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Articles for Moms is written by Lori Radun, , Certified Life Coach and founder of True To You Life Coaching
To learn more click HERE
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Health and Aging
February 06 - Healing Your Emotional Relationship with Food
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 Are you ready
for Valentine's Day? Wondering how you can add a little romance
on this special day? Have a little fun and try these creative
ideas:
Don't forget
about your children - they want to be special loves in your life
too!
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 The other night
I lay in bed watching Oprah’s 20th Anniversary DVD collection
– a gift given to me by my best friend. Story after story of incredible
people that have touched and changed the life of Oprah caused
my tears of inspiration to flow. One particular person I really
identified with – the story of Rudine. Rudine suffered severely
from anorexia nervosa. She wanted so badly to battle and win this
condition, but her emotional relationship with food and herself
was so damaged.
You see, I
can identify with this woman because at the age of 13, I came
face to face with anorexia nervosa. It followed two very painful
events in my life. Looking back, I now understand I was unable
to cope with all the emotions I encountered. The anger and hatred
I felt – because I could not outwardly express it – was turned
inward. I began to hate my body and food became the enemy. I exercised
like crazy and eventually ate only 1 small meal per day. After
finally breaking that cycle, I swung to the other extreme and
began to binge eat late at night. Other things replaced food until,
at the age of 21, I got serious about facing and healing my emotions.
I share this
with you because I think it is important to understand the devastating
effects our relationship with food can have on our health. Maybe
you’ve never suffered from anorexia nervosa, bulimia or obesity,
but your emotional relationship with food is still worth examining.
In an ideal relationship with food, you eat when you’re hungry,
and you eat the healthy foods your body needs. Your body weight
is healthy and you aren’t experimenting with the latest diet.
Healthy eating is your way of life, and your physical wellbeing
reflects that – not just your body, but your energy level, mood
and internal health as well. So come on this journey with me and
let’s explore some of the common emotions or situations that can
trigger unhealthy eating. Pay attention to whether any of these
strike home for you. If so, try substituting some of the alternatives
I suggest so you can begin healing your emotional relationship
with food.
Angry Eater:
When you are very angry with yourself or someone else, do you
turn to food? Maybe you’re mad because you made a mistake and
so you beat yourself up with food. Try confronting and expressing
your anger in a healthy way, and then forgive and let it go.
Stress Eater:
According to Dr. Phil, “when you are under stress, your body releases
hormones that automatically stimulate your appetite and set off
cravings, prompting you to eat huge quantities of fattening food”.
Take 15 minutes of quiet alone time or a 15 minute brisk walk
instead.
Convenience
Eater: You don’t have time or don’t feel like making something
healthy to eat, so you grab whatever is convenient – fast food
or take home, chips, donuts, etc. Keep healthy and convenient
foods around the house and at the office – fruit, granola bars,
Lean Cuisines, string cheese, and yogurt.
Tired Eater:
Morning comes around or the afternoon energy runs out and you
need a kick of sugar to keep you going. You load up on cookies,
cake or other sugar snack foods and you’re off and running until
you crash. Try getting 8 hours of sleep at night, exercising regularly,
taking vitamins or taking a short cat nap.
No Waste
Eater: Were you taught to never waste food? Were you reminded
of all the poor children that had nothing to eat? Now you cannot
bring yourself to leave anything on your plate or throw away any
food. Put smaller portions on your plate. Give yourself permission
to stop eating when you’re full. Work in a homeless shelter serving
food or give food to the poor so you don’t feel guilty.
Self-Disgust
Eater: You look at yourself and hate what you see; you eat
or deprive yourself of food to mask the feelings you have, and
so starts the cycle of abuse. Work on loving yourself in every
way you can – pamper yourself, repeat positive affirmations, stick
up for yourself. Invest in gaining confidence and self-esteem.
Boredom
Eater: This is me. I don’t feel like doing laundry or cleaning
the house. I’m tired of working, playing cars or watching TV.
It’s cold outside and so I open the food cabinet. Hmmm. I wonder
what I can eat. Get creative and find something fun and different
to do. Switch projects and start something new. Make a phone call
to a friend.
Fear of
Intimacy Eater: Do you eat to hide yourself and avoid getting
too close to someone? Sometimes reaching out to people can be
a very scary and hard thing to do. Maybe you’ve been hurt too
many times by loved ones. Seek help to heal your pain. Search
for supportive and loving people that you can depend on. Take
baby steps to reach out and trust someone.
Hopeless
Eater: Have you just completely given up? Maybe you’ve tried
too long to lose weight or given too much to your marriage, and
nothing seems to change. You feel hopeless and so you just say,
“Who cares? I’m just going to eat whatever I want”. Or maybe you’ve
lost your appetite all together. Change your thoughts. Focus on
the positive and keep a gratitude journal. Look for the bright
side of everything. Search for the sunshine and you will find
it.
“See Food”
Eater: You know the saying, “I’m on a seafood diet. I see
food and I eat it”. Are you the type of eater that constantly
grazes? If the food is in front of you, you eat it without really
thinking about it. You may or may not be hungry – it’s just a
habit. Graze on low-fat and healthy foods. Keep the fattening
foods at the grocery store. Work on being more conscious of how
much food you are taking in.
Social Eater:
You love to be around people and what better way to spend time
with friends than going out to lunch or dinner. Socializing is
great! Eating out is expensive and not always very healthy – not
to mention the additional calorie intake. Add a couple glasses
of wine and you’ve consumed in one meal what you should have for
the day. Limit your social gatherings at restaurants to once or
twice a month. Start a walking group with friends. Participate
in a movie or book club. Have a board game night and serve soup
and salad.
Comfort
Eater: Sadness or loneliness threatens to swallow you up.
Depression seems to be your best friend. Food is your source of
comfort. Somehow you feel better after indulging in your favorite
meal and dessert. Until the feelings strike again. It’s time to
face your sadness or loneliness. Maybe you need to grieve the
loss of someone or something. Perhaps you need to reach out more
to a community of people. Developing a relationship with God may
supply the consolation and companionship you need.
Whatever your
relationship with food, ask yourself if it’s a healthy one. Facing
your emotions head on is the only way to heal them. Denial only
causes your feelings to go away temporarily. When I watched the
story of Rudine on Oprah, a recovering anorexic pleaded with her
to feed her brain and give herself the nourishment that it needed.
With sad-filled and hopeless eyes, Rudine simply said, “But how?”
Isn’t that the essential question we are all faced with when making
change? How? Change starts with awareness. It’s fueled by desire
and commitment. And it ends with taking action. Take the steps
you need now to develop a healthy relationship with food. |
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 Lori
Radun, CEC is a certified life coach and founder of True to You
Life Coaching, LLC. Through speaking, personal coaching,
her FREE monthly newsletter, and other coaching products, Lori’s
desire is to offer encouragement and support for moms on their
journey through motherhood. Her mission is to inspire and help
moms reduce stress, focus on what’s important to them, and be
who God designed them to be so they can have the peaceful and
happy family lives they want.
Take our FREE
coaching quiz or call 630-236-7142 for a FREE coaching session
to see if coaching is for you.
Since coaching
is conducted over the telephone, no client is too far away! |
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If you are looking to create an energy-filled and joyful life, don't forget to check out The Energy Equation eCourse - now available in sections as well as the full eCourse.
Have a blessed day!
Lori Radun, CEC True to You Life Coaching, LLC
phone:
(630) 236-7142
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True to You Life Coaching™
Phone: (630) 236-7142 Email: lori@true2youlifecoaching.com |