Stop Emotional Eating

What do you do when you are cold? Bundle up.

• Thirsty? Drink water.
• Have to pee? Run to the bathroom.
• Tired? Go to sleep.
• Hungry? Eat.
• Depressed? Eat.
• Stressed? Eat.
• Bored? Eat.
• Lonely? Eat.

Notice a pattern here? So often we use food for stuffing away feelings instead of really feeling them. This is called Emotional Eating!

For example, something happens at work, which stresses you out, you go home and pig out mindlessly on whatever you can get your hands on. Maybe it’s a pint of ice cream, bag of cookies, or a whole pizza.

But then you wake up the next morning with the dreaded “Regret hangover.” Why did I eat that whole carton of ice cream? Why did I sit on the couch and watch TV all night and eat that whole bag of chips or that whole pizza? Why am I fat?

The problem is still there. Whatever happened to create those miserable feelings is now worse. Feel the feelings; don’t try and stuff them away!

It is normal to have uncomfortable feelings: sadness, stress, disappointment, unhappiness, anger, and frustration. It’s part of life. When you try to stuff them away, they do not magically disappear into a carton of ice cream.

Feel your feelings, journal about them, process the emotions and work on the solution. So often we focus all our energy on the problem, we attract more problems. Instead of focusing on the problem, brainstorm the solution. This is the Law of Attraction. What you think about you bring about.

Stuffing away your feelings is simply a habit. Now it’s time to replace that bad habit with something that nourishes your soul. Be mindful, stop before you stuff, and ask yourself, “What do I really need right now? What is going on inside of me and how can I truly help myself feel better?” Get out of your head, and live in your heart, in the world around you.

Take back your power! Don’t let people or situations derail you from creating true health. You deserve it.

Other than hunger, list all the reasons you eat. Now list what can you do instead to process through that feeling. For example, when you are bored, take a walk or call a friend. It’s about creating one new habit at a time, crowding out the bad habits with so many good ones, there is no room!

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