Labels

When I was in college there were always those things hung up in the bathroom for you to read while using the loo…you know in case you get bored.  I was always kind of skeeved out by the crossword puzzles and word searches and games that had a marker taped to the stall door to do.  Are you really going to touch that knowing what people were doing in there….EWWW! 

 

But the ones that always made me laugh were the stupid label ones.  You know what I’m talking about.  Things like “Don’t Iron clothes while on body.”  or “May contain nuts” on peanut butter, or things like that.  You know someone had to be stupid enough to do those things in order to have the company put that label on the product.  Kind of like the lady with the McDonald’s coffee who didn’t know it was hot.  I don’t always have the most common sense but I think I would know that my iron should not be used on my body.

 

But I know that I put a lot of labels on myself.  I’m the “good girl”, “the OCD girl”, the “I’m still fat” girl, the “bipolar” girl.  I have lots of labels I give myself that I usually use to define myself.  I don’t do certain things because of the labels I give myself.  Last night was hard and I didn’t want to cook but really wanted take away (take out).  But I didn’t order it because I’m the “health nut” and I shouldn’t eat that stuff.  I really wanted pizza and ended up snacking on a ton of random stuff like yogurt, granola, almond butter and luna bars instead.  I don’t walk on the tread mill because I like to think of myself as a “runner” or more likely a “jogger”.  I’m the “nice” one, the “happy” one, the “sweet” one. 

 

All these labels I’ve come across because someone gave them to me or I gave them to myself.  And I kind of live my life by them.  I mold my life around how I and others see myself.  Not that I mind being healthy and fit but some days I just want to bust out and eat pizza and have a big sweet lemonade (I don’t drink so no beer for this girl).  But I just can’t seem to do it.  I define myself by this and I’m stuck.  I’m not unhappy per se…just stuck.

 

What labels do you use to define yourself?  Are you happy with them?