Avoidance eating

[Guest guest]

Hi!

Last week I figured out a major trigger for my overeating episodes: I eat to

avoid things. The week before I was sailing aong quite smoothly, eating when I

was hungry, stopping when I was satiated, you get the picture. Come Monday I

started to write a grant application (dedline is coming up tomorrow) and it

wasn't quite flowing so I started eating everything in sight. When that was

gone, I made trips to the convenience store a block away from where I work.

Hmmm.

That behaviour lasted for the rest of the week. I knew I wasn't hungry but

couldn't get myself to stop eating. I had to work over the weekend so I can meet

the deadline and it was the same thing. Yesterday, I finally carved out some

time for myself and worked through a couple of IOWL episodes (the ones dealing

with limiting beliefs). I also meditated for about 20 minutes before going to

bed.

this morning I had two bowls of cereal and felt myself heading into another day

of overeating. But, low and behold, I caught myself. I have not had lunch

because I am not hungry and just had an apple 30 minutes ago. No sign of hunger

yet. And no urge to eat. I have thought about eating several times but each time

decided against it. This is a MAJOR step forward. And I am still writing the

grant. So, my question is still: What exactly was I trying to avoid? Maybe it is

the feeling of incompetence because I did feel overwhelmed before starting. Or

it's the feeling of abandon because I have reached out to several colleagues and

nobody can or would help me. Maybe it's also stress and anxiety because it would

be very good for my career if I could secure this grant...

Does anybody have similar experiences? What works for you?