Granted, we all have insecurities and things we wish to improve upon, people who are at peace with their lives tend to not have weight issues. These people make time to work out even with a busy schedule, and incorporate their health into their lifestyle. On the other hand, when you're not the happiest person in the world, food can help. Psychiatrist James Gordon, MD, author of Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey out of Depression confirms that foods with high sugar and or fat content can temporarily make you feel better.
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The problem is when the treats are gone, the problems are still there and this time accompanied by guilt. Even if you're not clinically depressed, stress at work or an otherwise less-than-fulfilling life can cause a consistent feeling of unease that eventually builds into something more.
Somehow, you've let yourself go and when you look in the mirror, those extra pounds don't help. It's easy to assume that you're depressed because of your weight but in reality, it's usually the other way around. It's time to address the issue at the source and stop blaming your weight for all your problems.
At one point in your life, you were probably thin or at least more comfortable with your weight. However, it's likely that even then, you found something else to worry about. We bring extra weight gain upon ourselves when we overindulge and look for solace in all the wrong places (the pantry) while neglecting to exercise.
While science still struggles to decide which comes first officially, WebMD.com tells us that in 2009, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham reported that depressed people tend to gain weight faster than people who aren't depressed. Livestrong.com reports that women who tend to show atypical depression sleep and eat more instead of less. A vicious cycle is place into effect: the feelings of guilt perpetuate the cycle of overeating and so forth.
In some cases, it's not even that you overeat, it may be that you don't care enough to take care of your body anymore. Regardless, we've got to stop assigning blame to a culprit outside of ourselves and realize we need to work on the inside.
Being overweight isn't the cause of all your problems. Stop thinking of a solution in terms of "If I were skinny..." because not all skinny people are happy. There's more to life than that. It is more important to have a healthy mindset and fulfilling life, not just a thin frame. Improve first on what's going on inside and what you look like on the outside will follow suit.
