Green Mountain at Fox Run Women's Weight Loss Spa Retreat for Healthy Living

It occurred to me as winter storm Nemo (as dubbed by The Weather Channel) bore down on much of New England last week, that I had written a blog that compared the arrival of a big storm and the anticipation of a binge.

New Englanders – tell me if you can relate to this after last week.

After Hurricane Irene struck Vermont in 2011, I noticed similarities between binge eating and how we feel before, during and after a storm. In talking to many of the women at Green Mountain, I can say that the comparison of a storm to the binge eating and emotional overeating or compulsive eating cycle continues to ring true.

Do these feelings sound familiar, whether you are preparing for a Friday night binge or the arrival of a big storm?

• Anticipation as it gets closer.
• Wanting to isolate and hide.
• Feeling out-of-control and at the mercy of the storm.

What about when you are in the middle of a big storm or emotional overeating?

• It’s all encompassing, nothing else matters: Distraction and diversion do not feel like options.
• Even with awareness, there is a sense of desperation and the inability to disengage.

Finally, after a storm has passed or a binge is over, have you experienced the following?

• Disappointment and emptiness; it didn’t live up to the hype.
  
• The night before seems unreal.
• The discovery of debris and devastation (or wrappers and empty bags) evokes a sense of helplessness and hopelessness.

Fortunately, after every emotional eating or compulsive eating episode, the skies eventually clear and the sun emerges.

Here, there is an opportunity for clarity, possibility and reflection. It is by getting to know and understand your emotional overeating intimately that you can nurture yourself in other ways besides food.

Read our Fitbriefing “How to Stop the Binge Eating & Emotional Eating Cycle”  to find out how you can get to know your binge-eating and emotional eating patterns better and implement self-care strategies at every stage of the cycle.

Do you have a self-care strategy that helps you break the emotional eating cycle?