Put Down the Google!
/I find the show “Portlandia” to be therapeutic. It cracks me up and it brings joy to my life. I love Carrie and Fred and sometimes fantasize about living in their world. You know calling them up to “put a bird on it” or snuggling up with for a Battlestar Galactica marathon. Yes, I know it’s just a show and that they’re portraying characters, but in my world it’s who they really are. And they are totally my friends.
Another draw for me it that so often I relate to the topics that are highlighted on the show. My latest therapeutic episode is the one about a young woman (played by Kirsten Dunst) who is haunted by “well-informed” ghosts. This episode really reflected my own recent anxiety in life: that I’m unsure what is good or bad for me.
These ghosts haunt their victims by simply repeating (in a ghost like voice, of course) the conflicting messages we hear in the media. For example Ghost Carrie is convinced that “Sleep kills”, while Ghost Fred responds with “So does lack of sleep.” They squabble about who is right and comically use vague references to back up their statements. “It’s true, I heard it on NPR.”
I feel as though I have similar ghosts in my own life lately. For the past 13 or so years of my life, I have had a very relaxed outlook on my own health. After a few years of food and body obsession in my early 20’s, I found peace by letting go of the rules, the diets, the rigorous exercise through my own personal work including counseling, holistic therapies, close authentic friendships, and guidance by others who had found relief from similar issues. I have lived with the firm belief that diets and restriction are not healthy for me. These things only lead to hyperfocus on myself, my food, and in the past, have led to much unhappiness.
However, recently someone close to me began something akin to the paleo diet. The doubt awakened. I want to live a reasonable, healthy life. What if corn and flour are going to kill me? What about my children? So against my better judgment, I began researching to find the “right” way to eat. And, down the rabbit hole I fell. My own “ghost” ramblings began…
“Bacon will kill you because of the nitrates.”
“Bacon is great and the research regarding nitrates is flawed.”
“Eat like prehistoric man.”
“That’s ridiculous, the body needs carbs.”
“You’ve gotta do cardio at least 4 times per week.”
“Oh, no. Don’t do cardio, do this instead…” (Insert image of my head exploding here.)
So when I fell upon this lovely episode of Portlandia, I felt understood. It’s not just me. We are living in a world where so many people’s livelihoods are based on selling us on what is good and bad for our bodies. And, they all say different things. What I know from experience is that the trends come and go, often leaving in their path a wreckage of eating disorders, messed up metabolism, increased self-hatred, and confusion.
I often tell my clients to “put down the google,” the spreader of anxiety and dis-ease. And, so I shall do the same. I will return to trusting simplicity and balance. To knowing that what may work for others may not work for me. I will sacrifice the need to “do it right” for the peace that comes with doing it “good enough.” And, I will eat bacon because I love it. Enough said. Now go check out this awesome Portlandia clip on Dunst’s site and then enjoy the rest of your day!