I Still Can’t Slice a Mango
Lessons learned from OCD
Imagine that you’re a parent with a small child. You’d want your child to eat healthy food, right? You’ve explained to your child many times that some foods help him to grow big and strong, and others are treats just for now and then.
Now imagine that your child wants a mango for dinner. He even says please and you have a bag full of them in the refrigerator. He’s done everything right and his request is reasonable, but you, still working through an insidious knife/ injury obsession, are too paralyzed by anxiety to peel and slice a mango for him.
How do you explain to your smart little boy the reason that you cannot give him the delicious, nutritious tropical fruit his heart desires?
Mommy is afraid of knives?
Um, nope. Don’t want him to pick up on that fear.
Daddy cuts mangoes better than mommy does. Let’s go get him.
Yes! That’s the ticket! A bit of a fib for the greater good. But when hubby’s not home, no mangoes (or any other foods needing slicing, chopping, dicing, or paring).
It probably seems like a very simple thing to do. Just pick up the knife, cut the fruit, and muscle through all that thick, choking anxiety.
