Managing Emotional Eating During Grief: A Guide

Grief often mimics symptoms of depression. People may experience grief during a divorce, job loss or death of a loved one. The process of grieving heals sorrow and despair associated with the loss. People who are grieving experience a variety of psychological, social and physical reactions and each person grieves differently. Some people experience loss of appetite while others tend to overeat due to emotional discomfort caused by grief. For people who overeat, developing a plan to deal with underlying emotions helps regulate food intake.

Instructions

• 1

  Keep a food diary to track food intake. Write down foods eaten at each meal and in between meals. Look for patterns of when most food is consumed. Simply writing down food intake decreases overeating in many cases as it causes people to pay more attention to their food intake.

• 2

  Identify and write down the feelings that trigger eating. Learn to distinguish physical feelings of hunger from boredom, anxiety, anger and sadness. Try to only eat when physically hungry and to nourish the body.

• 3

  Acknowledge the feelings without trying to suppress them. Eating often results from an attempt to avoid feelings by stuffing them down. Share feelings by writing in a journal, talking to friends and family, joining a grief support group or consulting with a therapist. Sharing feelings helps people work through the grief process.

• 4

  Delay eating when a food craving strikes. Try reading, listening to music, completing a chore or calling a friend before giving in to a food craving. Often the craving goes away within a few minutes and a distraction helps take care of the underlying emotions that can lead to overeating.