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Triggers for Overeating – Overeating Trigger #1: STRESS

Michelle May

Triggers for overeating - stress

We took a poll on our Am I Hungry? Facebook page asking, “What are your top three triggers for overeating?” Stress and boredom tied for first place as the most common triggers for overeating.

The two most common triggers for overeating: Stress and Boredom

StressThough it’s not surprisingly that stress and boredom made the top of the list of common triggers for overeating, what’s interesting is that stress and boredom are often opposites: too much to do and not enough to do.

As humans, we tend to struggle with extremes. (I wrote about this in the article New Shades of Grey.)

If you’re in the habit of using food in an attempt to find balance—calm you down or pick you up, distract you or entertain you—then mindfulness can provide you with an alternative way to find the balance you seek.

Your Stress Management Toolkit

We’ll focus on stress management for coping with the stress trigger overeating. We’ll deal with boredom here.

I’ve put together a Stress Management Toolkit below with five short lessons for you to read now and refer back to the next time you’re experiencing stress and feel like reaching for food.

#1 – Our Habits Depend on Our Mindlessness

Since our habits depend on our mindlessness, then the corollary is that awareness is the first step to making a change.

Chances are, if you have one trigger, you have dozens, but you are NOT powerless over food. Before we talk about specific strategies for dealing with specific triggers, we need to have an overarching strategy that will help you handle just about anything that comes up.

Read more: You are not powerless over food.

#2 – What causes stress eating?

Stress is your body’s response to an event or situation that is threatening, overwhelming, or harmful—whether real or perceived.

That is a critical point because much of the stress people experience results from their perception of a situation, in other words, what they think. That’s good news because that means that you can change your perception to change your level of stress.

Read more: What causes stress eating?

#3 – From Ahhh to Arghhhh and back to Ahhh again

You know how something can go from Ahhhh to Arghhhh! in three seconds flat? When that happened to me recently, I had to take a bit of my own advice!

Read this short story to see an example of stress management in action as I take my own advice!

#4 – Stress Eating: Stress Management 101

When you’re experiencing stress, your impulse might be to power through, freak out, or stick your head in the sand (procrastinating, stress eating, drinking—you get the idea).

As we’ve all noticed, behaviors such as busyness, overworking, smoking, overeating, drinking alcohol to excess, isolation, and taking our frustration out on others, perpetuate the stress reaction.

Instead of trying to escape what you’re experiencing, pause and take a few deep breaths.

Then click here to read the rest…

#5 – What to Do Instead of Stress Eating: Stress Management 102

More “advanced” stress management skills include learning how to:

  • Put things in perspective
  • Take charge – if possible
  • Change your thoughts
  • Acknowledge your power to choose

Here’s how…

Was this article helpful? Here are three more you might like:

I’m bored and I want to eat

Why do I overeat when I’m stressed?

Mindful Stress Management during the Corona Virus Pandemic

This article was updated from a previously published version.

 

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Your journey is unique so we provide options to explore mindful eating in a way that meets your needs.