Gratitude in place of fear

This isn't about food, but reading it inspired me to write this post
https://www.brainpickings.org/2016/02/15/seneca-letter-18/

One thing I hadn't considered about the gratitude diet is the way it can teach us that we can be OK even with the bare minimum. Living on rice and beans for a few days is not a true deprivation for most reasonably healthy people.

Fear, at a very subconscious level, plays a role in the desire to eat as much as you can while it's available. I think it's a lesson that's instilled very deeply over generations of time. Perhaps it's even part of our genetics.

It's scary to think that we might not have enough food when we need it. It could literally cause our death. In some ways, facing the deeply rooted biological urge to eat even when we're not especially hungry, is a process of coming to terms with the risk of our own death. At a high level, or "rationally", we can understand that unhealthy eating can ALSO cause our death, but it would never be as immediate as death from not having food.

So learning to refrain from overeating may be a process starting with compassion and acceptance of your body's basic biological systems. When you're overwhelmed by hunger, your body is trying to protect you and keep you alive. So, say "thank you" to your body rather than getting annoyed with it. First recognize those deep needs as valid and then try to figure out how to make the healthiest choice.