Emotional Eating

I read a book calked Brain Over Binge last year. It was really good. We have more control than we seem to think. I haven't binged for over six weeks. I believe seeing a psychologist for a long time has helped too. It's hard. I can't really pinpoint how j stopped because there are a lot of things. Good luck

First and most important thing to do is to be aware of it. Once you are then you can decide to work on yourself emotionally instead of eating.

Hi!! First of all, good for you for not only deciding to make a change, but for being honest with yourself. I find honesty is a huge first step that many people struggle to take.
I too am an emotional eater, and I have been for 5 years. Now I can't 100% tell you that one day your super strong cravings when you're upset will absolutely go away, but I CAN tell you I've learned to control them quite well. I would also say that different things work for different people, so what worked for me may not work for you, but here are a few things that I have noticed seem to really help my own self control:

First, surround yourself with positive people who are supportive of your change. Friends and family who would like to see you happy and can fill your empty sadness with laughter and enjoyment instead of food.

2: Don't buy the foods you know you are likely to turn to when you're upset. I know this can be quite a few different foods, but we're less likely to stuff our faces with quinoa than we are with chips and dip, or chocolate bars. Plus, if you do end up overeating, at least you can say it's healthier foods.

3: Catch yourself when you start saying you "deserve" it. A big thing for me as an emotional eater was that I would have a bad day, or hell, even a bad hour of the day, and I would tell myself "well I had a bad day I deserve it". Except when you're struggling with something like emotional eating, you start to find that suddenly every day is a day you "deserve it". Now I'm not saying don't treat yourself. In fact - please do. But not to extra food. When you start thinking that, whether you had a bad day, or you did something awesome that deserves a treat, look at what you WOULD have eaten. Then take that money and save it up for something you truly really want. Or take that money directly and treat yourself to a shopping trip or a manicure or go to the movies, putt putt, I don't know - whatever makes you happy that isn't food. Trust me, it starts to work. In my case I began to notice that shopping was actually cheaper than my binge eating fast food habits - and then as a bonus because I was buying clothes instead of food as my reward for things, they were fitting better. Kind of a win-win in my scenario.

4: When you notice you are about to binge... or even in the middle of binging, close your eyes. Count to ten, and think about whether or not you REALLY want to keep eating. Is it truly going to make you feel better? Most times, it will even make you feel worse, which you have no doubt experienced, since you truly want to change. Focus on how that unhealthy extra bites will make you feel tomorrow when you wake up and you realize you lost control again.

5: When you've successfully stopped yourself, distract yourself. My big thing to do is to watch a couple internet videos of silly cats or something that will get me smiling, and to drink a whole lot of water.

6: Again with the water - if you must, when you notice you're feeling like eating and you know you're not hungry, chug water. A lot of it. Until your belly feels full and you don't want to eat anymore. (It's a bit extreme, but sometimes, you need to do it!)

7: Pat yourself on the back when you DO overcome it. Even if it's just for a little while. This isn't easy. Sugar has been proven to be addicting. Reward yourself with little things like a new shirt or movie or something you enjoy when you go a few days (hell, even a DAY at the beginning) without emotional eating.

8: Don't be too hard on yourself - food is not your enemy as long as it is in moderation. Now, for me, this is something I'm still working on. Yesterday I treated myself to a bit of chocolate covered almonds. Now, this may seem to go against what I said above, but it has to do with how you think of it. I didn't eat them because I "deserved" it, but because I know it's OK to treat myself once in a while, and a couple grams of chocolate covered almonds (from a bulk store, where I can purposely buy only a few) ISN'T an entire box of toaster strudel and a whole box of Reese's Puffs, and that's something I need to realize. While this has more to do with craving control for me, it's something you can get to in time.

And remember, it WILL take time. You won't stop overeating overnight. But you can choose to take little steps to eventually cut it from your life.

The other day, this was posted on my favourite fitness blog: http://fiterazzi.com/2014/02/03/pass-the-chocolates-the-truth-about-emotional-eating/
This article is written by an every day, normal girl (who now happens to be a fitness trainer). But I find it gives some good advice if you are interested!

Good luck!!! Honesty is the best first start you can have - you're on your way to a positive change!

I still struggle with this but I have kicked it a bit. A few thoughts on what has helped me:
-- be aware when emotional eating is happening
-- identify physical hunger vs emotional hunger (link to an imagine I find helpful http://andycore.com/eat-smart/physical-hunger-emotional-hunger/ )
-- pinpoint the feeling you are having and address it, understand that sometimes it is ok to feel angry, sad, depressed
-- but identify new ways to cope with these feelings/emotions
-- exercise routines are great stress relievers
-- I have a list of activities around the house that I can do instead of eating (i.e. crochet, reading, arts and crafts, board games, cleaning, updating picture frames...)
-- plan your day of eating the night before or in the morning, helps me stay on track and hit my targets
-- create a visual/physical representation of pounds lost and pounds to lose
-- treat each day as a new day, do not dwell on the past