Emotional Eating

Take control of your consistent emotions and begin to consciously and deliberately reshape your daily experiences of life. ~ Tony Robbins

Do you eat when you are happy, when you are sad, or for no reason at all? Do you find yourself eating to not feel the way you feel, seeking to settle down the pain, maybe even escape from it? I understand.

No fear, you are not alone. Emotional eating is a common reason why many women struggle with their weight as well as their inability to stay on a plan for eating healthy or reaching a goal. Many women turn to food for comfort, for love, and as a way to not feel what they are feeling. As a baby, food was offered to us as a comfort when we cried.

Eating while we are upset might remind us of that feeling of being comforted by food. It might also be a way to get “control” over something. You might feel that food is the one thing you get to choose and control. Emotional eating often seems to temporarily fill a “hole” of what is missing from your life. In most cases, emotional eating is based on thoughts of not feeling “good enough.” Right? But know “YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH!!”

Food is therapy for a lot of people. When we say “comfort food”, we really mean that. Eating some food releases dopamine and serotonin in your brain, both “feel good” chemicals.

What can we do to stop eating what “bugs us?”

Be willing to stop, look and listen, before you eat. Allow five minutes, and then ask yourself “why am I eating this right now”? Are you eating for hunger, or to escape from a feeling? What are your thoughts about yourself right now? Bring awareness to why you are eating. Ask yourself if this is what you really want to do. Ask if this follows the plan you have for your health or your goals? See if you still feel this way after you think about it.

Some other things you can do to take care of yourself in times of emotional distress are:

• Meditate
  
• Journal
  
• Play with your kids or Pets
  
• Have a date night with your husband
  
• Have a girl’s day
  
• Take a long hot bath
  
• Exert yourself in vigorous exercise
  
• Dance
  
• Listen to music that makes you feel better
  
• Breathe and relax
  
• Read
  
• Take a nap – go to bed at a decent time
  

How can you get more support?

Find a support system, someone who can guide you in finding the source of your emotions, as well as releasing them. Journal, how you feel, scream, cry, or go for a walk, or go to a quiet place just to think and be present. In times of silence, the answers often show up. Be willing to do what it takes, work through your feelings to get to the other side of them. Its hard but worth it! Ask family and friends to listen to your concerns.

You can feel good about food again.

There is hope, you can begin to get a new appreciation of food, and by being conscious of every food you eat. When you eat, make healthier choices. Be willing to feel the food in your mouth, taste and chew your food, slow down and fully enjoy it. Think about what this type of food is doing in your body and how it truly nourishes you, or not. See how it is enjoyable, gives you pleasure and brings new life to your body.

Food for the body is not enough. There must also be food that nourishes the spirit.

5 practices you can do today..

1) Begin to change your view of yourself, be aware of how you talk to yourself. 2) Catch yourself in negative thoughts and change them right away. 3) Look at food as love for your body, not as a “fix” for a problem. 4) Find constructive ways to get your emotions out of your body. 5) Ask for help from others.

I know how you might feel, as I used to eat what bugged me. It did not make me feel any better but far worse. I knew something needed to change and I did it. I can show you the way; you do not need to suffer any more.

Let me know if I can help you!

Always,

Lisa