From easy-to-use apps to therapy practices, mindfulness seems to be an ever-present technique for managing our fast-paced world. But is it more than just a buzzword? Research shows that being more mindful can reduce stress and anxiety, alleviate depression, support your physical health, and more!

In today’s blog post, we’re breaking down just how you can implement this powerful tool into your life with just a few minutes at a time.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is bringing awareness to the present moment. This looks like tapping into what your body is feeling, what thoughts or feelings are floating to the surface, and what you can see and feel (like the sunshine on your face). That might sound intimidating—especially if you’re someone who eats to avoid intense emotions—but acknowledging sensations, smells, and in the present moment means you can let go of anxiety of the future or grief over the past.

How can it help me with my emotional eating?

Emotional eaters often reach for ...

Here at the Center for Emotional Eating we know that a restrictive diet is not a solution to anything: weight loss, peace of mind, fitting in. We’re not about restricting, but embracing (and eating!) the foods we like and make us feel our best.

So, what happens when there is a need to change your eating? Maybe you’ve developed a new food allergy or heartburn after eating certain foods. Maybe a bout of food poisoning or the flu means you just can’t face eating a specific item again. And did you know our taste buds change as we age? The meals and foods you’ve always relied on might not be as satisfying anymore. And satisfaction is key to avoiding binge eating!

Wanting to avoid these negative outcomes is perfectly human! But if you’ve been on the diet wagon a lot in your life, you might feel like removing specific foods feels a lot like new restrictive rules.

We’re here to help! Try these two steps to navigate your changing tastes without feeling like you’re slogging through new dietin...

The restrictions from the pandemic has left many looking for a renewed sense of connection. Online get togethers got us through social distancing, but there seems to be a growing desire to meet up again in person.

You might be reading that and thinking “Not me! I thrived with more alone time”, and while that might be true (we all need opportunities to recharge) even introverts need a community they can tap into just as much as extroverts!

We’ve written before about how creating connection can help with feelings of loneliness (a major trigger for emotional eating), but getting a feeling of connection doesn’t have to mean a filled-to-the-brim calendar of social events. It is true that you can have a small circle of friends that you feel close to or be surrounded by many people and feel lonely. Connecting with others isn’t about the number of people you interact with or events you attend, it’s how it makes you feel! So, here are some ideas for you to try out in your own life to create c...

The following blog posts talks about weight loss. If this is something that might bring up negative feelings for you, please skip this post to protect your mental and physical health.

Weight loss can happen for all kinds of reasons, from anxiety to happiness to stress to a change in routine. So, it should come as no surprise that emotional eaters come in all shapes and sizes! What I often hear from clients who have lost weight on their journey is that they still find themselves criticizing their body in the same way as when they weighed more.

Does that surprise you?

Many people I work with at the Centre for Emotional Eating believe that if they could just “get a handle” on their emotional eating that everything would all into place—their waistline would shrink, they’d be a kinder person, get that promotion, they’d finally do that thing they’ve always want to.

This is why dieting is so tempting: it markets itself as a cure-all when in reality it keeps you stuck in failure mode beca...

Does this sound familiar: you feel dissatisfied with your body and decide to start a new diet (probably on a Monday). It’s going to be a clean slate! You’ll be perfect! You’ll stay on the wagon this time!

You research and decide on a cookie cutter meal and workout plan, and head to the grocery store to stock up on all the low-calorie, low-carb foods. But while you’re there you think to yourself: if you’re going to be giving up all these things you usually crave—cookies, chocolate, ice cream, French fries—you might as well have one last meal… with them all! You grab all the foods you won’t be allowing yourself to eat—ever again!—on your new diet.

The idea behind this is that you’ll get the craving “out of the way” and then you won’t have to think about those foods. You spend the night, or sometimes whole day, before you begin your restrictive diet plan eating anything and everything you want. You might even find that you keep eating even when you’re too full because you don’t want to ...

It’s true that we never really know what someone else is going through. We’ve covered in another post how not all emotional eaters are overweight, and sometimes emotional eating can lead to weight loss in an unexpected way.

For some clients, when emotions run high, they feel the need to control their eating as a way of trying to control their lives. For them it feels like the only thing they have power over is what they put in their mouth—not their kid’s tantrum, their boss’s feedback, or their partner’s attitude.

While in this scenario there is an absence of food, instead of a binge, it is still emotional eating because a person’s eating pattern has changed in response to emotional experiences. For example, this can look like telling yourself you’re too busy to eat, believing you’re not worthy of nourishment, not having motivation to cook and eat, or feeling a physical surge of anxiety that makes your stomach queasy. Experiencing these actions long enough can lead to weight loss.

T...

There may come a time on your journey where you feel like you want to explain how and why you emotionally eat to those you trust. You might feel in your gut that you would benefit from opening up and sharing your experiences. But emotional eating is complex, where should you even begin? We’ve got a number of concrete examples below to help guide you!

We want to be clear: you don’t have to explain or justify your feelings or actions to others. This post is intended to support those who feel like speaking about their experiences to someone they trust will help support them on their journey. Remember: no one gets to comment on your body (even if it is weight loss).

A good first step is to check in with your person and see if they have capacity for you to share. This can set the tone of your interaction by encouraging limiting distractions, finding a quiet space, and making sure they are in a good mental place to support you.

Start by explaining the link between emotions and food, that ...

We recently asked our followers what time of day they feel is the worst for their emotional eating. And an overwhelming number of you said night time. Know that you are not alone! It is incredibly common to have the evenings be a time where emotional or binge eating ramps up. And there are very good reasons why you overeat late at night, and none of them are because you’re “crazy” or “lack willpower.” Here are 5 common reasons emotional eating comes up at night and what you can do to address each one.

You ate how you “should” during the day. Restricting what and how much you eat throughout the day will ultimately lead to binge eating (even if you are trying to “reset” from your last binge!). Not only is your body asking for more food, it is asking for food that is pleasurable. At the end of the day, you’re left feeling hungry and unfulfilled.

• Solution: No matter what you ate the night before, start the next day off with a clean slate: have foods you enjoy all day or earlier in the
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The anniversary of the death of a loved one comes with its own unique challenges. Unlike birthdays or weddings, the day your loved one passed is a focal point for your grief and can bring all the feelings of loss right back to the surface. 

While you might expect the day to be difficult, you might find engaging in some sort of memorial—big or small—can be a lovely way to honour their memory and support your own mental health.

There are so many ways you can honour your loved one! To get you thinking about what might be helpful for you, here’s a list of 10 things you can do to remember your person. You can either choose to do something by yourself or with others—the choice is completely up to you and there is no right or wrong way to mourn.

1. Hold space to let out the emotions—cry, rage, whatever! Sometimes a sad playlist or movie will allow the tears to flow, other times you might want to sweat it out at the gym.
2. Visit their final resting place. Bring flowers, read a poem, or simpl
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There are so many different types of therapy, it can be overwhelming when you’re starting out. While there are definitely things to consider when choosing a therapist, identifying when a method of therapy isn’t working is a powerful way to make progress on your mental health journey.

What does it look like when therapy isn’t working for you? It is important to remember that your ‘aim’ in therapy can be a moving goal post. For example, you might start therapy to manage your depression but after dealing with the immediate symptoms you and your therapist might begin focusing on your childhood experiences that are informing your current behaviour. This is normal!

But you shouldn’t be leaving your sessions feeling frustrated. While a therapy ‘hangover’ is expected, you should feel at least slight relief at being heard and supported through a session. It can be helpful to journal or just jot down how you feel after a session to keep track of your progress and new coping tools you’ve learnt...