- Be aware of your negative self-talk.
- Maintain a “deceptive brain message” thought log.
- Assess your feelings
- Locate the real source of and address your feeling(s).
- Include how you feel in your DBM log.
- A few common deceptive brain messages that can hinder success:
- I’m not good enough.
- I should have/I shouldn’t have.
- I’m crazy/I’m a sick person.
- I’m a bad person/I’m not as good as…
- I don’t matter/Everyone else is more important than me.
- I have no control.
- I am unlovable/No one likes me/I will be alone forever.
- All of my worth is in taking care of others/all I’m good for is…
- I don’t deserve to be happy—I deserve to suffer or be punished.
- I have an urge to escape reality/crave something that is not good for me or my goals.
Category: Mental Health
Solutions to healthier and better lifestyle decisions
- Recruit a coach.
- Arrange a sponsor to call/text when you feel overwhelmed.
- Delete people, places and things that do NOT share your goals.
- Keep healthy food options readily available and JUST DO IT.
- Develop a custom-fit positive self-talk mantra.
Food and Mood Management
- “Healthy” food helps to stabilize our moods. A well balanced diet can lower our blood sugar, blood pressure and reduce levels of cortisol…the stress hormone.
- Elevated cortisol levels are present in chronic stress, sleep deprivation and depression. Cortisol can also increase the activity of the enzymes that are responsible for laying down belly fat (BMI).
- Omega-3s can reduce cortisol levels. An inadequate intake of Omega-3s can have a profound effect on one’s mood. Marine-derived sources have been shown to improve symptoms of depression. Salmon and other types of fish are excellent sources of Omega-3s.
- According to researchers, 75% of overeating is caused by our emotions. Therefore, dealing with emotions appropriately is ESSENTIAL.
- Focusing our mental energy on food distracts us from facing our feelings.
Understanding the relationship between eating habits and your emotions
Am I an Emotional Eater?
- Do you eat more when you’re feeling stressed?
- Do you eat when you’re not hungry or when you’re full?
- Do you eat to feel better (to calm and soothe yourself when you’re sad, mad, bored, anxious, etc.)?
- Do you reward yourself with food?
- Do you regularly eat until you are uncomfortable?
- Do you feel powerless or out of control around food? If so, chances are you’re riding an emotional roller coaster
Food is necessary to maintain life. Food also has a social status: it is connected with our concept as a social being. As humans evolved beyond eating to just survive, our relationship with food changed from necessity to pleasurable necessity.
- Many high calorie-fat-sugar-salt foods offer little nutrients, but we have learned to associate taste with the expectation of an elevated mood.
- Research demonstrates that the brain releases b-endorphins, a natural pleasure chemical, when we eat our favorite foods. For some people that might be ice cream, for others…enchiladas.
- The brain does not care what we eat, only that we LOVE TO EAT IT. As such, a relationship develops that often runs opposite of our health goals.