Emotional Eating or stress eating
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Naz_2020
Posts: 79 Member
I turn to food when I am sad. I turn to food when I am stressed or even when I am angry. This is something that has been causing a lot of problem in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Since I am at home and relaxed, I can focus on healthy eating, cooking healthy meals and stuff.. I am worried that I will lose my focus again. How do I fight that? I started dieting last year in July and lost a few kilos but something bad happened and I lost my focus. I gained all that weight back. It took me almost a year to realize that I need to go back to healthy eating. This keeps happening. Sometimes I just don't know how to control myself. Anyone else who goes through this?
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Replies
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It can be really hard, but I try to channel sadness or anger into exercise instead. Sometimes just going for a walk or a bike ride relaxes me and gives me time alone to sort out my thoughts. It doesn't work every time, but usually I come back feeling better about things.6
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Thanks 🙂1
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I've not always had the best relationship with food so I do get what you are saying. I also use exercise as stress management. So important at the moment, even though lockdown is over, every day is still the same and it's like groundhog day in our house. I used to have a punchbag which really helped me (ha!) but any exercise will work (walking with music is my current thing).
Also what about yoga or meditation? I haven't had time for yoga (which I loved) since lockdown, I used to do it every day. But if you are short on time, meditation definitely 'works' for stress management. Although it's not a quick fix. I found once I reduced my stress I was less prone to eating crap. I still binge occasionally, but it's much, much less now. But I've also stopped buying things I can binge on, so if something bad happens I have to get off my backside to go out and buy it! I used to think binging was some sort of reward for feeling so utterly utterly *kitten* and that it helped me cope, but actually, I was basically eating to punish myself for my bad feelings. And it made things worse because I'd soon feel guilty on top of it. Hope you can find something to help!
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Totally agree with what you said. I feel like I deserve to do what makes me happy which is binge eating loads of crap.. But later I feel even worse for gaining all that weight I had lost before.5
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I am trying to change this attitude of mine. I can't really fill up that emotional void with food.4
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Something I have found really useful is identifying something else to do when you feel the urge to binge. I use colouring as a coping mechanism. Bought a whole bunch of colouring books and some nice colouring pencils and just colour away when I feel that urge. It usually disappears after about 20 minutes. Plus, you can use the quiet time to process what’s happening in your brain and work out what’s leading you to want to binge.6
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Right! An alternative to channel all the emotions to is required.1
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Something I have found really useful is identifying something else to do when you feel the urge to binge. I use colouring as a coping mechanism. Bought a whole bunch of colouring books and some nice colouring pencils and just colour away when I feel that urge. It usually disappears after about 20 minutes. Plus, you can use the quiet time to process what’s happening in your brain and work out what’s leading you to want to binge.
Love a good colouring book! Haven't had any time for that for ages, but a v. good suggestion
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nazah_sakin wrote: »I feel like I deserve to do what makes me happy which is binge eating loads of crap.. But later I feel even worse for gaining all that weight I had lost before.
It's a vicious circle isn't it. Does it make you happy though? when you're eating it? Once I started actually thinking about it I found that I wasn't even really enjoying it. So if I wasn't enjoying it 'in the moment' and I didn't feel any better afterwards, why would I do it? (Although logic isn't high on the agenda when you feel that way). I am trying to adjust my mindset from it being a reward to a punishment - and think 'I shouldn't make myself feel worse by eating all this crap' and 'eating this won't make me feel better, only worse' etc.
I think being aware of it is the first stage - and then changing it is the next. There are definitely other things I can do which will make me feel better- and for me at least, chocolate wasn't the fix I ever wanted (or needed) it to be. Which is probably just as well!
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It's a whole different problem to mindlessly opening the fridge or cupboard and thinking ''Mmmm...What can I have", because if you've always relied on food as a coping strategy for tough times, then you somehow need to find a new strategy, then consistently apply it, and at a point when you are feeling at your lowest. It's not easy to change your entire relationship with food - to see it just as 'fuel' when society ties it in with so many other things, socialising, celebrations and family events and so on, but that is my aim. I'm not there yet though!
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I have done the same thing all my life. Eventually I realized that there are a lot of things in my life I have no control over, but I do control what I put in my mouth and whether or not I exercise. The more out of control my life seems to be, the more important it is to me to focus on the things I can control. That can go too far, but since I still love to eat, I've kept it within bounds. If you can't, you might try counseling to get some help in learning how to make the healthy choices your mind wants to make.4
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Thanks 🙂1
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I use to eat even when I'm happy. Send me a friend request and we can help each other. I dont know how or I would. I love food, I eat when I'm bored but I learned how to stop it2
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meditation helps me alot and prayer. I know its a weird combo but it worked for me. I get real bad anxiety and prayer alone wasn't working. I needed the meditation to quiet my mind. both help me find contentment everyday.2
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Specially in this pandemic time, my anxiety level went really up. I try this breathing exercise whenever anxiety strikes in.2
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MichelleBriards wrote: »I use to eat even when I'm happy. Send me a friend request and we can help each other. I dont know how or I would. I love food, I eat when I'm bored but I learned how to stop it
That's great! I am still working on mine. MFP has been helpful0 -
nazah_sakin wrote: »Totally agree with what you said. I feel like I deserve to do what makes me happy which is binge eating loads of crap.. But later I feel even worse for gaining all that weight I had lost before.
Why *does* binge eating make us happy??? I'm exactly the same way. I live to eat instead of the opposite. I wake up thinking about food and go to sleep thinking about food. It has become an obsession now. I rely on it to calm my nerves, fill a void, substitute for (fill in the blank here) anything and everything else that I'm missing in my life. Last year I had solid important goals, got down to low BMI(130# for me), exercised every day, counted calories, the whole 9 yards. Then the holidays came, I slipped a bit but climbed back on(and off) until Covid became a huge thing. Stress increased. Then my sister's dh sadly went from 1 stage of his Alzheimers to the next and I have since become a caretaker and respite provider for them. They're constantly on my mind now and my stress and worry level is through the roof.
I handle it with food. Not healthy food, but anything junky that I can get my hands on. I am now up into the 150's with no signs of stopping. No mind control that I had all of last year. No self-esteem. No will to do this.
Just sharing my story and feelings to let you know you're not alone in your struggles. I like all the ideas coming forth but the first thing you need(and ME TOO) is to get your mind committed to the journey that will help control your relationship with food. I felt so strong logging everything on to MFP. It did help. Until it didn't.
Good luck and hope you can find the power within yourself to change, if this isn't who you want to be. We all have some sort of an escape, something that soothes us and eases our souls. I wish exercise was mine but I'm much too lazy for that. Mine seem to be carbs, sugar, crap food.
One suggestion is to check out the volume eater's thread.7 -
nazah_sakin wrote: »Totally agree with what you said. I feel like I deserve to do what makes me happy which is binge eating loads of crap.. But later I feel even worse for gaining all that weight I had lost before.
You totally deserve to do something that makes you happy. However my question is does a binge make you happy if you feel worse after it? Or does it make you have a dopamine hit briefly and overall make you feel worse?
I used to think eating made me happy and you know what in some ways it does - sharing a delicious meal with friends etc. But only when the cost benefit is in the right direction.
I've found yoga is a great activity. I do yoga with Adriene and there's a great one called "yoga for vulnerability" and when I'm feeling all overwhelmed etc I will do this and often have a bit of a cry on the yoga mat whilst doing it but I feel better after.
I also find "OK if you really want that then why not tomorrow when you have some calories for it?" and often tomorrow I don't want it but if I do then I have it.2 -
Thank you guys. You are right if it's gonna make us feel worse later, it is not happiness. When I am struggling emotionally, food seems like a way out which it's not. I do realize that. I am trying to change that by diverting my mind to other stuffs. One of the things that's working for me is sharing my experiences and reading others experiences as well. All these success stories, their struggles too are so inspiring. It might not be the same after 2-3 months. What I am trying to do is make friends here with similar goals and struggles. We can pick each other up. We can share and support each other. I tried alone previously, now gonna give a try to this community thing. Let's hope for the best!1
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I think this is my 3rd time using MFP and last time lost 16kg, although was nowhere near goal weight. I took a break for pregnancy, then it turned into a hugely emotionally difficult pregnancy, a birth where baby ended up in intensive care, and a raft of medical problems being discovered with baby since. I have gained back 14kg between 'taking a break' and now.
I decided to start looking after myself again and bam! 3 days in, another problem is found with baby and I eat everything in sight. I feel worse about the situation now, than when I was shovelling food in, and I never felt full when doing it, because it wasn't filling the right need at the time.9
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