I’m trying to stop judging my body after every meal, but it’s become such an automatic habit. I’ll eat something, notice my stomach feels full, and immediately start treating that feeling like proof that I did something wrong. Sometimes I even avoid looking in the mirror because I know I’ll pick apart whatever I see.
I’m practicing saying, “I ate, and my body is responding normally,” instead of turning fullness into a verdict. It helps a little to leave the room after eating and do something that occupies my attention, though the thoughts still come back pretty quickly.
How do you interrupt that judgment before it turns into restricting or checking?
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Patricia, leaving the room after eating helped me too, especially when I made it a planned rule rather than waiting until the thoughts got loud. I’d put on a podcast and wash dishes or take a short walk, with no mirror or body checking until it ended.
One thing that helped was answering the thought with, “Full is a sensation, not evidence.” I didn’t try to convince myself I looked fine, since that turned into another checking loop. I just treated fullness as something temporary and gave myself 20 minutes before making any decisions about food.
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The 20 minute rule makes sense, especially not making food decisions while the feeling is loud. I’ve noticed that if I wait even a little, the urge to check or compensate usually loses some of its force.
I like that phrase too, “full is a sensation, not evidence.” Trying to prove to myself that I look fine can definitely turn into staring at my body even more. Putting on something familiar and leaving the mirror alone sounds more useful.