Some of us eat when we’re upset post-divorce, others, not so
much. I’m addressing the former, AKA “emotional eaters.” You just made it
through Valentine’s Day. Perhaps it wasn’t your happiest. Did you drown your
sorrows, boredom or anger in a bag of chips and salsa, a gallon of ice cream or
an entire chocolate cake? Many would call this emotional eating. Not me, and
here’s why.
Ever notice how you suddenly feel like eating something when
you walk into your kitchen? You don't have to be sad, mad or bored. The eating triggers are
all there for you: the fridge, the cabinet with the chips, the bowl on the
counter. They call to you, eat something;
you know you want to. When you have down-time at the office, aren't you
more likely to grab a snack than when you're flat out, trying to make a
deadline? There are eating triggers at the office as well: the break room, the
drawer where you keep your emergency stash of goodies. I call this mindless
eating, as compared with mindful
eating which I will recommend shortly.
I'll wager that you know some people clean when they're upset.
Do we call them "emotional cleaners?" No, because people who clean
when they're upset also tend to clean a lot when they're not upset. They clean
mindlessly when nothing needs cleaning, about which everyone who lives with
them will complain endlessly. Eating works the same way. In other words, you
eat mindlessly.
I’m betting that if
you eat when you’re upset you also eat at other times that you’re not actually
hungry. You may eat without even considering whether you're hungry. You probably
don't notice when you're full, or if you do, you don't stop. I'm not a huge fan
of pejorative labels, like "emotional eating." It makes it a thing
that you have, like a disease. It is important to recognize, however, that a survey
of psychologists
identified emotional factors as interfering with diet attempts.
If you want to address the factors that undermine eating too
much, you have to be more mindful about your eating. Mindful
eating revolves around eating when you're hungry, slowly savoring
the experience and stopping when you're full. With practice you will learn to
consider, before that first bite, whether it's the smart thing to do at that
moment. With practice you will learn to enjoy what you're eating and notice
when you've eaten enough. With practice you will learn to make
good choices. Instead of eating chips, maybe your time would be better
spent looking
for your date for next Valentine's day.
Somebody that I used to know. Gotye
