I have a very…erratic…relationship with food. Sometimes, I’ll be on point, meal-prepping and gung ho to eat healthy like it’s going out of style. Other times, the slightest whiff of stress or hunger and I’ll rip into greasy fast food like it’s the last meal on earth. There is no in-between, no balance.

That’s not good.

I want to enjoy food, but I don’t want it controlling my life. (And I mean either obsessed-with-every-healthy-bite or eating-anything-and-everything-that-I-see controlling my life.) It may be an absolute necessity, but it’s not the only thing that matters in life.

See, I need to lose some weight. (Where some = probably around 50 pounds.) Not for aesthetic reasons (Okay, not strictly aesthetic reasons.), but for my health. With my medical history (A stroke two years ago, high blood pressure now, controlled by meds.), I can’t afford to be careless about my weight. (Also, my doctor is sort of a tyrant, and I have a weight-related appointment with him in a couple of weeks that I’ve already re-scheduled once.)

I wan to be able to enjoy food while I’m losing weight–and exercise is a large part of that plan, too–but I don’t want to eat badly and accomplish nothing, either. I need to get my mind straight, my relationship with food straight, but I’m not sure how to do that.

Does anyone have any tips or advice? I need your help.