Dear Jewish Fairy Godmother:

I’m in holiday freefall. Food or money, you name it and I am just

flailing and grabbing, eating anything in sight and buying impulsively

just because the sale prices are just so good that it seems wrong not

to take advantage of them. I have all the usual symptoms of being out

of control: fear of getting on the scale, using plastic instead of cash,

having no idea what delayed gratification means in any dimension of

my life. I just keep telling myself that if I hold on until January I’ll be

able to get back on an even keel. Between now and then is the office

party, holiday parties with my goyische friends, and New Year’s eve

and bowl game parties, But right now I am eating anything in the

room, stockpiling things I don’t really need, and generally acting like

an out of control omnivore. Is there any hope or should I just sign off

the rest of the year?

Drowning

 

Dear Drowning:

There’s always hope. You have a chance for redemption every meal,

every time you see a plate of holiday cookies and don’t eat them, or

eat only one, or every time you bypass a sale/steep discount/almost

free sign Here’s some things can do now to help channel some of your

holiday fervor, and maybe help get your values back in proportion:

Volunteer in a soup kitchen for the homeless; serve a community

holiday meal for the elderly; donate food to your local food pantry;

give food gifts to your neighbors. You can also buy gifts for people who

need them; donate to local and other charities; help out at the local

animal shelter.

 

If those charitable and heart-opening activities don’t get you back on

track, go for a walk every day at 7am and 7pm. Make being out in

nature as much of a priority as being in stores or at parties. Every

time you start to hear yourself negotiate a boundary you set, remind

yourself what you’re really here for – to make the world a better place,

not to make yourself overstuffed and overspent.