WHEN YOU HUNGER and THIRST from Sarah Ban Breathnach (Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy)

I came across the entry for April 14 today and it resonated with me .... I think, no, I am sure, because of the work I am doing / processing in the Read-Along with Dr. Brene Brown:

I THOUGHT I WAS JUST ME (but it isn't) - which can be found here: http://www.ordinarycourage.com/

So we're into Chapter Four, and for this week's podcast, Brene had a special guest visitor/speaker on the 'cast - author Katherine Center, who wrote THE BRIGHT SIDE OF DISASTER and her new EVERYONE IS BEAUTIFUL.

We're looking at areas where we get pulled into "what's wrong with me? why can't I be perfect like so-and-so" -- for some, it's in the area of motherhood. For others, it's in the area of body image. For others, it's career - education - religion - married life. Whatever it is that sucks you in and makes you feel LESS THAN, it bears a closer look so that you can HEAL that part of your world that is causing you pain & discomfort.

But let me get back on track.

What I turned to in SIMPLE ABUNDANCE: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy (April 14 entry) is this:

WHEN YOU HUNGER AND THIRST
'The body must be nourished, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We're spiritually starved in this culture -- not underfed but undernourished."
-- Carol Hornig

WOW. Then Sarah goes on to say ...

"Many women, including myself, swallow life in an attempt to keep it manageable. I mean this literally and figuratively. Whenever we're anxious, worried, nervous, or depressed, without thinking, we instinctively swallow food and drink in order to push away the uncomfortable negative experience we're feeling in our guts. We hunger and thirst, but it's not for a bowl of ice cream or a glass of wine. It's for inner peace and deeper connection."

HOLY COW. This is what hit me the hardest - what she says above. Talk about getting into my head!

Sarah goes on ....

"Carl Jung, the famous Swiss psychiatrist, believed that alcoholism was a sacred disease. M. Scott Peck relates in his book Further Along The Road Less Traveled how it occurred to Jung "that it was perhaps no accident that we traditionally referred to alcoholic drinks as spirits, and that perhaps alcoholics were people who had a greater thirst for the spirit than others, that perhaps alcoholism was a spiritual disorder or better yet, a spiritual condition." I believe this is also true about compulsive overeating, which is the addiction of choice for many women. We have such a passionate appetite for life, we just don't know what we truly need to satisfy our insatiable cravings for Wholeness."

WOW again. An 'insatiable craving for Wholeness.' That's powerful stuff.

more from Sarah:

"When I first became aware that when I 'swallowed' life I was really hungry and thirsty for joy and serenity, it was a turning point for me in learning self-nurturance. Finally, I understood that I wasn't underfed but spiritually undernourished. I realized I could go within and ask my soul - my authentic self - what I needed. 'How can I care for you at this moment? How can I love you? What is it you truly need?'

The next time you reach to put something in your mouth, take one minute to focus your awareness on what you're doing before you do it. ARE YOU EATING BECAUSE YOU ARE PHYSICALLY HUNGRY, or anxious? If you're anxious, a walk around the block instead of into the kitchen would be better for you and more loving. At the end of the day, are you pouring yourself a glass of wine out of habit in order to signal that it's time to relax? Instead, why not take a few sips of delicious fruit flavored mineral water as you prepare dinner, and enjoy the wine WITH your meal? Learn to create ceremonies of personal pleasure that can nourish your deeper longings. As you nurture your spirit with kindness, your physical cravings will loosen their grip.

Realize today that you hunger and thirst for a reason. Ask your authentic self to reveal your deeper needs, so that Spirit can quench and satisfy your parched and ravenous soul."

WHOA. Sarah hit my nail RIGHT on the head.

Her work is fresh and perfect no matter how many times I visit and re-visit it.

-- DAH