In response to my post from the other day, and many times in the past, people have tried to tell me that I have a food addiction, and more specifically, that I’m using food to fill some kind of void or unsatisfied need. As one friend messaged me on Facebook:
Triggers are emotional if you are eating enough. Hungry, Angry, lonely, tired..resentments whatever. It’s very very tough to connect to these feelings and when we eat, we don’t feel anything but the warmth of yummy food. it’s numbing and the rest remains unconscious almost I think
A lot of people are emotional eaters, particularly when they get angry or lonely. I’m not. And I’m not in denial about it. For me, “the warmth of yummy food” is reason enough. I find food really, truly pleasurable – tremendously so. It may have something to do with how my brain is wired, but it’s not some deep-seated psychological or emotional issue.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Sometimes food is just food, not a substitute for something else.
I’m not saying it’s rational. People make all kinds of seemingly irrational decisions in the name of seeking pleasure. I just make the choice to jump into a double bacon cheeseburger or a slice of cake instead of out of a plane or off a cliff. The problem is, once might be no big deal, but the consequences of repeatedly making that choice over time are unacceptable… like a thrill-seeker who ends up with multiple broken bones.
Delayed gratification… more on that later.
Image: udrossi