Tap Into the Power of Forgiveness | The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans LLC

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Emotional eating is a topic that comes up frequently when talking about eating habits. Whether it’s related to stress, heartbreak, anxiety or boredom, many times we overeat to help distract us from emotional pain. We overeat, when in truth, we’re not actually hungry at all. We are lonely. Or angry. Or sad. Or resentful. Or frustrated. Or something else. As such, the power of forgiveness (whether you are forgiving yourself or someone else) can be hugely therapeutic when it comes to addressing the emotional ties, habits and addictions we have toward eating certain foods.

If this resonates with you, perhaps it’s time to tap into that power and allow forgiveness to release your hurt and help you heal.

If you’ve ever downed an entire package of chips, crackers, or ice cream, ate junk food until you felt sick, or drank more alcohol than your body wanted, chances are you were drowning difficult-to-handle emotions in food. If that’s the case, do you remember how you were feeling at the time? Can you pinpoint what hurt you are holding on to? Instead of ignoring or drowning your emotion in food, wouldn’t it be more effective to address your uncomfortable feelings?

If past hurts or fears are still affecting your current life, allow yourself to feel and express those emotions so that those toxic thoughts no longer affect your eating habits. This may entail therapy, crying, writing, screaming, silence or any number of outlets, so find what works for you and give yourself permission to truly, openly release it.

Quite often, these emotional releases lead us to the ever important topic of forgiveness. It is a challenging subject, to be sure, and though forgiveness can be difficult, it’s actually a gift for yourself rather than the other person. Resentment creates physical AND emotional stress, leading to anxiety, high blood pressure, muscle tension and depression. So heal yourself by forgiving others.

Forgiving is neither easy nor immediate. If you’ve been allowing your present health to be controlled by past hurts, these steps can help you being to forgive:

  • Talk to sympathetic friends and family about your desire to forgive. Chatting with others is tremendously comforting.
  • Write a letter to the person you’d like to forgive. You can decide whether or not you send it.
  • See the situation from the other person’s perspective – your own perspective may change.
  • Don’t forget to forgive yourself. Sometimes we can be harshest with ourselves.
  • Understand that you are responsible for your own attitude. Don’t let holding a grudge keep you from feeling free, open, and powerful in your own life.

Release and forgive. And watch how much easier your relationship with eating becomes.

For extra support with emotional eating, don’t be afraid or ashamed to reach out for help. Support is always there should you want it.

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