People have the strangest reactions to fasting.
I have done multi-day fasts and one of the hardest things about it was convincing people that I wasn't anorexic, or crazy, or going to faint if I hadn't had a doughnut in over three hours.
I was also surprised at how defensive many people became, as if I were doing it just to mock their six-meals-per-day strategy. The act of not eating lunch offends some people unreasonably. They seem to assume I'm staking some sort of moral high ground or acting sanctimonious. Basically, some people think my fasting is about them, a commentary about their habits, rather than about myself. At this point I generally don't mention fasting to people who aren't close friends.
Fortunately, I also have many wonderfully supportive people in my life. Many friends do regular multi-day fasts, keep Ramadan, or are at least familiar with the idea and the many benefits of fasting. Many do yoga or other movement practices that get them in touch with their bodies. My boyfriend thinks it's strange but is supportive. (It helps that we can share a big dinner together, his favorite meal.)
Has anyone else had strange reactions from other people when talking about fasting? How do you deal with this?
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
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I can totally relate!! If you visit my blog and click on the videos topic, you can find a video called the Achilles Heel Of Fasting...that pretty much sums it up.
ReplyDeleteHappy Fasting!!
TOTALLY...That was the hardest part for me...My blog has a couple of good posts on what to say to people...
ReplyDeletehttp://19hours-freedom.blogspot.com/2010/04/achilles-heel-of-fasting.html
http://19hours-freedom.blogspot.com/2010/04/its-easyreally.html