I haven't really been posting much lately. I could easily blame lack of time, but the reason is actually far more insidious than that...
Perfectionism and indecision have reared their ugly heads.
Perfectionism and indecision; how often they have kept me from doing what I need to do. How often they have tied me down, keeping me from going for what I want, ensuring that I remain right where I am.
Why haven't I written?
I have ideas flowing like a river... which one should I choose?
I love some of these ideas... what if I can't do them justice?
The decision regarding which comes first is really quite complicated. If I write about one of the ideas in my head, it really might be best if I wrote another post first which I could tie-in to this next post... But, of course, I really shouldn't write that one until I do another, or until I can take a good picture, or until I gather all of the information...
You can see my dilemma right?
You understand, right?
Hmm...
perhaps, I should post something, rather than nothing- even if it's not perfect?
Do perfectionism and indecision get in your way when it comes to teaching your kids to be better eaters, when it comes to feeding your family better, or when it comes to feeding yourself better?
You've read about so many diets that you don't even know what's good for you anymore and what's bad for you.
After all, fat used to be bad for you- now, maybe the right fats are good?
Carbohydrates used to be good for you, now they're bad?
Whole grains are good for you right? Except for those who say we should cut out all grains...
So, protein is good for you right... well, maybe. But you need to make sure that your beef is grass fed and that your chicken and eggs come from happy chickens (after all, who wants to eat a sad chicken??!!)
Well, at least they (they, being the so-called "experts") can agree that fruits and vegetables are good for you. But, if they're not organic, will they do more harm than good?
With all of the conflicting information, it seems easier to just not even try. The perfect diet is impossible to achieve because tomorrow I will learn something new and discover that the "healthy" food I was feeding my family, now may be the very thing that will do them harm.
Hmm...
perhaps, it would be better to try to feed them well, to teach your kids to embrace a variety of foods so that you at least have a shot of feeding them some "good" food, and if what's "good" changes, they'll be open to the change.
I know.
It's hard.
Once perfectionism takes hold, it's hard to let it go. It almost becomes... comfortable.
So, even though I don't like this post, I'm going to click "publish," and then, I'm going to post another imperfect post and another, because, otherwise, I have nothing and "not perfect" is better than nothing. (I know it is, I know it is, I know it is...)
How about you? Do you struggle with perfectionism? Does a fear that you can't (or don't even want to) achieve a "perfect diet," stand in your way of even trying?
Ooooohhhhh yes, I am a perfectionist. I've never thought about it getting in the way of my eating, though. I'm doing better than my parents did for me (not that they were terrible, by any means) so that alone is a boon, and I'm always trying to do better.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying hard to work on my perfectionism because I see it in my daughter and I know that she must be learning it from me!! I generally haven't let it get in the way of my eating, but I often hear people use it as an excuse for a poor diet... In fact, just today I saw an article about how green smoothies can actually be very bad for you because of the oxalates in spinach (and a few other greens.) Reading the comments you can just "hear" the frustration in people's "voices" (i.e. So now green vegetables are bad for you!! Ugh.) While I appreciate the information in articles such as these, I also find it frustrating because it makes people just want to give up and give in... that's one of the reasons that I called my blog "Teaching GOOD eaters, rather than HEALTHY eaters." I do try to feed my kids a healthy diet and as you said, I am always striving to do better, but rather than focusing on any one particular "diet," I focus on teaching my kids to try a variety of foods and be aware of how eating various foods makes them feel.
Deletehttp://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/how-green-smoothies-can-devastate-your-health/
Yes, it can get pretty frustrating - I think it's important to try and relax a little. Rather than thinking about what foods the 'experts' are saying is good this week and terrible the next, I try to include more unprocessed than processed foods in my families diet and see the reflection of their diets in their health and moods. Both my boys are rarely sick (thankfully) and they are both calm, happy well adjusted children - that has to have something to do with the fact that they have a mostly unprocessed diet. Well, that's what I think at least!
ReplyDeleteAgreed! I think that the one thing that most "experts" can agree on is a focus on unprocessed foods... You also make a great point about being relaxed... I try to keep eating low key and fun and that's why they are willing to try so many things... (I'm actually working on a post about not making food the enemy... I think that our generation was taught to fear food "fat is bad..." "cholesterol is bad" "carbs are bad." It makes me want to cry when I see a wonderful avocado recipe and all through the comments are people talking about how much fat is in avocados!
DeleteI appreciate you sharing through your blog. Take deep breaths and do what you need to do! I will keep stopping by to see your wonderful ideas. I post quite a few "imperfect" things. I post for myself mostly. I try not to let what others think influence me TOO much. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!!!
ReplyDeleteYES, I suffer from this every day. I'm paralyzed in many ways, because what I'm doing may not be "perfect." In a world full of glossy catalog style blogs, mine is imperfect and it does hold me back, more often then not. How about we move forward and be imperfect together?!
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