If the first thing you do when you feel down is to reach for a bag of chips or a candy bar, you may be an emotional eater. Sadly, emotional eating and the associated binges that it can create can endanger not only our physical health but our mental well being as well. In fact, many liken emotional eating to an addiction, one that they are not in control of. Happily, there is a path out of emotional eating. A topic that you can read more about below.
Get some help
What many people don’t understand is that emotional overeating and binge eating disorder, something you can find out more about at https://www.nedc.com.au/eating-disorders are now becoming more recognized as the serious, health-threatening issue that they are. What this means is that there are an increasing number of psychologists and counselors that are willing to take on and work with clients that are struggling with these issues.
Of course, that is fantastic news because such ways of behaving are often deep routed, and can sabotage even the best attempts at weight loss and living a healthy life. Therefore gaining professional help and support on your journey to change can make it easier, and increase your chances of success.
Identifying your triggers
Once you have reached out for some help, you will probably find that you need to identify what triggers you to eat in this way. This includes the emotional state such as anger, sadness, and even anxiety. In fact, if you are having trouble identifying your emotional state, you can use a tool like the wheel at https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/481674122640563295/ to help you track back to see what the underlying feeling is.
Remember too, that sometimes particular foods can be a trigger as well, especially ones that are high in fat, salt, and sugar such as takeout or snack foods. Therefore if you identify these are something that can trigger eating binges, its best not to keep them in the house during your recovery.
Finding ways to soothe yourself
Once you know what your triggers are, you need to as http://www.executivestyle.com.au/adult-selfsoothing-2p6oi suggests find an alternative way of soothing yourself that isn’t about eating. Of course, this can be challenging, especially when food has been you go to for a long time. Luckily, you only need to identify three or four activities to distract you from the need to binge to start with.
Often, self-care activities that remind you that your feelings are valid and while difficult, will change like meditation, yoga, and even massage can help you ride out your cravings.
You can even get some nifty self-massaging tools from sites like https://www.massageking.com/categories/Mas that means you don’t need to rely on anyone else for your self-care activity. Something that can make it easier if you live alone or you want to practice getting your emotions under control before interacting with others in your life.
Taking one day at a time
Lasting when you are battling emotional eating remember that you will fall off the wagon occasionally, but that doesn’t mean you have failed. It just means that you are human.
In fact, what really matters is getting back to what works with compassion, and taking things one day at a time.
