I believe that the basis of compulsive eating is emotional and that people really need to learn to listen to their hungers. It’s important for them to eat when they’re hungry, to stop when they’ve had enough, and to deal with the emotional conflicts they express by eating.
Although most of us are afraid that if we don’t have a step-by-step program to tell us what, when, and how much to eat, we will never make any changes, I believe that the most important element in change is self-trust. The willingness to listen to the voice that wants to care for us, not destroy us.
If you have been following programs that tell you what and how much to eat, it may be overwhelming to be told that if you listen to your body, it will guide you in making healthy choices.
The Eating Guidelines are just that — guidelines, not rules with which to punish yourself; they are suggestions that I found useful as I made a commitment to be conscious when I ate. After years of stolen eating, I needed a place to begin. The guidelines helped me actually enjoy food instead of making a mad dash for the refrigerator and eating all I could before I — or anyone — noticed what I was doing.
Eating Guidelines
1. Eat when you are hungry.
2. Eat sitting down in a calm environment. This does not include the car.
3. Eat without distractions. Distractions include radio, television, newspapers, books, intense or anxiety-producing conversations, and music.
4. Eat only what you want.
5. Eat until you are satisfied.
6. Eat (with the intention of being) in full view of others.
7. Eat with enjoyment, pleasure, and gusto.
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Last reviewed:
On June 14, 2007
By John M. Grohol, Psy.D.
