Dear Jewish Fairy Godmother:

I am feeling very stuck. I had been doing really well on my food
program (staying off sugar) but along the way I seem to have become
a complete carb junky. I can avoid sweet foods and still; find lots of
ways to keep myself sated with bread and butter. My clothes are
getting tight on me again and the holiday season is looming. I cannot
fall into the giant abyss of mindless eating or I will need more diabetes
meds. I wish fear were a sufficient incentive but it doesn’t seem to
work. What can I do?

Stuck

 
Dear Stuck:

Fear is not a good motivator. It may work for a little while but not for
the long run. Most people change by being pulled towards something
(e.g. health) or by being pushed from it (e.g. death). In your case a
lot more information would be a great cure. Because what works on
most diet plans may or may not right for a diabetic. Virtually every
health plan and Medicare will pay for a diabetic education plan. Sign
up now and treat it like your life depends on it. Then develop a cue
word or behavior, a mantra you have to say or an act or pre-contrition
to perform before you put anything in your mouth. The weeks between
Thanksgiving and New Year’s add five pounds to most people’s waistlines.
You don’t have the room, even if you have elastic waists. A little more
consciousness can save a lifetime of tsoris.