Today, we continue the In Real Life (IRL) version of the Intuitive Eating Series where I discuss the principles of Intuitive Eating while giving you real-life scenarios where these ideas play out and provide practical tools to help navigate you on this journey. Today is all about Intuitive Eating In Real Life Principle 7 Cope With Your Emotions With Kindness.
In case you missed it:
- What is Intuitive Eating?
- Intuitive Eating Principle 1: Reject the Diet Mentality
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 1
- Intuitive Eating Principle 2: Honor Your Hunger
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 2
- Intuitive Eating Principle 3: Make Peace with Food
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 3
- Intuitive Eating Principle 4: Challenge the Food Police
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 4
- Intuitive Eating Principle 5: Feel Your Fullness
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 5
- Intuitive Eating Principle 6: Discover the Satisfaction Factor
- Intuitive Eating in Real Life: Principle 6
- Intuitive Eating Principle 7: Cope with Your Emotions with Kindness
Intuitive Eating In Real Life Principle 7 Cope With Your Emotions With Kindness
The snapshot of Principle 7 is: “First, recognize that food restriction, both physically and mentally, can, in and of itself, trigger loss of control, which can feel like emotional eating. Find ways to comfort, nurture, distract, and resolve your issues. Anxiety, loneliness, boredom, and anger are emotions we all experience throughout life. Each has its own trigger, and each has its own appeasement. Food won’t fix any of these feelings. It may comfort for the short term, distract from the pain, or even numb you. But food won’t solve the problem. You’ll ultimately have to deal with the source of the emotion.”
Remember, in the latest 4th edition book of Intuitive Eating, this Principle is now called Cope with Your Emotions with Kindness because it is 100% okay if you use food for comfort or emotional reasons, as long as it’s not your only source of comfort.
Food is personal and emotional! We use it to reward and bribe kids, to celebrate and mourn life events, to bring people together, and so much more! I think one of the keys to this Intuitive Eating journey as well as to self-care is to find your balance with incorporating self-care more regularly and not just when full crisis mode hits. It’s also important to add other tools to your self-care toolbox to use when you are dealing with emotions and feelings, besides reaching for food.
It’s also important to acknowledge how emotional or stress eating has served you. This isn’t something people would do if it didn’t serve us in some way, right? Take a moment to consider: What are the pros? How has it made you feel better? What are the cons? How has it made you feel physically and mentally? How do you feel about your eating behaviors? (Typically, it’s the stress, guilt and shame that we feel about our eating behaviors that are more problematic than the actual eating).
Remember, Intuitive Eating is a process and most likely a spiral of healing, not a straight, linear path. When you find yourself returning to old behavior, use that as a reminder to look at what you need for self-care. When you practice self-care and speak to yourself with compassion, you may find that eating no longer serves as your primary source of coping.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT INTUITIVE EATING
Here is what one person in my online Intuitive Eating Focus Group said about Principle 7 Cope with Your Emotions with Kindness as they continue their Intuitive Eating journey:
“I used to eat to deal with any type of emotion, even positive emotions! Any anxiety I felt, even if it was excitement about doing something fun, I would just eat more. If I was feeling negatively about myself or stressed about work, I would eat more. Intuitive Eating has helped me identify those moments when I would feel anxious and then deal with them in a healthier way.
I take to exercising, playing music, or even talking to family or friends when I feel overwhelmed about something. I do still eat emotionally sometimes, but I am in SUCH a healthy place now! I can recognize not only what I’m feeling, but why I’m feeling that way and I can deal with it in a much more constructive way. This whole experience has ceased habits I NEVER thought I could kick. I don’t binge nearly as much as I used to, and when I do, I tend to get over it quickly and move on with my life.”
INTUITIVE EATING VIRTUAL SMALL GROUP COACHING
Reminder: My next 8-week Intuitive Eating small group coaching program runs every quarter! This group is to help you heal your relationship with food and your body, ditch dieting for good, get back to trusting yourself around food AND enjoying the foods you actually like!
REMINDER
This blog and Instagram series I am doing is not meant to be a replacement for reading the Intuitive Eating book or working through the Intuitive Eating Workbook. Rather it’s to provide an overview of the Intuitive Eating concept and principles to bring more awareness to the fact that there is an alternative to dieting and restricting.
As always, if you need additional guidance and support via individual nutrition coaching or counseling, please reach out or join the waitlist for my next Intuitive Eating virtual small group coaching program.
