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Episode Transcript

Hey, it’s Ryann, your host from the Food Freedom Lab. Today, let’s dive into emotional eating and how to find joy beyond food. If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s the food or the numbing, dissociating, and checking out that brings you joy, you’re in the right place.

Addressing Emotional Eating

Emotional eating is a topic that often comes up, and today, we’re shifting the focus from stopping emotional eating to understanding and healing the emotions that drive it. Let’s explore a question that many of you might resonate with.

Question About Eating for Pleasure

A listener asked, “What is it called when you eat because it feels good, not necessarily because you’re hungry? I’m always thinking about food, imagining how happy I’ll be if I have it, but I never feel good after, and sometimes I even go back for more until I’m sick.” Sound familiar? Let’s unpack this.

Understanding Emotional Eating

Emotional eating is not about making it wrong or a sign of weakness. It’s a human response to using food to cope with emotions. Instead of demonizing emotional eating, let’s focus on healing the underlying emotions.

Eating Because It Feels Good

The listener’s question emphasizes eating because it feels good, not necessarily because it tastes good. This indicates emotional eating. Ask yourself: When you eat for pleasure, are you fully present, savoring the taste, or is it mindless, distracted eating?

The Disconnect Between Food and Joy

If you’re mindlessly eating, is it the food bringing joy, or is it the numbing, dissociating, and checking out? Recognizing this disconnect helps uncover the true source of joy.

Addressing Lack of Happiness in Life

The question reveals a pattern of almost always thinking about food and finding happiness in it. This might indicate a lack of other sources of joy in life. The goal is not to shame but to explore why food has become the primary source of happiness.

Exploring Other Forms of Joy

Shift the focus away from food and explore other sources of joy. Identify activities that bring pleasure and incorporate them into your day. Small moments, like enjoying coffee or singing along to music, can make a significant difference.

Overcoming Mental Blocks

It’s common to resist moments of joy, thinking they’re a waste of time or insignificant. Challenge these mental blocks. You deserve moments of joy, and they contribute to a more fulfilling life.

Shifting Focus for a Joyful Life

Our goal is not to vilify emotional eating but to acknowledge that solving problems is more powerful than numbing emotions. If food is the sole source of happiness, shift focus, explore other sources of joy, and see what happens. You won’t know until you try.

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