Dreamers: Are We Hungry or Just Emotionally Hungry?

Last updated on November 6th, 2019 at 12:31 am

My big dream objective is to conquer my issues around food and eat healthily and take care of myself as a sign of self-love. My biggest issue is understanding the difference between emotional hunger and physical hunger.

Here is some research I found that discusses the differences between emotional hunger and physical hunger.

Emotional hunger versus physical hunger

• Emotional hunger comes on suddenly, physical hunger is gradual.
• When you are eating to fill a void, you crave a specific food, and only that food will meet your need. When you eat because you are hungry, you are open to options.
• Emotional hunger feels like it needs to be satisfied instantly with the food you crave, physical hunger can wait.
• Even when you are full, you are more likely to keep eating.
• Emotional eating leaves behind feelings of guilt.

Comfort foods

One of the distinguishing characteristics is the focus on a particular food, usually a comfort food. Comfort foods are foods a person eats to obtain or maintain a feeling. Comfort foods are often wrongly associated with negative feelings – comfort foods are also consumed to maintain good feelings.

Ice cream is the number one comfort food.

Here are some different tools to use in your quest to overcome emotional eating –

• Recognize when you are doing emotional eating.
• Use a food journal and rank your hunger from 1 – 10 each time you put something in your mouth. This will bring any emotional eating to light if you are eating for reasons other then hunger.

How do I manage emotional eating, since it is clear to me that ice cream is my favorite food?

I recommend the following –

• Make a list of things to do when you get the urge to eat when you’re not hungry and carry it with you.
• When you feel overwhelmed, put off the desire by doing another enjoyable activity.
• Take a walk.
• Call a friend.
• Play cards.
• Clean your room/house/apartment/kitchen/car.
• Do laundry or something productive to take your mind off the craving – even take a nap.

Emotional eating is something that most people do when they are bored, happy or sad. Learning how to control it and using moderation will be key to my success.

Veronica Jacobsen

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