Emotional eating is a problem that plagues many, and it’s an all too common way of dealing with life’s problems.
The modern world offers such a wide range of addictive foods like candy, chips, ice cream and others that bring euphoria, calmness, peace and comfort that many fall into the trap of mindless eating when they are feeling sad, depressed, bored or feeling lonely or stressed.
This habitual response to certain trigger feelings leads to a vicious cycle that never really solves the original problem, but only piles up.
Many who eat behind emotions report feeling guilt and shame for eating unhealthy foods and eating to the point of nausea.
Weight gain is another side effect of this unhealthy coping ability and brings with it its own variety of emotional and physical problems.
Learning positive coping skills and breaking the emotional eating habit requires awareness, understanding, and learning healthy coping skills, and one of the tools to aid in this process is positive affirmations.
What are positive affirmations
Positive affirmations are statements made as if something is already true or has already happened to try to reprogram the mind to achieve a specific goal.
The human brain is powerful and it drives human behavior and therefore positive affirmations can be very effective in changing those behaviors that are not serving us in a positive way.
Positive affirmations and motivational statements can go a long way in helping emotional eaters break the self-destructive habit of eating to hide feelings.
How affirmations help with emotional eating
This works in two ways and the end goal is to reprogram the mind and thought processes, thus facilitating behavior change.
- First, it brings awareness of the problem to the fore. And truly without awareness, emotional eating can never be stopped as it is usually a mindless act driven by habit, which for many means they may not even be aware they are doing it.
- Second, repeating affirmations can help replace habitual thought patterns about food and change perceptions about food, which can go a long way in stopping emotional eating.
For example, if I believe that donuts help me feel better when I’m sad, then I will always reach for that donut without hesitation whenever that feeling overcomes me. But then again, when I realize that the feelings of euphoria I get from that donut are a temporary band-aid that’s not a fix at all, and that after I’ve eaten I’m still sad, and maybe even sadder , then I’ll take a break and break the habit.
Affirmations can go a long way toward changing behavior, and when done consistently, along with learning healthy coping skills to deal with emotions that are typically avoided when consuming food, can bring healing, serenity, and better emotional and physical health .
30 affirmations to stop emotional eating
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I only eat when I’m physically hungry.
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Food is for nourishment and nothing else.
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When I’m bored, I do sports or read a book.
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When I’m sad, I call friends and talk about my problems.
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Eating is not my consolation.
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I am powerful, strong and able to manage my emotions.
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I deal with comfort food.
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I decide what, when and how I eat.
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I am aware of what food I put into my body.
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It’s easy for me to say no to junk food, I’m in control.
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I have the power and power to stop emotional eating.
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I have healthy skills for managing my emotions, food is not one of them.
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I have set meal times.
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I can face anything that comes my way.
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When I’m stressed, I exercise.
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I develop a healthy relationship with food.
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I respect my body.
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I respect my feelings, I take care of them.
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I’m not a victim of comfort food.
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Eating won’t heal my feelings.
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Food is not a friend, it is sustenance.
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I feel everyday and it feels good.
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I love all feelings, they are a part of me.
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I love myself, I love to feel, I live and live!
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I deal with my feelings every day.
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I am aware of every bite I take every day.
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I can separate physical hunger from emotional hunger.
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I know the difference between healthy eating and comfort eating.
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I am responsible for my health.
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I listen to my body and know when I’m really hungry.
Thanks to J Russell Hart