Eat To Live, Not To Cope: 4 Steps To Quit Emotional Eating - Page 3
2. Understand that it’s not your fault.
Psychologist Laurel Mellin, Ph.D., and author of 1-2-3 Joy!, says emotional eating is deeply wired into our stress response. In an interview with Woman’s World published on April 24, she explained that it’s not about self-control, it’s about brain chemistry.
“There are eight brain chemicals that get activated when we’re stressed and they drive us to eat,” explained Dr. Mellin. “Say you were ridiculed at school as a child, and when you came home, you found comfort in cinnamon rolls. Today, even a little bit of stress activates those same brain circuits, and you can’t help but reach for cinnamon rolls.”
So the first step? Stop blaming yourself. Be kind to yourself. Recognizing that emotional eating is a stress response—not a character flaw—is the foundation for lasting change.
