Stress Eating

NeuroticVirgo · May 2011

Got this in an email, thought I would post. Hopefully it is helpful to someone. I need to learn how to stop stress eating, and can use all the help I can get. So here it is. lol

Stress Eating
by Leanne Ely, C.N.C

If life is overwhelming and ice cream is your comfort, you have fallen classically into stress eating. Is your job weighing you down? Do your family's needs seem endless and way too much? And is that chocolate bar you stowed away behind other pantry items starting to call out to your subconscious? That, my friends, is the influence of stress. Trust me, I've been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. Realized it was two sizes larger than before and something had to change!

Eating just because stress begs you to can actually become a serious problem. Psychologists have studied stress eating and have concluded that it can lead to eating disorders. Skip that, right? So here's a simple plan, just 3 steps that'll help you release yourself from stress eating.

1) Get out a pen and piece of paper. Write down a list of what is burdening you. Putting pen to paper and writing out our problems is a great mental release for us--now you have a record of it.

2) Look over the list. Instead of looking at the negative, see if you can find something positive. Here's an example--kids are overwhelming in their demands. Stop and be thankful you have children--remember your friends that don't and wish they were in your shoes. Don't let the negativity hold you captive; gratitude sets you free.

3) Now look at how you're eating. Stress eating usually doesn't root in actual hunger as much as it does in trying to avoid a situation or make yourself feel better. Those feelings tend to lead us to foods that aren't going to do us any good. So, the next time one of those tempting cravings dances across your brain, take a minute to ask yourself if you're truly hungry. If your stomach answers, "no," then don't entertain stress's pressure!

I know these steps sound too easy, but after you practice them you'll see a difference! Don't let that devil called Stress sitting on your shoulder tempt you with stress-filled cravings anymore! Follow Aretha Franklin's voice belting "FREEDOM" and fight for your liberation!