Conquer Fear, End Emotional Eating
The reason emotional eating is very difficult to overcome is because, not only do you have to develop new habits to replace the behavior, you must figure out what’s triggering the negative emotion (denial, fear, hopelessness, shame) AND THEN CHANGE THAT!
Sheesh, no wonder many of us get trapped in this cycle for so long.
This is exactly why losing weight is much more complicated than just following some diet or menu plan.
In Tuesday’s blog, “Emotional Eating 101: Fear” I talked about my own fears, what I call the triple Ds: derision, disapproval and disappointing others. Turning to food to cope with very uncomfortable feelings was a way of pushing them away, or more accurately stuffing them down.
Based on the reactions I got after that blog, I’m thinking I’m not alone.
In Thursday’s blog, “Fear vs. Contentment” I showed how I broke the cycle of turning to food when anxiety gripped me. Be clear, I still have anxiety sometimes, but I’ve learned strategies that provide a healthier outlet for it.
Ultimately I decided that food is a poor coping mechanism for my stress.
Not only does it not solve anything, emotional eating creates its own problems (obesity and health problems related to it).
In this week’s video, “Confronting My Fears” I revealed what I found when I faced my fears: contentment, courage and peace. For me, beating emotional eating has meant learning to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Turning around emotional eating takes time and patience, self-awareness and a willingness to look at yourself honestly. It’s painful and messy.
The path to recovery isn’t necessarily a straight line.
If you haven’t yet, read the blogs, watch the video. Let me know if it resonates for you. It’s time to cauterize this wound.
– Marilyn