Hello love,
I wanted to talk about self-sabotage because that’s what it can feel like when you emotionally eat.
Like:
- Why do I keep screwing things up?
- Why do I keep binging?
- Why do I keep eating when I don’t want to?
- Why am I sabotaging myself?
- Why am I sabotaging my goals?
- Why…?
And it can feel really harsh.
It all boils down to: “What’s wrong with me?”
But that’s not what’s really going on.
If we understand what emotional eating really is – a coping mechanism – we’ll realize we are not trying to sabotage ourselves.
We’re trying to take care of ourselves. We’re trying to help ourselves.
A coping mechanism is something we use to help us deal with discomfort, distress, or difficult emotions. For emotional eaters, this means turning to food.
And if we’re turning to food, it means it’s meeting a need. It might not be meeting that need in a healthy way—especially if we’re overeating or eating when we’re not hungry—because it can negatively impact our body. So, it feels like self-sabotage.
But the truth is: we just don’t yet know a better way to meet that need.
If we rewind to when this pattern likely formed in childhood. We probably didn’t have parents or caregivers who could help us move through discomfort and distress. They may not have been able to help us regulate our nervous system or get back to a calm state.
So, when we feel sadness or hurt for example, we just want to feel better. That’s when food becomes the outlet.
Let’s dive in deeper:
- 2:01 – Why do we turn to food? Plus what we really needed
- 3:57 – These outdated beliefs about emotions hold us back
- 5:14 – How do we start meeting our needs? Transforming the part of us that uses food
- 6:35 – Distracting from a distraction doesn’t work to meet your needs
- 7:45 – The process to resolve emotional eating
- 9:01 – Next steps and free resources
Next Steps
1. If you are ready to start your journey to resolving your Emotional Eating you can download my free guide “What Are You Truly Hungry For?” to start discerning true from emotional hunger and catching your triggers HERE.
2. If you are ready to transform your emotional eating so that you can get to ease, peace and confidence around food and in your body with a step by step process and guidance then find out more about The Emotional Eating Evolution Program HERE.
To meeting your true needs,
Michelle
Certified Holistic Nutritionist Specializing in Emotional Eating
