Coffee is Comfort

Coffee. Need I say more? It's warm, delicious, comforting somehow. This is my comfort food. It used to be mashed potatoes, when my grandma used to make them and I lived close enough to eat them in her kitchen. Some people like mac-n-cheese, others go for birthday cake or ice cream.  Since winter arrived, I have been craving coffee like mad! I know in the beginning I said I would give it up for a year, but I have failed. I don't feel too bad about it mainly because I have kept pretty steady with all of the other diet and lifestyle changes I said I'd do for a year. But coffee has kicked my butt.

There's something strong about comfort food and emotional eating. We all do it to some degree. We snack when we aren't hungry because we are bored. Feeling sad? We often reach for a carton of ice cream and watch a sappy romantic comedy. Anxious? I find myself turning to something crunchy which seems to satisfy the antsyness. Anytime we are feeling empty or lonely, having a full belly calms that feeling down and fills us up, at least temporarily. "Although there are a number of triggers that can lead to emotional eating, at the root of most cases is a desire to avoid or dull negative emotions, such as guilt, anxiety, or sadness." (Psychology Today "Emotional Eating Test")

On the flip side, I have found for myself that I tend to not eat enough when I am experiencing what I would call an "acute stress event" meaning something that's happening right now causing a lot of emotional pain. For example, when our daughter was a baby, she had to be hospitalized several times due to dehydration from excess vomiting. Watching your 10-month-old daughter have an IV inserted into her head (they are less likely to notice them there) is an "acute stress event" and the whole time I stayed in the hospital with her, I did not feel like eating. Also, if feelings of being "down" or depressed lasts long enough for me, I can also not eat enough, which will sabotage any weight loss attempts.

So, how to curb emotional eating? I found this quick and to-the-point article on the topic. Basically, exercise, taking a bath, some sort of breathing exercise or yoga, being social with a friend, playing a game, journal, clean the house, or my favorite, organize the closets and drawers. I also try to watch comedies, like short sitcoms such as The Office, 30 Rock or Friends, something that will really make me laugh. As some wise person said "laughter is the best medicine" and I might argue that a little coffee never hurt either!