Dealing With Compulsive Eating

Do you ever feel you have no control over your eating habits? Does it ever feel there is an irresistible force that makes you eat? Then you might be a compulsive eater. Psychologically speaking, a compulsion is an irresistible impulse.

There can be many reasons for a compulsion and it may require psychological treatment, but by reading about someone else who had a food compulsion and how she dealt with it, you may gain insight and control over your own compulsion.

Doris came to me for her uncontrollable urge to eat cereal. She explained that she could control eating other foods but something about cereal was irresistible to her.She explained that sometimes she eats three bowls at once she further told that she is full after eating first bowl but for some reason she cannot stop eating.
I am sitting there eating bowl after bowl and while I am eating I am thinking to myself that I am not hungry and don't understand why I keep eating cereal."

I did some uncovering techniques using hypnosis and determined that while Doris was eating the cereal she had a sense of well being and relaxation. I am not a dietitian or doctor, but I suspected that the tryptophan in the cereal was increasing the serotonin (a neuro transmitter that is associated with feelings of well being).
Just as importantly from a behavioral standpoint, I learned that Doris associated that feeling of well being with when she had been a child and her mother had given her a bowl of cereal before bedtime.
Doris had feelings of loneliness and felt her husband had been growing more distant. She was unconsciously using the feeling of well being generated by the effects of the cereal to substitute for the love she felt she was missing from her husband.

It wasn't about the cereal. It was about fear of her marriage ending and loneliness. Doris was using the cereal as a self administered anti-depressant. Unfortunately, it was making her overweight and had become another problem in her life rather than a solution.

During hypnosis I gave Doris suggestions for courage to talk to her husband about her fears and for being more relaxed and happier. I also gave her suggestions to trigger a stopping mechanism whenever she felt the urge to overeat. We talked about her relationship with her husband and she agreed to
talk to him.

"Now that I realize that I am not really addicted to cereal and that there isn't some crazy irresistible force inside me making me eat, I think I already feel less like eating so much cereal," she said.

Since then Doris has lost weight and gotten her eating back under control. She is better able to talk to her husband and others about what is troubling her and no longer substitutes food for intimacy or companionship.

Compulsive eating can be a complex problem, but you may be able to understand your behavior better after reading this. If you feel you have a food compulsion you can't deal with then by all means talk to your doctor or a licensed therapist.
If you would like to start changing your eating behavior, here is how you may be able to re-program yourself to change your feelings and behavior...

As you go to sleep at night your conscious mind relaxes and your sub-conscious mind (also known as the feeling mind where your behavior is stored) is more accessible.
As you relax and go to sleep repeat a simple sentence or two to put a positive thought into your sub-conscious mind. Word it in the present tense and make it simple and genuine.For Instance......

3."I am in finished control of my dietary patterns and eat just sound sustenance in sensible portions. I realize now that there is no such thing as an irresistible force that can make me do things against my will. I will not substitute food for feelings. I will be honest with myself. I am more relaxed and in complete control."

You will be amazed at how this simple suggestion introduced into your sub-conscious mind when it is accessible will help to quickly and effectively change your behavior. Picturing your new healthy and relaxed self and any other benefits you will achieve from this new behavior will help to speed the results.

You can also use the visualization and relaxation techniques to relax yourself and plant your own powerful suggestions directly into your sub-conscious mind.