Tips to reduce overeating when you're upset

From PsychologyToday.com:




How to Stop Overeating When You Feel Emotionally Unstable
By: Glenn Livingston Ph.D.


Ever run to food when you're feeling upset? Try this unusual technique.


Many people report serious difficulties with overeating when they feel emotionally unsettled. They turn to "comfort food," which is their way of understanding that when the body is tasked with processing too much and/or the wrong kind of food, it's more difficult for the nervous system to conduct the emotions. As a result, overeating can "numb" our feelings and make life seem more manageable in the short run, although it creates more problems in the long run: "If you have six problems, and you overeat, then you'll have seven problems."

There are a variety of ways to address this, but today I'd like to talk about an unusual technique.

Step One: Identify a memory from childhood where you became worked up and very emotional over something extremely silly. It should be something you can easily laugh about now, even though it felt very upsetting at the time. Usually, earlier memories are better, because we can more easily laugh about our very childlike thinking at the time.

For example, I remember my sister Laurie's first real haircut. I was a little over 4 years old, and she was about to turn 2. We went to my barber, who was absolutely dumbfounded by how much we looked alike: “Oh my goodness, she has his face!” he said.

I did not like this at all and started screaming.

“I want my face back! Give me my face back! Mommy, Laurie took my face, and she won't give it back! Mommy!”

See? I wasn’t Ph.D. material from the outset.

Of course, my mother calmed me down by explaining it was just a figure of speech, and the barber was just very impressed by how much we looked alike. "Nobody took your face, honey," Mom said.

Step Two: Condense the memory into a concise mantra you can use to remind yourself that you're getting worked up over nothing, just like you did during the original event.

The "give me my face back" memory has proven very useful in my recovery from overeating. I recall the first time I used it, just a few months after my divorce. I'd just received a rejection from a woman I'd met and developed a crush on earlier that morning. Even though I had only known her a few hours before she rejected me, I was reacting as if I'd lost the love of my life. I was devastated and felt a very old (and very compulsive) craving for chocolate, which I hadn't had in years.

Then I remembered the above story and said to myself, "Glenn, stop! Nobody took your face." 

The power of the earlier experience came flooding back, and I realized I was getting all worked up over nothing. The craving disappeared, I went and made myself a kale-banana smoothie, and all was right in the world. Indeed, nobody took my face.

Now, "Nobody took your face!” is a mantra I use when I find myself getting emotionally worked up about things for no reason. And that’s one less reason I can use to rationalize overeating. It's been very helpful.

At this juncture, you might wish to pause for a moment to think of a childhood memory where you got all worked up and out of sorts for no reason at all. If you can't find one, ask family members who may have been there. Then ask yourself what the "lesson" was in that story that finally calmed you down, and turn it into a mantra to calm you down and snap you back into your more rational, adult self, so you won't justify overeating because of your upset.