget. Babies don't worry about bills, about success, about society, about family, friends, work, etc. They just exist as they are. Of course, existing in your purest state of happiness is easier said than done after spending years in a perspective of the world as a harsh, unruly place that only values people who have money or objects. But happiness truly is all around us, all we have to do is SHIFT our perspective in order to see us. We have to choose to see happiness.

Growing up I experienced certain kinds of childhood traumas that left me clinically depress and suicidal for years. I had developed and anxiety disorder and symptoms of PTSD without even realizing it. Through out my teenage years I was in and out of therapists and on any kind of medication that would leave me comatose to the world around me. Of course, no one saw what was really going on. I was skilled at diverting my depression through humor and jokes - always the 'class clown'. But once I got to college, and moved out of my parents house, these symptoms of depression and anxiety magically disappear (imagine that). But at the beginning of my sophomore year of college I was whisked back home by a life threatening, and mysterious, viral infection that would leave me bedridden for a year and fighting for my life. Needless to say, THIS was the darkest period of my life. With no hope from doctors, I often contemplated suicide just to end the amount of physical body pain I was experiencing through my un-treatable illness. I won't go too in depth with what I experienced during those years of my life. Mostly because it is still fresh, and too painful to relive publicly. But it taught me the most important lessons about my life, and motivated me to inspire and empower others to take control of their personal health and happiness.

After 3 years in therapy to treat my depression, anxiety, and PTSD (the mental health toll of a life threatening illness) and years of multiple doctors visits, alternative treatments, spiritual literature, diet changes, and natural supplements - I was able to heal myself from the inside out, and this journey taught me that happiness is not something that is attained by getting that job you want, or buying that car, or taking a trip to that place - it is attained by realizing it was there all along.

Think about it, how many times have you envisioned some object that you want - maybe a car - but once you attain that object, you go right back to however you felt before. This is because you have not realized the happiness within you. Objects will never be able to sustain a state of happiness, they may make us feel great for awhile, but eventually you always go right back to the way you were feeling before.

So, how do we realize that we create our own happiness? Basically, we have to stop trying to get happiness. Give up on being happy. Giving up allows you to truly let happiness into your life. If you are striving for happiness, you are ignoring the happiness that is already there - your focus is still external to yourself. Happiness isn't always easy, and we may not live in an eternal state of bliss. But accepting the happiness within you, and making an effort to change your perspective, truly allows you to be happy NOW, rather than in some imaginary future when you have everything you want.

Now is all we have, and happiness is there for the taking!
I hope this post will inspire you to make small changes through out your day that will aide you in shifting your perspective as to allow more happiness to naturally occur in your life, everyday.

Until next time,
Feast From Within
xoxo

Book Review - Foods that Fight Fibromyalgia

There is a 'new' movement sweeping the Health and Wellness Community, and that movement is focused on the efforts to heal illness through food. As a member of this community, and a woman with Fibromyalgia, I am an avid supporter of the power to heal through food - hence the title of my Blog "Feast from Within". However, with this sweeping movement of healthy eating also comes a vast array of new diet books, each promising a way to magically cure your illness. Through out the years of my journey toward health and recovery I have devoured and read countless diet books, hoping that one will have that magical diet to cure all of my ailments. However, not all diet books are created equal. And I am here to guide you through each book I have read and add my personal input and perspective that will hopefully help you find the right diet plan for you.

So here we go!

The first book on my list, "Foods the Fight Fibromyalgia", is a well written and informative diet plan comprised by Dierdre Rawlings. The book is divided into two parts. Part I: Understanding Fibromyalgia and Part II: Winning the Battle Through Food.

What I enjoyed most about this book was all in Part I. This section of the book outlines six different chapters that each go in depth to discuss scientific causes of Fibromyalgia. 

The chapters are as follows:

1) The Causes and Cures of Fibromyalgia

2) Fighting Fibromyalgia Through Diet

3) Treating Symptoms with Food - Not Pills

4)  Focusing on Colorful Nutrition: We Are What We Eat

5) Your Lifestyle Guide: Shopping Lists and Eating Tips 

6) Balanced Living Principals

The Chapters in Part I are a great way to scientifically understand what is going on in your body and how to heal through nutrition. Understanding how our body functions is crucial in understanding how to heal. The book goes in depth to discuss genes, cellular energy, pesticides, water quality, immune dysfunction, allergies, pharmaceutical drugs, nutrient deletion, stress, mineral imbalances, and more! These 6 chapters overflow with knowledge that is usually limited to those who have studied medicine or the body, but now it is available to use for the public. This information empowers us to take charge of the state of our own health, and I definitely felt very empowered after I read it! 

There is also a large focus on gluten intolerance and other food allergies that is discussed in Part I. So be prepared to start considering a gluten-free diet!   

Overall, I found Part I to be very informative and beneficial. It far outweighs what appears  in Part II. 

Part II is dedicated all to recipes to try at home, and this is where I came up disappointed. My biggest problem with specialized diet books is the quality of recipes that appear. Each recipe claims to be 'simple' but is NOT. Anyone who suffers from Fibromyalgia knows that shopping for healthy, organic food takes time, energy, and lots of money - something that many of us may not have. Therefore, when I run into healthy diet books I am often left wanting due to the lack of realistic recipes and diet changes that one can actually implement into their life. There are many gluten-free options available in stores that are cheaper and easier to make/buy than most of the recipes listed in the book, and the list of ingredients may come up as quite foreign and difficult to find for anyone who is not familiar with vegan, gluten free, or diary free lifestyles. 

Overall, I was very disappointed with Part II of the book. I am still in search of a realistic and reliable diet book that lists common and well known gluten-free brands and alternatives, as well as recipes that are actually quick, easy, and simple to make. 

In conclusion, I would say that the book is worth the purchase, if only for the benefit of reading Part I and gaining a more in depth understanding of how our bodies function at the cellular and nutritional level. 

I hope this message finds you well. 

Please comment below if you have any other book suggestions

Until next time,

Feast From Within 

xoxo