the announcement post
Posted: August 11, 2010 at 8:01 pmI think I have alluded to the things going through my head and what I’ve been planning out (with God’s help) enough. Now it’s time to officially get this show on the road. I’m admittedly nervous. Okay…make that very, very nervous. Why? Because I care about this A LOT. It has been put on my heart for awhile now to do something to bring us closer to fully loving ourselves. Self- love is such a difficult thing for many to grasp and truly believe. I’m still a work in progress and always will be. However, I know I have made tremendous strides in past years. A lot of that came from participating in what I am about to propose here. Bear with me as I go through a bit of background and then get to the nitty gritty details. Kay?
The Background
Many of you know, I struggled with binge eating in my past. I can vividly recall times driving home from work where I would stop at the store to pick something up to shove down my throat to hide other emotions and a strong feeling of worthlessness in the process. Or staying home “sick” from work to have a day to just wallow with food. I hid it for years. From early 2004 until the very end of 2007. I can recall my first binge in detail as well as my last one before recovery.
How did recovery happen for me? I stopped expecting to just be able to suddenly make that change and finally decided to take a long hard look at myself. I took time every morning to reflect on things about life and how to appreciate myself more fully. For me, this time was prayer to God, but I also believe any personal reflection would have helped in the process to save me from myself. Even after conceiving little M, which solidified my efforts in becoming binge-free, I depended on that personal reflection. Lately, wonderful friends – from church, from everyday life, from blogs (LISA!!) – have mentioned time and time again how my decision to use prayer and self reflection to overcome my personal image issues also helped them. My original thinking was simply, “Cool! I’m glad it helped”. Then, in no other way to describe it besides God working through me, I couldn’t deny that I could share this in a more widespread manner. So here comes the details…as short and pain-free as possible. I know this post is uber-long.
What: 30 Days of Reflection for Self-Love
Who: Anyone!! Literally – pass this along to whoever. Share it on your blog or with people outside of the blogosphere. Everyone can participate. This is NOT a prayer or Christian only cause. It is for every person who wants to take time to love him or herself and gain a new perspective on their value. Call it prayer, meditation, self reflection, quiet time…whatever. It is for EVERYBODY!
Where: Here on Faith, Fitness, Fun with a very short post published every morning with the brief message to reflect on each day.
When: I will begin the daily reflection posts on September 1 and they will continue for the 30 days of the month of September. Take literally 5 minutes sometime throughout each day to reflect on the topic.
Why: To help us all learn to love ourselves more and to uplift one another in the process. To begin to realize our true beauty and value. To battle the inner dialogue that strives to bring us down.
I fought taking this step. Purely out of fear. That no one will care. That no one will see the point. That no one will participate. Then, I came to the realization, it doesn’t matter how many this helps. It matters if it helps just one person understand their worth more. I trust God to reach who He wants to reach. And I pray that you fabulous ladies help support this. If you know you want to participate and feel like this can reach others the same way I believe, look for a special (SHORT) post in the morning strictly for stating your interest. It’s not a huge commitment, but could be one very worth each of our while. Let’s do this together - sharing a community of love and recognizing just how wonderful each of us are!
Tags: binging, self-love reflections
Tina I just saw this post. I was aware of your struggles with the binges, but never realized quite how bad things were. I’ve been on this roller coaster ride for more years than I wish to recall. I wouldn’t wish it all on my worst enemy. It’s part of the reason why I started my blog and names it the way I did. I’m so critical of myself, after years of my imperfections being called out by others. I’m trying to accept myself as I am…..allow myself to be my perfect me, imperfections and all.
I’m definitely in! I’m off to post your widget onto my blog right now. Great idea & post!
I sent you a message on Twitter with a link on how to post widgets. That should work.
And you’re right. Binging and food issues isn’t something I would wish on my worst enemy either. It takes time to overcome and is a persistent battle, but worth it.
I really like this idea of 30 days of reflection for self-love. I never realized about your binges. I’m sorry. I love you and want to support you in any way possible. It is very important for everyone to accept themselves as they are and to realize just how beautiful they are. This is going to be a very uplifting experience for everyone that participates.
I think you are beautiful, and this is such a beautiful, reflective idea. It’s wonderful you’re willing to share such experiences with us and provide comfort for those who might be struggling, or have struggled in the past as well. Amen to finding guidance through God as well! Yes, that’s something we all need to start doing instead of being so independent, God provides himself for us! I hope so many participate in this 🙂
[…] you aren’t sure what I’m talking about, please check out this post. If you want to join in and look forward to September and taking 30 days to fall more in love with […]