There’s a reason the post-breakup woman in every movie is found clutching a pint of ice cream along with a wad of snotty tissues — food will always love you, and you can come to rely on it as much as any vice
But no matter how bitchin’ you might turbo-charge that Rascal scooter, not being able to get around on your own is still kind of a bummer.
« For me, sugar has been like alcohol is for other people, » Rachel says. « It really goes right to my pleasure center. Interestingly enough, I’m in the process of establishing a good pain management system, because I have a lot of pain issues, and when I’m on pain medication, I don’t crave sugar as much. It’s like it hits that dopamine center. »
When you’ve already got addiction issues — as the two-pack-a-day-smoking, video-game-junkie Rachel clearly does — it’s one more obstacle to smash your metaphorical genitals into. Rachel started out as a relatively thin kid, but a traumatic experience in sixth grade led her to seek emotional relief from sweet lady pizza. « I would be upset, and then I would eat a pie or order a large pizza and eat that by myself, » she says, although she adds that « I don’t really do that anymore. »
Rachel’s case is an interesting one. Since her trauma involved sexual abuse, she struggles with a phenomenon doctors call « defensive weight. » That’s when survivors of sexual trauma subconsciously put on weight in an attempt to make themselves unattractive to potential abusers or to give themselves a kind of symbolic suit of armor. « You feel safe, » Rachel says. « There have been times that I’ve lost weight, like maybe 50 lbs., and it gives you anxiety. Continuer la lecture de « 4 There Are A Lot Of Weird Psychological Mechanisms At Play »