Top 10 Feelings that Sabotage Your Diet

Sep 04, 2009

The Top 10 Feelings That Sabotage Your Diet

posted at Diet.com by DrRogerGould @ 7:00am ET on August 3, 2009

Emotional eaters use food to deal with their feelings. It doesn’t matter what those feelings are. They may start using food as a coping mechanism to deal with their most intolerable feeling and then after awhile they are using food to deal with any, and every, feeling. Here are the top 10 feelings that sabotage your dieting efforts. Each one includes a proactive action you could take instead of eating away the feeling. 1. Loneliness When you’re lonely, food can feel like a friend, a companion, or even a lover. Eating helps pass the time but it never provides what a person can. Instead of eating away loneliness, ask yourself how can you connect with new people, make new friends, or reach out in a new way. 2. Defeat When you’re defeated and hopeless, you can’t be bothered to take the time and effort to eat right. Instead of eating when you’re feeling despondent, remind yourself that you do indeed care by doing something life-affirming. This can be anything from helping someone in need to seeing a beautiful piece of art. 3. Fear Fear has triggered many a craving. It is a most uncomfortable feeling and can leave you with a sense of powerlessness. Instead of eating give your fears a reality check. Worries can be used to help you figure out what kind of plans you need to put in place to prepare for whatever future might be frightening you. 4. Disappointment Food can feel like a great consolation prize when life isn’t giving you your fair share. Instead of eating use your disappointment to get clear about what you really want in life. What steps do you need to take to get there? 5. Frustration When you can’t figure out how to do something, food can feel like a solution to the intense agitation you’re experiencing. Instead of eating, take a breath, or a walk, or just sleep on it. You might find that the answer you’re looking for comes effortlessly when you surrender the struggle. 6. Anger Anger can feel overwhelming and scary. Food can feel like the perfect way to stuff fierce words inside. Instead of eating, find an outlet for your anger. When the sparks die down there is usually some important information behind the rage you feel. 7. Self-Hatred Feelings of self-doubt and a negative inner voice can give way to bouts of overeating. Eating actually distances you from yourself. Instead of eating, use your self-doubts and criticism as a red flag reminding you that you need to give yourself some tenderness, love, and care. 8. Happiness It’s not just negative feelings that can make you eat. It can be positive ones, too. Eating when you’re happy can be a way to deflect the good things going on for you. Instead of eating, practice taking in joyful experiences. Own them, cherish them, and be grateful for them. 9. Anxiety Anxiety is probably the one emotion responsible for most eating disorders. The jittery, jumpy feeling of anxiety makes it physically uncomfortable. This discomfort can make food seem like a simple solution to settle a belly full of butterflies. Instead of eating, look for real ways to soothe, comfort, and calm yourself. Anxiety is an unavoidable part of life, but you have many options for how to deal with it. 10. Depression When you’re depressed you might not be able to muster up the effort to nurture yourself with good food and exercise. Simply getting out of bed can be an effort. Instead of eating, take one loving action for yourself. This could be prayer, getting support, or sitting in the sunshine. Overeating reinforces your depression. When you stop feeding feelings, your feelings can provide you with essential information that guides you. See how you can use your emotions to propel you forward instead of using emotional eating to keep you stuck. You might find that not only is it easier to stick to your diet, but your whole life starts working better, too.

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