Emotional Eating: Balancing Act

So, I have a history of emotional eating. This will not be an easy post for me to write, because, in all honesty,  it is something that I'm still working on. My eventual goal is to find a balance in my eating habits that is healthy physically and emotionally. This is a balancing act I am still trying to walk.


For almost as long as I can remember, I have used my eating habits as a way to feel better emotionally. Sometimes this entailed eating food, and sometimes this entailed NOT eating food. Neither approach is a healthy one.

The time that I have had the healthiest relationship with food was on my mission, because I just wasn't thinking about it all that much. I was busy from literally 6:30am until 10:30pm every day, and food was just a part of life. It was fuel that enabled me to keep going, and it was the occasional treat. However, food was usually the last thing on my mind.

me on my mission, so happy and NOT stressing about food!

At other times in my life, I have thought about little else besides food. What I would eat, how much I was eating, and whether or not I could eat a meal/snack/dessert based on how much I had already consumed that day. It became an obsession.

The time in high school when I was dieting and at my thinnest, I was also regularly skipping meals and it got to the point where not eating made me feel better, like I was in control. When I did eat, it was carefully portioned amounts, based on how much I felt I deserved based on my eating behavior that day.

We have all seen in movies and TV shows, the girls after break-ups eating ice cream from a giant tub, with tears running down their faces. This scenario has been a reality several times in my life, and I can attest to the fact that it doesn't help for long. The rush of sugar made me feel better temporarily, but it didn't last, because it wasn't a real solution. It was a quick fix, that more often than not, made me feel worse after because of the associated food-guilt.

This brings up a point that I've made before, that we are less likely to take care of our bodies when we feel bad about ourselves. Cramming down the junk food to feel better or skipping meals to feel better are both unhealthy habits, and frankly, I'm worth more than that. We all are.

I think it is all about balance, and finding what works for us and makes us happy, and helps us feel like we are taking care of our bodies. For me, this means indulging now and then in cupcakes, but it also means striving to eat healthy the majority of the time. I'm going to continue try and not let my emotions dictate my eating habits. There are better ways to feel better than eating a tub of ice cream or skipping meals. Food can and should be an enjoyable part of life, a blessing, and a way to fuel your beautiful body. Honor your body, love yourself, and treat yourself well.You deserve it.

For more information or help with eating disorders, check out the link below.
http://www.eatingrecoverycenter.com/about-us/

Also, check out some past posts related to this topic:
http://bethanyjoybrown.blogspot.com/2015/03/food-is-not-enemy.html
http://bethanyjoybrown.blogspot.com/2015/02/why-im-not-trying-to-lose-few-pounds.html