Do you find yourself eating when you feel sad?¬† Does a fight or words with your significant other drive you to wolf down a ton of foolish calories?¬† How about when you’re elated and things are going great.¬† Do you devour more than you should?¬† ¬†¬†Emotions can play havoc when it comes to eating properly.
Early on there is a need for survival when an empty feeling comes over each one of us that is solved by nourishment. ¬†¬†We alarm everyone in earshot by crying a little at first and then increasing until we’re dealt with.¬† Most of us had our mothers to nuzzle up to and nurse the feeling away.¬† Some with a warm bottle of formula, but either way it would quite the ache. Ah yes, mother’s milk could fix the feeling.¬†
As we got a little older we learned that eating seemed to coincide with emotions of life.¬† When we had a birthday, there was cake and usually a party with other items we usually didn’t eat on a daily basis.¬† Getting good grades on a report card was a cause for celebration and more food showed up.¬† Girl Scout or Boy Scout achievements were met with some food award and how about sporting events?¬† I can’t tell you how many times we went to the ice cream stand after a baseball or softball game to celebrate the victory or just to console the loss.
The down emotions are even worse when it comes to food.  Like I said we were consoled by the ice cream when we lost a game, but were cheered up with milk and cookies when we may have fallen or teased by peers.  Children can be so cruel to other children, but parents or guardians were doing their damage by pushing their food items at us to fix it.  A little older and now friends were there to pick up the pieces and help you literally push a piece of pie in your pie hole.  The movies even make fun of the fact of women that have a breakup sit around with a tub of Hagan Das to drown their sorrows.
We enforce all of our emotions as humans with food.¬† We celebrate with it and even invite friend over to help.¬† The need in us is so overwhelming that cravings when one is pregnant doesn’t even register as strange. It’s nothing new since nightly people sit around with the glow of a television in their face downing whatever “snack” is available.¬†
How do you break this control?¬† From a recent post from MizFit’s site, it takes both a willingness to make the change as well as some willpower to start.¬† You have to recognize the feeling of hunger all over again.¬† This isn’t as easy as it sounds.¬† The huge majority of us have certain triggers that lead to food and sometimes we eat when we’re not hungry at all, but that we’re responding to that trigger.¬† Why does the popcorn always smell so good at a movie theater?¬† It’s because they want a trigger to make you want it right then and now.¬† ¬†¬†We could have just left the restaurant and gone to the movie, but that lore of the popcorn smell hooks us most of the time.
How about you?¬† Do you recognize your emotional eating times?¬† Is there a familiar meal or food items that reminds you of a special time or person?¬† Do you take your cues from places, time of day, smells, or people you’re with?¬† Have you ever been eating something and say to yourself, “I’m not even hungry, why am I eating this?¬† If you can break the emotional eating from eating for survival you will be well on your way to a healthier you.
13 Comments until now
I reward myself with chocolate when I’ve had a good writing session.
Leah J. Utass last blog post..A Trip Back in Time
I used to reward myself all through the aforementioned sessions Leah…until I gained 20 pounds (NO JOKE) while writing a manuscript
Too many wonderful food memories to list. It’s a long road to understanding true hunger, but I think I’m getting there bit by bit. It’s amazing how good you feel when you let hunger be your trigger. Interesting point about the whole emotional eating thing beginning so early on.
Bernis last blog post..Greetings from the UK
I used to reward myself after a track workout with one bottle of orange soda
I understand emotional eating. I balance it with emotional running!
Dr. Js last blog post..Dr. J will see you now: On sports and sportsmanship
Leah – this might fall into the dark chocolate good for you asile.
Miz – I can’t believe that you gained 20 pounds by poor eating choices.
Berni – I think so much of this is comes from the early years of how we respond as parents and how our parents responded to us. Food stuffing for the wrong reasons is a bad idea.
Dr J. – I think you already know how to keep your emotions in check. I saw the martial arts video.
Emotional eating is a constant struggle! Sometimes I manage to resist it; other times, I give in. But it’s good to be aware of it, at least!
Sagans last blog post..Maintaining a Healthy and Realistic Attitude toward Body Image during the Summer Months
Oh yes, great post – I am a terrible emotional eater and a boredom eater too. If I have a boring job to do at work especially, I am looking for something to nibble on to keep me going.
Fat[free]Mes last blog post..Weigh-in Wednesday – 2lbs no more
Sagan – It all comes back to willingness to change.
Fat[free]Me – You’re right too about the boredom and how the whole put something in your mouth thing happens.
Good point. I think this is one of the major issues of nursing kids until they’re five (or four, or three) and giving them food when they need comfort. It then just goes on. And on and on and on.
Foodie McBodys last blog post..Why I Need to Exercise (Almost) Every Day
Foodie – And sometimes will lead to overweight kids that become overweight adults.
Ah, emotional eating. I like to clean when I’m mad or frustrated, then snack when I’m at the computer…so I snack on celery instead of cookies! Great topic!
RUpals last blog post..Make a road map!
Is this a confessional?
Everything that you\’ve said here is so true. We celebrate with food, and we comfort with food. A need for food, both for nourishment and pleasure, is one of the most important commonalities that all people share. Of course some of us turn to food more than others for comfort. Emotional eating can be deep-rooted in the psyche and requires therapy to really overcome it. My advice to everyone, emotional eater or not, is to rid your house of junk food and other sugary and carby snacks that are so tempting when bored or lonely or sad. Also, celebrate personal achievements with things other than food, such as a new shirt or plant.