There are different triggers for different people that cause them to run to food for comfort. There are a few big ones that I have dealt with (and still continue to struggle with):
Stress – Although I am getting better, I deal rather poorly with stress. I used to delve into food as a lifesaver from the “drowning” feeling I sometimes get when feeling pressured or stressed out. At the time, a family-size deluxe nachos with extra salsa & sour cream made the pressure seem to float away with the lofty aroma of the seasoned beef & cheese, but ultimately it only made things worse. Thus the cycle would roll into another trigger: guilt.
Guilt – another trigger that many people deal with, guilt can be just as bad as stress. Whether the guilt is deserved or a “phantom’ guilt, either one can be dangerous to your journey.
Emotions – If you are a very emotional person, this one will get you every time. I always seem to eat when I am in a poor mood. Eating out of disappointment, sadness, loneliness, if my spirits are low I thought that food could lift me above the mire and out into the sunshine of happiness. Honestly I have never heard of someone bingeing because they were happy; bingeing seems to occur when bad things happen to us.
Boredom – We all seem to fall into this trigger from time to time. Flipping through the channels with a bag of chips or popcorn, staring blankly into the refrigerator, nibbling on munchies at work in the lulls of the afternoon.
Habit – Buffalo wings at the bowling alley, that extra piece of cake at the wedding reception, 3 trips to the Chinese buffet, I’m sure you can think of other social situations where your unconscious habits tend to be on “auto-pilot”.
In all of these situations you need to take a step back and make some conscious choices. You need to rationally think and pray about these and other potential over-eating triggers. If you tend to over-eat at a buffet, then in the beginning of your journey you need to avoid going to a buffet restaurant and stick with a take-out or sit-down restaurant until you feel comfortable in your walk to venture into those types of places.
If stress is your downfall, then prayer and relaxation needs to be your alternative to food. Listen to a nature sounds CD, go for a brisk walk and praise God for the work He is doing in your life. Talk it out; rationalize whether or not this stress is real or misplaced. Sometimes we stress about things that we either have no control over or are not responsible for.
Emotional eating is a difficult (but not impossible) trigger to avoid. With your support system in place, you will have that as a substitute for the “comfort” foods you used to run to. Don’t leave feelings bottled up inside, talk to your pastor, friend, or find a counselor to help you through what ever you are experiencing. Don’t forget to include the ultimate counselor, Jesus Christ, whenever you feel down, depressed, or disappointed.
Bad habits take time to break; the apparent “rule” is that it takes 21 days for something to become a habit. So it will take 21 days of trial and error to break yourself of your old habits and form new ones.
Boredom can be combated with things like a new hobby, reading a book, listening to an inspirational CD, fill that empty void with something that will improve and enrich your life.
I myself still struggle with many of these triggers, but I am getting better everyday. Keep your eye on the prize to a healthier, happier you and the pull of these triggers will lessen. They may never go away but their strength will be diminished if you actively pursue alternative solutions to beat them.
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
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