MINDFUL EATINGARE YOU HUNGRY?

Article Provided by By Jennifer Anderson, MSW, LICSW | Clinical Therapist Catholic Charities North Dakota

Have you ever eaten something so fast that you didn’t remember tasting it? Perhaps, you felt you deserved a small treat, but that treat turned into a smorgasbord after you’d eaten the entire package and were still "hungry" afterwards.

Mindfulness is being aware of your thoughts, emotions and physical sensations in the present moment. With practice, mindfulness cultivates the possibility of freeing yourself of habitual patterns of thinking, feeling and acting.

Mindful eating is an experience that engages all parts of us, our body, our heart and our mind, in choosing, preparing and eating food (Jan Chozen Bays, 2009). It involves all our senses as we slow things down in order to love ourselves by eating according to what we need for our bodies. Mindful eating is not a diet; it is a way of life. How many times have you tried a diet and then quit because you were bored? Or maybe the rules were too restrictive, so the rebellious teenager came out and you sabotaged that diet? We then blame that diet, continue on with our poor eating habits, until we see another “quick fix” advertised. Thich Nhat Hanh uses the analogy of washing the dishes. If our task is to wash the dishes, then simply wash the dishes. By completing one task at a time, the task has our full attention, and the likelihood that the task will be completed well is high versus if we are trying to juggle numerous tasks at one time.

We need to apply this concept―being in the present moment―to our eating. Jan Chozen Bays, MD writes in her book, “Mindful Eating: A Guide to Rediscovering a Healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food,” about the seven hungers that we have. These seven hungers are the following: Eye, Nose, Mouth, Stomach, Cellular, Mind and Heart hunger. Of the seven types of hunger, there are just two hungers, the stomach and cellular hunger, that satisfy our actual use/ need for food to fuel our bodies. Many of us treat our cars better than our own bodies, by filling our car with premium gas, oil and scheduled maintenance. So if stomach and cellular hunger are the actual rationale for eating, we are eating five times out of seven for the wrong reasons and that is why we continue to feel “hungry” after we have eaten something, because we are eating for the wrong reasons.

What then satisfies these other “hungers” if it isn’t food? Let’s take a look at the other five hungers that we have.

Eye hunger is satisfied by beauty which is why when the waiter brings out that tray of those beautiful desserts, you choose that large piece of chocolate cheesecake despite being full; it’s because the dessert looked good.

Nose hunger is satisfied by fragrance, so we, as adults, can walk into our mother’s kitchen and smell a familiar dish and be brought back to simpler, happier times of our childhood.

Mouth hunger is satisfied by sensation, for example when we are craving a certain flavor or texture such as sweet, salty, or crunchy.

The mind hunger is a difficult one to satisfy as our minds are always changing. One day we may be on a strict diet, and the next day our mind convinces us to have a big dessert. The mind also contains the voice that criticizes us about what we “should or should not” eat or drink.

Lastly, the heart hunger is satisfied by intimacy, which is the hunger that prompts us to eat when we are sad, happy or lonely for example.

So what satisfies the stomach hunger? The right amount and kinds of food.

To satisfy cellular hunger we need the essential elements. This includes water, salt, protein, fat, carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins, and trace elements such as iron or zinc (Jan Chozen Bays, 2009).

Of the seven hungers, there are three that tend to be the problematic hungers in our lives: mouth, heart and mind hungers. It is these forms of hunger that are the main reasons why we overeat. Until we realize this is the core issue, every diet that we try will result in the same result, regaining the weight back. By practicing mindful eating, it becomes so engrained into one’s life that it becomes second nature. I suggest buying Dr. Jan Chozen Bay’s book, “Mindful Eating: A Guide to Rediscovering a Healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food.” Her book explains the seven hungers along with exercises on how to start your mindful eating practice.

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Key #1: The role of a board of directors is to safeguard the mission of a not-for-profit organization.

This simply – and profoundly – says a mission is worthwhile; it must be kept relevant; it is worth preserving. Notice, please, that this does not say that the board is supposed to run – or even help run – an organization.

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Key #2: The role of the executive director is to turn the mission into service. In other words, the executive director (not the board) is supposed to run the organization. The board is supposed to ensure that she or he does this is a manner consistent with the mission of the organization.