by guest blogger Susan Albers, Psy.D.


Are you having trouble conquering comfort eating?  Do you find yourself craving an ice cream cone after a hard day of work or munching on a bowl of nuts in hopes that the crunching will ease your nervous tension?  You may be surprised to learn that much of comfort eating may be just that—a habit.  It’s likely that the same events and emotions routinely trigger comfort eating.  The trick to staying one step ahead of stress eating is to know your triggers like the back of your hand.  

Prepare for common traps.  For example, does getting stuck each morning in a traffic jam lead to gnawing on food to relieve your frustration?  Find ways to trouble shoot this frequent trigger. Perhaps you could leave a half hour earlier, find a carpool buddy, or stock up on soothing music for the ride.  

For at least three weeks, write down all incidents of comfort eating.  Notice if there are any consistent patterns over the three weeks.  If so, try to insert soothing activities before the frustration occurs.  For more ideas, see 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food.  While you will not be able to anticipate all incidents, deal with the ones that you do know you are likely to encounter.


Susan Albers, Psy.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist for the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and author of  Eat, Drink & Be Mindful and Eating Mindfully.  Her latest book, 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food, will be available in September.  Dr. Albers’ website is http://eatingmindfully.com.