Cope With Overeating

We’ve all occasionally overdone it at the holiday table, later regretting that scrumptious second helping of Grandma’s pecan pie. Compulsive overeating, however, is a much more serious condition and the most common eating disorder in the United States. Chronic, rapid consumption of excessive amounts of food can result in overwhelming feelings of regret, helplessness and embarrassment. Worse, overeating can also trigger several serious health complications related to weight gain, notably type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. Finding ways to curb your consumption, therefore, is key to living a healthy, happy lifestyle.

Steps

Addressing Emotional Reasons for Overeating

1. Speak to a therapist, especially if you have BED. In many cases there are deep-rooted psychological issues that contribute to compulsive eating. Seeking help from a trained counselor might help expose any underlying anxiety, depression or negative body image problems that could be hijacking your self-control.
   • There is overwhelming evidence that the majority of those diagnosed with BED also have underlying mood disorders.
   • Even if you don't have BED, a therapist may be helpful if you are stress eating. A therapist can help you address what is causing you to feel anxious, stressed, sad, etc., and help you learn healthy ways to cope with those emotions.
   • Bring your food diary to your appointment so you can share any insights with your therapist. It may be helpful for her to look over the diary as well, as she may be able to spot some patterns or triggers you were not aware of.
2. Manage your anger or sadness. Emotional eaters often hide their emotions and turn to food to feel better. Learning healthy ways to deal with negative emotions can have an impact on overeating — though you may feel your issue is that you have no control over how much you eat, the underlying issue is likely that you feel you feel powerless over your emotions. When you begin to feel anger, sadness, or another uncomfortable emotion, find a healthy way to express or deal with that emotion. Call a close friend, start a journal or pick up a paintbrush — do something constructive that you know leaves you feeling better, not worse. If your feelings of anger or sadness are from a past hurt, it may help to address them in the following ways:
   • Writing letters to those who have hurt you. You don't have to send the letters. But the act of pouring out your anger or sadness on paper can oftentimes help relieve stress.
   • Making amends with yourself. Stand in front of a mirror and forgive yourself for anything hurtful you've done. Any self-loathing you're carrying needs to be addressed and expressed to begin the healing process.
3. Curb stress eating. Avoid reaching for your favorite comfort foods when stressed. Identify when you're feeling overwhelmed and find other ways to let off steam. Some of these stress-relieving techniques can help:
   • Taking a short stroll. Even a quick 15 minute walk can help release feel-good endorphins in your brain, helping the stress slip away.
   • Playing with your pet. Spend time lavishing love on your pooch in order to release oxytocin, the so-called cuddle chemical that boosts your sense of well being.
   • Breathing exercises. If your head is swimming with thoughts, take a moment to focus on something as simple as your breath. Refocusing on the moment through breathing exercises or meditation has been scientifically proven to alleviate stress and anxiety.
   • Doing yoga.
   • Learning to meditate. Meditation is a stress-buster that can typically be done anywhere.
4. Learn to listen to your stomach. Frequently asking yourself “Am I full?” can sometimes immediately put things into perspective. Oftentimes, we mindlessly eat without paying attention to what our body is trying to tell us. Over eaters typically keep consuming long after their stomachs are full. But they ignore the messages they bodies are sending.
   • It may be helpful for you rate your hunger level on a scale of one to 10, with one being so hungry you feel dizzy, weak or starving and 10 being full to the point you feel sick. Five represents feeling satisfied — neither hungry nor full.
     • Eat when your hunger is at a three or four, and try to avoid ever hitting a one or two.
     • Stop eating when you hit a five or six — either satisfied, or a "pleasantly full."
   • Stop a quarter way through your meal and ask yourself: "Am I still hungry?" If you are, continue eating. Then stop again when you are halfway through and ask: "Am I still hungry?" Remember, you don't have to clean your plate.
5. Overturn boredom. Many people overeat out of sheer boredom. If you feel like you have too much time on your hands, get out of the house. Find a hobby. Volunteer to help others. Go see a movie (just steer clear of the concession stand). Call a friend or take a walk and explore your neighborhood. There are numerous ways to occupy your mind that don’t involve reaching for sugary snacks.

Eliminating Other Behaviors That Cause Overeating

1. Slow down. Binge eating involves consuming food very quickly. Slowing down and taking time to focus on the food itself, however, (how it tastes, temperature, etc.) can sometimes help calm the craving to overeat. This type of mindful eating has become a well-known technique for easing over consumption, touted by physicians, celebrities and chefs alike.
   • Don't eat while standing up or in the car or when you're trying to do something else. Sit down for your meals. Try to avoid situations in which you feel you must "scarf down" your food.
   • Stop and put your fork down between each bite.
   • Fully chew your food and swallow before picking up your fork again.
   • Allow yourself to feel the texture of the food and notice its flavor and smell.
2. Turn off the TV. It is possible that you are not eating in response to stress or any other emotion — you may simply be overeating because you are too distracted to listen to your body's signals. Avoid distractions while eating — turn off the tv and computer, put down your book — and focus on your plate and how your body feels. Researchers have discovered that eating while watching tv routinely leads to the consumption of fewer fruits and vegetables and more fast food, sodas and unhealthy snacks.
3. Alter your environment. We are creatures of habit. Using a different plate or sitting in a another place besides your usual spot might give you that extra boost of alertness you need to stop eating at the right time. As one registered dietitian notes, small things like altering the time you eat and reducing the size of your dinner plate can add up to big changes over time.

Developing Good Habits

1. Start exercising. Get up and get moving. The mood-enhancing effects of exercise are well documented. Exercise can reduce stress hormones and can boost your energy and mood. Aim for 20-30 minutes of moderate exercise every day. Some useful, uplifting forms of exercise include:
   • Yoga
   • Swimming
   • Hiking
2. Remove temptations. Clear out your pantry and fridge of your favorite comfort foods. You can’t eat what isn’t there. And now that you've been keeping a food diary and know the foods you tend to you binge on, take this knowledge with you to the grocery store. If you lose yourself in cookies and chips, two of the most common trigger foods, make sure and avoid the prepackaged sweets and snacks aisles.
   • Stick to the perimeter of the grocery store. Cookies, chips, soda, and other unhealthy snacks are usually found in the aisles of grocery stores, while you'll find things like produce, fresh meat, and sea food around around the perimeter of the store.
3. Steer clear of fast food. Resist the urge to pull into your favorite drive-through on the way home from work. The pressures of the day could cause you to impulsively order large quantities of high fat, sugary treats. If your willpower is still slipping and you find yourself sitting in line anyway, consider ordering a healthier salad or low-calorie menu item instead of your usual non-nutritious fare.

Dealing With Overeating In The Moment

1. Forgive yourself. There may be setbacks, and that's okay. Years' worth of bad habits won't be broken overnight. Try to be patient with yourself and treat yourself with kindness and forgiveness.
2. Let go of shame. Being overwhelmed by shame, anger and sadness only creates a vicious cycle that leads to more overeating. Some constructive ways to express your disappointment that don't include bingeing again include:
   • Saying goodbye to the past. Everything you've done is now in the past. Remind yourself that the past cannot be changed but the future can. All you can do is learn from your mistakes and move forward.
   • Figuring out where you went off track. Thinking and writing about what last led you astray (trigger foods, feeling a particular emotion, etc.) can help ease your guilt and bring your focus back to recovery.
   • Setting positive reminders. Help dissipate shame by creating tools to do better in the future. Use an app or set up calendar reminders on your computer to pop up positive messages to yourself.
3. Seek out support if you need it. It’s tough to go it alone. Finding like-minded people can be crucial to the recovery process. There are several national organizations with state and local chapter meetings you can attend. Or, if can't wait and need to speak with someone immediately, reach out and connect with others online in a chat room or join a forum or message board. Here are some recommended resources:
   • Overeaters Anonymous
   • NEDA
   • Academy for Eating Disorders
   • Healthful Chat
   • Healthy Place Forums

Understanding Overeating

1. Create a food diary. Ignorance is not always bliss. Writing down everything you eat can be an eye-opening experience, as most people tend to underestimate how much they consume. In addition, recording when you eat could help you identify trouble spots, certain times of the day when you are most likely to over consume. Or, a food diary could quickly highlight which foods you binge on most often.
   • When making an entry in your food diary, you should include the time you ate, what you ate, and how much. In addition, you should record what you were doing at the time, your mood, and your environment.
   • Carry a pen and paper or use your phone to record your food intake. Don't rely on your memory — remember, most people underestimate how much they eat, and you will be more likely to do so when you are relying on your memory. You might also forget little snacks (the handful of candy from the bowl on someone's desk) or the bite of cake from your friend's plate (these all count).
   • Make sure you accurately record your portion sizes and things like salad dressings.
   • You can see a sample of a food diary here.
2. Look for patterns in your food diary. By recording additional details in your food diary, such as your mood or environment, you can begin to uncover patterns and triggers for overeating. For instance, you may notice that you overeat when you feel stressed or sad, or when you are at your parents' house, or after you talk to your older sibling. This is considered stress eating or emotional eating.
   • Other things to look out for include waiting too long between meals (which may cause you to overeat when you finally do eat), and eating while on-the-go (like in the car or while standing and trying to do other things) or in front of the TV or computer (people tend to eat more when they are distracted and not focused on their meal).
   • Notice the effects of smelling or seeing food. Maybe your diary will reveal that you can't help but stop for a treat when you walk past that amazing-smelling bakery on your way home. Even if you weren't even hungry before, the smell of fresh-baked bread got your stomach rumbling.
3. Learn about emotional eating. Your food diary may reveal that you are eating to cope with difficult emotions or even just boredom. Do you reach for food each time you feel sad, stressed, angry, anxious, lonely, bored, or tired? Instead of dealing with an uncomfortable feeling, you may be trying to squash it by eating. Unfortunately, eating does not address whatever made you experience that uncomfortable feeling so, though you may feel better in the moment, the emotion will inevitably return.
   • Stress causes your body to release cortisol, also known as the "stress hormone," which can trigger your "fight or flight" response. This response may increase appetite, making your body crave comfort foods (usually laden with sugar and quick energy) to fuel your fight or flight. If you experience chronic stress from things like school, your job, family, or environment, you may be at higher risk to become a regular emotional eater.
4. Understand the difference between physical hunger and emotional hunger. It may be hard at first to identify when you are actually hungry and when you want to eat because you have been triggered. Before you reach for that cookie or bag of chips, consider the following:
   • Did the feeling of hunger come on suddenly? Physical hunger is gradual, while emotional hunger is sudden and intense.
   • Do you feel like you have to eat immediately? Physical hunger can usually wait. When you are hungry in response to an emotion, you will feel that you need to eat right now.
   • Do you only want one specific thing? If you feel open to lots of different food options, you are probably experiencing physical hunger. But if you are fixated on one particular food, you are probably feeling emotional hunger.
   • Do you eat beyond a feeling of fullness? If you eat until your stomach is full but still don't feel satisfied, you are probably eating emotionally and not to satisfy a physical hunger. Physical hunger stops when you are full.
   • Do you feel guilt, shame, powerless, or embarrassed? If you experience any of these feelings after eating, it is likely you are eating to try and meet an emotional need, not to satiate a physical hunger.
5. Recognize the signs of binge eating disorder. Overeating or emotional eating does not mean you have a binge eating disorder (BED). BED is a common eating disorder. It is considered a severe, life-threatening disorder, but it is also treatable. BED can only be diagnosed by a healthcare provider, so make sure you discuss it with your doctor if you suspect you may have BED. Signs of BED include:
   • Eating much more rapidly than normal, and eating more during a specific time period (usually less than two hours) than most people would eat during that time.
   • Feeling out of control when eating.
   • Eating in private because you feel ashamed by how much you are consuming.
   • Eating excessive amounts of food when you are not hungry.
   • Feeling ashamed, guilty, depressed, or disgusted by how much you are eating.
   • Lack of purging following binges, meaning you don't compensate for overeating by throwing up or overexercising.
   • Engaging in this type of eating at least once a week for three months.
   • Be aware that body weight is not necessarily connected to BED. Your body weight may be normal, or you may have mild, moderate, or severe obesity. It is important to remember that not everyone who is overweight binges or has BED.

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Sources and Citations

See also

• Eat Less During a Meal
• Find Help For a Suspected Eating Disorder
• Give Up Carbs
• Give Up Dairy Products
• Talk to Your Parents About Their Diet
• Recover from Anorexia
• Eat Properly
• Burn Fat
• Eat Healthy and Exercise
• Get the Most Effective Diet

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