OVERCOMING COMPULSIVE OVEREATING

If you think about food most of the time and find it difficult to stop eating once you start, you might be a compulsive overeater. It's not what compulsive eaters consume that's their biggest problem. Rather, it's the emotional problems behind their food obsession.

If you are a compulsive eater, here are five ways that you can develop a healthy relationship with food and regain control over your eating:

1. Learn to love and accept yourself. Make a list of your good qualities and then read that list over often.

2. Find a group of people, such as a network of friends or a support group led by a person trained in eating disorders, where you will be accepted while you work on your eating problem.



3. Don't try to be "cured" by a strict diet. Nerve chemicals and hormones go wildly out of whack during quick weight-loss diets. The result is more cravings and binge eating. Have several small meals a day, balanced with carbohydrates, protein and fat, instead of a couple of huge ones. You'll keep your blood sugar and brain chemicals stable, as you help curb your overeating.

4. Learn to recognize your trigger foods. If you find potato chips irresistible, don't buy them. Don't go grocery shopping on an empty stomach.

5. Get in touch with your feelings. Is your stomach hungry or is it really your heart? What emotional traumas do you need to deal with? Get these issues out in the open and deal with them.



Paralumun New Age Village