How to End Comfort Eating with NLP & Your Brain

As you know, weight management is ongoing. We can find a good balance for awhile, but our lives are always changing and we encounter new things and thought patterns that can take us off course.

Over the last couple of months, I found myself snacking on things when I wasn’t hungry. I’d be working at my computer for awhile, but then I’d feel a compulsion to get up and wander to the kitchen to find something to crunch on.  It was the crunch I was looking for, the satisfaction of chewing on something. I went through a bunch of rice crackers before I noticed just how much I’d eaten. For a while, I crunched on carrot sticks, at least a better alternative than the chips or rice crackers.

And, as I’ve notice the feeling of weight creeping up on me, yes, I had to buy another pair of pants.  (Psst —  no one wants to hear you whine about going from a size 6 to a size 8, just so you know).

So, I was on my own to address the issue. I used the process, What Weight Represents from my book, “A Lighter You! Train your Brain to Slim your Body.” I simply imagined packaging up the weight, gave it a visual and set it out about 3 feet from me, and looked at it. Then, I imagined stepping into the weight and looked back at myself, asking, what does the weight want?

The answer from my mind was I wanting comfort.

I had recently been dating a very amazing guy, and the sadness and loss that I’ve felt in letting go of that relationship was creating an internal fear, “ what if it happens again?”  A part of me didn’t want to go through the pain of letting go. If I gained weight, I’d be less attractive and so protect myself from having another relationship that I’d have to say good bye to.

When we try to protect ourselves from the negative things that might happen, we also insulate ourselves from the good that could be.  I don’t want to cut myself off from life,  protecting myself and trapping myself in fears.  I want to live by allowing myself to flow with the experiences of life and allowing myself to enjoy all the good that is coming to me.

To take care the part of myself that wanted comfort, I imagined wrapping it up in down blankets and giving myself positive messages and encouragement. Then,  I asked my mind to notice all the positives I got from that relationship and all the gifts it brought to my life.

My life is better off for having met him and I recognized that the gifts and benefits outweighed the hard times of letting go. And, what if the next relationship I didn’t have to say goodbye? That was heartening. In fact that was hopeful and hopeful is a much better place to hang out.

So, if you find yourself needlessly snacking, mindless eating, or comfort eating ask yourself, “What do I really want?” and pay attention to the response that you get. Our habits and cravings can be reminders for us to nourish ourselves on all levels, physically, mentally, and emotionally.

You can read more about my book, A Lighter You! Train Your Brain to Slim Your Body here: The book is based on positive mental strategies and NLP Neuro-Linguistic Programming exercises to help you achieve your ideal weight and keep it!