Visualization for Weight Loss -The Gabriel Method

Part II: Nonphysical Stresses that Activate the FAT Programs

her death. Cheryl was trying, in vain, to keep Michelle physically with her always. But Cheryl now understands the real issue with her weight and, rather than dieting (something she has been doing for over thirty years), she is dealing with the real issues more directly. As a matter of fact, she wrote a book about her experience. It’s a poignant story, full of courage and triumph in the face of adver- sity, and if you’re dealing with deep issues, such as this one, you might find writing about it helps too. Using Fat as an Excuse A young man who called me believed that no one would hire him because he was “morbidly” obese. He felt that, in order for him to be employable, he had to first lose weight. I realized that as long as he had this idea, he would not lose weight. He was using his weight as an excuse not to work. He had certain issues about work and about being employable, and he was using his weight as a convenient excuse to avoid these issues. We also may use weight to avoid facing the issues of rela- tionships. If someone claims that they need to lose weight before starting to date or embarking on a relationship, they may unconsciously be using their weight to avoid facing other rela- tionship issues. It’s easier to blame the fat than to confront the issues. As long as we are using our weight to avoid other uncomfortable aspects of our lives, we’ll resist losing the weight because it’s become the scapegoat that’s distracting others and ourselves from what’s really going on. Issues from Past Lives Some people believe that we have lived before and others don’t. It doesn’t matter to me what you believe, but if you do believe in past lives, you might entertain the idea that your weight issues could be related to a previous life. Dr. Brian Weiss, in one of his fascinating books about past life regression, 1 told a story about a woman who could not lose weight. It was discovered during a past life regression that she had been abused and had made the connection that she was less likely to be abused again if she was

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