The Emotional Band Aid of Overeating

“When you overeat, you may not realize it but you’re trying to solve a problem with food (and maybe with being overweight). The thing is, you’re not going to resolve the problem by pursuing your addiction; it can only be addressed through conscious attention.

Every time you turn to food you’re actually abandoning yourself, because you’re not giving yourself what you really need. Every time you indulge your food cravings, you’re depriving yourself of the things you truly crave.

You may think that your eating is meeting real needs, but it’s a pseudo-solution. If you want to be happy and free of addiction it’s time to discover what you really need and find a way to give it to yourself.” – Dr. Marcia Sirota

I’m honestly not sure that I’d go so far as to say that food is an addiction (for everyone at least), but I do very much agree that it often serves as a band aid solution for emotions that would be better addressed by some other means.