Emotional Eating - how do you deal??

annabellj

when I was bored, lonely, sad, happy, lol, I kept a list of all the things that I could do for me instead of eating on the fridge. give myself a pedi, mani, bath, walk, read, clean out a closet, finish any number of projects around the house. I also used to keep clean veggies in the portable carrier for parties to eat in the afternoons when the kids and hubby got home from school, work, etc. before dinner it kept them from eating crap and ruining their appetite for dinner and got in some veggies. thanks for the reminders! im going to do this again!

newdaydawning79

I have a hard time resisting something terrible if I've had a rough day. I think, "Today sucked, I deserve a Big Mac." No, I don't. But even though I usually do well and resist, I have my weak moments.

Oh my goodness, THIS. For me it's usually a Quarter Pounder but same thing. Food for boredom/comfort/etc has always been the norm in my family so breaking myself of that is going to take a LOT of work.

I'm definitely trying the 'keep your hands busy' method of refraining...I do a lot of beadwork (jewelry making) and so I help my business and keep from binging at the same time!

jessihoover

I try to elminate all snacky type foods in my house, if i do have to have them (for my husband) i try to make them as impossible to get to. but really lately I try to find other outlets whether that be reading, going to the gym, going for a bike ride, sleeping if i do have to have something i do keep almonds around, or fruits like grapes/ berries, or low cal popcorn (small somethings that I can mindless eat if i need the motions), drinking from a water bottle too!

tialynn1

I have the same problem. I struggle with this a lot. Walking has helped me with the stress. That is why I walk every morning before I start work.
Sometimes doing something helps and sometimes nothing helps except for the unhealthy food. I just try to do better next time. That is one of the big things I am trying to work on this year. I want to try to start writing in a journal.

Brunner26_2

Changing the eating behavior is important, but it's probably more important to address the emotional issues that cause you to want to overeat. You could think of it as just treating the symptoms of an illness while completely ignoring the sickness or ignoring why you got sick in the first place.

Work on your emotional issues. Fine some outlet, even if that means going and talking to a professional. There's no shame in that.

lajuice24

I have gotten good at recognizing that is what I am doing, so I will stop and regroup. It is a mind thing and I just have to turn it around. I usually will drink a big glass of water or go for a short walk.

BigBigBertha

My 'go-to' is a cup of tea, by the time it takes to brew I've forgotten all about snacking. Also offer one to anyone else in the house, having a chat over tea I find is a good distraction!

vypeters

Boredom is the worst for me. For emotions, I've focused on finding something healthier to substitute for the eating, whether it's a candle, a book, a soak, a walk...I have a list of strategies when I find myself emotionally munchy. Bored is the tough one; only finding something to be busy and totally distract myself works.

ColleenHollis

First of all, being around family is sometimes hard. Boredom. I had to recognise what my triggers were. And then come up with a plan to deal with them. It usually involved heading outside for a walk or getting busy with chores etc. Also growing up our rewards were food. It was kinda scarce so when mom wanted to treat us we would stop for some hot french fries or a milkshake. So I have to re-wire my head on how I reward myself. Meanwhile the advice on here is good. Look for healthy choices, blessings )

newcs

I either find something else to do (watch a movie, knit/crochet, read a book, go out for a walk if it's not freezing out, clean, etc) or I eat something but I've also worked on stocking my house with healthy-ish items or low calorie items. So I often hit that point at night but I eat a fudgesicle and it's 40 calories so it's not horrible.

ETA: Another thing I do that might backfire for some people is that I look up new recipes. Sometimes it's just that I'm bored with the healthy food I've been eating. So I find new healthy recipes, go get the ingredients and cook. It kills at least 2 hours most of the time and then I have something healthy on hand that I'm excited to cook. This can backfire if you start googling "world's best brownie" or something like that

Mutant13

I don't eat out of sadness/boredom etc.

I rage eat.

If I'm really pissed off a have to eat tiny teddies. I think slowly biting the arms and legs off of an adorable bear is theraputic.

DebraYvonne

sleep, run, walk, play with a dog, etc

my daughter's dog keeps me grounded. My dog died late last year so she has helped me a lot. I will get another one in 2013 sometime. They make you feel so loved despite everything going on at work, in life, with loved ones, friends! sometimes just talking to someone helps too. Hope you feel better

MemphisKitten

I am definitely an emotional eater. Coping over the holidays is a little more difficult for me too. I try to get in protein and work out. . . but I'm not always successful in fighting the binges. :ohwell:

cebreisch

I am a big emotional eater, and eating out of being bored. Basically, you name it, and I can make a reason to eat for it! Happy, sad, tired, bored, it's raining, it's snowing, the sun's out, hey - that guy just cut me off, wait - was that a deer by the side of the road? Was it alone, or does it have friends? Friends....when was the last time I spoke to my old friends....maybe I should call them...

Anyway, It's hard - but try to realize the issue behind the eating if you can. BUT at least while it's happeneing, try to make conscious, wise choices - lean/healthy proteins, fruits/veggies, protein/fiber bars, etc. If you can focus on those sorts of foods, at least it might "lessen the damage". That goes in line with all those who say to keep only healthy foods in the house. If you have a craving for a certain food, then you have to go get it. I LOVE queso dip, but can't keep it in the house, so once or twice a month, maybe, I'll work it in to go to Don Pablo's, get a kids sized queso, count out my 8 tortilla chips and get my "fix", and don't take home the leftovers.

Since you can't control what life throws at you, or stress or hormones or whatever, try to control the reaction....make plans....have the right foods at home so when a case of "the eats" comes along, it won't completely derail you.

For what it's worth....

poedunk65

I don't eat for my emotions. It was hard to change that habit.

kimmiedunne

I'm an emotional eater - it was something I have had to come to terms with throughout my nearly 5 years of my weight loss journey. It is also a hard habit to break. I've learned I need to keep my hands busy - I do a cross stitch, read a book or magazine, or exercise. It keeps me from going to the kitchen when I'm bored, stressed, angry, etc. Hope this helps you! It works for me (most of the time!)

MeltingMadame

Find a good warm tea and sweeten artificially or with honey. The warmness will create a sense of fuliness.

neva4saken

Hi, I struggled with the same issue years ago, usually when i was depressed. I tried everything switching the snacks, drinking extra water etc.. all these things did was keep me mentally in the state that was causing the emotional eating. It actually provoked me to seek becoming a pyschology major being studying for the last two years. One thing i learned was I had to realize what was making me reach for "mood food" and break that cycle. Just switching what you reach for may help but it doesn't fix or correct the real issue which means you suffer the ability to return to the same state of mind and sometimes worse. Food is addictive and studies show that althought it's literally not a drug the brain experiences the same euphroic senses when over indulging in food, the same way a cocaine addict or crack addict does when they partake of their "addiction". It starts first in the mind, switching to healtheir snacks will def help keep the bad results down since 75% of our food consumption is emotionally based. It's not always the food it's whatever is driving the emotion. You break that cycle and you break the emotional eating cycle. I started by switching the foods i surrounded myself with, then while i purged my foods i also began purging my thought process, heck lets face it you can look healthy and be further from it without making sure mentally we rehab ourselves. It can range from boredom, to trauma, to depression, it's a temporary escape with long term effects. So throw a monkey wrench in there, get bored go for a walk, feeling lonely find something constructive to do, get a good support base that will keep your safely and healthy with positive entertainment. I hope this helped hope i didn't over shoot, i know my sturggle with it and what i had to do. Good luck and God speed to you.

seabee78

I used to think I wasn't an emotional eater. My previous definition of an emotional eater was "Wah! I'm so sad. I'll eat this chocolate bar to make me feel better."

But then I discovered I ate badly when I had a ****ty day at work. Usually I'll pre-enter my lunch into MFP; fully planning on a roast chicken breast and a side salad and an apple from the local grocery store. Then I'll have a crap morning from hell and when I get out of there, I say screw it and drive up to the Golden Arches.

If I'm feeling down, sad or something similar then I have no problem with eating bad. If I'm raging mad, I don't care what I eat but it better be something fast and hot. And usually unhealthy. This must change.

DebbieLyn63

I used to eat out of boredom, or anger, or frustration when my ADD kicked in and I couldn't get focused. Then I realized that many times I was eating out of avoidance. How could I be bored when there was SO much stuff that needed to be done? I wasn't bored, I just didn't want to do laundry, or clean the bathroom, or do the taxes, so I would use food as an excuse. "well it is almost lunchtime, I will go ahead and eat lunch, then do it afterwards". It gave me something to do that I didn't have to think about or make any major decisions. I could keep this game up all day long and end up accomplishing nothing but eating extra calories and feeling like a fat, lazy slob by the end of the day.
Now that I have been recording my foods for over 4 months, I no longer mindless eat. I still have my times of just wanting to snack all day, but now they are premeasured snacks and I log them before I eat them. Seeing them written down is a physical reminder and keeps me in line. Moderation has been the key. I struggled with an 'all or nothing' mentality for years. "well I have blown it now, might as well eat the rest of it and start over tomorrow!"

When I'm mad, (which is hardly ever now) I go to town on the dishes or scrubbing the shower. Anger is mostly a sense of being out of control of a situation for me, so I find something that I CAN control, and see the progress of a cleaner house, then I feel better about myself and whatever I was mad about is long over and done with.

A nice warm cup of coffee is a great stress reliever in the afternoons as well. Decaf and sugar free flavorings, of course.