addiction to feeling better

whenever you see a big person in a motorized wheelchair, i always think they need to get their fat butt up and walk, it would be good for them.  

i would always think that and immediately be upset with myself for judging.  I am now obsessed with the show "my 600lb life".  I have watched about 3 episodes and it really didn't change my view.  Then i saw a show last night that made me feel horrible for looking down upon people like that.  There was a guy in his early 30's.  He couldn't hardly sleep because his legs hurt so bad.  He had to live with his parents because he couldn't take care of himself.  He had the gastric bypass surgery and started doing really good.  He was starting to look forward to a future, then he ended up in the hospital because he couldn't breathe.  It turned out that he had an auto immune disease that was starting at his feet, going up to his hands and he could die or be paralyzed for the rest of his life.  he stayed in the hospital forever, almost looking as though he was in a vegetative state.  I am not sure how long this lasted and then he started getting better.  His mom came twice a day, once in the morning and once at night.  The insurance company then decided that he needed to be moved to a nursing home 300 miles away.  The doctor and family fought it and lost.  Then his family decided to renovate their house and they would take care of him.  He had found him a fiance', she moved in to help.  Then one day he came home and she was gone, he fell into a huge depression and started eating like he did when he weighed 600lbs. 

It made me realize that even though those people may look different, they aren't any different than me, than most of us.  We all have ways of trying to cope, things we turn to, things that fill the hole and make us feel better.  His was food.  Mine has been work, food, shopping, spending money, hoarding money, cleaning the house like a mad woman, never cleaning the house, wanting to talk to everyone, not wanting to talk to anyone......we all have an addiction, it just shows up in different forms.