MIND. Cycle of Change & Power of Momentum.
In considering any habit shift, I let my patients help guide the conversation with where they may be in the cycle of change. For example, for labs that come back in pre-diabetes range, I get a wide array of responses:
“I’m not eating any carbs for the next three months.”
“It runs in my family - oh well.”
“I really enjoy what I eat; I’m not really willing to change right now.”
“Maybe I should bring a nutritionist on board…”
Some people are ready to to take action right away, others wish a diagnosis of pre-diabetes was something they were blissfully ignorant of. Understanding where they are in the current cycle can aid in guiding not only medical treatment, but behavioral changes as well.
While “eat less sugar” can be easy enough to say, I see part of my job as normalizing the often difficult process of change. I am part cheerleader/motivational coach (this is possible and you can do it), part realist (this may be hard). It takes time, intention and effort to re-write neural patterns that may be happening for months, years, or even decades. There is also a reason why “relapse” has been built into the psychological model of the Stages of Change. I like the one graphic below because it promotes each relapse/falling off the bandwagon contributing to an upward spiral of change towards the direction desired.
Falling of the band wagon does not mean failure. It just means there is another layer of resistance that is being worked through. Perhaps even getting closer to the reason why whatever habit that is not serving ultimate health is recurring - avoidance of an emotion, repression of an event, underlying desire to self-sabotage. Often sustainable changes require deeper psychological work and inquiry, which is what can make it so much harder than “just eat less sugar.” It’s an invitation to a deeper understanding of self.
And as a nod to my SOUL article that accompanies this series in understanding change, I encourage patients to take away the expectation of perfection and just gain momentum. Momentum behind any habit is a powerful force. Gain a small amount of momentum in the direction you want to go with the knowledge that “messing up” is a part of the process and that’s a good reason to dive deeper. And if you keep the orientation positive to build yourself up instead of beating yourself down during the process, you are more likely to gain not only momentum in a new habit, but also an upward cycle that will build upon itself.
