How to stop emotional eating.
kamyers1289
Posts: 129 Member
Whenever I'm sad, angry, upset, lonely, or sometimes even bored, I tend to binge. And I'm not binging on veggies and water (I WISH!). My weight loss journey has been going solidly well, except for when I feel the need to eat 6 trillion calories in one sitting because my emotions are wacky. Any advice on how to knock this habit off?
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Replies
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I don't have any tips, but also looking for help with this as it's something I really struggle with.0
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I don't have any tips, but also looking for help with this as it's something I really struggle with.
Ugh, I feel your pain. It's just like my mind turns off and the food cravings turn on.0 -
Often people who have been restricting themselves harshly (or have been eating quite low-carb) tend to get a manic "eat all the things" kind of day.
If this is true in your case, there's a few things you could try: 1) try nudging yourself closer to maintenance and include a few more carbs. 2) plan a "refeed" once a week where you eat some carbs and work to being under on a weekly average instead.0 -
I wish I had some tips. I struggle with it too.
The only thing I ever found that works is finding something that keeps my mind so engaged that I don't think about food.
Or taking a long walk, and NOT eating as I walk! (Which I know some are prone to do.)
I read something recently about identifying true hunger, and I am trying to experiment with that.
I've also read that many times, thirst is the problem, so I've learned to keep water at my desk and drink it, to keep from nibbling.
Good luck to you!0 -
My only advice, is this: figure our what is triggering you and squash it! Stressed out? try taking 10 deep breaths or some yoga. Someone piss you off-Again 10 deep breaths or call a friend who you can vent to (or go to the gym and beat up a body bag!) Bored or lonely, go out for a walk, get a coffee, again call a friend, be around people! I personally reward myself with food-it's my birthday? Yay cookies! It's your birthday? Yay cookies! I have tried changing this so now every time I make a pound or fitness goal, I buy myself nail polish or get my hair done. You really do just have to figure out why it is you're eating and find other constructive ways to cope.0
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You could try a general cut back in the refined carbohydrate you have in a general way, then bolster your meals with a better amount of protein and fat to compensate but within your allocations. The higher the level of "sugar" you normally have, the greater the risk you will keep reaching for it. Also consider some fat is essential to the proper functioning of a body.
All the very best0 -
There is no easy answer, but it basically comes down to what is easier and less painful to do. Is it easier to say "*kitten* it" and eat? Probably so, or you wouldn't be continuing with the emotional eating. At some point, it becomes increasingly more painful (emotionally, physically, etc) to continue with the status quo of eating. At that point, you will have to make a decision - to change my habits or not. When it hurts too much to continue, you will stop the behavior.
I know of what I speak.0 -
I'm a binge eater, and I eat because of depression or anxiety most of the time. Sometimes it's just boredom. However my doctor recently prescribed me a new medication that helps with binge eating. It's made for seizures and migraines, but was approved for weight loss for it's dose of phentermine.
The medication is called Topiramate. If you go to a doctor, maybe suggest this to them and see what they have to say about it?
It worked wonders for me. I'm severely obese, and my diet has become almost half the battle thus far.0 -
Often people who have been restricting themselves harshly (or have been eating quite low-carb) tend to get a manic "eat all the things" kind of day.
If this is true in your case, there's a few things you could try: 1) try nudging yourself closer to maintenance and include a few more carbs. 2) plan a "refeed" once a week where you eat some carbs and work to being under on a weekly average instead.
I'm not a harsh restricter though, which is weird. I eat 1900 (TDEE is about 2300), and eat within my macros. So emotional eating really is strange for me, because I pretty much eat whatever I want anyway
...edit for typos0 -
I know I get especially "binge-ey" towards my time of the month. Knowing this is going to be coming, helps me. Sometimes I give in to it - and other times I do better. But it is usually one day of crazy feelings/bingeing/etc that mostly amounts to crazy hormones making crazy with me. Knowing when it is coming can help me plan my days before and after by eating less, ramping up my exercise, etc.0
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I struggled with it terribly bad, but one day my health became more important, getting off blood pressure meds, staying alive for my 3 wonderful kids. Im off the meds. I knew I had to stop and did not have a choice so I just stopped. Went through all kinds of emotions at first, had to deal with them, but at some point dealing got a lot easier.0
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Emotional eating is a difficult thing to overcome, and there's no real advice for it, as only you can determine why you binge eat and get the help you need from there.
I have discovered I have triggers; for example, if I let myself get really hungry, or if I'm just sitting about doing nothing. They are easy to deal with; find something that keeps your mind occupied and don't let yourself get too hungry. As for why I sit there and shovel an entire cake in my face when I'm feeling down? I don't know.
Keep track of when you binge, be honest and log it in your food diary, then evaluate. It could be that you aren't eating enough, or that you are cutting out everything you like, or it could be a mental problem, in which case, if you feel you really need some help with it and it is making you unhappy, try and see a doctor.0 -
This can be really hard. I still struggle with it but less now. If I can catch myself for just a moment before I start bingeing and can just pause for a minute or two and try to calm myself and sense my real hunger level and if perhaps I'm about to do something I will regret for no good reason, I often can just walk away or perhaps have some fruit instead and even smile about it. For me, it's about awareness of my needs instead of my old emotional reactions. If I'm lucky enough to see myself about to get stuck in that trap again, I can win in the end. I've learned that I can apply this to lots of things like exercise, chores, work, etc.0
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One of the more important moments for me recently was when I was sitting at the computer, bored, and thought about getting up to go eat something. And I suddenly thought to myself, "Eating something isn't going to make me any less bored". I wish I could bottle that moment, because it was HUGE.
That said, I still definitely have days where I eat emotionally! (And out of boredom, too!) And all of these are real, valid feelings that are OK to have; it's just that we're trying to address them in a different way than we're used to. I don't have a magic bullet, but there are a couple of tricks that have helped me.
1. If you have trigger foods, try to either keep them out of the house or only let them in in limited quantities. I will destroy a bag of potato chips without a second thought, so I've stopped buying them for the most part, and when I do, I buy the smallest bag I can find.
2. Recognize when you're feeling triggered, and try to address your feelings another way. I try to exercise (dancing, walking, workout video on YouTube) when I'm jittery and anxious; if I'm overwhelmed, I make myself tea and read a silly book; if I'm in need of a treat, I buy myself a new bottle of nail polish and/or give myself a manicure.
3. If you're bored- look into new hobbies you might enjoy! I took up knitting, which I find very relaxing. And as a bonus, it gives me something to do with my hands.
4. Plan to indulge /a little/ when you know you'll be under pressure. I have a huge project coming up at work, and I know I'll be buying more croissants and eating more lunch M&Ms as I deal with the stress. But it's temporary, they're delicious, and I'm going to fit them into my current goals.
Interested to hear what other people's tactics are!0 -
BUMP0
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How to stop emotional eating. Hmmmmm. Stop getting emotional? I'm only kidding. If it was that simple, I wouldn't be trying to lose 20 more pounds. I just wanted to comment on this to let you know you are not alone and because I want to read the replies later.0
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One of the more important moments for me recently was when I was sitting at the computer, bored, and thought about getting up to go eat something. And I suddenly thought to myself, "Eating something isn't going to make me any less bored". I wish I could bottle that moment, because it was HUGE.
That said, I still definitely have days where I eat emotionally! (And out of boredom, too!) And all of these are real, valid feelings that are OK to have; it's just that we're trying to address them in a different way than we're used to. I don't have a magic bullet, but there are a couple of tricks that have helped me.
1. If you have trigger foods, try to either keep them out of the house or only let them in in limited quantities. I will destroy a bag of potato chips without a second thought, so I've stopped buying them for the most part, and when I do, I buy the smallest bag I can find.
2. Recognize when you're feeling triggered, and try to address your feelings another way. I try to exercise (dancing, walking, workout video on YouTube) when I'm jittery and anxious; if I'm overwhelmed, I make myself tea and read a silly book; if I'm in need of a treat, I buy myself a new bottle of nail polish and/or give myself a manicure.
3. If you're bored- look into new hobbies you might enjoy! I took up knitting, which I find very relaxing. And as a bonus, it gives me something to do with my hands.
4. Plan to indulge /a little/ when you know you'll be under pressure. I have a huge project coming up at work, and I know I'll be buying more croissants and eating more lunch M&Ms as I deal with the stress. But it's temporary, they're delicious, and I'm going to fit them into my current goals.
Interested to hear what other people's tactics are!
Good tips, thank you! I actually tried to knit once, it didn't go well.0 -
It is hard to stop because it is not only a habit but the food is a source of comfort. You have to face the emotions and try and work through them or redirect them. Lonely, maybe call a friend or write a letter (not just a text) to someone. Other emotions may have other outlets, a new hobby that you need to keep you hands clean while doing like knitting or scrap booking, exercise, take a hot bath, anything to redirect away from food.0
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One of the more important moments for me recently was when I was sitting at the computer, bored, and thought about getting up to go eat something. And I suddenly thought to myself, "Eating something isn't going to make me any less bored". I wish I could bottle that moment, because it was HUGE.
That said, I still definitely have days where I eat emotionally! (And out of boredom, too!) And all of these are real, valid feelings that are OK to have; it's just that we're trying to address them in a different way than we're used to. I don't have a magic bullet, but there are a couple of tricks that have helped me.
1. If you have trigger foods, try to either keep them out of the house or only let them in in limited quantities. I will destroy a bag of potato chips without a second thought, so I've stopped buying them for the most part, and when I do, I buy the smallest bag I can find.
2. Recognize when you're feeling triggered, and try to address your feelings another way. I try to exercise (dancing, walking, workout video on YouTube) when I'm jittery and anxious; if I'm overwhelmed, I make myself tea and read a silly book; if I'm in need of a treat, I buy myself a new bottle of nail polish and/or give myself a manicure.
3. If you're bored- look into new hobbies you might enjoy! I took up knitting, which I find very relaxing. And as a bonus, it gives me something to do with my hands.
4. Plan to indulge /a little/ when you know you'll be under pressure. I have a huge project coming up at work, and I know I'll be buying more croissants and eating more lunch M&Ms as I deal with the stress. But it's temporary, they're delicious, and I'm going to fit them into my current goals.
Interested to hear what other people's tactics are!
Good tips, thank you! I actually tried to knit once, it didn't go well.
Glad to help! (And honestly? My knitting last night didn't go that well either. WELP. /shrug)0 -
Personally, stress is a huge issue for me.
When I am stressed with what feels like 10 to 100 other very large, looming issues I couldn't care less what or how much I am eating.
So in pairing with my aim at healthier choices I also actively work on my stress and anxiety with meditation, yoga and other interactive experiences. Many of my self improvement projects are aimed at my perceived weaker personality traits.
If you start to work on those and pair them with better diet and exercise they will work concurrently to help reduce (probably not eliminate) the occurrence of emotional eating.
You will figure out the best balance for your life.0 -
One of the more important moments for me recently was when I was sitting at the computer, bored, and thought about getting up to go eat something. And I suddenly thought to myself, "Eating something isn't going to make me any less bored". I wish I could bottle that moment, because it was HUGE.
That said, I still definitely have days where I eat emotionally! (And out of boredom, too!) And all of these are real, valid feelings that are OK to have; it's just that we're trying to address them in a different way than we're used to. I don't have a magic bullet, but there are a couple of tricks that have helped me.
1. If you have trigger foods, try to either keep them out of the house or only let them in in limited quantities. I will destroy a bag of potato chips without a second thought, so I've stopped buying them for the most part, and when I do, I buy the smallest bag I can find.
2. Recognize when you're feeling triggered, and try to address your feelings another way. I try to exercise (dancing, walking, workout video on YouTube) when I'm jittery and anxious; if I'm overwhelmed, I make myself tea and read a silly book; if I'm in need of a treat, I buy myself a new bottle of nail polish and/or give myself a manicure.
3. If you're bored- look into new hobbies you might enjoy! I took up knitting, which I find very relaxing. And as a bonus, it gives me something to do with my hands.
4. Plan to indulge /a little/ when you know you'll be under pressure. I have a huge project coming up at work, and I know I'll be buying more croissants and eating more lunch M&Ms as I deal with the stress. But it's temporary, they're delicious, and I'm going to fit them into my current goals.
Interested to hear what other people's tactics are!
Good tips, thank you! I actually tried to knit once, it didn't go well.
Glad to help! (And honestly? My knitting last night didn't go that well either. WELP. /shrug)
We should all take up knitting, even if we're bad at it. Then wear the ugly scarves we make as a beautiful reminder of that time that we did NOT give in and binge!0 -
Good tips, thank you! I actually tried to knit once, it didn't go well.
Glad to help! (And honestly? My knitting last night didn't go that well either. WELP. /shrug)
We should all take up knitting, even if we're bad at it. Then wear the ugly scarves we make as a beautiful reminder of that time that we did NOT give in and binge!
Or we'll get so tangled up in the yarn we can't reach the kitchen. One or the other.
"Hon, are you OK?"
"Fine, just fine. Could you get a pair of scissors? Big ones."0 -
Whenever I'm sad, angry, upset, lonely, or sometimes even bored, I tend to binge. And I'm not binging on veggies and water (I WISH!). My weight loss journey has been going solidly well, except for when I feel the need to eat 6 trillion calories in one sitting because my emotions are wacky. Any advice on how to knock this habit off?
Put the fork down.
Oh, for real, I never thought of that before.
I would smack you upside the back of the head if I could.
Apparently, you must not have. It's really that simple. How do you stop emotional eating? Don't eat. When I realized that's what I was doing for years, that's the step I took. Stop being so angsty and overthinking it. Just stop doing it. If that's too hard, see a head shrinker.
As for the second point, I wouldn't suggest it.
I'm glad it was that easy for you to do. It's very difficult for some of us, as this thread attests. But feel free to stay here and feel superior to us mere mortals, if you'd like.
And yes, I found my emotional eating much easier to control when I got my chronic depression and anxiety under control through therapy and medication. Go headshrinkers for helping me make my life better!
I haven't read any replies indicating this was easy. Yes, it's ****ing difficult for many of us. If it was easy, do you think many of us would be here??? But, guess what, some of the most worthwhile endeavors in our lives aren't easy. But we do it because the consequences of not doing it becomes unbearable. When the consequences of any behavior becomes unbearable, change it possible, putting down the fork in possible.
Changing your emotional eating behaviors is simple - just put down the fork. No one EVER said it was easy.0 -
One of the more important moments for me recently was when I was sitting at the computer, bored, and thought about getting up to go eat something. And I suddenly thought to myself, "Eating something isn't going to make me any less bored". I wish I could bottle that moment, because it was HUGE.
That said, I still definitely have days where I eat emotionally! (And out of boredom, too!) And all of these are real, valid feelings that are OK to have; it's just that we're trying to address them in a different way than we're used to. I don't have a magic bullet, but there are a couple of tricks that have helped me.
1. If you have trigger foods, try to either keep them out of the house or only let them in in limited quantities. I will destroy a bag of potato chips without a second thought, so I've stopped buying them for the most part, and when I do, I buy the smallest bag I can find.
2. Recognize when you're feeling triggered, and try to address your feelings another way. I try to exercise (dancing, walking, workout video on YouTube) when I'm jittery and anxious; if I'm overwhelmed, I make myself tea and read a silly book; if I'm in need of a treat, I buy myself a new bottle of nail polish and/or give myself a manicure.
3. If you're bored- look into new hobbies you might enjoy! I took up knitting, which I find very relaxing. And as a bonus, it gives me something to do with my hands.
4. Plan to indulge /a little/ when you know you'll be under pressure. I have a huge project coming up at work, and I know I'll be buying more croissants and eating more lunch M&Ms as I deal with the stress. But it's temporary, they're delicious, and I'm going to fit them into my current goals.
Interested to hear what other people's tactics are!
^^^ I agree heartily with everything above, especially #2. In my head I call it replacement. There are tons of ways people deal with stress. Once you know you're stress eating, you can try to replace that with something else you find calming besides eating. Hobbies are great for this... something with your hands (i.e., not TV because you can sit there and eat at the same time). Personally I've found reading, embroidery, and (surprisingly) cardio to work well, but everyone has different interests.
Knowing you're even doing it is 75% of the battle. My comfort foods are baked goods, usually doughnuts, cupcakes, or cookies. I would eat 3-6 bakery yeast doughnuts in one sitting. I don't keep any of that stuff in the house anymore, because I will eat ALL OF IT. That temptation is always there, just vastly muted. Good luck!0 -
bump - I'm the most guilty of this ever... half a loaf of bread just yesterday!0
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As a dude I am one of the worst at emotional eating. I let myself get upset about things and use food to make myself feel better, when in reality I know I'm just punishing myself. The best thing you can do, at least that I do, is find people to talk about and to walk you off that ledge when you are starting to eat too much because you can. Ultimately though, it's all about will power.0
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Emotional eaters are funny to me because they don't think of the most obvious thing...don't buy the food. Just stop buying it. Then, there's nothing to emotionally eat except meat and veggies. Dont buy ice cream, crackers, etc. Just don't.
Except when you are really being emotional over something you just order a pizza and that takes care of it for you.0 -
Emotional eaters are funny to me because they don't think of the most obvious thing...don't buy the food. Just stop buying it. Then, there's nothing to emotionally eat except meat and veggies. Dont buy ice cream, crackers, etc. Just don't.
Nobody ever said emotional eaters only eat junk food.0 -
Emotional eaters are funny to me because they don't think of the most obvious thing...don't buy the food. Just stop buying it. Then, there's nothing to emotionally eat except meat and veggies. Dont buy ice cream, crackers, etc. Just don't.
Nobody ever said emotional eaters only eat junk food.
The OP did.
Sorry. She was only speaking for herself, though.0 -
My tips for struggling with emotional eating.
Drink a lot of water, as in every time you go to reach for the high calorie, "low other nutrients" foods (candy, cake, chips, anything fried, etc) drink a glass of water first and wait 20 minutes. Then check in with yourself and find out why are you eating before you even have that first bite. If you can get through those and still need the high calorie, "low other nutrients" food, then eat it and log it. You do have to log it (that's another wake-up call, logging it).
If it's eating for boredom, finding a hobby that requires you to use your hands such as knitting or crocheting will keep you from eating. Can't mindlessly put food into your mouth if your hands are busy.
If it's eating for depression, get up and move, go for a walk, jog in place, do jumping jacks, dance, etc.....Yes, I'm talking about cardio here (strength training doesn't keep depression at bay as easily). And that depression advice is from someone that suffers from it and has been for at least 30 years, possibly more (diagnosed and actively controlling it for the past 16 years, mostly without meds, sometimes with maintenance prescription of meds). Added benefit of this one, count the cardio for the day!
If it's eating because of stress, depression suggestion will work with that too.
I've tried other things for weight loss and one of the things said at a Weight Watcher meeting has always stuck with me....Work on becoming an "Emotional Exerciser" instead of an "Emotional Eater". Wouldn't our journeys be so much easier if we all could become "Emotional Exercisers" instead of "Emotional Eaters"?0
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