health

I have a disease, an addiction that compromises my physical, emotional, and spiritual health. I am a compulsive overeater and sugar addict. Both of these conditions have contributed to break downs in my own mental and spiritual health as well as in my relationships with others and myself. I've found a spiritual program to treat my addiction, but does that mean I can ignore the physical?

No. For me, true health includes emotional, physical and spiritual well being. Having said that I believe that in order to reach physical health I need to work on the spiritual.

I've done a lot of work over the years on my mental/emotional and spiritual health. I've been lazy with my physical health, but working the steps of OA and starting a spiritual/physical practice in yoga are all ways I can return myself to balanced holistic health.

Fancy word holistic. According to the dictionary, one meaning is: of or relating to the medical consideration of the whole person, physically and psychologically, in the treatment of the disease.

For me that means in order to get whole health I have to treat my whole person starting with the spiritual - that connection with a Power greater than myself. I've already proven I cannot fight this addiction on my own - I can't even find the will to fight it, but with the help of my Higher Power and the fellows in OA that She has brought me to I can and will find holistic health.

Honestly, my spiritual connection has never really been in doubt - I've always acknowledged and found comfort in a Higher Power, in my case, showing Herself to me as a great Earth Goddess who nurtures and loves me unconditionally. I've worshiped in my heart, in ritual, and in journeying, but I've never given this struggle - the struggle for physical health over to that Goddess. I never really considered that I should. I look this way and feel this way through my own fault so I felt I had to get better on my own. How egotistical of me. I had no problem asking a therapist for help with my emotional and psychological health using prayer and meditation to find that, I had no problem asking my lovely local shamans for health with the spiritual and emotional, and I looked to my doctor for help with the psychological and physical, but never thought to ask my spiritual Source for help with the physical. If prayer and meditation can help with my spiritual, emotional, and psychological health then it only makes sense to call on that spirituality for the physical as well. Especially since I could no longer even find the will to do it myself.

Through a holistic approach focusing on the spiritual tools in my arsenal, I have managed 21 days of abstinence - 21 days of 3 meals a day - no in between eating, no added sugar, no compulsive eating to try to numb my emotional and spiritual pain. I've blogged every day, meditated every day, done yoga 3 days a week, and attended many online OA meetings. I've turned this addiction over to my Higher Power and I feel better, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I'm finding holistic health.

Admittedly, I'm in my honeymoon phase. It all feels fresh and new. I don't expect a crash, but it could happen and if it does I can write here about it, I can call an OA friend, I can go to a meeting, I can take time out to prayer or meditate. I have tools that I can replace food with. I'm blessed to have a loving Higher Power that cares and supports me and gives me strength to do the work I need to do to find holistic health.