EMOTIONAL EATER. I need some tips and helpful advice on how to overcome emotional eating?

I need to lose a lot of weight. But whenever I am stressed, upset or down I turn to food, especially sweet stuff.


I also see food as a reward for putting up with all the crap in life.EMOTIONAL EATER. I need some tips and helpful advice on how to overcome emotional eating?
There is a free e-course that might help you. It's called:





“How to Cure Emotional Eating”.





You can find it on the “Emotional Eating” page at the Internet resource listed at the bottom of this reply.





Stress is a common link between ‘comfort’ food and emotions. The easiest way to free ourselves from the dictatorship of emotions is to learn the techniques for dealing with them.





Some emotions are positive and feel good or pleasant. Some emotions are negative and feel bad or unpleasant. Emotional eating is usually caused by using food to try to outweigh negative emotions. We all do it from time to time.





However, sometimes we become slaves to our emotions. Then we try to savor positive emotions, while trying to protect ourselves from negative emotions. We try to attach to emotional highs, and struggle to endure emotional lows. Unfortunately, that approach doesn't work in the long-term because it’s impossible to preserve positive emotions and it's impossible to prevent negative emotions.





There is another free e-course that might help you. It's called:





';Meditation: An Aid to Weight Loss';.





You can find it on the “Meditation” page at the same Internet resource.





I hope this information helps you. All my best wishes to you for the New Year.EMOTIONAL EATER. I need some tips and helpful advice on how to overcome emotional eating?
go viodeke with your friends....sing it out or jog. :)
In your youth you have associated food with feeling good that's why you eat to lift your spirit.


How about looking at things this way? When you are upset or down, things happened that were not in your control, so instead of handing control over food, give yourself control by stopping yourself from eating. If you can't control the people and circumstance around you, control yourself by not eating.
Here is what I did....throw away ALL of the bad food in your house and DONT buy any more. Replace it with fruits and vegtables. Promise...you won't be so tempted to eat so much because the food just isn't as tasty. Let your reward be losing the weight.
Well, if you totally stop doing eating when you are upset, you will get even more upset and then want to eat more. So, what I would suggest is getting some fruits or veggies and eat those when you are upset. Fruits would be better because they are a little sweeter than veggies so they might help with your sweet tooth. Also, some good things to have around are dried fruits like apple or banana chips or dried apricots because they are a little sweeter than the regular fruits. If you can make your own fruit leather-if you have a dehydrator you just puree things like strawberries and then dry them until they are like fruit roll-ups-those always helped me when I was sad and just wanted something sweet to eat-without the added sugar.


Just try to eat a little less each time you feel down. Or do something like taking a walk so you aren't near food and then you'll feel better because exercise raises endorphins which make you happy!


good luck!
Like you also know your self that you are an anxious person and you try to relieve your anxiety by eating.Try to do some mind diverting activities whenever you are stressed or anxious.Try yoga, meditation, exercises. If still the problem persists contact a doctor for treatment of morbid anxiety.
You need to find something to do. Instead of eating try exercising to relax, or read a book, or watch your favorite movie, or go for a walk. Also, find a healthy way to confront your issues. Excessive eating, along with doing drugs and drinking alcohol, will not effectively help you cope with your issues.
It's good that you're aware of the fact that you tend to use food as a coping mechanism. That's the first step in overcoming emotional eating.





I've worked in the health and fitness field for 15 years, including as a weight loss/management counselor. I've found a great many people use food to cope with feelings, so you're far from alone. I would suggest you explore some other coping mechanisms before you attempt to fully give up using food in this manner. You need another way to cope if you're going to be successful in overcoming emotional eating. Exercise is a great way to deal with stress and explore other things, such as meditation, deep breathing, prayer, etc. Perhaps it would be helpful to talk to a therapist as well.





You mention all the ';crap'; in your life. We all have to put up with a certain amount of ';crap';, but try to face problems directly, determine what you CAN change, and do so. If the bad things in your life revolve around a significant other, accept that you can't change that person, but you can change how you interact with him or her.





When you find yourself reaching for food in response to emotions instead of physical hunger, try to stop yourself, substitute another (less harmful) activity. Sometimes just interrupting the pattern can get you started on the road to a new way of life.





If you'd like, please feel free to e-mail me in the future. Hope you have a happy, healthy 2008!
i used to that too. but then it became the opposite, now i cant eat when im stressed out. i gained about 18 pounds, i decied thats it and now when im stressed out i cant eat or i get really sick at my stomach
I am exactly like you. My tip would be to get busy or go out as much as you can.... It doesn't always work but still....
Sweet food (like fruit) is good for you. Eat better food that helps you lose weight by eating a lot (see site below). Also see page on site below on how to be happier so you do not need to try to suck happiness out of food.





See page on nutrition for supplement to help reduce craving by eating super foods. The crap is not in life, but in you. But in you is also perfect peace and limitless happiness.