Thursday 11 June 2009

Rising To The Challenge!

After I left treatment in New York and was living in the city, I ate out several times a week. My schedule was hectic between a day program, work and school and it was just impractical to go home and eat all my meals- I was busy and I loved it. Despite my ups and downs since then (2007) my visits to restaurants got far less frequent, but I still did it. Gradually it dwindled down to a very small handful of restaurants that I felt 'comfortable' eating in. Not because they offered particular foods, but I knew what to expect, what things looked like and could reassure myself by remembering that I had eaten there several times before.

It's been 7 months since I last ate in a restaurant. 7 months since I've eaten a meal that wasn't completely prepared by myself, calculated to the exact calorie. Tonight I am meeting up with another Edinburgh blogger for dinner and I am REALLY excited. Usually I need weeks to plan for this so it's all been a kind of 'last minute' thing (to me!). I haven't spent hours agonising over the menu or worrying- I have surprised myself by quite how calm I am about it. It's hard for me to even eat something different at home, never mind go out and hand over control to a chef I've never met. I am anxious- there are a lot of challenges for me this evening. Going out and breaking out of my routine is one, unknown food is a second, meeting someone new is a third. I haven't even contemplated the idea of cancelling- again, NOT like me (I can be such a flake in situations like this!)

I guess the difference is that I am excited to face something new and something different, rather than focusing on what could go wrong or the fear aspect. Sometimes just tilting your head a little and looking at a situation from a slightly different angle is all it takes to shed a whole new light on something...


Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is bliss, taste it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.
- Mother Teresa
*************

My meals so far today have been ugly, but delicious!

Breakfast, after boiling water on the hob to make coffee (I feel like I am camping- need a new kettle!)

Pumpkin, fromage frais, honey nut shreddies and peanut butter. Honey and peanut butter are such a perfect pair :)

Snack involved no chocolate!

Fage with muesli. I am so obsessed with yogurt at the moment- it's so versatile and delicious. I don't like it by itself, but mixed with fruit/cereal is such a great snack.

Lunch was inspired by a conversation about pot-lucks and pasta salad with Janetha...

Tuna pasta salad on a mound of spinach- and yes, that would be ketchup hiding under there... I tried to hide it, but my camera was NOT playing along. *sigh*

2 questions for today!

  1. what is your favourite thing to pair with peanut butter?
  2. what is your favourite thing to mix into yoghurt?

Hope everyone's Thursday is going well- will be recapping tonight's shenanigans tomorrow! Wish me luck! (Alice might need some luck too for putting up with me...hehe)

33 comments:

Cacti Don't Cry said...

Have fun at dinner -- just enjoy it! :)

Hmm... I don't generally pair PB with anything, I don't eat it often enough for that!! This requires some thought. ;)

As for yogurt ... cereal and / or berries, no question!! Liberal amounts of cinnamon don't hurt, either.

<3 <3

Anonymous said...

I used to have SO much trouble eating out - now I'd say I'm about 90% comfortable with it...it just takes practice!

I love peanut butter in sandwiches (with coconut! Jelly! Banana slices!), with fruit, with yogurt and cereal...with fro yo! I could go on forever!

Yogurt+cereal+fruit (usually berries or a banana)+pb/NUTELLA = best combo. EVER.

Syd said...

I hope that you have a great time at dinner. It sounds great. Just enjoy the whole experience.

I pair PB with grape jelly. Love those PB and J sandwiches.

Yogurt--I add cinnamon, vanilla, and raisins. Good stuff.

Olga said...

Your dinner is going to be fabulous, we want details! :)

I eat out WAY too much, I don't think I can go 3 weeks without it!

I love PB & chocolate covered pretzels, salty crackers, plus the obvious bananas

I love yogurt with berries, granola and apples...I guess I'm not too creative in these choices but they're delish!

Anonymous said...

valencia pb is actually from Trader Joes and is a combination of flaxseeds and peanuts! So it tastes like peanut butter because it is still peanut butter! But flaxseeds offer a great source of ALA/ Omega-3 fatty acids and soluble fiber!

Abby said...

I think we're in the same boat with a lot of things, and eating out is one of them. Unless I'm traveling for work and forced to eat out, I don't. (Part of it is that I'm cheap, too, but a big part is that I have no idea where the food is coming from). Anyway, when I do go out, I try and enjoy it, get something I wouldn't fix for myself and move on. Have fun!

There is nothing better than a grilled PB and banana sandwich. As for yogurt, I'm boring and just do the fruit, cereal, almonds, etc. I actually like the taste of plain Fage, so I don't hide it with a ton of other stuff.

Anonymous said...

Pasta Salad... mmmm... that sounds delicious! You'll have a great time eating out... you are better than every miniscule calorie! Just enjoy yourself and your company!

Fave thing with yogurt is peanut butter or warm berries... or letting it get soggy with some kind of cereal or bread... mmm...

Fave thing with PB would be yogurt, or letting it get melty on a good wheat bagel... or basically PB is good on ANYTHING! :)

Hey, thanks so much for you support of my blog. I love getting your comments and I hope that maybe one day I can travel to Scotland (right?) and visit you! We should definitely keep in touch. We might just have to start our own life coach business! You do the coaching, I'll do the business! Let me know! :)
<3 Always,
Keri

Matt said...

Peanut butter and bananas!

Yogurts and cereal (especially puffins!)

dietlexy said...

Def peanut butter with banana and digestive biscuits!!! mmmmmm
yoghurt with mixed seeds! mmmmm
gud luck with dinner 2nite.

Emma said...

Kefir does taste like yogurt! I get the plain type, and then add whatever I want to it to get flavour - the fruit types have tones of sugar!

I hope you have tons of fun tonight!

PB + apples and or carrots = yum.

Yogurt and any type of cereal and fruit. Yummers.

elise said...

good job on rising to the challenge, eating out will be a blast and maybe remind you of the good aspects of dining that youve been missing out on.

i work at beth israel on 1st and East 16th, which is two blocks from the union square building your relative works at (his is outpatient, whereas im inpatient)...how crazy! after our patients recover from cardiac surgery we refer them there...i bet i know him, and if i dont, certainly the older nurses i work with do! plus, cardiologists often come visit their patients while they are in the hospital. whats his last name!?!

Tina said...

Have fun eating out sweetie! Today I enjoyed the fruitus bar by the way and I loved it and they sell them in holland (I never dared to try them, thanks to you I know they qualify as a me-likey-product).

Proud of you for going out to dinner, personally I love doing that, which is a new development. I used to freak out and cancel everything last minute but I've found out that going out to dinner with people you love is mucho fun!

And I'm gonna be out of school officially the 17th of July, but our last day of class is on the 9th.

xxx

P.S. PB + jelly rock my world, but I agree with the PB+nutella combo too. I have yet to brave other variations with this godly substance

Anne said...

I used to fear eating out sooo much. I'd get so uptight and unhappy when my family went to a restaurant. I'm slowly relaxing about it, and it's so nice to go to a restaurant and actually enjoy it, rather than stressing about calories all the time! Have a great time at the restaurant tonight :D

1) I love pairing PB with oatmeal, or greek yogurt!

2) My greek yogurt combos include pumpkin, cereal (or oats, or granola), cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice, and PB! Yum :)

Anonymous said...

Seriously, have fun tonight! Don't even worry about those annoying little numbers and just enjoy yourself :)

Hmmm.. with PB I love: honey, bananas, TOFU!, raisins, and jelly of course. It also goes well in cereal and greek yogurt.

Yogurt: cereal, various fruits, honey, and cookies :D also cinnamon and nuts

Have fun :D

K from ksgoodeats said...

Have fun at dinner! Enjoy the company you're with :)

PB and yogurt are wonderful together!! I also like PB with English muffins or yogurt with Kashi crunch and TONS of cinnamon!

EvilGenius said...

I hope dinner went well, was thinking of you! getting back into the habit of trusting someone else to make a meal for you is such a positive and brave thing!
as for your questions - here's a secret - as a kid I was super fussy and all I would eat was peanut butter and nutella sandwiches! so if not for my ED that would probs be my favourite...one day! at the moment...jam and toast!
and yogurt + cereal + fruit is the best combo IMO :)
xx

Danielle said...

I hope you have a great dinner!
And that pb drizzle makes my mouth water it looks perfect, I love some pb melted poured on fro yo and then put back in the freezer, it becomes like a candy shell

Gina; The Candid RD said...

I guess it's just now becoming clear to me that you used to struggle (and maybe still are a bit...??) with anorexia. I suppose I figured this out a while back, but this last post reminded me. I'm not sure if I told you but I used to be anorexic, and look at me now, I'm a dietitian! I still struggle at times (as I think most people who had an eating disorder have tough times every once in a while) but from all that I have learned about nutrition I find it hard to ever imagine falling back into my old ways. Please feel free to talk about anything with me, as I understand the disease well now and I enjoy hearing people's thoughts/experiences etc. with the disease, it's therapeutic :)

Anonymous said...

Good luck tonight girl! Have fun, relax, and enjoy yourself!

I love peanut butter IN oatmeal the mosttttt, but my favorite thing to mix with yogurt is actually peanut butta too!! Ahh i'm in love.

elise said...

SHUT YOUR MOUTH!!! hahaha omg of COURSE i know dr hoffman!!! how effing crazy!! yes hes a surgeon, and i see him every day! i know all about the dogs and at the xmas party i also met the rest of the fam...i feel like i know you now!

janetha said...

i guess i didn't realize you are in scotland until this post! wow! luckyyy. i went there once when i was living over that way. gorg. love that place.

i really love that you are just letting your gaurd down and giving tonight a chance! you will have fun and enjoy it, for sure. cant wait to see what you guys eat!

favorite thing with PB is warm toast or oats. fave thing with yogurt is peaches and cinnamon!

yummo to the pasta salad bombness!

Pamela Alida said...

Have fun at dinner! I am really proud of you for not stressing over the menu... I still have a huge problem with that.

lots of love

Emily said...

Enjoy your dinner out tonight! :-)

I actually love mixing PB into yogurt! So good with bananas.

Telstaar said...

So so glad you're stepping outside of your comfort zone hunni! You are so correct about seeing something from a different angle. The "thing" remains the same, our viewpoint is just altered, super cool.

Peanut butter - not a fan
Yoghurt - Only just discovered a few yoghurts I can eat - I like it in most things, particulalry on fruit or in cous cous (with salmon or tofu) :D

xoxo

Anonymous said...

Oh boy, I did not know about your dining out history. Tomorrow is a BIG day, huh? You can do it, Ellie! Pumping fist into the air!
Eating out is SUCH a huge part of social life...you'll be SO glad once you face it and conquer it...btw, I'm eating out tomorrow, too...and my friend isn't telling me where we're going! So we BOTH have big days tomorrow!
PB is best in oats! and yogurt is best with cinnamon and fruits! because Sophia says so!

Jaime said...

omg girl!! you are amazing-- you'll totally rock it!!! i eat out ALL the time and i can promise NOTHING will 'happen' !! you got this xoxoxo

Nutritious is Delicious said...

Favorite thing to pair with PB? BREAD!
Favorite thing to mix into yogurt? PB!

Enjoy your dinner!

Brooke said...

You've got a great attitude about taking on this feat. I'm really proud of you! I totally get how anxious this must make you feel but you are dealing with it so well. It is these sort of experiences that will encourage you to keep making progress...in my opinion, pb is best paired in a good old fashioned pb&j sandwich:) Yogurt is definitely best paired with strawberries and granola!

janie said...

wow, i did not know the restaurant trip was that meaningful. that is incredible that you rose to the challenge, i am so happy and proud for yoooouuu. :) :) EXCELLENT ACCOMPLISHMENT!

ps i cant believe it was all the way back in 2007 that we met!! :O time uh, flies.

-janie

janie said...

moar commentz i forgot to add:

LOL at you being hardk0rE and boiling water. i understand, i would have done the same thing if i didn't have a kettle. :x it's a funny feeling though, definitely like camping heheh.


what is your favourite thing to pair with peanut butter?
--> crackers or celery or just plain off the spoon, really!! i prefer PB plain to with something.. or in treatment you know where ;) on rice krispie squares or pretzels.
what is your favourite thing to mix into yoghurt?
-->granola/muesli. definitely.

-janie

Anonymous said...

I am definitly going to come to edinburgh soon :D
Cant go since i am sedentary plus I would use up waaay too much energy.
Have a great time out to dinner you deserve it chick!!
I LOVE yoghurt and have it with every snack lol. Especially fage, tahini mixed in is good, but Grape Nuts cereal mixes in very well! Definitly peanut butter in overnight oats, or chicken cooked in it is good! lol.
num nums x

Anonymous said...

I'm so happy you're looking forward to eating out. I know you're going to have a great time.

Eating out is something I want to do more of, but time isn't always on my side, what with working shifts and every other weekend. That's on my to do list.

I think I'm the only blogger who doesn't like Peanut Butter (please don't all hate me) but yogurts I love. I usually add fruit, cereal or honey to it.

Haylee said...

I love your blog Hun! I always read it and I thought I'd finally comment. You're food always looks divine! Ok for me personally, pb goes best with a GOOD slice of whole wheat bread. (toasted or still hot from the oven perferably). As for the yogurt, hm that's a tough one but I guess I have to say my favorite cereal of the moment.. Kashi golean! Mm mm.
Have an amazing day!
Haylee