The end of the year period means: Food, sweets, gifts, lights, party! But also feelings of guilt and remorse in January, for overeating. With that in mind, here are some tips to consider these days:
Pause before eating
Awareness is key. When you want to eat, always stop at that moment between wanting to eat and actually eating. Here you will understand if you are hungry or just bored, tired, stressed or thirsty.
Take a scan: Body-Mind-Heart
Notice the different sensations in your body. Often tension in the neck or shoulders can signal anxiety and stress, not hunger.
Mind you, if your productivity is poor and you find yourself wondering what's in the kitchen, you're probably not hungry, you're just bored studying, working, etc.
For the heart, listen to your emotions.
Do you feel tired from a late night, where you are working to close a job with a certain deadline? Your anxiety can create "head hunger". Think about these before you eat. If you are not really hungry, you will eat and not feel satisfied, as you are not addressing the real root of the problem, causing you to eat more and more.
Address Your Needs (Beyond Food)
Go outside for a walk around the neighborhood to relieve some stress, lie down for a 20-minute nap, or drink a glass of water to eliminate lingering thirst.
Feed your true hunger! Notice whether you seek ushiqm as an emotional comfort or are you really hungry. If you are sad and want a hug, let yourself cry so that you feel relieved.
If you are afraid and want reassurance, admit how you feel. Feed your emotional hunger with self-love, not empty calories.
If even after doing this, you feel that your hunger has increased (and you haven't eaten earlier), then it is about appetite/hunger and not something else.
Remind yourself what's next.
This isn't the first time you've felt the urge to satisfy emotional hunger, and it may not be the last. But how will you feel after that? Say to yourself: "If I do this, I'll probably feel disappointed, bloated afterwards."
Remember that eating the rest of the baklava may make you feel good in the moment, but that good feeling won't last long afterwards.
Nothing is absolute
You may be aware that you are not physically hungry, but still overeat on a given day. We all do it from time to time and there's no need to feel guilty about it.
Above all, believe in yourself. Believe in your inner strength. Believe in your ability to handle everything in your life without turning to food.
