Almost exactly one year ago, on 2/3/20, I made a statement: “Food as comfort is not self love.”

Here’s the thing about time, experience, perspective, wisdom, and empathy (for ourselves and for one another)… we’ve got to allow it to unfold.

A year ago, I felt like this was a major revelation. I truly believed what I said. Deeply. I had lost about 15 pounds and I felt like I had found a lot of answers and was feeling really good about things.

And then the pandemic hit. And then we had an important swell in the social justice movement after watching George Floyd be brutally murdered by a police officer on video.

And then, I learned more things about myself, society, and life.

And now, my perspective and my mind has changed.

Sometimes, food as comfort is very much self-love.

You see, there are a lot of ways we comfort ourselves. And, to demonize food as a way, when sometimes it’s a pretty darn healthy coping mechanism (especially in comparison to many others) given that so much has been stripped from our typically-social human lives, I think it was wrong of me.

Thing is, we are human and we all choose coping mechanisms. Heck, if we are lucky, they don’t harm other people and they’re not too harmful to ourselves either.

To live through a global pandemic and gain some weight should not be a source of shame whatsoever.

We’ve all been fed lies about how our bodies should look and exist in space. I’m so sick of it. Sure, be healthy in ways that truly feel good for you, but deeply dissect what that means.

It was self-care for me to not obsess over food while emotionally going through this last year. I’m not even sure how I’d have managed otherwise.

I don’t have all the answers.

I recognize that many of you look to me for advice or as an example. I don’t know that I deserve that responsibility, but I’m aware that it exists.

I feel strongly that when we know better, we can do better. (Maya Angelou)

And I want to express that I’ve gained perspective on this topic and I’m deeply sorry if what I said a year ago affected anyone negatively.

Thanks for trusting me.