If you experience great emotional stress around the holiday season, you are not alone. Here are some reasons why the holidays can be so stressful when it come to food:
- Fear of weight gain.
- Too many food items available.
- Guilt around indulging.
- Feeling weak or out of control.
- Stress and anxiety.
- Uncomfortable being seen eating food.
- Pressure or comments when eating.
- Worry of offending others.
- Struggling with "normal" food portions.
- Remarks about body weight/size.
- Inability to recognize fullness.
- Eating on another person's schedule.
Here are a few tips to help you maintain a healthy relationship with food and your body:
- Identify your triggers for overeating/binging or food restriction, such as going long hours without eating.
- Prepare your responses for conversations about body image, dieting and weight.
- Give yourself alone-time and space during social gatherings.
- It's ok to eat a little more than you normally would.
- Keep diet talk and body image discussions away from the table. Even the standard statement of "you look healthy" or "you look great" can be triggering. Many disordered eating behaviors stem from food control and body image/appearance.
- Avoid statements like "you’ll put on some pounds." There's no need to criticize your body or other people's bodies.
- Avoid all-or-nothing thinking. Eat with a mindset of curiosity and gratitude.
- Listen to your body. Notice feelings of fullness and hunger.
- Set boundaries and be willing to say no thank you.
- Eliminate negative self-talk.
- Do not focus on what the individual is eating.
- Make the primary focus of the holiday on something besides food.
- Plan activities that don't involve food - such as games, decorating or spending time talking.
- Offer a dish that this individual would feel comfortable eating.
- Honor agreements to not discuss body image, weight loss, diets or appearance.
Similar to going on a diet, food becomes much more desirable (and craved) if it's only allowed at certain times. If you can only eat a food once a year, there's a good chance you will overindulge due to scarcity.
The truth is that special holidays make foods special. Honoring food traditions instills respect, gratitude and joy for what we are eating.
When it comes to Christmas cookies, pumpkin pie, birthday cake, ice cream or any other food that you only eat during special occasions - special foods should be savored and enjoyed.
Dieting, restriction, guilt and deprivation lead to feeling out of control over the foods you fear you will overeat. A cookie becomes so much more than just a cookie when you have an unhealthy relationship with food.
Give yourself permission. Honor your body's cravings. Taste the flavors. Trust yourself around special foods.
Developing a healthy relationship with food takes time. The holiday season is the perfect time to practice.
Every time you give yourself permission to indulge responsibility, you move closer to a place where you don't feel controlled by food. The cookie no longer becomes such desirable yet scary, worrisome and fearful food. Take your power back over cookies.
The restriction and deprivation stops. The guilt and shame goes away. The fear is removed. You feel in control and the cookie becomes just another delicious cookie.
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You can always leave a message for the Helpline if it is not currently available, and they will return your call or message promptly.If you are in a crisis and need help immediately, text “NEDA” to 741741 to be connected with a trained volunteer at Crisis Text Line. Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7 support via text message to individuals who are struggling with mental health, including eating disorders, and are experiencing crisis situations.