Navigating Binge Eating During the Holidays

The holidays are a wonderful time for families to come together to celebrate and connect with one another, but they can also be a time of stress for many — especially for those struggling with binge eating. 

In light of this, I’d like to share some helpful tips on how to navigate binge eating during the holiday season: 

Stop Dieting and Find Balance. 

The truth is… many diets are restrictive and unrealistic and with the new year coming up, many diets are being promoted. Restrictive eating and food rules that diets create can easily trigger a binge. When our bodies aren’t getting enough calories or if it feels restricted in ANY way, then we will most likely binge to make up for this restriction. Instead, find balance in your eating habits and allow yourself to have “fun foods”. Build a balanced plate by adding carbohydrates, protein, healthy fat, color, and last by not least…FUN! Remember: All foods can and should fit into your diet! 

Eat After a Binge (do not restrict again).

Most people think that they should compensate or “make up” for the binge by restricting the next day, however, this will only lead us to binge again! Instead of skipping meals and restricting calories after you binge, focus on eating consistently, every 3-4 hours. 

Reflect After A Binge

Learn from what happened after you binge eat. You can’t expect yourself to snap out of an unwanted behavior right away. Ask yourself, “what might have triggered me to binge?”. Maybe you had a stressful day at work,  maybe you got into a fight with your husband, maybe you had a busy day and skipped lunch, etc. Getting curious and bringing awareness to the situation can help you to see a pattern and find a solution on how to stop this trigger. View each binge as a learning experience! 

Show Yourself Compassion

Shame and guilt are the main drivers for restriction, meaning after you binge, it’s likely that you’ll want to compensate in some way and restrict (which, as I mentioned previously is NOT what we want to do!) because you feel guilty for binging. This is why showing yourself compassion is SO important, especially during the holidays when you’re likely to be stressed out more than usual. If you binge this holiday season, be kind to yourself and practice self-care. Know that you’re not alone and recovering from binge eating takes time!

What Triggers a Binge According to Research? The authors of a 2019 study developed a model of binge eating that focused on five variables of interest which were believed to maintain binge eating. These variables were based on a review of the relevant literature which found that these following five main variables were commonly agreed to be important predisposing, precipitating and perpetuating/maintaining factors of binge eating psychopathology:[1]

1. core low self-esteem/negative beliefs about the self.
2. the presence of negative affect/distress.
3. poor emotional regulation.
4. dietary restraint/restriction.
5. beliefs about eating, or ‘eating beliefs’.

According to the proposed model, those who have deeply held negative ideas about themselves or who have low self-esteem are more likely to binge eat (vulnerability factor).[1] When the core beliefs are triggered, negative affect (low mood, anxiety, and/or stress) is experienced. Individuals who experience difficulty with emotional regulation feel intolerant of such negative effects and wish to find a way to neutralize the emotion. This discomfort with the negative affect is addressed by engaging in dietary restraint (which serves to distract from or control the emotion) and/or experiencing thoughts about food and eating (eating beliefs), such as positive beliefs about eating (“eating helps to control my emotions''), negative beliefs about eating (“I can’t control my eating because I'm weak”), and permissive beliefs about eating (“I deserve to have a pleasure like binge eating”). It is hypothesized that when these eating beliefs are triggered, binge eating occurs.

I hope these tips are helpful to you this holiday season and if you’re looking for some extra support, apply to work with me here!

References: 

1. Burton, A. L., & Abbott, M. J. (2019). Processes and pathways to binge eating: development of an integrated cognitive and behavioural model of binge eating. Journal of Eating Disorders, 7(1), 18.