I'm a Certified Eating Disorders Registered Dietitian (CEDRD) with a master’s degree in dietetics and nutrition. My passion is helping you find peace with food - and within yourself.
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July 19, 2022
Do you ever feel like you’re out of control with food, or like you can’t trust yourself to keep certain foods in the house? Like if you bring the ice cream or the oreos or the doritos into your house that it will call to you from the kitchen until you give in and devour it all?
Are you afraid to let yourself eat your favorite foods in general, like ordering from your favorite pizza place or going to your favorite restaurant or cooking your favorite recipe because you’ll inevitably go overboard and then feel like crap about yourself?
Are you familiar with the feeling of guilt and shame after you eat way too much?
(And let me be clear…by “too much” I mean more than your body wanted and therefore you’re uncomfortably full. “Too much” is often a construct handed to us by diet culture trying to tell us how much we are allowed to eat. I’m referring to the type of “too much” being communicated to you from your body)
This feeling is miserable both physically AND emotionally.
And it’s often when the negative self-talk kicks in really loud:
Any of this sound familiar to you?
I get it. And I also get that the knee-jerk response to binge eating is often to try and regain control over eating by eating really “healthy” or by avoiding those binge foods.
But the problem is this makes things worse. Because it increases the biological drive to binge in the long run. (Kind of confusing and counter-intuitive, I know.)
Breaking free from binge eating is about reclaiming your inherent human NEED to eat and nourish your body with delicious food. You might be thinking, “But Katy, I don’t NEED to eat the foods I’m bingeing on. They’re not good for me in the first place.” Ok let’s pause. That type of thinking is the EXACT type of diet mentality thinking that is creating and fueling and maintaining the problem. The studies show that when we label and judge the foods as being “bad” or “unhealthy” that it actually increases the likelihood of us bingeing on them.
So what can you do instead? I’m going to share a few tips, (and if you want the deeper dive on this topic, listen to this week’s episode of the Rebuilding Trust With Your Body podcast.)
Tip #1) Make sure you’re eating frequently enough.
Generally speaking, try not to go longer than 3-4 hours without eating something.
Tip #2) Don’t deprive yourself.
Find ways to intentionally work in all types of food, so that we can neutralize those binge foods. (In the podcast episode, I share my “de-charming” method for doing this.)
Tip #3) Get curious about your needs outside of food.
Often times, bingeing is a way to cope with feelings and unmet needs that have nothing to do with food. Perhaps you’re feeling angry, lonely, stressed, or something else. (Highly recommend journaling so you can give language to your emotions.)
Tip #4) Come up with a list of things you can do to care for yourself after a binge.
Make this list and save it on your phone, so you can access it in a moment where you’re feeling discouraged. (And don’t make these things punishing. Choose things that feel kind and compassionate towards yourself.)
The temptation with bingeing is often to beat ourselves up and then punish ourselves. Instead, we are taking a compassionate and self-care approach, which will allow you to move forward in ways that are actually productive and healing.
Click here to listen to my full podcast episode on how to stop binge eating!
Here’s a glance at this episode…
[00:01 – 05:08]
[05:09 – 20:43]
[20:43 – 25:43]
[25:44 – 32:51] Wrapping up!
Or, listen & subscribe on your favorite platform: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Deezer | Google
Search for episode 31 Struggling with Binge Eating? Why it’s Not About the Food – and How to Stop
Key Quotes
“Emotions are like warning lights in your car.. We want to understand what the warning light is telling us so we can respond appropriately.” – Katy Harvey
“You need to just show yourself that you can have it (food) and that nothing catastrophic happens.” -Katy Harvey
Resources mentioned in this episode:
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“What I didn’t know I needed! This podcast really helped me understand intuitive eating and how to incorporate it in my life. Katy’s approach to helping us understand and trust our bodies is like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”
If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show! This helps me support more people — just like you — move toward healing their relationship with food and their body image.
Also, if you haven’t done so already, make sure you follow the Rebuilding Trust with Your Body podcast. If you’re not following, there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on value-packed episodes each week.
I'm a Certified Eating Disorders Registered Dietitian (CEDRD) with a master’s degree in dietetics and nutrition. My passion is helping you find peace with food - and within yourself.
We help you tidy up your home so you can move from overwhelmed to overjoyed. Different methods and Pinterest hacks have been tried but it’s still not sticking. You are not alone, and we are here to help!
find it fast:
body image
eating disorders
exercise
fear
intuitive eating
recovery
health
food & drink
science
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