Raw obsession!!

[cinnamongirl]

I need some help. Does anyone else feel like eating/staying raw has become an obsession? I feel like I think about food constantly and never know what I want to eat. My family eats cooked mostly vegan, although they'd happily eat meat and do sometimes. I'm mama to 5 and only me and my 1 year old daughter are raw. She seems to prefer raw. Today my husband make her a corn tortilla with beans and raw goat cheese and she would not have it, then she ate eagerly a half of tomatoe. I'm always anxious about food. I was all raw from Feb-May, then probably 90% through August now I feel like I need to get back on track and it's really hard. Any advice??

[SuBu]

I obsessed at first and cannot really remember when it finally became natural, but I just do it--without thought now and it's only been 4 months. Like a roller coaster at first though. I just kept embracing the journey and now it just IS. Be patient with yourself and just do what you know you need to do. See how natural it is for your little one?

[cinnamongirl]

Thanks. Part of what is hard is I don't believe that the food I feed the rest of my family, all teens and my dh, is bad food, it's just I know raw is better so it's easy to slide back and forth and then I feel bad. I also don't want my dd to obsess about her food and weight all her life like I have and I worry that all my focus on what we eat may do that.

[SuBu]

Maybe you can teach her that raw is optimum for health and if you choose to add some cooked vegan, it is in addition to the "healthy food". Does that make sense? I understand what you are saying. All you can do is lay out the guidelines and set the example. She's already forming a pattern for her preferences and it sounds like it's raw! As for you--sounds like you have to decide if you really want to be all raw. I still fix my husband's SAD meals and some of them are not so horribly bad--unless you are a raw vegan! Again, be patient with yourself. Don't stress and choose where you want to fit in.

[ladypeace82]

This is an obsession to me. I'm 2 1/2 months into it. :)

[sport]

I think that for me eating vegan could be described as an obsession but eating raw is a choice that I make. I am happy to make that choice.

[ladypeace82]

it's an obsession for me b/c I'm always on here and trying to learn as much as I can. :)

[iamacranberry]

It's an obsession for me, but anything that I do successfully becomes an obsession for me at one point or another. THis is part of my personality.

[ladypeace82]

It's an obsession for me, but anything that I do successfully becomes an obsession for me at one point or another. THis is part of my personality.

That's how I am too. then it usually fads away. I don't think this will fad though. my husband begs to differ........

[iamacranberry]

Music was an obsession when I first began. Now as I'm working on my master's degree in it, it isn't--but that doesn't mean I don't get random bursts of inspiration to do obsessive things in music.

Raw is not as much as an obsession as it used to be. I have an obsessive and addictive personality, and after a lot of back-and-forth with raw and finally deciding to stay with it, it's much less novel and much less an obsession than it was before. If it helps, ease into it. Make sure it's really what you want to do.

[EZ rider]

I do raw like SuBu does without effort or trying. I just eat what I feel like having. When I feel like eating I just sense what my body wants and eat that. It feels as natural as when I fall asleep after an active day. Raw has gotten easier and more natural with the passing weeks.

[Shell]

Heh...I was just thinking about this today, actually. I was at work, and since my friend and I are going to see a movie tonight, I was trying to work out how much I could get done in the time I got off work until we left for the movie. One of the main things on my list was "Well, am I going to have time to go on RFT??!! I MUST!! I can't go A WHOLE DAY without it!" So, um, yeah, I would say I'm a smidgen obsessed! But I get that way with everything, so maybe it's not that unusual for me. I think that particularly for newbies, it HAS to be SOMEWHAT of an obsession.....I mean, you want to make sure you have as much info as possible, and you're always looking for new recipes, asking for advice on this or that, etc. It's hard NOT to think about it all the time. I wouldn't stress out too much.....I'm finding that I think about food less and less (not saying that I don't fully enjoy it though!), as I keep on going. It's just me, so I don't have a family to deal with, and so can't help you there, but you're definitely NOT alone in the obsession department!

[Madeleine.Blythe]

I totally understand.. I remember the nightmares I'd have about eating cooked foods, and waking up in a state of panic, thankful that it was just a dream..
I think about food all the time, possibly because of my former eating disordered self and then wondering if everything I consume is raw.. Either way, food has been my number 1 thought for a long time.

It would be nice to stop thinking about it.

[SuBu]

EZ Rider--you seem so laid-back. Perfect name for you.

[brydee]

I wouldnt worry about your daughter at all!! you are giving her the best start are you not? I would of thought if you had her on any other diet, she would then possibly get overweight then become obsessed?
Iv always been obsessed with food since i can remember, whatever diets iv eat be it meat, vege,vegan, and i know i am already obsessed with this, and everyone has noticed!

[casperlynn]

I'd say that raw is very much an obsession for me in that I desire to learn as much as possible about the lifestyle and its benefits.

BUT...

For the first time in my life, I do NOT obsess about food, and THAT, my friends, is just freakin' amazing to me. I listen to my body and eat accordingly. If it's raw, I don't have to think; I simply DO.

I still do a cooked dinner for DH, and I obsess more about what the heck I'm gonna fix for him than I do about my own dinner. :rolleyes:

Oh, and RFT? Now THAT is an obsession, teeheeee. I looooooveee this place! :D

[EZ rider]

Oh, and RFT? Now THAT is an obsession, teeheeee. I looooooveee this place! :DGood distinction. I really like this forum and the people here a lot too.

[Dylan]

For a long time I felt like food was all I thought about. I lived meal to meal and felt like I was both eating all the time and totally freaked about exactly what was going in my mouth.

Lately I just feel like I am always making good decisions, and that my routines are such that I don't really even have to think about it. It's like I put lots of energy into it at first until it has now become very automatic.

[VeroP]

I'm passionate about many things that I do, so this is just another part of that. I think I only worry if I feel that I do not have raw options - I over pack my lunch as I think that if I am away from home I am away from food. I am getting over this.

My family is also cooked vegan. We co-habitate nicely now - I still cook on Fridays for them and they enjoy some raw items and/or not so raw items in the VitaMix.

[kaleidoscopeeyes]

It has a bit, yeah. I've had nightmares about eating cooked food. I don't think it would be as much of a worry if there weren't a chance I could be forced to not be raw (my mum knows I'm raw but my dad doesn't. If he finds out I won't be able to continue.)

[Nurse in the Raw]

After 5 months, the obsession has worn off and I just eat what I feel like. Today I had to give a presentation about kids and mental illness and my instructor asked me to throw in something "alternative" to modern medicine. The first thing that came to mind was food. So everyone got a lesson in the SAD diet and how it is affecting children today with a springboard into vegan raw.

[StarFire]

I wouldn't worry about your daughter... she is choosing what she eats - and it does seem that she prefers raw. That's great! If she changes as she grows - that's fine too... just make sure that shes eating healthy - and balanced!

as far as being obsessed.... hmmmm.... http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/thinking.gif ... am I obsessed.....

well... I would have to say ... YES. but not in a bad way - I'm obsessed in a having fun, loving it kinda way. I love seeing the changes in me. I love learning new things, I love the food (which I love thinking about - and about new recipes) I love how the food tastes, I love meeting new rawbies and reading about their adventures... I love how this has become my heart song.... and I want (and will) become a certified Living on live foods teacher someday... and get certified by Alissa....

I love how this lifestyle has helped open doors to my healing -- physically, mentally, emotionally.... I love how it's given me a second chance at life.... I love how this lifestyle saved my marriage....

need I say more.... Yea http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/shrug.gif - i guess some would call it obsession... I would never really describe it as that - but when i look at it all -- I gotta say --- well -- yep... I'm obsessed! and I looove it! I could do this 24/7... and still be smiling and laughing and loving it.... http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/dancing-6.gif

I love being on this forum - I could do this all day - and give up working at my day job -- without giving it a second thought !! so... there you go....
call me obsessed.... and proud of it! http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/thyahoo.gif

[Hannah]

I think I know what you mean about being obsessed with raw food eating - maybe ... when I first ventured down this path my approach to food in general was obsessive and "heavy" - like I was worried about all of it, I thought I couldn't enjoy my food AND eat healthfully ... and then I worried about getting the right nutritional balance ... and then I dunno what I worried about, but I did worry a good deal about what I ate ...

Now I've been raw 40 days and I just don't worry about what I eat as much as I did for the first few weeks - its just pretty natural. And as I learn more recipes and grow braver in the kitchen I actually find that I am having fun with food and enjoying the preparation and ingesting of food - savoring each moment. Its no longer a time to shovel in the nutrients, I am growing connected to the process ...

Perhaps in time you will find the lightness, passion and excitement for food too. I wouldn't worry too much about your daughter, because the more you worry the more she'll sense your concern. Maybe try to be light about food and the choices you're making, it certainly sounds like they are well thought out great choices! One of the most important things you can do is just love your daughter for who she is and show her that love comes from the heart, not from a plate of food - then she will really be nourished no matter what she is eating!

[4forme]

I understand where you are coming from as well. I also am a passionate person, so whatever I am discovering at the time is an obsession for me. Ask my dh, I am sure he thinks this is my newest obsession that will fade away like all the rest.
But, I really enjoy pouring over recipes like before, I obsess about what I will eat, making sure I will have something good if stuck in a situation, or that I will have enough fruit for the weekend, I also think about every meal, all day. I go to the cupboard just to grab a few nuts or raisins numerous times throughout the day. I did this when eating sad as well. I just love food. I actually have had a distorted veiw of food since I was a teenager. Hopefully someday I will be able to eat to live, instead of living to eat. But for now, make the best choice as possible and stay raw.
Hang in there, it's part of the healing process, freedom will come in time.

[Juicy Girl]

I am absolutely obsessed but I was with SAD also. Now it's just healthier.

[kyrie]

My opinion is RAW rocks.If you have the opportunity to do it, just do it.
As for thinking about food all the time, most SADDers (Standard American (Australian) Deficiency Diet) eat whatever regardless of quality when the eat.

If you can get your daughter on to raw, that's a bonus. Set her up healthwise and nutritionally for life.

Enjoy it, it's a great obsession.

Carla.

[Marcus]

I've been 80% raw for three months and can attest to a load of great changes in my life. But for awhile now, I've been thinking mostly about how I can get my wife & two stepsons to eat more raw food. I'd like to see all of us move in a better direction. And we've made a little progress. Yay! :)

So no, not an obsession, but definitely on the front burner with a nice, bright blue flame.

[iamacranberry]

The best thing you can do is continue to be the healthy example. People aren't forced into life-changes, they're inspired into them.

[crystalmoon]

Im having a few problems with being obsessed about being 100% raw all of the time...Im having to watch I dont get too down on myself if I have something that isnt quite raw. It is easy for me to think of myself as failing when in reality my diet is massively improved even when I am having the odd steamed veggie.

[Lavendula]

Many, many voices, saying the same and different things, but all come down to the same message. We are all here for support in this way of eating. I am really not obsessing about what I put in my mouth, or if I can stay raw, or if eat something cooked. I am just here and there too trying to find ideas for what to eat, to make sure it is what is best for me, not mock cooked. I have been a foodie or food snob for a long long time, even before there was a label for it, I loved to create great food and feed people, now I struggle just to feed myself. Because I really love raw food and am not diet addicted, I want to make sure I have something to eat that will truly nourish me, not just fill me up. But I have been binging since yesterday on certain cooked foods, because I'm just tired, tired, tired , and cold, just having trouble with the energy it takes.

[iamacranberry]

Not having support is what I find most difficult about this eating lifestyle. That's one thing I like about these boards--there are like-minded people to exchange ideas with who know where you're coming from. Expose yourself as much as possible to positive, healthy people who will support your decision to be raw....even if you can only find them online!

[Lavendula]

I got Alissa's book today, maybe this will hepl me. I just haven't figured out how to get ahead, and try to feed my DH, who is so supportive. I am ashamed to be so fortunate that he will go an hour out of his way to buy me fresh wheat grass, and stop at Whole Foods 3-4x aweek. He is really learning to shop for organic produce, even inspecting the wheatgrass at WF to compare it to the fresh daily stuff, no comparison. He's the best, but he really isn't eating raw.

[iamacranberry]

That's amazing! Kudos to you!