“You can’t eat a whole pizza without cutting it into slices first.”

Part of an occasional series about phrases that this therapist finds himself repeating, often.

Photo by Fatima Akram on Unsplash

As a clinician in private practice, one of the phrases that I frequently hear myself saying to older children and adolescents is this: “You can’t eat a whole pizza without cutting it into slices first.” This phrase typically shows up when someone might be feeling a bit anxious and overwhelmed, perhaps perfectionistic and pressured.

This phrase has even been trotted out to my own children. But … my now-adolescent son will argue with me about the nature of the pizza. Of course, teenagers argue about nearly everything, but he claims he can eat a whole pizza without cutting it into slices.

I say, “That’s not the point of the analogy. It is about taking things one step at a time.”

He says, “Doesn’t matter. I can do it. I can eat a whole pizza without slicing it.”

Deep breath.

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