Are you guilty of emotional eating?

Stress is one of the factors linked to emotional eating.It doesnt matter how many diets you follow and how many self help books you read to try and lose weight,if your eating is linked to stress.Basically emotional eating is eating even when we are not hungry.

Emotional eating has many causes.

Cortisol Cravings:
Stress can bring on increased levels of cortisol known as "the stress hormone." Cortisol has a beneficial function in the body, but excessive levels of cortisol brought on by chronic stress can among other things, create cravings for salty and sweet foods.

Social Eating:
People who are under stress will seek out social support, which is a great way to relieve stress. Unfortunately for dieters, when people get together they tend to go out for a nice meal. Crying on your friend’s shoulder over a couple of hot fudge sundaes, going out for a night on the town and a plate full of fried appetizers, sharing a bowl of chips with the guys as you watch a game, or discussing the gory details of a nightmare date over cheesecake with your roommates are all social forms of emotional eating.

Nervous Energy:
When stressed or anxious, many people, out of nervousness or boredom, just munch on chips or drink soda to give their mouths something to do.

Childhood Habits:
Many of us have comforting childhood memories that revolve around food. Whether your parents used to reward you with sweets, fix your boo-boos with an ice cream cone, or make your favorite meal (or take you out to one) to celebrate your successes, you’d probably be in the vast minority if you didn’t develop some emotionally-based attachments to food while growing up. When in times of stress, few things can be as rewarding as your favorite food. This type of emotional eating is very common: people eat to celebrate, eat to feel better, eat to deal with the stress of being overweight.

Stuffing Emotions:
People who are uncomfortable with confrontation may deal with frustrations in their marriage with a piece of cake, for example, rather than with open communication. Food can take the focus off of anger, resentment, fear, anxiety, and a host of other emotions we’d sometimes rather not feel, and is often used for this purpose.

If you’re an emotional eater, it’s important for you to be aware of this, keep an eye on your triggers, and develop some effective stress management techniques and coping skills so that your body stays healthy, rather than feeling out of control.

Take the Stress and Weight Gain Test to see what role stress plays with your weight, and to find targeted help.

Chronic exhaustion or excessive fatigue disorder

You might be suffering from exhaustion if you feel the following:
Tired all the time.
Trouble getting up in the morning.
Depending on artificial stimulants like tea, coffee or colas to keep going.
Feeling run down and stressed.
Every day seems too long.
Struggling to keep up with life's daily demands.
Taking a long time to recover from illness.
Not having fun any more. Decreased sex drive.
Too tired to enjoy life.

Excessive fatigue disorder has three defining characteristics:

excessive fatigue, weakness, and lack of energy,
Irritability
Feeling demoralized

Personalized treatment usually needs to be customized to every exhausted individual. The first step is the removal of the initial stressors, detoxification, and treatment to balance your mental health. Also varied remedies aimed at relieving specific symptoms like insomnia, depression and digestive problems is also advised.
Mental exhaustion is a state you reach mentally when you get to a point where you have no answers or solutions to deal with or resolve the stresses you feel in your life.
Excessive exhaustion may lead to cardiac failure, blood pressure, depressed mood, lowered self-esteem and guilt feelings and is also associated with increased levels of insulin.

Group discussions, yoga,anger management,active participation in reducing the level of mental stress or strain would reduce exhaustion as well as the risk of cardiac failure.

Chronic exhaustion may be due to underlying physical disease, chronic viral infection, kidney or heart failure and muscle and joint disease and needs to be excluded in any who feel their energy levels are too low. Tiredness is also a side effect of many medications - beta-blockers and some of those used to treat epilepsy are major culprits. If all possible physical causes of lack of energy are excluded, than the underlying cause might be psychological.

Often the causes of excessive fatigue are more mental than physical. A bad relationship, poor self image, a history of abuse, stress, frustration and many other factors can change your overall attitude towards life which may directly impede your overall performance. Such tendencies are deep-rooted in mind and nurtured by excessive negative emotions.


A really good place to go which has on online form which analyses your stresses and recommends natural healing supplements is here

Bach Flower Therapy-natural help

Basically this is therapy via natural solutions.The basic premise is that negative emotions derived from earlier experiences in your life can affect the way you handle stress.The potions are all derived from nature.See below for a few of the therapies offered and if you are still interested please go to their website to view the rest.

Here are a few of the therapies available under the Bach Flower Therapy

Agrimony
"The jovial, cheerful, humorous people who love peace and are distressed by argument or quarrel, to avoid which they will agree to give up much. Though generally they have troubles and are tormented and restless and worried in mind or in body, they hide their cares behind their humor and jesting and are considered very good friends to know. They often take alcohol or drugs in excess, to stimulate them and help themselves bear their trials with cheerfulness." - Dr. Edward Bach


Aspen
"Vague unknown fears, for which there can be given no explanation, no reason. It is a terror that something awful is going to happen even though it is unclear what exactly. These vague inexplicable fears may haunt by night or day. Sufferers may often be afraid to tell their trouble to others." - Dr. Edward Bach

Beech

"For those who feel the need to see more good and beauty in all that surrounds them. And, although much appears to be wrong, to have the ability to see the good growing within. So as to be able to be more tolerant, lenient and understanding of the different way each individual and all things are working to their own perfection." - Dr. Edward Bach

To see more go to the Bach Flower Therapy site

And here is what some celebrities have had to say about Bach Flower Therapy
Jennifer Anniston says it keeps her cool under pressure.
Cate Blanchett swears by it,
and Salma Hayek has been a fan for years. It's called Bach's "Rescue Remedy®,"