If you need advice on how to get through the holidays, this is the week to hit the Internet and print media and find lots of sincere, ideal, legitimate advice.
But people generally struggle 52 weeks a year, not a week here in November and a couple of weeks in December.
They do struggle more but the philosophy should differ too much. The major difference is that you are running into different people who are not in your normal life.
Your friends have more of an idea on what you eat and don't eat than your family does. They have already made the adjustments. Family members who you don't see a lot will likely offer you foods, not because they are out to get you but they don't know how you eat every day.
The best way to rectify this is to calmly tell them as to your situation. They may not be happy or feel disappointed, but this isn't about them. It's about you and your dietary philosophy.
Adjustment — for you and them — is crucial. They need time to adjust to you, and you to them and all of this food.
This means some of the stress comes from explaining your situation, telling Grandma that you're sure her pie is delicious, but you can only have a small slice, or no slice.
Keeping true to you is valuable, and Thanksgiving as well as the December holidays are great times to implement that mantra. But to stay true, you need to be a part of it in all 52 weeks, not just the holidays.
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