{"id":4146,"date":"2020-10-05T15:44:20","date_gmt":"2020-10-05T20:44:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/?p=4146"},"modified":"2020-10-05T15:44:22","modified_gmt":"2020-10-05T20:44:22","slug":"stop-and-smell-the-memories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/stop-and-smell-the-memories\/","title":{"rendered":"Stop and Smell the Memories"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Do you ever take a moment to stop and smell the memories? My\ntomato plants are covered in tomatoes so heavy they tipped the trellis over this\nmorning. As I was setting them back up surrounded by the smell of the plants, I\nwas reminded of gardening with my grandmother when I was small. There\u2019s a\nstrong connection between smell and memory. There\u2019s a strong connection between\nmemory and comfort. And there\u2019s a strong connection between comfort and food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Have you ever had a chance to stop and consider how smell\nand memory influence your food choices? Most of us don\u2019t even have time to stop\nand smell the roses, much less the memories. But an awareness of our relationships\nto smell memory can be helpful with compliance when we need to follow a\nspecific diet in order to be healthy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few years ago, a gluten-free bakery opened in my city. My\nresponse upon first visiting it was to feel disappointment that there was no\nyeasty smell in the air. For me, the joy of a bakery lies in the smells-yeast,\ncoffee, cinnamon. The visuals are great too, but while I might be hesitant to\neat an oddly shaped cut of meat or deformed looking vegetable, I\u2019d never refuse\na misshapen cookie or a torn piece of bread. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of the joy and comfort of cooking come from familiar\naromas. The first time I cooked fresh green beans in my home, I remarked, \u201cThis\nis how this house should smell.\u201d The house is over 100 years old. Somehow, the\nsmell fit the hardwood floors, carved wood doors, transom windows, and 12-foot\nceilings. And I knew it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When smell is a reminder of family, comfort, and tradition, it can be especially compelling. That\u2019s because smell<\/a> goes directly to an olfactory bulb that\u2019s connected to the amygdala where emotional processing occurs. All of those warm feelings can end up being connected to related smells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The idea of giving up a certain food may trigger a feeling\nof loss or separation as if you\u2019re giving up family or comfort. Knowing this up\nfront can help inform your choices and give you enough insight to recognize and\novercome emotional memory stumbling blocks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And perhaps knowing this can help you process through a diagnosis of celiac disease, diabetes, IBS, or Crohn\u2019s disease<\/a> without feeling as though required dietary changes will be dire. You will quickly recognize that you can enjoy the warm memories associated with the scent of a cinnamon roll without actually eating one. This knowledge will increase your sense of power, confidence, and choice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It may also mean you value your memories more because you take time to smell them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Think Going Gluten-Free is Hard \u2013 Visualization Can Help<\/a><\/blockquote>