Primary Foods

Nutrition is a secondary source of energy. Primary foods, or nonfood sources of nourishment, are what really matters fuel us. As children, we all lived on primary food. Lovers thrive on the pure bliss and peace they’re experiencing, while passionate entrepreneurs are fueled by their work. The excitement and rapture of daily life feeds us more completely than any food.

Imagine children playing outside with friends. At dinnertime their mother calls them, “Time to come in and eat!” “No mommy, I’m not hungry yet,” they respond. At the table, the mother dutifully ensures that the children leave no morsel behind. The children reluctantly force down the minimum requirement, eager to get back outside and play. At the end of the day they return, exhausted and satisfied. They quickly fall asleep without thinking about food at all.

Can you remember being deeply in love? Everything is light and warm, colors are vivid, and life is full of joy. You’re high off your lover’s presence, sustained and exhilarated by this blissful connection. You float on air, and food becomes secondary.

Think back to a time when you were involved in an exciting work project. You believed in what you were doing whole-heartedly and felt confident and stimulated. Time stopped, and the outside world was muted - food was an afterthought.

Now recall a time you were depressed or experiencing low self-esteem - you were starving for primary food. No matter how much you ate, you never felt satisfied. The need for love, power, or mere acknowledgement drove the desire for excess food.

Balance is unique to each individual. What may feel balanced to one person may feel stressful or boring to another. Breast Cancer often shows up after a long cascade of events and years of being unbalanced. In Integrated Nutrition we refer to the Circle of Life as your primary food. You must feed these areas of your life, and if you have severe dissatisfaction in one or more areas it’s most likely affecting your overall wellness. The good news is these are things you can change!

Review the 12 areas in the circle above. Place a dot on each line to represent how satisfied you are in that area of your life. (you will need to print out this page) The closer to the center represents completely dissatisfied and the outer edge of the circle represents complete satisfaction. Once you have accessed each area of your life and placed the dots, connect the dots to reveal a visual representation of your Circle of Life.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Are there any surprises?

• How do I feel about my life as I look at the Circle of Life?

• How do I currently spend time in these areas?

• How would I like to spend time in these areas?

• Which of these elements would I like to improve?

• How could I make space for these changes?

• What help from others might I need?

• What would make it a better circle?

• What would a balanced circle look like for me?

Periodically repeat this exercise to see where you have made improvements. Reducing stress and balancing your life is essential to healing. Discover what each areas means and possible changes you can make in the supporting pages! Making changes is hard and most of us need support. If you are wanting to dive deeper and make sustainable changes for an optimal outcome, Breast Cancer Coaching might be right for you. Schedule a free consultation.

©2014, 2016 Integrative Nutrition, Inc. | Reprinted with permission