Sue has a very demanding job. She can’t predict when she’ll have time to eat or what food will be served. We talked about the necessity of always bringing a back-up meal with her on workdays, something that won’t spoil. If it turns out that the food that’s served is healthy, she can save the back-up food for another day.
I later emailed the following message to Sue: If packing food ever seems like a burden, realize that you’re not alone. Some people with metabolic problems have to do exactly the same thing because they have to eat certain categories of food and they have to eat regularly.
I also wrote: Do you think you could put packing a back-up meal in the same habit category as brushing your teeth or taking a shower? They are things you do daily, whether you feel like it or not. You don’t struggle with doing them because you’ve decided these habits are essential. You just do them. The sooner you put “packing a meal” in a “no choice” category, the less you’ll struggle and the more successful you’ll be.