Stress has a weird effect on my eating. When I’m busy or worried, I can go most of the day without realizing I haven’t eaten. It doesn’t even feel intentional at first. I’m just focused on whatever is going wrong, and food gets pushed aside.
Then later I’m suddenly starving and end up overeating way past the point of being comfortable. That usually makes me feel annoyed with myself, which only adds more stress and seems to set the whole thing up again.
I’ve been trying to catch it earlier by eating something small before I get to that desperate-hungry stage. Nothing complicated, just something I can manage even when I don’t feel like cooking. I’m starting to see that the overeating isn’t really about having no control. It often starts hours earlier, when I ignore what my body is asking for.
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@Michael_Reeves, catching it before you reach that desperate-hungry point sounds like a really useful shift. I’ve found that keeping easy food within reach helps, especially on days when cooking feels like one more task.
The self-criticism afterward can keep the cycle going, so I’m trying to treat those episodes as information instead of a failure. A reminder to eat earlier, even something small, can make a bigger difference than I expect.
@Michael_Reeves, the part about food getting pushed aside while you’re focused on what’s going wrong really makes sense. I’ve done that with schoolwork and only noticed once I was suddenly shaky and desperate for anything easy.
Keeping something simple nearby seems smart. I’ve had better luck with snacks I can eat without stopping what I’m doing, like a granola bar or a sandwich. Do you use reminders, or do you rely on noticing the early hunger signals?