Attachment to Food and/or Eating

Peter Michealson, in Secret Attachments suggests that we have an attachment to food or eating that has gotten out of control. The cause is a concept of emotional injury or attachment to a negative emotion, fear of abandonment, resentment, ego or some other such issue. We may be using eating as a defense, but ultimately it is and attachment to a delusion or emotion locked into our psyche. Or we could like food a bit to much, another form of attachment. We need to let go of the attachment either way.

Buddha, back in his day said that all our suffering is some form of attachment to delusions, our thoughts, concepts, ideas, fears, graspings, expectations, hopes, dreams, and opposites, are all forms of delusions. In other words it is our attachments to the things that drive our lives in the direction we want to go that cause the problem, So if we are not attached to where we go or what happens, we can be free of all suffering. Well, if we do not care, it does not matter. Yes. So being ready to let go of our attachments if that attachment is what freedom of suffering is all about. It is the attachment that is common to all the issues, so if we let go of the attachment, then we are free.

All property, shelter and the like was owned by the community of monks, and they then provided housing, shelter, food, close, etc to the monks. Monks supported the community, begged for the community, and worked for the community. OK. They owned nothing, had nothing, and were free but cared for by the community. Some had jobs within the community: it needed a treasurer, builders, gardeners, beekeepers, etc,

 It is specifically letting go of attachment that the Buddhist promote, regardless of what the attachment is aimed at. So could letting go of the desire for food and/or eating be part of the solution? sounds like it should work, but how does one let go of a attachment? That is the question.      

Fictitious Concept of Self Control

Fictitious Concept of Self Control

Not all humans have anything like self control. That statement files in the face of psychologists, government, doctors with there non-compliant concept. In fact, I can see little evidence that more than a few have "self-control" No one wants to be fat, yet 2/3 of the population is. All anyone needs to do to not be fat is to not eat as much. We see drug dependency, alcoholics, smokers, all of which would not be if they had "self-control" so I suggest that self control is a delusion, a concept we have but is not a real thing, much like gods. So if we are bowing at the alter of self control, and not getting anywhere, what is the logical next step? Stop believing in self control. It does not really exist.

That does not say we should stop trying. Agrippina, or was it Socrates, the old Greek said resist and persist are the two great virtues, or something to that effect. He said those were optional but desired characteristics. I use the word optional for some characteristics unlike duty, following traditions, loyalty to your city state, good moral behavior were just expected, and the transgressors were just not tolerated. They either left to take up residence elsewhere, to travel or were eliminated by other methods, sold into slavery, exiled, exterminated. There is no suggestion that people could force change on themselves, just that they should try.

That is where modern thoughts break down. It is assumed or preached by those in authority that people can change if they want it bad enough, yet there is not what the evidence says. Just look at the fat, smoking, drinking, drugging, lying, cheating, tax evasion, people abusing,  and how many are left as honorable humans? None, or close to that number. So trying to acheive is all we are capable of, achievement itself is more luck that anything.   

There are many of us who just cannot follow a diet when food is available. It is a human problem, and only those who have no attraction to food or make extreme efforts are being successful. Obesity is therefore a cultural/societal problem, not a individual problem. That is what the average human reaction is telling us.     

Cravings

What are cravings? These are attachments to feelings, desires, emotions, desires for specific foods, flavors. The strength of the attachment or desire is the problem. The only found solution is to let go of the attachment. So what help is that and how is that achieved?

Science, in the form of psychologists, remain quiet on that. It is the craving that cause me much problems.

So those of us with strong desires for food, for comfort, for some other emotion that food acts as a substitute for have a problem, which the medical professionals have no clear answer for. Our best guess it is cause in childhood, and it is some attachment to something that make us feel better. The marketing psychologists know how to drive the attachment by keeping food/food advertising in our faces constantly. But there is no know relief, other that isolation in an active enjoyable environment, where food is not available. The problem  is, one cannot live for extended periods in such an environment. There is no solution. that is what it come down too. Fuck It.    

which way do you wobble?

Which way do you wobble? We all wobble, and we cannot run true when we grew up in a wobbling society, culture, learned to wobble from eccentrics, just to survive. So where is the center to correct for eccentricities, and that is true to correct for wobbles, and then there are questions of speed and balance.

The point is that nobody knows for sure. When it comes to overeating there are many hypotheses, and nobody knows what is right and what is not. It is obvious that it is not a single problem, for then those who have fixed the problem would have created a pattern that works for others. There are many patterns and none of them work universally. Many of those who were obsessive about eating have switched to measurement obsession, or exercise obsession, or running obsession, which will work until age or injury set in. So is changing obsession a cure?

We overeaters have a big wobble toward eating and usually away from exercise. The issue with exercise it requires time, and we need to take something else out of our lives. That is but one of the problems. Doing something that we do not enjoy makes it drudgery. It is like an athlete learning more calculus, doing calculus exercises just to stay fresh. Just does not happen for long.

So do we need to produce an anti-eating wobble to counter balance this problem. Everyone is wobbling differently so what is true?        

Food Decision time

Is the overeating motivation physical/biological based or noological/mind/emotionally based? This is the big "divide the problem in two" question.

If it biological, take that path, if it is mind based, it requires a different path. Since the desire to overeat/ overeating is worse in time of indecision, that suggests it is a mental issue.  So where is there to turn to?