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Emotional eating is a topic that is starting to become a little less taboo. More and more people are admitting to using food as a self-soothing tool. Or as a means to numb their emotions. I have done both many times. And while I’ve gotten much better, I admit that it is still something I have to continuously work on.
Working on my emotional eating has been a game changer in my health journey. It’s changed my relationship with food and helped me to lose weight and keep it off. I honestly believe that addressing our deeper emotions and changing how we use food is so important to a healthy lifestyle.
But emotional eating still happens. And when it does, it’s important to know ways to stop. Having tools are your disposal will make you feel more confident. Plus, they will help change the way you deal with food and emotions over time.
Identify The Reason For The Binge
The most important things to do is recognize that you are stuck in a food binge. This might sound easy to some people but part of bingeing behavior is turning off that awareness and allowing ourselves to eat. So, it is important to turn that awareness back on.
It is important to admit to yourself that you are eating for emotional reasons, and not because you have a sugar addiction or some other nonsense. Next is to identify exactly what those reasons for eating are. Ask yourself these questions:
- Are any of them valid reasons for binge eating?
- Will food solve the issues?
- Will binge eating truly make you feel better, or will it make you feel worse?
- Is this really what you want to be doing?
Honestly answering these questions is usually enough to calm emotions and slow down and stop a food binge. The key is to be honest with yourself. Don’t make excuses for how you’re feeling or why you’re eating, just be honest.
Drink a tall glass of water.
After you have identified the reasons for the binge and have slowed down or stopped eating, drink a large glass of water. Water will help give the illusion of a full stomach. And especially if you’ve consumed a large amount of food, it might even make your stomach feel a little uncomfortable. This is a good thing! If your stomach is feeling uncomfortable you are much less likely to reengage with the binge eating behavior.
Talk To Someone.
It’s important to have a trusted person in your life who you can talk to about stuff that’s going on with you. Try to find someone in your life who you can talk to about your emotions or things that are stressing you out. Talking about what’s going on with you will significantly lessen bingeing behavior. I speak from experience! Choosing to talk about some of the deeper things in my life with trusted people has made a huge difference in my emotional eating.
After you’ve identified that you’re eating for emotional reasons, take a moment to quickly reach out to your trusted person. You don’t have to tell them everything if you don’t want too but often times even a brief conversation can have a positive impact on the bingeing behavior.
If you don’t have a person in real life who you feel that you can talk to then look online for a support group or community. Personally, I’m a huge fan of the Instagram health and fitness community, it’s supportive and informative. Follow me on Instagram and start joining our community!
If neither of these options work for you, I recommend seeking out a professional in your area who you can chat with.
Just Add Salt.
This is an old school trick but it works. If identifying, talking and water have not fully stopped the food binge you need to take it a step further. There are two ways that I personally do this.
One way is to make the food no longer enjoyable to eat. A great way to do this is by dumping a large amount of salt on the food you are bingeing on. Do not think about food waste here, this is about taking control and saving yourself. Adding the salt will make the food inedible.
The second way I take control is to stand in front of the garbage and in a moment of strength (you will find one, trust me) I throw the food in the garbage. Again, don’t think about food waste or how much food you’re throwing away. This is about taking control of your health and you need to tell yourself that you don’t need that food anyway.
Need more help?
It can take a long time to take control of emotional eating and bingeing. And even afterward, it becomes a lifetime of practicing that control. But believe me, learning to take control of your emotional eating is an empowering act. You can get started by subscribing to my monthly newsletter and receive my FREE 25 Day Emotional Eating Journal Challenge.
Want to read more about emotional eating? I talk more about binge eating behavior and how to get back on track here.
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Great ideas. I might need a different way to ruin candy since i could just wipe salt off the candies i like 🙂 maybe hot sauce would work.
that’s a good idea! hahaha I have a very hard time ruining candy. I have to put it in the garbage fast if I want to get rid of it.