Emotional Eating and Support

I have been guilty of the occasional binge, though I usually stop myself. Everyone's different, but for me the key was planning for the binge. If I know that I'm going to have an incredibly stressful day full of temptations, stress, and all kinds of emotional pain, I can do my best to prepare high-volume, low-calorie snacks. This way when I start stuffing my face it's no big deal.

The ideal solution, though, is to change the behavior. Instead of binging, do something else. A game I sometimes play with myself when I'm experiencing extreme phantom hunger is something I call "Anything Else." I know, consciously, that I do not need to eat, so I ask myself if I want anything--literally anything--else in the house, or if there's anything (not food) I've been wanting or needing. While I don't believe in retail therapy as a rule, the mere act of asking myself such a question encourages me to practice better self-care. I wouldn't want to binge if I felt cared for.

Sometimes I do buy a new novel or a new gym suit or sneakers. More often, I get in a warm bath with a favorite book, music and some low-calorie tea cakes, then do a little yoga and go to bed early. It doesn't matter what you do to stop the binge--"anything else" (as long as it doesn't harm you or others!) is perfectly acceptable. Asking yourself what you want is also a good gateway to understanding why you want to binge in the first place. (I have problems with my father that cut to the core of myself, for example. And that's just one of my really bad problems.)

Best advice I ever got ... And the hardest thing Ive ever done ... Is to truly get in touch with my feelings. Own them. Live them. Feel them. Being vulnerable and imperfect, and to be ok with it, was the only way I found to not self medicate with food. There's another free app I've used that really helps you check in with yourself before you eat. It's for anyone who has emotional eating disorders -- called Rise Up + Recover. Highly recommend it.