Body & Mind Matters: Strategies to Stop Escaping Through Food
June 8, 2025Whether we care to admit it or not, we humans are emotional beings. If we do not learn to manage our emotions, our emotions will manage us! Without effective strategies to handle our reactions to stress, disappointment, heartbreak, and even elation, we remain tossed around in life by our fickle feelings. We need to stop escaping through food and here's how.
As a coach, therapist, and fitness trainer, I have worked with countless individuals who have used food as a means of escape from having to feel anything. Food served as their “drug” of choice to numb out after a long, stressful day. Many of these clients had an underlying fear of being consumed by their feelings.
There was a deep-seated concern that their emotions would never end if they allowed them to surface. As a result, they learned to stuff their feelings down—often with lots of food.
In order to stop escaping from life’s challenges through food, it’s imperative to become aware of your behaviors and habits. When do you eat throughout the day? At which meal do you tend to eat the most? How often does a helping turn into two, then three? Are you able to eat a diet filled primarily with plant-based whole foods, or do you focus on highly processed foodstuffs?
After reviewing when, what, and how much you eat, it’s time to determine why you eat. This is a tough one! Most of us can rationalize anything if we’ve got the motivation. Since food has so many ties in our lives, we’re usually sufficiently motivated to rationalize away our eating behaviors. “It was just one bite.” “I was ‘good’ yesterday.” “It wasn’t THAT much food.” “I deserve a treat.” “It’s a holiday.” Et cetera.
Below is a Formula to Stop Escaping Life Through Food:
- Get honest with yourself. Listen to those rationalizations as they surface and begin to challenge them.
- Develop a plan. What will you do instead of overeating or overly indulging in “treats”?
- Develop a strong support system. Who can you talk with in times of stress or loneliness?
- Consider working with a coach. She will help you sort through your feelings and behaviors, set manageable goals, and hold you accountable.
- Take up a hobby. Learn to knit. Read. Paint. Journal.
- Exercise. Do anything that gets your body moving. Instead of reaching for the cookie jar, take a walk around the block or do jumping jacks in the living room.
- Stick to a routine. Keeping structure in our lives can help to provide a sense of autonomy in this wacky world of ours.
- Get enough rest. Allowing time for adequate rest helps to regulate mood, energy levels, and hormones, including the hormones that regulate hunger and satiation.
- Learn to discipline your emotions. What thoughts are producing the uncomfortable emotions that you are trying to avoid? How can you replace those thoughts with more helpful, life-affirming affirmations?
In order to stop escaping life through food, it will be necessary to confront your feelings and behaviors. The change will not take place overnight, so it is vital that you be gentle with yourself as you employ the aforementioned strategies. As you discipline yourself to confront “life,” you will notice a better sense of autonomy and enhanced self-esteem. Food will begin to naturally take a backseat to the new goals you have set for yourself. Remember to strive for progress, not perfection. Small changes made consistently will yield big results!
Interested in exploring how coaching can help? Submit your request for a complimentary 15- minute strategy session here.
 | ABOUT THE AUTHOR Coach Jenna Nocera, MA, MFT, CLSC, CPFT is a Life & Wellness Coach, Psychotherapist, and Personal Fitness Trainer with advanced degrees in Behavioral Science, Psychology, and Marriage and Family Therapy. She works with clients to redesign their lifestyle habits and reach their personal and professional goals. Subscribe to the Formula For Excellence® newsletter to receive a Free Habit Tracker and occasional health and wellness tips. Read more articles by Coach Jenna! |
