Tips for comfort eating

[Ythansgirls]

Hi,

I've been trying to lose weight for ages and have figured put my big problem like many, i comfort eat.

when i am sad i eat, when i am nervous i eat, when i am lonely i eat. I also eat when i am stressed.

for a while i managed to refuse the comfort eating and lost weight. But i wasn't able to cope mentally without the comfort and destress of not eating. And at work i had a mental break down.

i find work very stressful (i am a trainee supervisor at a hotel). And the more stressed i get the less i can concentrate. So i snack at work, chocolate, bread, chips. Things that i can grab and eat quick and help keep me calm.

and when i am at home, i feel that if i don't comfort i will start panicing and crying.

does anyone have any tips on how to cope so that i do not need to turn to food.

[Hidden]

Maybe you should get some help from your GP too

[fibronfedup]

I was a big comfort eater, boredom, depression, stress etc all had me running for the snacks. Nowadays i take healty snacks to work so if i get tempted i have a healthy option. At home i try distraction when it hits me, i will even sit and roll (im a smoker dirty habit but one health issue at a time) all my rollies for the night and next day. Or i will do some exercise or start sorting my living room again, i also now play alot of games on my phone to keep ny hands and minds busy.

Try to remember how good you felt when you lost the weight and the inevitable guilt you feel after binging. Its not easy but take it a day at a time and eventually it will get easier. If you think it is a deeper emotional connection to comfort eating maybe try talking therapies they did wonders for me with my anxiety and low self esteem. They can help work out the triggers and ways you can get around them.

Good luck and stay strong

[mind-over-platter]

I would agree, having a chat about it with your doctor can't be a bad idea. There are more problems that result from anxiety than just over-eating, so it'd be good to get help with that.

In the meantime, try experimenting with healthy foods that you can snack on, and see if there are ones that you enjoy eating, these are always a good place to start, to get your body used to lower calories between meals. If you can tolerate it, swapping to things like celery, carrot, lettuce or cucumber have barely any calories, but still give you the 'I need to put food in my mouth' comfort.

Best of luck.