Do you overeat when you experience stress? Stress is all around us, especially during and after the holidays. We may feel that everything has to be done perfectly, or we put too much on ourselves. You might feel let down as the holidays are coming to a close. Maybe you have taken some time off work and now you feel stress at having to go back.

There are so many other things that can cause us stress. Perhaps we have conflict with someone we care about. Maybe you have some sort of stressful situation at work. If you are in school, there is something to cause you stress on a daily basis.

Even positive situations can cause us stress. Perhaps you just got a new job, got into some type of school, are getting married, or moving. These can all be exciting things, yet they still are stressful.

Knowing that we encounter stress on a regular basis, how we cope with it can be helpful or harmful. Some people use drugs or alcohol to deal with stress. Others overindulge with work, shopping, gambling, they overeat or some other harmful behaviors. Most people will say that these behaviors reduce stress in the short term, but long term they do more harm than good.

I’m sure you have heard of emotional eaters (those who overeat to reduce their stress). This will be the focus of today’s blog. Many people who engage in this behavior feel good as they are eating, but afterwards feel a great amount of shame. This shame and self-loathing can trigger this cycle.

What to do about it

The first step in changing this cycle is to look at how stress impacts your eating. Keep a journal and keep track of every time you feel stress. Take some time think about what led you to feel the stress, and write it down. So basically what triggered it? You may have to think about it a little, or you may immediately know what made you feel stressed. Did something happen, or are you beating yourself up for something? Next write down how the stress impacted your eating. Then write down other ways you can deal with your stress other than using food. Finally rate your success for this exercise.

Remember, awareness is the first step to change. It may be that you just become aware of the triggers. If your eating doesn’t change as quickly as you’d like, remember that this is a process.

It may also be helpful to come up with a list of healthy ways you can deal with stress. Do this at a time you aren’t feeling stress. Ask yourself what you enjoy doing, or who you enjoy being around. Perhaps doing some activity you like will be helpful.

Chart of overeating

Another exercise that may be helpful is to write down each time you overeat. You don’t need to write what you ate; it could just be a tally of how many times you do it. Try this for one month and see what happens.

Often times just keeping track of the number of times you engage in a behavior you want to change will make a difference. The unwanted behavior tends to decrease over time. This may sound crazy, but it is true. Just being accountable to you can make a difference.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

If the above exercises don’t work, you might want to see a therapist for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. You and your therapist can find out the various triggers for you. Once you know what leads you to overeating, you can come up with a game plan on how to effectively deal with those triggers. Perhaps there are other issues that lead you to overeat that you are not even aware of. Just know that help is out there for you.

There are healthy ways to deal with stress, such as call a friend, do yoga, go for a walk, meditate, listen to music, etc. However, everyone is different. If you need help in determining how to reduce your stress in a healthy way, please give me a call at 713-304-6554.

Take care,

Debbie Grammas