Am I Hungry?

I was halfway through eating my re-heated piece of BBQ chicken pineapple pizza before I realized I was no longer hungry. I had been up doing things after having my morning coffee and all of a sudden it hit me that I was hungry. So I ate a couple of gluten free banana muffins, made my protein moringa drink, made some egg salad and put the last piece of pizza in the over to re-heat it. When hunger strikes suddenly it is so easy to lose track of the mindful part of eating and that was exactly what happened to me today. I could feel myself getting shaky from being hungry and knew that food was the only solution. Still, I try to mind my carbs since my blood sugar no longer runs low; it has reversed itself and now runs too high ... especially if I eat to many carbs at one.

It takes a while for the food to reach the blood stream, especially when eating complex carbs, proteins and fats. So I impulsively at the banana muffins and consciously made the egg salad and ate it out of the bowl. Then I pulled the pizza out of the over and it was not until I bit into a piece of hard chicken that my attention was caught. I stopped for a moment and realized that half the pizza had been consumed without even realizing I had eaten it. And at the same time I realized that I am not even hungry anymore!

Mindfulness in eating begins with simply being aware ... of every bite you take. No judgement. No guilt. No blaming or shame. Just awareness. And then asking yourself. Am I enjoying this? Do I feel good eating this? What need is eating this serving? Do I require food to meet this need? And have I had enough or do I need more?

For me, once I realized I was not hungry anymore I folded the pizza inside the aluminum foil it had been cooked on and threw it away. I was appreciative for the trigger to become aware. And then I appreciated tossing the rest of it out. This was good self care for me as I am learning to be more mindful of what my body is telling me in navigating the intuitive management of my Diabetes.