emotional hunger

lemur_lady

I have been having a few stressful weeks. We have had a bereavement and things have been quite hectic. I have noticed I have been eating more and a lot of it has been junk. Im not opposed to eating some junk food as I quite like the IIFYM but its been putting me over my calorie goal quite a bit and its starting to bug me that I cant get some control over it.

The last few days I have noticed I have been wanting to snack in the evenings but im not physcially hungry. The urge to eat is so strong but there are no actual hunger pangs. I have been an emotional eater since I was little, it the way I learnt how to deal with things. I need to change this as I dont want my diet to be reliant on what mood I am in.

What can I try in order to take out my stress in better ways?

zoeysasha37

Maybe try to exercise at night, if your having these cravings at night. personally, after my workout I am rally careful what I eat, cuz I don't want to feel like I wasted that workout. Lol!! I know that's not how it really works at all, but it does help me from emotional eating.

Greytfish

Counseling

healthygreek

Try some fage yoghurt with a tablespoon of honey instead of junk or some nuts.
Also magnesium citrate is a calming supplement and it's good for you. 400 mg a day in 2 doses.
As said above-exercise is an amazing stress reliever.
My condolences on your loss.

healthygreek

Counseling

Simple bereavement does not require counseling. It is quite natural to mourn a death of a loved one. It is not pathological. Just be kind to yourself at this time and know what you are going through and your feelings of grief are totally normal.

CallMeBacon

Just walking really helps me.. doesn't need to be a strenuous workout. Also really any type of activity.. I find just sitting there (like watching TV) is harder. Play with kids / dog / spouse?

cebreisch

I've had a bereavement in the last few months myself. Any sort of exercise or movement helps. Anything that you can do to occupy your hands (knitting, sewing, etc.) helps. Anything that'll occupy the "down times".

Someone I know likes putting chocolate protein powder in plain greek yogurt....that may be something to try to get a "fix" that isn't that bad for you.

Greytfish

Counseling

Simple bereavement does not require counseling. It is quite natural to mourn a death of a loved one. It is not pathological. Just be kind to yourself at this time and know what you are going through and your feelings of grief are totally normal.

You made quite an assumption there.

Counseling would be for the maladpative coping strategy of emotional eating.

LRoslin

Exercise can be a very good stress reliever, at least it is for me. Days I don't exercise i notice it's harder for me to deal with stress.

If you have a hobby that keeps your hands busy, like knitting, that can help. Or if the urge to snack just won't go away try air popped popcorn--you can get a large volume for relatively few calories. Just use a bit of nonstick spray to help the salt stick to it, and there you go. Fit it into your macros for the day and you're good.

If you don't have an air-popping machine, you can make it in your microwave with a brown paper lunch bag. I use 1/3 cup kernels in a bag, roll it up firmly, and use the regular popcorn setting on my microwave. I like to sprinkle it with nutritional yeast (lots of B vitamins, good for stress as well).

DoctahJenn

It's going to sound really silly, but as soon as you get the urge to snack, brush your teeth. It helps curb cravings, and also, no one wants to eat right after brushing their teeth!

healthygreek

Counseling

Simple bereavement does not require counseling. It is quite natural to mourn a death of a loved one. It is not pathological. Just be kind to yourself at this time and know what you are going through and your feelings of grief are totally normal.

You made quite an assumption there.

Counseling would be for the maladpative coping strategy of emotional eating.

i do not consider a bit of comfort eating in the first weeks following a loved one's death maladaptive.
Just my opinion. If it goes on for a while and gets worse, perhaps some counseling, but at this stage, it is simply a coping mechanism.

lemur_lady

Thanks for the replies.

Just to stress this is an ongoing problem I have, its has just been worse recently with what has been going on. I usually leave 200 kcals or so for the evenings for this purpose. I have come a long way though because I used to do it all day but have cut it down to just the evenings.

I think keeping busy will help. I notice I do tend to eat a lot less when my mind is occupied elsewhere.

Hopefully I can heal and get past this.

Greytfish

Counseling

Simple bereavement does not require counseling. It is quite natural to mourn a death of a loved one. It is not pathological. Just be kind to yourself at this time and know what you are going through and your feelings of grief are totally normal.

You made quite an assumption there.

Counseling would be for the maladpative coping strategy of emotional eating.

i do not consider a bit of comfort eating in the first weeks following a loved one's death maladaptive.
Just my opinion. If it goes on for a while and gets worse, perhaps some counseling, but at this stage, it is simply a coping mechanism.

This is what I was touching on: " I have been an emotional eater since I was little." From her most recent post, it sounds like the current state is an improvement. If she has been battling this long term, some good behavioral therapy that would teach her better coping skills would be a big boost for her.