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Writer's pictureCherie Couvillon
Aug 22, 20246 min read

Find Freedom from Emotional Eating with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

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Food is a big part of our lives. We celebrate with it, show we care by cooking for others, and connect with people by sharing meals. It's normal to have emotions about food. However, relying on food to address emotional needs often leads to a cycle of negative consequences.


When we frequently turn to food for emotional comfort, stress relief, or as a reward, it can trigger feelings of guilt and regret, followed by self-criticism for indulging unnecessarily. Additionally, the excess calories consumed through emotional eating can escalate the risk of various health conditions.


Emotional eating is a hard habit to break because food delivers real rewards. Research suggests that certain foods—particularly those high in sugar and fat—can interfere with the brain's stress response mechanisms, providing a temporary sense of relief. Recognizing this pattern is the first step toward breaking free from it. By understanding the underlying reasons why we reach for food in times of emotional distress, we can begin to explore healthier coping mechanisms, such as our focus here of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).


CBT offers practical tools to help us identify and change the thoughts and behaviors that drive emotional eating. With CBT, we can develop new strategies for managing our emotions without turning to food, fostering a healthier relationship with both our emotions and our eating habits. Read on for how to start finding freedom from emotional eating with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.


Physical Hunger vs. Emotional Hunger


Let's first specify the difference between physical vs. emotional hunger. Not sure which is which? Here’s how to figure it out:


Physical hunger…

  • builds gradually, 3 or so hours after your last meal

  • can wait

  • can be satisfied by many different foods

  • goes away when you’re full

  • doesn’t make you feel bad about yourself

  • leaves you open to eating with others

Emotional hunger…

  • comes on suddenly, regardless of how recently you’ve eaten

  • feels like it needs to be satisfied right away

  • drives cravings for specific foods

  • remains even after you’re full

  • triggers negative feelings like guilt or shame

  • prompts you to eat alone


Emotional eating often follows a cyclical pattern. It typically begins with a triggering event

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or emotion, such as stress, sadness, anxiety, or even boredom. In response to these emotions, people turn to food for comfort or distraction. This leads to overeating or binge eating, followed by feelings of guilt, shame, or regret.


These negative emotions then perpetuate the cycle, leading to further emotional eating episodes. This cycle of emotional eating can lead to unhealthy eating patterns and negative impacts on mental health.


People who experience emotional eating may feel:

  • out of control around certain foods

  • an urge to eat when they feel powerful emotions

  • an urge to eat even when they are not physically hungry

  • like food calms or rewards them

Sometimes food can help deal with strong emotions, but other times, there are better ways to cope. The aim is to help you decide when, what, and how to eat consciously. This is where Cognitive Behavioral Therapy can be used as a powerful tool to address and overcome emotional eating habits by targeting the underlying thoughts, feelings, and behaviors associated with it. Next, we'll explore how CBT can be used to manage emotional eating effectively.


How CBT Works


As mentioned, CBT is a therapeutic approach that focuses on changing negative thought patterns and behaviors. It helps people identify and challenge the irrational beliefs and distorted thinking contributing to their emotional eating habits. By addressing the underlying thoughts and emotions driving the behavior, CBT aims to modify unhealthy eating patterns and develop healthier coping strategies.


Here are the key components for using CBT to tackle emotional eating:


Awareness

The first step in overcoming emotional eating is becoming aware of the thoughts, emotions, and beliefs that trigger emotional eating. When you catch yourself eating for emotional reasons, write down what you’re doing or thinking at the time. This may include observing what you tell yourself about an experience (self-talk), your interpretation of the meaning of a situation, and your beliefs about yourself, other people and events. Examples might be “worried about work” or “feeling left out.” Keep an eye out for repeat triggers and specific feelings or situations that often prompt you to reach for food.


Identifying Negative or Inaccurate Thinking

This can help you recognize patterns of thinking and behavior that may be contributing to emotional eating. Pay attention to your physical, emotional and behavioral responses in different situations.


Cognitive Restructuring or Reframing

CBT involves challenging and reframing the negative thoughts and beliefs that contribute to emotional eating. This process helps you develop more balanced and rational perspectives, reducing the intensity of emotional triggers. This step can be challenging.


You may have long-standing ways of thinking about your life and yourself. It can be helpful to ask yourself whether your view of a situation is based on fact or on an inaccurate perception of what's going on. With practice, helpful thinking and behavior patterns will become a habit and won't take as much effort.


Developing Alternative Coping Strategies

CBT teaches alternative coping strategies for dealing with negative emotions and stressors without resorting to food. These may include relaxation techniques, mindfulness exercises, problem-solving skills, or engaging in enjoyable activities. By building a toolbox of effective coping strategies, individuals can learn to manage their emotions in healthier ways; for example:

  • If you’re depressed or lonely, call someone who always makes you feel better, play with your dog or cat, or look at a favorite photo or cherished memento.

  • If you’re anxious, expend your nervous energy by dancing to your favorite song, squeezing a stress ball, or taking a brisk walk.

  • If you’re exhausted, treat yourself with a hot cup of tea, take a bath, light some scented candles, or wrap yourself in a warm blanket.

  • If you’re bored, read a good book, watch a comedy show, explore the outdoors, or turn to an activity you enjoy (woodworking, playing the guitar, shooting hoops, scrapbooking, etc.).


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Behavioral Strategies

In addition to addressing thought patterns, CBT incorporates practical strategies to modify behavior. This may involve establishing regular eating patterns, practicing mindful eating, and setting realistic goals for behavior change. By focusing on concrete actions and behaviors, you can gradually break the cycle of emotional eating.


Stress Management

Since stress is a common trigger for emotional eating, CBT often includes stress management techniques such as relaxation exercises, mindfulness, and problem-solving skills to help individuals better cope with stress without resorting to food.


Benefits of Using CBT for Emotional Eating


Long-term Change

Unlike fad diets or quick fixes, CBT focuses on addressing the underlying causes of emotional eating, leading to sustainable behavior change.


Improved Emotional Regulation

By learning to identify and cope with emotions in healthier ways, individuals develop better emotional regulation skills, reducing reliance on food for comfort.


Enhanced Self-Awareness

CBT encourages self-reflection and awareness, empowering individuals to take control of their eating habits and make conscious choices.


Reduced Risk of Relapse

Through CBT, individuals build resilience and develop effective strategies to prevent relapse, ensuring long-term success in managing emotional eating.


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Emotional eating can be a challenging habit to break, but with the help of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, you can gain the tools and strategies needed to overcome it. By addressing the underlying thoughts, emotions, and behaviors associated with emotional eating, CBT offers a holistic approach to building healthier relationships with food and improving overall well-being.


If you struggle with emotional eating, consider seeking support from a qualified therapist trained in CBT to guide you on your journey toward a healthier, happier relationship with food.


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Her Time Therapy is an integrative group counseling practice comprised of licensed therapists in Colorado who specialize in providing convenient and empowering online therapy for women.


We recognize that women like you experience a unique set of biological, environmental, economic, and social challenges that have a real impact on your mental health and are deserving of specialized support to help you explore your relationship to your body and food (please note we do not provide higher-level eating disorder care for acute cases that need medical intervention).


If you're on the path to nurturing a positive body image, transforming your relationship with food, and elevating your self-esteem, we invite you to contact us to get matched with a therapist dedicated to guiding you through practical strategies for self-acceptance and building confidence. Reach out for a free consultation today!


Call/Text (720) 255-1667 | info@hertimetherapy.com | www.hertimetherapy.com


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Cherie Couvillon is a Clinical Mental Health Graduate Student Intern offering affordable counseling services to Her Time Therapy Clients under the supervision of Meagan Clark, MA LPC NCC BC-TMH, and Adams State University professors. Cherie is passionate about serving those struggling with anxiety, depression, and women’s issues, such as low self-esteem due to societal or familial expectations, daily stressors, and life transitions.


*Disclaimer: This blog does not provide medical advice and the information contained herein is for informational purposes only. This blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a licensed health provider before undertaking a new treatment or health care regimen. 


*Affiliate Disclosure: This post may contain ads and affiliate links that Her Time Therapy, LLC earns a small commission from when you make a purchase by clicking links on our site at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualified purchases. Rest assured, we only recommend products we've used ourselves and would feel comfortable recommending to clients to improve their physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

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