I’ve been there. It starts with a handful of pretzels, moves to a few pieces of licorice, and the next thing you know, you’re in a faceoff with a frozen pound cake in the freezer.

You go to bed exhausted and sick, feeling out of control, demoralized, and defeated. Here you go…again. It’s called Binge Eating, and it is now the #1 eating disorder in the US.

Just a short 20 years ago, I broke free of the nasty cycle of binge eating and started living thin. Still, in my heart of hearts, I’m a mood eater and always will be. When I’m anxious, I eat. I did this when I was tipping scales at 185, and I still feel the urge to do it now at a healthy 125 (did I really just say my weight to you?). To this day worry over finances, an impending deadline at work, or a botched interview sends me straight to food. But today, instead of seeking shelter in a bag of Cheetos or snuggling up alongside a Pillsbury cookie dough log, I do something vital to breaking free: I notice that I am triggered sooner rather than later. How do I do this? With a powerful tool called awareness.

AWARENESS. It is the key to growth. Without it, you’re basically screwed.

The reason awareness is so crucial is because it creates a distance between you and the pain you’re experiencing. When you’re triggered, you feel totally inundated with feelings. So the only way to get out of the overwhelm is to notice, gently and non-judgmentally, what’s happening in your body and your head. The moment you notice, you step out of your reaction (reaching for food), and into a place of observation. This in itself is enough to take the edge off the pain you are experiencing.

Remember, all you have to do is recognize that something happened and now you feel pain and discomfort as a result. Don’t make this exercise harder than it needs to be. Don’t analyze it, don’t try to figure it out, and don’t try to fix it. Just feel it- in your body (my state of overwhelm always feels like a weight on my chest), and in your head (I feel hyped- up, like I had a shot of espresso).

I’ll tell it to you straight. This isn’t easy to do. It takes practice and bravery. I help my clients through it. Triggers suck, but they don’t have to take you down. Instead of resisting the experience, turn toward your feelings, let them wash over you, and feel them. You will survive. You can handle life’s challenges fat or you can handle them thin. I’ve done both and I can say confidently that thin is better. It’s time to stop letting a cookie be your boss, judge, savior and executioner.
xx,
Lyssa