ice cream, cookies, and cheesecake....oh my!

I work as an alcohol and drug addiction therapist and some days it blows my mind how much I'm able to give my clients tools for success and then I'm not able to follow them myself. For the past week, I've been discussing environmental triggers with a client and the ways to cope with them. These triggers can be people, places, situations, emotions, etc. The client gets homework to really look at how much time is being spent around those triggers and how much time is being spent with healthy environmental supports. It's absurd that I can sit and talk through this with a client and discuss how they can use it in regards to their drug or alcohol addiction, but I can't put them into practice when it comes to my food addiction.

I worked really hard last week to get myself back in the mindset necessary to continue succeeding with my weight loss. But the last three days have seen me fall into bad habits due to triggers that other people have brought into my life.

• On Monday, my best friend brought over a box of homemade shortbread to make up for flaking out on some plans we had over the weekend. I ate one, it was delicious, so I ate another....and another....and another.
• Last night, my boyfriend brought over a pint of amazing caramel ice cream. We both had a bowl of it last night and then he left it in my freezer. So tonight, out of boredom, I ate the rest.
• This afternoon, there was a staff appreciation lunch at work. I didn't know about it so luckily I had already eaten lunch. But then I was told "Go get some dessert" and when I saw that there were mini cheesecakes, I took one.

Could I have said no and walked away from all of these things? Of course. So why didn't I? I understand the consequences and how I will feel afterwards, but it's as though I don't actually care. Just like my clients when they relapse, all I care about is that momentary feeling of pleasure and peace. I need to start practicing what I preach. I cannot tell my clients what to do about their addiction if I am not willing to do the same with my own.

I told my boyfriend tonight that I needed him to help me make healthy choices. I explained that I was trying to do well on my own, but that I was still having a difficult time with my self-control. Hopefully he will be a real support for me and will not accidentally enable me in any way.

How do you handle your own environmental triggers? Do you have any tips or ideas of how to find the self-control to walk away?