The phenomenon of emotional eating during a global pandemic

Emotional Eating During Covid-19

What is Emotional Eating? “Emotional eating” is not a clinical term, but a term we use to describe the phenomenon of eating in response to an emotional state, rather than hunger.” Obviously, we as humans intake food for a wide variety of reasons, to kill hunger, stay active and healthy and also to comfort ourselves during stressful or emotional times – and this is completely normal.

However, emotional eating is something people don’t tend to take lightly. If we look at it from society’s point, it is hard to accept that someone is eating in response to anything other than hunger. As long as eating is not your only coping mechanism, you’re safe.

Emotional eating is much more common than we think. In fact people who lose their appetite are far more rare than those who rely on food to cope with whatever they’re dealing with.

How to Conquer Emotional Eating Right Now

Here are some ways to conquer emotional eating:

Practice Acceptance Be kind and practice acceptance. It is okay to indulge in some comfort food in fact it is good to make yourself feel better and relaxed. You may be afraid of gaining weight because we are all home bound these days. However according to fitness trainers and experts it is alright even if you do gain weight. These are stressful times and one must make their health and happiness a priority even if that means relying on emotional eating to get through this phase.

Eat Enough We all know or are someone who either eats too much or does not eat at all as a way of coping. Make sure you’re taking good care of yourself and eating regularly. Try incorporating healthy food and juices in your diet. It will not only make you feel active but also fresh and healthy. Be kind and nice towards yourself and even if you do see yourself gaining a few pounds, just know it’s okay.

Change The Way You Cope Try exploring other coping strategies. If eating has been your only coping strategy then it’s time to start trying new things. How would we know what we enjoy if we don’t

even ever experience or try it out. Consider other activities that can soothe, distract or release negative energy. These will vary from individual to individual. You can consider journaling, painting, gardening, calling or texting friends, try your hand on DIY projects, sketching, colouring, playing games, organising your room and closet etc.

Stay Connected In times like these, where we are all home bound and have no way to socialise in person, it is important to try and stay connected to our loved ones from a distance. There are several apps you can use to do so. Zoom, Houseparty, Facetime, Whatsapp and so on. Are some popularly used apps to stay in touch with your loved ones.

Practice Self-Care Practice self-love and self-care. It doesn’t mean stuffing yourself with chocolates or taking a bubble bath. It can simply mean slowing down and resting. Try to get enough sleep, shower regularly, eat good food, do things that make you happy. You don’t have to give in to society’s pressure to do something productive. You can be kind and nice to yourself and do things which make you happy bonus points if it’s also productive!