Showing posts with label Extreme Starvation Diet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Extreme Starvation Diet. Show all posts
13 Sept 2010
It should have been my last day
I should have been celebrating a return to food after a week of porridge and rice today but gave up last Tuesday. The rest of this week has made me feel privileged. Each time I eat I tended to think I could be eating porridge now or this is so much better than rice. In that respect the two days on rations served a lasting purpose. We should really enjoy food. Its ungrateful not to.
9 Sept 2010
Lucky me
I'm feeling pretty lucky today. Just sat here and thought, "I could have a cup of coffee if I wanted to in a bit, or maybe I could have 
tea."
tea."
8 Sept 2010
Its like wearing a hair shirt for no reason
I started this extreme part of the project with clear ideas about why I was doing it. It was an experiment in increasing empathy, challenging my thoughts and getting a greater understanding. But with my head like cotton wool yesterday I realised that I was in no fit state to contemplate anything at a higher level let alone debate it in a sensible way. So I have started eating according to the normal starvation diet rules again, resist things I really don't need and give the money to the charity. I still feel the physical effects of the last few days but my head is clearing a little and I should be compus mentus by dinner time.
7 Sept 2010
Things to research-any help gladly accepted
- What access to flavours do those on subsistence diets have?
- Is empathy only a luxury for those who are well and well fed?
- What is the average portion of food for somebody on a subsistence diet?
- What are the vital measurements of a starving woman aged 36?
- What bugs are not killed off from boiling contaminated water?
- What are the various signs of malnutrition short term?
6 Sept 2010
Empathy
I'm interested to see how this process of Extreme Starvation Diet helps me to develop more empathy with those on subsistence diets. A few things I have noted so far:
- When we cut down on food we have the choice to take comfort in other things, hot baths, bad Tv etc. What must it be like to have a life with no sources of comfort.
- When food has no flavour it become purely about function, food as just function is sad
Some do this for fun
This process I'm going through is something close to the usual mode for dieting. Restricting what you eat in an effort to loose weight relatively quickly. Possibly cooking different meals for yourself and your family. It places so much focus on the lack of food or the change of food that you can't help but feel miserable. Its like giving something up. But as food is actually a pretty good thing, it keeping you alive and all that giving it up becomes nonsensical. The normal Starvation Diet model seems to me to be even more useful after my first day doing this.
Compare and Contrast
We don't live with stark comparisons that much in this country. We see other less fortunate places on the tele but that is just like fiction. Tonight was curious because, for the first of my meals there was a real contrast between what I was eating and what George my son was eating. As I cooked his chicken there were several occasions when my fork was poised over a piece, almost about to eat it. It smelled soooo nice and as it got browner it looked more and more tempting. But resist I did. As we sat down to eat I tried to remain upbeat. The temptation to steal from his plate was high and whilst he has not yet appeared before me as a cartoon chicken leg I can see it going that way. Most of the time he was a typical teenage boy, goading me with forks full of flying chicken and asking me in a sarcastic voice "Is it delicious your tea?". I had to give in a little and add salt and a few chilli flakes.
Videos
I'm publishing all the videos in their entirety at the moment and will then edit them into one short film later. Funny to see the odd conversations between my son and I.
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