Why 'Healthy Within'?

I initially began this blog to sort out my reactions to a painful week of gastrointestinal problems after a few bad decisions. I realized I needed to change my attitude. During the first sleepless night of that painful reaction, I wandered over to the ThinWithin website. I suspect I was sooo desperate that I wanted to reach out to God for comfort and guidance. Then I realized I need to recommit to TW eating guidelines as well as accept God's grace.

The next day I decided to blog about my healing journey following ThinWithin principles. However I AM and have been thin for over 40 years. So my motivation was not to become thinner, but healthier. I've actually worked at restoring my gastrointestinal health for the past 4 years, since my CD and food allergy diagnoses. However I didn't want to consider that HOW I ate affected my gut health as well as WHAT I ate.

So I made my new focus a healthier attitude, healthier beliefs, which affect my eating habits (when and how much I ate, not just what I ate). 'Healthy within' seems kind of redundant. Where else do we get healthy, besides within our bodies? However by that term I intend to change my view of health. Previously I wanted to abstain from food allergens to avoid PAIN. So for me 'healthy' merely meant absence of pain. Now I want to approach physical health actively to honor the Creator of my body, rather than merely avoid pain. I don't mean obsessively follow every bit of health advice that emerges each week. I mean behave as though I believe 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 which says: "Do you not know that your body is the temple of God's Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. Therefore honor God with your body." For years I sought God's will for my life, while I neglected the most valuable resource He provided, my own body. Now I want to honor God by taking good care of this resource.

I didn't previously consider that eating habits like going too long without eating and/or overeating when I finally ate could be unhealthy, because my weight stayed in the same 3-5 pound range no matter how I ate. However I now realize that my eating and living habits really have a long term negative affect on my body, even when I ate 'healthy' safe (non allergenic) foods. What I think and believe influences how I treat my body. Accordingly, I entitled this blog journal 'healthy within' to share my journey toward physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health and wholeness.