Reconnecting with your dreams
A journey beyond emotional eating
Most of us have had dreams, a vision, or certain aspirations for our lives. Perhaps during our late teens or our 20s we felt sure of what we wanted or had some idea of how we wanted to live life. We were filled with energy, determination, and a sense of empowerment to live on our terms. We were optimistic about what life could offer and about our ability to make our dreams, or vision, a reality. But something happened along the way. Perhaps the weight of the responsibilities, work, children, family, and/ or societal expectations have clouded these dreams over the years. We may even have felt defeated in one way or another. And, at some point, eating as a way of coping become an ingrained habit. It is often not a conscious choice but a repeated behavior that we learned to rely on to make us feel better in the moment.
The Impact of Emotional Eating
If you have been struggling with emotional eating for a while, you know that it often becomes a habitual response to overwhelming emotions, loneliness, frustration, or stress. Despite knowing that food cannot truly address the underlying emotional issues, we find ourselves turning to food repeatedly for comfort or distraction.
This ingrained habit can feel extremely hard to break, for many reasons. One being that eating is reinforced each and every time by the release of dopamine that accompanies eating. As you know, dopamine is the “feeling good” hormone that brings about that short-lived sensation of pleasure or relief.
Would you like a mini-structured path for your work in this area?
Download my free workbook! In this workbook, you’ll have the opportunity to:
Become more aware of your triggers and their sources
Feel more clarity about what is going on in your inner world in what respects to food
Be less on automatic pilot
Feel more confident in your ability to be intentional in all what relates to decisions about food
Breaking the cycle of emotional eating
Acknowledging the emotional pain, shame, guilt, or frustration associated with emotional eating is a crucial first step towards transformation. Toward releasing this behavior from your life. Instead of denying or judging these feelings, we want to approach them with kindness and compassion. With an understanding that these feelings are valid responses to challenging circumstances and experiences. I invite you to reflect on the fact that although it is absolutely true that food may take the edge off overwhelming feelings or difficult circumstances, we as human beings usually want something deeper. We don’t want to “just” feel better in the moment. We want to find long-lasting peace with the mechanisms we rely on to cope with the ups and downs of life, right? We want to end the struggle. As the quote from Wayne Dyer goes, “[We] can never get enough of what [we truly] don’t want.”
Embracing Spring as a Symbol of Renewal
As I am writing this blog, we are entering the season of Spring in the northern hemisphere— a time of renewal and growth. We could “use” this time of the year as a reminder that change and transformation are possible. Just as nature blooms and blossoms, so too can we revive and revisit our dreams and vision for ourselves. This could be an opportunity to reflect on what we truly want in life. I hear often from clients how emotional eating has taken such a toll--so much time and energy sucked out of their lives, that they have lost touch with some of the dreams or desires they once had for themselves.
Reclaiming being “the author” of your own life
Whether we are in our 20s, 30s, 40s, or beyond, the desire to be the author of our lives remains constant. Emotional eating can hinder this sense of being the author, the one “calling the shots” in our own lives, leaving us feeling trapped in patterns that limit our freedom and choices. Feeling vulnerable and disempowered. By addressing emotional eating at its deepest root, we can reclaim the power to live consciously and make choices aligned with our true desires.
My sense is that you know this already, and just need a pathway to go from where you are right now to where you want to be, that is, having freed yourself from this ingrained habit of emotional eating. I am actually working at this time on creating a curriculum that I could offer to you showing this path step by step so that you can devote your time and energy to “walking this path” without having to figure out every step on your own. I am very excited about it and for sure let you know when it is ready!
Transforming Your Relationship with Food
Acknowledging the role food has played in managing our emotions is an essential step in transforming our relationship with food. It's about trusting that we can navigate life's ups and downs without relying solely or mainly on food as a coping mechanism. This journey involves building resilience, self-awareness, and a deeper understanding of our emotional needs and how to care for them. Sometimes during this step, my clients feel resentment or anger toward food. Even though this is understandable, anger and resentment only fuel the struggle. An alternative perspective may be to acknowledge that emotional eating has been perhaps how we coped in the past yet it does not necessarily need to be part of our lives forever.
Embracing Change and Identity
Although emotional eating may have been a part of our lives for years, it doesn't have to define who we are. By embracing the possibility of change and committing to finding new ways, we can build a new identity rooted in conscious choices. This usually brings about a sense of empowerment that is reinforcing in and of itself. It's about stepping into the role of the person you aspire to be, free from the constraints of default patterns and behaviors.
Reviving the vision and dreams you once had for yourself is a transformative journey that goes beyond emotional eating. Yet freeing yourself from the “chains” that tie you to food is a key step in this journey. It's about reconnecting with your true desires, reclaiming authorship of your life, and building a relationship with food that is nourishing and balanced.
As an emotional eating coach, I am here to support you on this journey of self-discovery, resilience, and empowerment. Together, we can work towards reconnecting with your dreams and create a life guided by conscious choice and fulfillment.
Curious to know more?
Take the quiz to begin your journey!
It will help you identify your main emotional eating triggers as well as provide opportunities for insights, resources, and tips to come your way. This quiz will help you to continue deepening your understanding of your emotional eating, which is an essential part of this journey. See you there!
What is your #1 emotional eating trigger?
Cheering for you on this end!
Claudia