The Psych Evaluation

At 3pm on Monday, I sat down to fill out a five-page questionnaire examining my current psychological affect, and my feelings, emotional desires, and psychological triggers as they relate to eating and food.

I am pretty sure the questionnaire’s goal is to recognize poor habits and to recognize self-destructive thoughts and feelings.

Anyways, after I completed the questionnaire I met with the psychologist for about an hour. It was very informal and much like therapy the meeting was an ebb and flow of various topics. We discussed my psychological health, my food triggers (boredom), and my eating habits and patterns.

Boredom…

She was very interested to know how I overcome my boredom trigger.

I learned a long time ago that I like to snack when I am bored. Unfortunately for those who partake in this particular food trigger we usually go straight for the high calorie, high carbohydrate goodies like cookies, chips, breads and the like. It’s easy to kill time snacking and we really don’t realize that we’ve eaten the entire bag of chips until we reach for a few more and there are no more left.

I would not say I’m completely cured of this type of food trigger but I do know how to manage it pretty well. I simply don’t buy quick foods, snack foods, and junk food when I go grocery shopping. Well, with the exception of popcorn. But I have learned over the years that if I actually have to cook the food (i.e. defrost a frozen chicken breast or haul out the pots and pans) I will not eat and the trigger will pass.

I very freely admit, it’s very hard for me to pass up the quick things like cereal, snack crackers, pizza rolls, and chips but I take the advice of one of my favorite chef Alton Brown, “Just walk away.” Over the years, the battle has gotten considerable easier.

I’ve replaced a lot of my snacking items with fruit. I have found that I really enjoy certain varieties of apples and if I need to keep my hands busy I will eat an orange or two. I really do not limit my intake of fruits. I consider them to be an excellent aspect of a well-balanced diet.

So what was the conclusion the psychologist and I came to? I am a fairly well adjusted individual who is self confident, balanced, and doesn’t abuse food as a coping mechanism. I am ready to make the lifestyle changes necessary to be a successful weight loss surgery patient.