Are You An Emotional Eater?

Hello Everyone,

Allow me to introduce myself: I am Amy Gartner and I am the therapist at the St. Francis Weight Loss Center. I am new to St. Francis, but I have been a therapist for almost 20 years, specializing in Emotional Overeating.

Are you an Emotional Eater? Emotional overeating is also known as compulsive overeating and more recently Binge Eating Disorder, it is characterized by the following:

*Using food for reasons other than physical hunger
*Feeling unable to stop the behavior
*It may involve eating until you are stuffed or grazing throughout the day
*People eat more than they need because of stress, anxiety, depression or emotional needs
*It is a way of realizing that your needs are not being met

The bottom line is that Emotional Overeating is a sign that something other than hunger is going on and food is being used to keep those feelings buried.....shoved down, if you will.

In order to change the destructive patterns of Emotional Overeating, you must learn to access your feelings and to meet your needs in more nurturing ways than eating. How do I access my feelings? Start slow and ask yourself several times throughout the day, "how do I feel and what do I need?" At first you may feel numb and I would encourage you to relax, stop thinking and ask yourself again, "how do I feel in my core, my soul?" Once you realize how you feel you can decide what you need. For example, if I am tired I need to rest, not have a cookie. If I am angry then I need to vent to a friend, not go through a fast food drive through. If I am happy then I need to celebrate and share my joy, not indulge in chocolate cake.

We must learn to identify our feelings and needs as well as learn effective ways to deal with our stress that does not involve food. Excellent stress relievers are talking with others about the situation, exercising, taking a hot bath, reading, walking, spending time with someone who is calming, the list goes on and on.

Too often we reach for food without really understanding what we need. I challenge you to ask yourself, "How do I feel?" and "What do I need?" After you recognize what you need find a way to give it to yourself or at least nurture yourself in ways other than eating.

Happy Self Nurturing, Amy