How To Stop A Binge In 25 Seconds Or Less
by Dr. Nina Savelle-Rocklin
Totally Transform Your Relationship with Food - without dieting!
Psychoanalyst, Author, Speaker
I'm excited to share with you how to halt a binge in its tracks when you feel it coming on. Remember - it's not about willpower!
When all you want to do is eat those 24 cookies you made for your girl scout troop, there is a reason (and it doesn't have to do with addiction or sugar). I have lots of ways that you can stop that cookie binge in its tracks by learning to relax your body. I spoke about this in one of my YouTube episodes. You can check it out here or keep reading for the highlights. Someone recently said to me, "I know it’s important to identify and process my feelings so I don't eat when I'm upset, but sometimes I’m too stressed out to deal with it. What else can I do when I feel that way?” Sound familiar? If so, you may be accustomed to eating to numb, distract or comfort yourself and don’t know how else to calm down.
Here are some ways to alleviate stress and anxiety by calming your body, centering your mind and stopping the escalation of stress.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation Exercise:
Focus on your legs. Make them as tight as you can. Move up your body, tightening your stomach, then your arms. Make fists and keep your muscles really, really tight. HOLD that tension as long as possible, a minimum of fifteen seconds but ideally as long as possible. Then release.
Feel that? You’re probably feeling more relaxed.. The idea of this exercise is that without muscle tension, you can’t access muscle release. When your body is relaxed, your mind will follow. When your mind is relaxed, you won't feel the need to binge. And viola! You're delivering those cookies to a delighted new friend and forming a new friendship, something that will last much longer than the cookies. :)
The Four Senses Exercise:
As you know, we have five senses, but if you turn to food when you’re stressed, you’re familiar with the sense of taste and probably use taste – food – as the primary way you self-soothe. The Four Senses exercise puts you in touch with the other four senses and helps you center yourself.
Wherever you are, look around and say one thing that you can:
1.Touch
2.See
3.Smell
4.Hear
Dr. Nina Savelle-Rocklin