How to stop overeating: when willpower isn't "enough"
A common thought I hear among many of my clients: "If I had more willpower I could stop overeating."
We often assume that overeating is a result of a lack of willpower. We have, what I like to call, a "salary" of willpower. Just like a paycheck, it's issued to you and as you spend it on things, the total original amount is depleted.
The same goes for something like willpower - you may wake up with all the willpower and determination in the world, but as the day goes and you make decisions your reserve begins to be depleted.
Trying to control overeating with shear willpower alone can feel defeating.
It's like continuing to write checks with no money in the account to cover them.
So without more structure, planning and addressing the underlying reasons for overeating, we often find ourselves fighting a losing the Willpower Battle.
What is overeating?
A simple definition of overeating is "eating past the point of fullness."
I can make a safe assumption that most people have, at some time in their life, eaten to the point of feeling ill, overstuffed or as if they couldn't possibly eat another bite.
While overeating isn't it's own mental health diagnosis, the medical term for insatiable hunger is called hyperphagia, and can be a sign of medical conditions such as hyperthyroidism.
I don't want to get too bogged down with details or focused on the medical end of overeating, because overeating itself can be fairly common for individuals and I'm not a medical doctor.
However, overeating becomes an issue when my clients report things like feeling out of control around food, eating when they don't feel hungry and struggling with weight loss. The other part of this is when my clients discuss feelings of shame, anxiety, guilt, disgust, etc when it comes to eating and their habits related to food.
If you overeat periodically because you ate too fast or were extra hungry, it doesn't necessarily mean it's a psychological issue or a "sign of something bigger."
My clients begin to notice overeating negatively affecting their lives if/when it becomes a pattern of behavior and/or causes unpleasant emotions.
Reasons for overeating
Main reasons my clients find themselves overeating, is because they're undernourished or trying to restrict themselves.
By restricting or try to starve off any cravings, they create additional unproductive habits, causing more frustration, obsession, and anxiety.
When we deny ourselves food and/or aren't receiving the proper nutrients, it often leads to more cravings and overeating. Working with a professional can help you understand how to eat a balanced diet, ensure that you manage your blood sugar levels and are eating nutritionally-dense foods that help with satiety.
Other causes of overeating can be things such as stress, boredom & poor sleep.
High levels of stress cause increased cortisol levels and disrupt other hormones that help regulate hunger.
Along with stress, a poor sleep schedule or sleep deprivation causes hormone disruptions, heightens emotions and impacts our ability to think logically.
Boredom is something that causes discomfort, and can lead someone into mindless eating. For many, this often occurs in the evening when there tends to be less structure and our willpower, motivation and ability to be intentional has decreased.
How to manage overeating
One of the first things I do with clients, is to get a "lay of the land" and figure out what their food & eating habits look like. Identifying what kind of structure they have or don't have, learning what time of day they're most likely to overeat and coming up with a framework are important pieces to making progress.
Structure
When we don't have a plan for the day we're often trying to make decisions on the fly. I call this "winging it," and most of my clients admit that they don't make productive decisions when they lack structure and are trying to constantly manage their behaviors without any forethought. You don't have to prep food and eat out of tupperware for a week, but having some meals planned or made ahead of time will take the guessing out of eating.
Patterns
Much of what we do is automatic based on our habits. Identifying what time of day you struggle and what overeating 'looks like' in your life will help you understand how to plan to get ahead of it. Keeping a thought and/or feeling log can also help you identify any patterns of what's happening "internally" so you can address any changes that need to occur emotionally that may be attributed to overeating.
Emotions
Just like managing stress, understanding your emotions is a key part of managing & eventually overcoming overeating. A big thing I do with clients is teach them how to create a 'window' of time where they can make an intentional decision. We tend to operate based on the idea of "What I want is based on how I feel, and what I need is based on what is truly in my best interest." Working with my clients to help them manage their emotions and think more logically ultimately helps them identify if it's food they're actually wanting.
Addressing overeating in therapy
Everyone is different but understanding the basics of overeating is a good start to addressing it.
We have only scratched the surface of what occurs with overeating, but it is my hope that this helps increase your awareness and encourages you to seek help if you feel you need it.
Overeating is one of those things that we know we're doing when we're doing it, but feel powerless at times to stop.
Working with a professional can help you gain perspective and gather new skills to address your relationship with food and work to begin managing overeating behaviors.
Food is such an important part of our lives and many of my clients feel powerless and/or struggle in their relationship with food. The ultimate goal is to help my clients feel more empowered around food and less like it controls their life.
To make an appointment or ask a question, visit the contact page to send us a message!
Talk soon,
Lori