Is Emotional Eating Really a Problem?

When we turn on the news, it should come as no surprise that the United States is trying to get a handle on an epidemic-level of dispute concerning our weight. Each week, it seems, there’s a new book on the shelf at the bookstore describing how to overcome ourselves and to get our weight issues under control, whether we’re dealing with emotionally driven overeating, under-eating, binge eating, or bulimia – will power is often seen as the cure.

So why is it that with all this well-intentioned knowledge and health studies, people just can’t help themselves when it comes to eating?

I see it in so many of my clients, and even in my students who come to study with us at IPE, exerting so much energy in trying to manage, control, count, and white-knuckle their way to health by wrestling their appetite!

And the end result is unfortunately always the same: “I was doing really well until…”

The amount of guilt that arises inside when we feel we’ve failed ourselves is tremendous. We berate ourselves for not  getting it together, because we need stronger willpower, and maybe we’re just a loser. Maybe we’re destined for eternal nutritional bondage, because we just can’t stop eating.

Would it surprise you if there really isn’t anything “wrong” with us when it comes to emotional eating?

In reality there is only one reason why emotional eating is not the enemy we think it is – and it’s because we are emotional beings.

Check out the video to learn more.

We love to hear your perspective – what has your journey with understanding the emotional side of food been like?