Permission to INDULGE!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is a day for gratitude, as well as nourishing ourselves with delightful, tasty foods and nurturing our hearts and souls with those we most love.

When we allow ourselves the joy of indulging all of our senses, we enhance our brain chemistry, especially by increasing the amount of dopamine in our brain.   Dopamine activates our reward center and is a major neurotransmitter that’s a key factor in motivation, productivity, and focus. Dopamine provides your zest for life and it also plays an important role in attention, memory, moods, and sleep.

To build your dopamine levels, I am declaring Thanksgiving an official Pleasure Puppy Indulgence Day! On this day, you have permission to fully, totally, completely enjoy every morsel of food, every drink, and every precious moment with loved ones.

Now, I am not saying that you should binge or gorge yourself to a ridiculous level.

What I am saying is that you can allow yourself to eat all of the things that are most appealing…without going overboard.  For instance, I have a real sweet tooth and when I eat too much sugar, I get a serious headache.  I have learned that I can eat dessert (and I do nearly every day), but I limit myself to three bites.  That way, I can enjoy the treat and not get the headache.

If you approach the dinner table with judgment, guilt, or fear of getting fat, you diminish your capacity for enjoyment.

Brian and I will be with family enjoying the turkey with all the trimmings, sweet potatoes topped with marshmallows and of course, pumpkin pie!

We wish you a fantastic holiday and remind you to savor every bite, every hug and have a fun, and delicious Thanksgiving Feast.

Love,

Arielle