If you read through the last two newsletters and you became aware of your emotional eating triggers. Now your goal can be to re-frame your beliefs about yourself and your relationship with food.
1. Using mindfulness is one of the most powerful ways to overcome emotional eating and other habits.
One of my clients - the mother of two
young children, started off by blaming her emotional eating on feeling exhausted. As we continued to work together she came to realize that her 3 main triggers were exhaustion, stress and loneliness.
By becoming aware of these triggers, she was able too use mindfulness when feeling those ways. She realized that rather than caving into feeding her stomach, she could feed herself in other ways, and choose other outlets when those feelings arose. She also started exercising
more, which helped increase her energy and de-stress. Using mindfulness in the moment helped her tremendously, and she finally had success with her weight loss.
2. Cry
Often, crying can be a huge release and help in healing past hurt. You can find a safe time when you're alone to release all the pent up sadness and/ or anger you've been holding onto. Afterwards, you will no doubt feel both a little drained and enlightened/
relieved. If you can, you may choose to have a nap after.
3. Express yourself. Nothing better than venting to a trusty girlfriend or other friend. I do this a lot when challenges arise.
3. Journal
I love journaling. I use it both as an outlet and as a source of inspiration. You can literally dump out all of your frustrations on paper.
For inspiration, I like to use a phrase I learned from
Gabriel Bernstein. "Dear guides of the highest truth and compassion, I invite and welcome you to write through me now." Invariably I am inspired with wonderful inspirations that just flow onto the page.
4. Take a walk or read something inspirational
5. Seek help
If you're suffering from depression or anxiety, or the trauma that you went through seem too big for you to handle, then by all means seek
professional help. I saw a psychologist when I was 40 and it completely transformed my life. I had no idea that I had so much anger and sadness inside of me. I was able to let go of and work out so much.
It's like trash removal for your soul. Nothing better! Working with a trained professional can be so rewarding. Patty Levell is a wonderful, warm psychologist, in the Yellow Umbrella Wellness Center where I have my
new office in Beaconsfield. I highly recommend her. One of her specialties is trauma. Her number is 514-774-1184.
