SugarMomma’s BodyBlog

How?  Take proactive steps that keep YOU in control and you’ll be less likely to dive into food as a defense to what seems like you being a victim of circumstances.   In the long term, keeping yourself balanced everyday will help a lot.  For example, keep a food journal to see what triggers bad eating.  Incorporate yoga, meditation, or a massage whenever possible to stay in a relaxed state when you can.  Use a support network like MyBodySite.com to help you when the going gets tough.

In the meantime, when stress strikes, try these quick fixes:

First: Give yourself a time out

Stress can be a good thing. Physical stress keeps our bodies in good shape as emotional stress help keep out minds healthy. Stress is NOT what makes you impulse eat.  It’s your reaction.   Take a deep breath, count to 10 and give yourself a timeout.  Walk outside or just get up and walk to somewhere quiet.  Notice physical sensations and allow yourself to let your heart rate come down.  For a minute, put the thoughts and doom scenarios out of your head.

Second:  Get a grip

Now that you’re calm, abandon any all or nothing thinking. There are probably many more solutions to your issue and the issue may not be as bad as you thought at first.  You might be reading more into someone else or some situation than is really there.   Take a minute to assess whether what’s happening is really that big of a deal, and how much it really affects your overall situation.  Chances are it’s not really that bad and it pays to realize it right now, rather than 8 hours from now when you might regret doing or saying the wrong thing on an impulse reaction.
 
Third - Put it in perspective

You’ll handle problems in your everyday life much easier if you keep them in perspective.  Make some adjustments to your thought patterns right away and mentally explore all of the things that you can do to solve the problem that is stressing you out.  Write it down, call a friend or just give some thought to all of the ways you might address the issue or find help to do that and you’ll feel like you’re in control.   That power will prevent you from running to the refrigerator or the vending machine.

If you follow these tips when you feel overwhelmed, you’ll make fewer molehills into mountains and you’ll break challenges down into smaller issues that you’ll resolve and draw power from.