Psychology of nutrition: how to overcome the habit of "eating away" stress

To stop “eating away” stress, it is important to understand what feelings and experiences you are eating away.

It could be anxiety, fear, sadness, etc.

Why is it easier to eat something?

There are several reasons for this.

Firstly, we were taught this way since childhood. When we were little, when we cried, our mother gave us a breast, a pacifier, a bottle to calm us down. As we grew older, we were encouraged with treats. This is how the habit of calming and encouraging ourselves was formed, says Ksenia Matura .

Secondly, when we eat something sweet or tasty, we produce a hormone of joy (dopamine). The easiest way to get it is to eat something. Unfortunately, it quickly loses its effect and a new dose of joy is needed.

What to do to avoid overeating

1. Track your feelings and experiences. You can sit down and analyze those situations and cases when you ate. Remember and feel the events and feelings that arose before you reached for something tasty.

Ideally, keep a diary of your feelings and emotions for a period of time (a month, a week). This will allow you to analyze and understand what is happening to you, what feelings you experience. You may find that when you are anxious, you start to eat more.

Then you need to learn to live through the state of anxiety and cope with it by taking some action to resolve the issue that worries you, and not just eat.

2. Take care of your daily routine. In order to feel energetic, have a strong immune system and be resistant to stress, you need to sleep at least 7 hours.

3. Develop a habit of eating well. Learn about nutrition and organize your consumption of a well-balanced diet, which contains proteins, fats and carbohydrates in the normal range. A well-balanced diet will allow you to feel better and not resort to quick pleasures.

4. Do physical exercise. Fitness, running, jumping, walking, any physical activity helps burn the hormone cortisol, which is produced during stress.

5. Find activities that bring you pleasure and joy. This could be a hobby, dancing in the morning, chatting with friends, singing songs in the car on the way to work, reading your favorite book or watching a movie.

Write yourself a list of things that you enjoy doing and that lift your spirits and bring you joy.

Keep this list at hand at all times and in moments of stress, don’t reach for treats, but look at this list and do at least one thing from the list.

This way you will learn to get dopamine and joy in an environmentally friendly way for yourself, and not through eating sweets or tasty food.