How to navigate the hard days
We all know what it feels like to have “one of those days”, right?
You're in a MOOD.
Sh*t is hitting the fan.
Nothing is going your way.
And you just want to eat or drink to get some relief.
It happens. You're human. We all have bad days.
You may even find yourself face-down in the ice cream and wine before you know what happened.
It's okay. “Messing up” is part of the process.
But when you DO catch yourself - that's where the magic is. That's where you have the opportunity to make a choice.
Typical diet mentality might have you saying “F-it, I already screwed up, might as well eat ALL the things and start again on Monday..”
But where does that lead??
When we use one slip up as an excuse to go totally off the rails, we often end up MORE miserable than we were when we started looking to food for relief.
Now we're physically uncomfortable…sometimes to the extreme.
And, worse, we're totally beating ourselves up for being so weak and broken.
Sound familiar?
We overeat and then later we're FILLED with regret for breaking yet another promise to ourselves.
This is the point where we can start to get really mean to ourselves.
And then we end up in even more emotional anguish than where we started.
Overeating is never the answer to our problems. It only creates MORE problems for us.
In the moment, your brain will have you believe that eating is THE answer to everything that's going wrong in the world.
But that's simply not true. OVEReating harms us way more than it helps.
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So what CAN you do when all you want is some relief?
Ask yourself what you're REALLY looking for.
What is it that you THINK the food will solve? Try to identify what you're truly seeking.
Is it a little moment of joy on a rough day? How can you give yourself what you REALLY need?
Maybe you can take twenty minutes to yourself to watch or read something funny. Maybe you can get playful with a kid or a beloved pet? How can you generate TRUE joy?
Or maybe you just need some validation? How can you give yourself THAT? Write down the things you wish everyone in your world was saying to you right now? You know who's responsible for reminding yourself of those things?? YOU.
Remind yourself how awesome you are. How hard you've been working. Of all the good things you contribute to this world. You don't need anyone else to validate you when you regularly make time to validate YOURSELF.
Or maybe you just really need a break - you have full permission to take one!!
The whole world won't crumble if you take twenty minutes to lie down with your eyes closed, meditate, or take a walk while listening to your favorite podcast.
Overeating won't give you ANY of those things. But YOU could absolutely give those things to yourself.
So, the next time you notice yourself having urges to “go off the rails” with food, follow this simple process to give yourself the relief that food is incapable of providing for you:
Take three big, deep breaths to calm yourself down
Remind yourself that OVEReating will only DELAY having to deal with the feelings that are causing you discomfort right now
Ask yourself what you TRULY need
Take compassionate care of yourself - because you deserve it.
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And, by far, the BEST way to take care of yourself is to reach out for SUPPORT when you're struggling to take care of yourself on your own.
Here’s my biggest piece of advice:
Don’t wait to get help.
Stop wasting your time, money, and precious mental energy on BS diets that CREATE more problems in your life than they solve.
I help women with a passion for food finally end the cycle of chronic dieting and lose weight with self-trust (not restriction and deprivation) so that they can fully enjoy their lives with food AND feel amazing.
I am here to help and support you, and the first step is clicking the yellow button below to get on a free Discovery Call with me to find out more about how coaching can help you FINALLY reach your goals.
You CAN enjoy your life with food AND feel amazing in your clothes - you just need some support. Together, we'll figure this out. Click below to start the process.
