Remember ice cream sundaes for a good report card?
Remember lollipops right after a shot at the pediatricians?
Remember frozen sweets from the concession stand on a muggy afternoon in August?
Remember your first box of candy at the movies?
I DO and by the time I was old enough to buy my own 1 lb bags of M&Ms I was completely HOOKED.
Our culture uses sugar as a reward, as a bribe or consolation, as a pick me up and as a form of entertainment. Did you know that the average American consumes nearly 152 pounds of sugar every year 😱!!! FYI this comes out to 3 pounds (aka 6 cups) of sugar consumed in just one week.
🤯 Holy Fudgesicle Batman! 🍫🍩🍭
Certainly most of us know that sugar is not great for optimal health. We know that it can cause weight gain, brain fog, inflammation and eventually lead to Type 2 diabetes. I even read about links between sugar consumption and the growth of cancerous tumors. What isn't talked about nearly as much is how profoundly it affects our moods and mental/emotional stability. THIS is why it's so damaging for most empathic people.
When Maria Fuller of Raising a Powerful Girl and I connected recently we really unpacked the paradox of self care using treats like candy or big girl sweets like “Mommy Wine”. Sugar is delicious. It's a quick fix. It instantly triggers all the happy chemicals in our brains and bodies. On a stressful day it dials down the intensity and makes things feel more manageable. No wonder so many of us grab a KitKat, MilkyWay or sugary granola bar to counterbalance that late afternoon slump.
In the short term sugar brings relief and feels all warm and fuzzy. However a few hours later the sugar blues kick in as we plummet on the blood sugar rollercoaster. Even worse over the long term it compromises our already vulnerable filters, shields and depletes our emotional resilience. When I eliminated sugar and stayed away from it long enough to start feeling better, I discovered just how much it negatively effected my mood, my intuition and my perceptions of the world. Not only did sugar make me feel lousy physically, I experienced everything through a lens of apprehension and hopelessness. BUT kicking sugar is hard when a better solution isn't apparent. When we don't have effective tools to deal with stress and overwhelm we turn to the best ones available. This is what we talk about in Part 2 of Feeling So Strong: Empathic Mastery with Jennifer Moore Podcast Interview.
Please join me and host of Raising a Powerful Girl Maria Fuller for this awesome conversation about supporting ourselves and our empathic kids and how kicking the sugar blues is part of how we protect and empower ourselves and our families.
To listen go visit https://empathicmastery.com//PowerfulGirl2
AND if you haven't listened to part 1 yet you can catch it at https://empathicmastery.com/PowerfulGirl1
I'd love to hear your thoughts after you've listened. Let me know how you navigate the sugar blues and how it affects parenting or life in general for you.
And until next time I am wishing you a lovely June New Moon with extra eclipse blessings on top!
BTW Need some relief for your sugar jones? Check out this oldie but goodie Tap-Along on my YouTube channel Tapping for Sugar Cravings
AND do you know a mom with empathic daughters who'd find this podcast helpful? Please help me to spread the word and send this post to her. (Thank you in advance for your help)
