is there a good obsession??

Question

i've always been obsessed with my health(not my weight)i mean.....i don't care about calories only but i make sure that what i eat is a very healthy natural food....the problem here is that i have become so strict,i seem to be having a shiver if i see something unhealthy!!!lol.........i never manage to have a meal out with my friends or skip one of my strictly healthy habits even once in my life for any reason

is that a kinda eating disorder?is there a good obsession?

ps.....i don't have any health problems or any deficiencies of any kind...i am a runner,i am a medical student as well(i thought that could be the reason),i am 5'9''/130 lbs female(i mean to say i am not anorexic or something)

my so called obsession is not only with food and eating....but with any healthy habits

Answer 1

There aren't really any good or bad obsessions in the long run.It's the compulsive part which negates even positives in it.Take your own case,where you can't even enjoy a hearty meal with your friends.Learn to make exceptions and fix dates or day in a week to have a different routine and varied experiences and do so without any concern and guilt.I am sure that as a medical student,you know more than anybody that a wholesome tasty food once or twice a week hasn't killed anybody so far.Flexibility and variety make life interesting and some thing to look forward to.Otherwise,your future patients ,spouse and kids are going to have a real tough time with your attitude of rigidity and inflexibility.Such minor behavioral modifications are very easy.Have a Hot dog[or whatever you fancy but is in your 'DON"T list] tonight and enjoy it.

Answer 2

hahaha I call myself a "good health addict". Indeed it is my "religion" because I make it the focus of my life and behaviour and believe it is the foundation of everything that I want to accomplish, and the way I want to be. I use the word obscession very lightly with something like this because although by strict definition anything that becomes "obscessive" is something that has been taken to an unhealthy extreme, we have to remember that it's also a comparative word. Obscessive as compared to what? In my case, as compared to being lazy and neglectful of my health and not being bothered to do the very things I know are vital to maintaining it at the highest possible level.

So I guess you could say that in the mind of the junkfood swilling couch potato, yep, I would seem to be obscessed LOL. I call it "taking care of business" and to those who are mildly amused by my focus on health, I remind them that life ain't a dress rehearsal. When you get that heart attack, you don't pick yourself up off the floor and say "OK, I guess I got the message now. Let's rewind the tape and replay the last fifteen years of my life, doing it differently" We don't get any replays so I want to get it right the first time, or at least as right as I possibly can.

By the way, I hear ya. Was a med. student myself at one time. We do just have to try and avoid the "syndrome" - it can get in the way of your socializing. Remember, people usually have been leading very UNhealthily for a number of years before their bodies begin to break under the strain of bad behaviour. You are certainly not going to undo years of GOOD habits by an occasional "walk on the bad side" LOL

Answer 3

Is it affecting your life in an unhealthy manner? That's the first question you need to answer. If you answer "yes" then it is an obsession.
The fact that you have managed no to have a meal out with friends is a big red flag.

As a medical trainee, you should know that when your obsession become apparent to you ( it surely has to those around you), you should seek a professionals help.

Some of the best tastes in life arent the healthiest, but as in everything, moderation is the key.

Answer 4

Obsession is defined as
1. Compulsive preoccupation with a fixed idea or an unwanted feeling or emotion, often accompanied by symptoms of anxiety.
2. A compulsive, often unreasonable idea or emotion.

I don't think obsession would ever technically be classified as good. But I suppose if you have to be obsessed with something, being healthy is definitely on the better side of things. Of course you may (or may not) want to remember you're still breathing the air, and that cannot be healthy.

Answer 5

Being obsessed or addicted is never a good thing. Having too much of one thing is bad. There's not enough balance.

Taking your health diet obsession, it sounds well and like a good thing. But don't let it take over your life if something bad slipped in your food.

Answer 6

its not an eating disorder, if you're obsessed w/ health in general like staying active,
then its just a healthy concern.
but if you're going crazy over running and only being a certain weight, THAT is an eating disorder.

Answer 7

Become obsessed with giving random acts of kindness and creating senseless acts of beauty.

Answer 8

in my opinion, there's no such thing as good obsession. but in your case, i don't think it's called obsession, rather, a habit.