Saturday, May 26, 2018

A Moral Solution

Overeating is a bitch of a problem with many causes. The solution is a moral choice to not eat, and learn to live hungry. Moral means : concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior and the goodness or badness of human character. It is doubtful if many people overeat intentionally, and for overeating to be a moral problem, that would need to be the case; therefore, overeating is not a moral problem, but the solution is a moral solution. But the only solution is to willfully not eat, or to willfully follow a food budget of some kind. That is the moral thing to do. There is a space between moral and immoral. That is where overeating for any of the many reasons falls.

That space between moral and immoral is the wild human space, the natural response zone, the untrained zone. There was a time when humans naturally did not have this fight, before electronics, mass two way communication, before we learned we had choices about how and where to live. I knew as a child I could not be happy as an adult in the desolate and savage life that I was born into, and knew that I had to leave, the sooner the better. That discontent may have been part of the food issue. Oh well.  

Overeating is the base problem of obesity, to beat obesity, one must first beat overeating.  Then, over time, the weight issue corrects itself. Well, that is the theory anyway.

When we examine the lives of those who have beaten overeating, we find find people who are strict with their food intake; some weight and/or measure every morsel, every taste. If it is not a scheduled time, all food is rejected. Some are so prickly rigid.  .  .   Those ripe berries are not picked, or picked and saved for the next meal, not picked and eaten. That single first asparagus spear will remain untasted until it becomes part of a meal. It is a way of life, not yet my life, that must come by moral choice. It is the choice, the response, that is moral, not the reaction to a physical desire, the craving, the hunger. The problem is not moral, the best solution is the most moral behavior.

Recovery from overeating is a difficult process, not well understood by those involved, those that suffer, nor those who try to help. It is not a single path to victory. It is not a clear path to victory... or even what victory look like. Some of the people are just miserable in recovery, for the lack of a better word. They are miserable to be around, and are best just avoided. Some of us recognize this fact, and try to isolate ourselves. Some of us are just uncomfortable all the time. Oh well, that is our nature, like Sisyphus rolling his bolder, we do not want to talk about it, but it would be nice if we can remain happy, satisfied, and enjoy life.

  

1 comment :

  1. "over time, the weight issue corrects itself. Well, that is the theory anyway."
    Yep, I'm still waiting! (eye roll) - I have corrected by chronic overeating punctuated by binging episodes oh, probably 4-5 yrs ago, yet remain stuck on this plateau which seems to be my new "setpoint"... In order to get below it, I need to restrict further which isn't a bad thing from a moral/ethical/philosophical point of view anyway.

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