6 Warning Signals of Emotional Hunger

How can you reduce Emotional Hunger?

Here’s a simple tool for you:
→    The HALT Method

“What’s that?”
It’s a tool for when you’re tempted to eat something bad.
It’s really simple.

The only things you need are:
1.    A journal or a specific area in your smartphone notes.
2.    Answering 4 questions when you’re tempted to eat.

Let’s see how it works.

Imagine you’re tempted to eat pizza.
What do you do?
Well,
1.    You take your journal — immediately!
2.    You answer these 4 questions — by reflecting aloud if you can:

1.     H  –  Am I Hungry?
By answering this question you can realize:
→    “Yes, I’m hungry”, maybe because you haven’t eaten for many hours.
→    “No, I’m not hungry”.
So,
→    If you’re hungry, you simply become aware of that, and after this small exercise you can eat a healthy snack (and next time you can anticipate hunger by eating earlier).
→    If you’re not hungry, you quickly move on to the second question.

2.     A  –  Am I Angry?
By answering this question you can realize:
→    “Yes, I’m angry”, maybe because you’re frustrated with your partner.
→    “No, I’m not angry”.
So,
→    If you’re angry, instead of eating, you may want to talk with your partner.
→    If you’re not angry, you quickly move on to the third question.

3.     L  –  Am I Lonely?
By answering this question you can realize:
→    “Yes, I’m lonely”, maybe because you’ve been working alone for a long time.
→    “No, I’m not lonely”.

So,
→    If you’re lonely, instead of eating, you may want to reach out to a friend for a quick chat.
→    If you’re not lonely, you quickly move on to the fourth question.

4.     T  –  Am I Tired?
By answering this question you can realize:
→    “Yes, I’m tired”, maybe because you worked late the past few days.
→    “No, I’m not tired”.
So,
→    If you’re tired, instead of eating, you may want to take a nap or go to sleep to recharge your batteries.
→    If you’re not tired, the cause of your eating could be different, even if 99% of the time it’s one of these four.

→    “How can I use this tool when I get hungry?”
The answer is:
→    By now preparing your journal (or your smartphone notes) with these 4 questions:
1.      H  –  Am I Hungry?
2.      A  –  Am I Angry?
3.      L  –  Am I Lonely?
4.      T  –  Am I Tired?

This way you’ll be ready to answer them.

Stewart Life Coaching
www.edwastewart.com

504.578.0006