Well, if you are reading this then like me you survived one of the holidays I was honestly dreading this year. Before my diagnosis Thanksgiving was one of my favorite holidays and although I would like to say it was because of the family time, games and giving thanks it was really all about the food.
Being from England I did not grow up eating the kind of food you have at a traditional Thanksgiving feast so to me the entire experience was so America from day one. And I loved it. Green bean casserole, mash potato, yummy, buttery bread rolls, sweet potatoes/yams, gravy by the boat load, mounds of stuffing and of course we cannot forget about the star of the show, the turkey. Then comes my favorite part...dessert. Pies of every kind smothered in spray whipped cream, cool whip, ice cream or a combination of all of them.
I admit that food is a big thing for me and this holiday was the one time of the year I could really embody the glutton within myself and she loved it.
Then came my diagnosis and honestly the thought of this holiday cause my depression to raise its ugly head and laugh at me and my inner self. No longer could I just eat my weight in turkey, sides and dessert. No longer could I have second or third helpings later on the day while we played games. No longer could I devour eggnog by the gallon as I watched the in laws banter about the worlds events.
Honestly I believed that this time of year would be nothing but sweat pants, depression and my new abiding love for my homemade oatmeal cookies. (Truthfully, it is also why I put off making this post.) Sure, I could have let my spirit stay in the darkness and wallow but then I realized something.
It is customary when going to someone's home for a get-together, like Thanksgiving, to bring something. In this case I was charged with bringing candied yams/sweet potatoes. My husband just loves them and even though I'm still new to making Thanksgiving things I gave it a try.
Well, as I was debating which recipe to use I remembered that with my condition it is not up to every single person I know to change their recipes or make special food just for me. It is my job and my responsibility to figure out what I can eat or eat everything and deal with the consequences. I decided on door number one.
While making the candied deliciousness for my hubby and the family I decided to make sweet potato mash, something I know I can eat and do very often. Also once we reached the table along with the family I was able to pick portions of turkey that had little to no seasoning. When it came time to dessert I did indulge a little and had two pieces of pumpkin pie, but then I cannot resist its charm.
Sure it was not the usual mass feast I would have normally eaten during the holiday but really it worked out better this way. I was able to keep my pain at bay, enjoy myself with the family and I did not really feel like I missed out on everything. (Though I admit watching the green bean casserole be devoured by others was hard to watch.) Next year I will have to create my own recipe for it so I can have some.
Basically I realized that I have control over my condition. It does not control me. I could have just eaten what I wanted and suffered the pain that came with it, but instead I chose to embrace my condition. Thanks to my effort I had one of the best Thanksgivings I have had in a long time and as corny as it sounds I was able to appreciate the true meaning behind it...being thankful.
I am thankful for my condition as it has showed me that I need to take care of myself to be able to take care of others. It has given me patience with myself. It is teaching me discipline...okay its not perfect, it is still a work in progress but the point is I am not allowing the negative parts to control me.
Holiday or no holiday we can not allow the negative portions of our condition to get us down. As I have said before, cry, scream, rant and rave if you must, but do not allow yourself to be pulled under by it. We are the same people we were before, except now we have to deal with something that not many people understand but its okay.
We got this.
#NeverGiveUp
#AlwaysKeepFighting
#TogetherWeAreStronger
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