Emotional Eating

I have similar emotional eating problems, except mine are almost always triggered by negative experiences instead of positive ones. When I get bad news, am having relationship problems, or have a really bad day, I almost tell myself that it's okay to eat more than I usually would or eat more of something "bad". It's almost like a mechanism to help "soothe" my being upset. It (of course) never actually makes me feel any better! Sometimes, if I can find enough clarity to stop and ask myself if eating is actually going to make anything better, I can nip emotional eating in the bud. There are times, though, when that too difficult for me to do.

I think positive results are contingent on consistency, and if I slip up and have one bad day and emotionally eat, I still get really upset with myself, but I know that the next day is a new day and I can make up for it. As long as I am consistently eating well and generally not letting emotional eating get in the way, everything will be okay. This understanding prevents me from lapsing into a "well I screwed up yesterday, might as well screw up today" mentality.

I also keep an excel spreadsheet of my daily caloric intake, exercise, and net calories - so I can easily spot the days where I have had emotional overeating. It seems trivial, but seeing my diet 3-4 weeks at a time and being able to pick out the high-calorie days easily is a good motivation. I don't want to see such high numbers!

I also eat based on my emotions. I eat when I am upset. I also used to eat at night watching TV and wasn't really hungry or even realized what I was eating. I usually have my laptop with me now when I am watching TV and that helps keep my hands busy. Otherwise I no longer eat out of the bag/container. I count out the portion I want to eat and put the rest away. This has helped me. Water gets boring, so I use the crystal light powdered stixs in my water bottle and sip on that while watching TV. When I really have a craving I brush my teeth. It doesn't always work, but sometime it is worth a try. Or just get out of the house and move, such as walking. Or if it is late or raining- go to a large department store and walk around.

I'm also an emotional eater but it mostly involves negative experiences.... especially anxiety about a certain task / work / long hours. I *think* it will help soothe me and make me feel better... but I always just end up feeling guilty and frustrated! Logging everything on MFP has definitely helped and I've tried to go play with the dogs or take them on a walk when I start feeling this way. My dogs always have a way of making me feel better. I really believe that you can't just stop emotional eating -- you have to replace it with something else. I try to pour a big glass of water, iced tea w/ splenda or crystal lite and watch TV or go play with the dogs. It has REALLY helped the last several months! Good luck!