How to stop emotional eating from stress

How to stop emotional eating from stress
How to stop emotional eating from stress

Parent Post

If you’re an emotional

If you’re an emotional eater, you may use food as a reward when you’re happy and crave sweets or unhealthy snacks when stressed. 

Here’s how to cut down emotional eating and develop healthier eating habits, even when you’re stressed.

Awareness is keyBecoming aware

Awareness is key

Becoming aware of how emotional eating plays out for you is the first step. 

Emotional eating is sometimes called “mindless eating” because we often don’t think about what we’re doing and let our unconscious habits or drives take over.

Maintain a food journal. 

Once you break the habit of mindlessly reaching for food, it becomes easier to put the next list of techniques into place.

Practice mindful eating. Mindfulness, the

Practice mindful eating. 

Mindfulness, the act of being present and aware, can help people get out of the habit of acting on their cravings without thinking.

Mindfulness exercises are simple to learn and wonderful for promoting resilience to stress.

Find relaxation techniquesWhen you’re

Find relaxation techniques

When you’re under stress, your body is likely producing higher levels of cortisol, a stress hormone that tends to make people crave sweets and salty food.

Create a simple stress management plan, or you can find stress relievers that fit with your specific situation.

Try healthy alternatives.If these

Try healthy alternatives.

If these techniques don’t completely eliminate your emotional eating urges, go ahead and indulge—but use healthier fare. 

Munch on veggies or healthy snacks instead of chips; savor one small piece of dark chocolate instead of binging on a whole chocolate muffin from the coffee shop. 

Cope in healthy waysWhile

Cope in healthy ways

While we need food for survival, there are healthier ways to cope with emotions:

  • Talking to a friend
  • Journaling
  • Exercise

Face your problemsIf you’re

Face your problems

If you’re using food to muffle your feelings in a difficult relationship, try assertiveness instead. 

If food is your only treat at a job you hate, find satisfaction at your job, or get a different one. 

If you look to solution-based coping mechanisms to cut down on the stress in your life, you won’t need food to help you cope.

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