Emotional Eating
Many of us as children were rewarded with sweets for being “good.” During times of high stress, many women unconsciously mimic this reassurance by rewarding themselves with comfort food that’s filled with sugar and simple carbs. There’s a physiological pull at work here as well. Sweet treats trigger the release of serotonin, the feel-good hormone, but only temporarily. In fact, in some clinics, sugar is used to increase serotonin levels to control overeating — but don’t try this on your own!
Comfort food and junk food may help us feel good in the moment, but tend to feed a vicious cycle of guilt. The insidious part of this is that, somewhere, deep in our subconscious we are drawn to recreating these feelings of guilt and shame because they feel familiar. Familiarity doesn’t mean that ultimately they are good or healthy — only that they are a part of a pattern and serve some psychological purpose. Most women who struggle with emotions and food actually “hunger” for deeper sustenance — a psychological yearning they feed with food. At Women to Women we call this your “black box.” Recognizing that you have one, and that no amount of food will fill it, is a great first step to dealing with your emotions and food. Most talk therapy is about learning to recognize this void and the subconscious patterns that keep it empty.
What I notice is that women get angry at themselves for “pigging out,” blaming food instead of the upsetting situation (or person) that triggered the eating. It’s harder to control your emotions than your food, and food doesn’t talk back. Deprivation has a false appeal, too. It promises a great way to exert control over yourself and the people around you. For some women, depriving themselves of food feels very virtuous while it lasts, but often ends in binge eating.
Next time you find yourself using food as a soothing mechanism or control device, ask yourself, what set me off? What was I feeling in the beginning and how do I feel now? Many women don’t realize the degree to which food issues are impacting their long-term health. Finding someone to discuss this with can help you unravel and reverse these health-sabotaging behaviors.
Emotional eating often has undiagnosed but very real physical underpinnings. Hormonal and neurotransmitter imbalance can spark insatiable cravings that contribute to overeating. A range of tests are now available to help us diagnose neurochemical imbalance. I’ve had good success in treating these patients with targeted support in the form of amino acids, vitamins and mineral cofactors.
[banner id=”single-banner-multi-essentials”]
Food sensitivities can also be entwined with food addiction: we crave the foods we are sensitive to because we’ve grown used the abnormal biochemical state those foods produce.
You don’t need a lab test to find out whether you have food sensitivity. Just stop that one food for five to seven days, then reintroduce it and track how you feel before and after. Once your body grows accustomed to behaving in a certain way, it tends to want to stay there, even if it’s not the healthiest place to be. In fact, if you can’t stop eating, it may be a sign that your body is inadequately absorbing your nutrients — which is a form of starvation!
Chronic overeating, anorexia, and bingeing/purging are special conditions that usually require professional assistance and are best treated in a holistic manner. Finding a therapist or support group is a great way to start. Enlist the help of your healthcare practitioner as well — that way you can tackle your issues on all fronts. If you’re eating patterns lie at the extremes of the emotional eating spectrum, don’t wait to get help — your health depends on it.
There are many alternatives to antidepressant and anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) medication to help you get a handle on disordered eating behavior. The key is finding what works for you. You may find that following a specific plan helps you to develop the mindfulness you need to break old patterns, for example:
- Some of my patients have had good success with Overeater’s Anonymous (OA). It’s a great forum for learning about your personal issues, but understands that this is a program that requires portion control. Some people prefer Food Addicts Anonymous (FAA), but again, this program uses a structured food plan.
- Geneen Roth, author of Feeding the Hungry Heart and When Food Is Love, runs workshops around the country specifically designed to help people with eating disorders and other food-related issues.
- Emotional Freedom Techniques are another method shown to be very helpful for eating disorders. The basics of this technique are simple, effective, and can be applied by anyone.
- First Line Therapy, a comprehensive program that involves total body analysis and ongoing coaching, is the method we use with the greatest success in our practice.