How can I stop my emotional eating.?

Question

I have a big problem. All I want to do is eat. I dont know why. I need to. Everytime I am sad or happy or mad I want to eat. It makes me sick I feel horrible not physically but emotional. Any input.

Answer 1

Start tracking what you eat.

A great tool for this can be found on http://www.sparkpeople.com

Once you start seeing in black and white exactly what you're taking in (and burning in the exercise tracker) it really makes you think twice about mindless or emotional eating.

Good luck!

Answer 2

1. Talk to your doctor about an antidepressant called Welbutrin. It has anticraving properties as well as helping to stabilize your mood.

2. pick up a workbook called "Mind over mood" available at Barnes n' nobel Aprox $20. It can help you adjust the WAY you think about things. And point out your logic flaws in such a way that you internalize the new insight.

3. Keep a journal. When you feel the call of the fridge write down why you are hungry. Are you lonely? Consider seriously how food has helped ease that feeling in the past. Stop blaming yourself. Every behavior has a good intention. You are trying to soothe yourself. What is the food trying to medicate, and how can you learn that FOOD is NOT MEDICINE?

4. Develope a list of activities and rewards that make you feel good besides eating. Try reaching for those first. If you are lonely call a friend. If you feel deprived go pamper yourself. Try to "medicate" with something other than food until you are free of the need to "medicate" with something at all.

5. try a healthy eating plan like Weight Watchers to train you to eat sensibly for life long changes.

Answer 3

Talk to a doctor. You are stuffing yourself so you don't have to face what is really bothering you. Eating too much is another form of addiction. You have to get to the bottem of it and it is not easy but you have to make a start. Go shopping for healthy foods and start keeping a food journal and get some books to read. When the urge to overeat comes, go read something or call a friend. Start an exercise program. Good luck.

Answer 4

I know how you feel. But there are some very effective tools for addressing your emotional triggers. Your body is telling you that you need to deal with your emotions, but you need to do it in a way that's not destructive (like overeating).

One of the major reasons that most diets fail is because they don't address your emotional reasons for overeating. And we all have emotional reasons for eating.

A very effective tool is The Emotional Freedom Technique (or EFT). It's like acupressure that you do on yourself, by simple, light tapping on specific points.

You can use EFT on just about any issue, but it's been very useful for emotional overeating.

Answer 5

go to the gym instead. find a different outlet, you cant just stop an emotional habit. other than regular meals fill up on water and dietary fiber. You'll have "other" problems for the first couple of days but it helps relieve the hungry feeling.

Answer 6

u need self control and u need to be strong!!! u should get support from ure friends and other ppl that experience the same problem...set ure mind on someting else...like develope joy from not eating and reward ureself everytime u r happy, sad or whatever but in a different way, not eating...

Answer 7

Start a journal. Write down what are you exactly feeling. Then write down what you need to stop feeling like that. You will discover that food will not solve emotional issues.

Answer 8

you've made this a habit. each time you stress go to the fridge or cupboard. change this by each time you get stressed go for a walk or chew some gum. i use to do this but instead i made up alot of healthy snacks on standby and made myself get up and walk out. read tips on healthier eating on this site

Answer 9

my friend used to have that problem...what worked for her is taking a shower every time she noticed she felt like emotional eating

Answer 10

The best thing for me is to workout it helps so much to make you feel better mentally especially with moods lifts your spirts up helps to relieve any stress you might have.