Divorce!!
by Shirl
(UK)
How on earth do I divorce my junk food eating from my emotions?
Its like they are a happily married couple who are still together after 50 years and nothing will separate them apart from death!!
I am sad here now in the UK. The sun is shining and its a lovely spring day but I am so unfulfilled in life. I can feel the years passing me by and I'm getting bigger and bigger.
Something is going to have to change as soon as possible I think. But what? Thanks for reading this.
ANSWER
When food is used to alter our emotional state... it becomes addictive.
The 'marriage' between your emotions and junk food is anything but a happy one. It is one filled with anger, deceit, vindictiveness... there is no love, only dependency.
It is easy to use food to numb out any emotions or even just to feel good in general. The reason its easy is because its quick and it works. But the honeymoon is short lived. Shortly thereafter the feelings of guilt and self-hatred come.
It is like a fight... except its not between your emotions and the junk food. It is between your emotions and your potential happiness. Whenever food is used to take care of emotions... its like using degrading words with your potential happiness... cutting it down before it gets a chance to grow.
Here a few tips to help:
No Longer a Victim
Just like a battered wife... you need to stand up and 'divorce' this habit. You no longer need to play the role of a victim.
That is exactly what binge eaters do... they believe that they have no control over food; and that they are subject to the whims of the 'high' that overeating provides. But it is a fallacy; an object that has no free will CANNOT control someone.
You are the only person who has control of your life. The choices are in your hands.
New Behaviors
Binge eating and emotional eating are just like any other habit. They need to be replaced with a new behavior that is healthy, up-lifting, and that gives you the same sense of security.
It will take time and practice for this new behavior to become natural. But when you chose to take control of your life and no longer be a victim; changing this behavior becomes a MUST in your life. It is simply something that you are driven to do.
So what needs to change?
Your mindset first and second your actions. But there are no actions that will sustain a lasting change unless the mind is the fuel behind them.
Here are a few web pages to help you get this rolling:
