Skip to main content

Ice cream therapy - How to stop feeding your emotions

http://www.scenicreflections.com/download/259066/Happy_Pink_Ice_Cream_Wallpaper/

What foods do you crave when you are sad, or angry, or bored? Many of us will reach for some ice cream or potato chips when we are moody. It feels like that bowl of Blue Bell will make everything better, but sadly, you still feel pretty rotten when you get to the bottom of the bowl. You may have tried to feed your emotions with food but have completely ignored the fact that you feel sad about a disagreement you had with a friend or your spouse.

That is called emotional eating--eating to feed an uncomfortable feeling, not your physical hunger. Emotional eating is a major cause of overeating. In fact, according to experts, 75% of overeating is caused by emotions.

Turning to food can become a bad habit that can stop you from learning the skills you need to actually take care of yourself when you are upset, and it can lead to overeating and lower self-esteem.

By identifying your own personal triggers, you can find better techniques for taking care of your yourself. This WebMd article talks about how to tell the difference between physical and emotional hunger, and gives some helpful ideas for managing emotional eating. A good first step is to ask yourself if you are actually hungry. If you are, find a healthy snack. If not, find other activities that are enjoyable to you such as reading a good book, taking a bubble bath, or talking to a friend. Keep a list of these activities so that you can go to it when you feel the urge to eat. The urge to eat will often pass after you engage in these types of activities. You can learn to stop feeding your emotions.

If you are having trouble getting hold of your emotional eating, a counselor can help. Please contact one of our Houston counselors to find out how you can make changes today.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Letting go of broken relationships

One of my Houston clients brought in this picture of a naked woman embracing a skeleton. She told me it had moved her deeply and spoke to her in a way that words could not. For this client, it was a visual depiction of a relationship she was holding onto with a man who could never really give her what she needed. When he would call her, she experienced a rush of happiness. But when he ignored her for days or weeks, she was forlorn and hopeless. She questioned herself and wondered why she was not more attractive to him. She was sure that if she were prettier, or smarter, or better in some way, he would be more interested. And she hated herself for not being able to just move on despite knowing the relationship was broken and lifeless.  Seeing all of this depicted in this image communicated directly to her heart what was really going on. She was holding onto a man who was emotionally dead, unable to give back or love, or share in any satisfying way. She felt disgusted at the t

How To Support Someone Going Through Infertility

Guest Blog Post by Sarah Bradshaw ------------------------- For many women, trying to get pregnant is difficult, stressful, and painful Have you heard this story: woman meets someone, they fall in love, commit to one another, and then along comes a baby (or two or three)? Simple, right? For many women, having a baby is anything but simple. It can, in fact, be a difficult, stressful and potentially painful --both emotionally and physically--experience . Sometimes, the above stor y goes like this: woman meets someone, they fall in love , commit to one another, and then--nothing, absolutely nothing. The woman goes to see her do ctor to see if something is wrong . Sometimes , there's nothing wrong . The doctor says it’s just going to take more time (insert frown or angry face here) . S ometimes they get referred to a specialist. The referral is the start of a very bumpy and emotional ride. I know be cau se I have been there, and I know many other women who ha

Life With A Narcissist

During the recent presidential election cycle, people threw around the term narcissist or narcissistic personality disorder a lot when talking about Donald Trump. Many articles were written and tweets tweeted about the subject. As a therapist, I know that I can not diagnose someone I have never examined, but the discussions did call to mind my clients who have partners that exhibit traits of narcissism or even full-blown narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)? NPD is a mental health diagnosis that is characterized by an unhealthy sense of self-importance, a need for admiration, and a lack of empathy for others. Many people have traits of narcissism, but very few, about 6.2% of the population, would meet diagnostic criteria for NPD. You can learn more about it from this nifty animated video: How does narcissism affect you in a relationship? I can recall one client, Cindy,  who came to me feeling dep