Any stress eaters out there?

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MsTireSmoke
MsTireSmoke Posts: 1
in Food and Nutrition
I am the worst stress/emotional eater. Any one else like that? Anybody know how to fix it?

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  • ohmyatom
    ohmyatom Posts: 4
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    I'm pretty terrible when it comes to this.
    I'm REALLY into tea though. The process of making tea, especially loose-leaf tea, actually calms me down a bit. Some fruit teas or those with caramel notes smell positively mouth-watering. I look forward to the tea, and by the time it's steeped and ready, I've usually forgotten all about the cheesecake or whatever I wanted.
    An awesome tea for people who don't love tea quite as much as I do is lipton's vanilla caramel truffle. It has real caramel in it, and 0/negligible calories. Awesome winter drink alternative to hot chocolate or milky (therefore caloric) chai. Got my mom hooked on it instead of chugging hot coco in the winter.
  • MiSo_SeXy
    MiSo_SeXy Posts: 210 Member
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    I am, I thought I was getting a handle on it.. But the last few days
    Its been creeping back...

    I know the tricks such as.. Take a walk... Call a friend.. Ect ect
    Nothing tastes a good as we think it well makes us feel...
    But i'm still struggling and I don'tknow it sucks..
  • joebanz77
    joebanz77 Posts: 283 Member
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    I used to be a stress eater myself. It's not an easy task. The only thing you can do is keep yourself occupied and stay focused on your goals. Try working out then see if it's worth giving into those cravings. Stress eating is a habit but you can do the opposite by creating a habit out of this lifestyle as well. Keep logging in your meals on here and stick to it. With practice, you will overcome the stress eating.

    Joe
  • JustLindaLou
    JustLindaLou Posts: 376 Member
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    I would so love to become a "stress exerciser".... or be one of those people who is just "too stressed/upset/anxious/happy/excited" to eat..... I have really been on a downhill slippery slope lately, and seems the more I try to dig into my determination to STOP the worse the bingeing gets........... I WILL get over it, just hope my pants don't split before I get it figured out! :noway:
  • bethanyp007
    bethanyp007 Posts: 25 Member
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    This is a huge problem for me. Exercise helps to relieve stress, as does yoga.
  • tigerlinly
    tigerlinly Posts: 219 Member
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    yes i am and if u figure out how to fix it please let me know
  • bahacca
    bahacca Posts: 878 Member
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    I've been battling this for a LONG time. I started asking myself EVERY TIME I ATE, "Are you hungry or bored, stressed, mad?" Even at dinner. If I'm bored, stressed, mad, etc, I grab some water and a straw, sit in my chair downstairs so my kids won't bug me and take 5 minutes.
  • hoffma25
    hoffma25 Posts: 36
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    I am. Anytime I'm craving sweets (huge fan of carbs when I'm stressed), I replace what I would normally eat with a piece of gum, especially if I'm not actually hungry, just craving. I also replace it with water. Eating fresh fruit instead of sweets and carbs helps too, and actually fills me up faster.
  • StinkyWinkies
    StinkyWinkies Posts: 603 Member
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    I am *so* an emotional/stress eater...the only thing I've been able to change so far in this is: I don't keep those old comfort foods in the house (and am generally to tired to go out and buy junk for it) so I am eating healthier foods, at least. Plus, I am fully aware that I am 'eating emotionally' when I do it, whereas before, not so much.
  • claritarejoice
    claritarejoice Posts: 461 Member
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    Absolutely I am. I have fought it by trying to have healthy, consistent relationships, hanging out with my friends, and prayer - like the AA prayer of surrender really helps - I let go of all my burdens and stresses for the day, and I promise you prayer really works for me and has changed me and my family a lot.
  • BigBrewski
    BigBrewski Posts: 922 Member
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    I am a stress eater. Lately I have been in control when I have caved a little I logged it. For me there is something about writing it down then the next time you remember the last time. I totally understand that it isn't as simple as that and I know that some of the things that have helped me are doing the following:

    - Exercise in the morning before anything can stress you out. (makes your day a lot brighter)
    - Plan some "healthy" versions of comfort foods each week (this week it was spaghetti and meatballs, i made it healthy by using spaghetti squash with some whole wheat pasta and I made my own sauce to keep the sodium down)
    - Post to MFP friends here can cheer you up and get you out of the funk
    - If I am feeling really stressed I take my dogs for an extra walk and horseplay with them...the joys of a 42 year old man chasing a 15lb maltese while a 45lb shepard mix barks at us cannot be replaced and reduces stress
    - Sometime you fall off the wagon...1 day won't kill your plans..just get back on track...its when that 1 day strings into 1 week or 1 month that causes issues.

    Good luck..add me to your FL if you ever need some of that cheering up.

    -Bruce
  • bokodasu
    bokodasu Posts: 629 Member
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    Yup. And my husband is a stress-non-eater, which is really annoying. It got easier when I upped my protein (30% of calories or at least 100g/day). And I drink a lot of caffeine. Between the two, I've started to get a handle on it - I'll think I want to eat something, and then I'll think about it for a little bit, and now I can realize that no, my stomach is satisfied, I don't really need to eat that. There are still times when I just want to stuff myself, and I've done it once or twice, and really paid attention - and it turns out to be not that rewarding, really. So remembering that makes it easier the next time I get the urge.

    It's not a fix, really, just trying to adapt.

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