HOW TO BEAT CAREGIVER STRESS EATING
- Gloria J. Brown
- Jul 14, 2015
- 3 min read
I EAT BECAUSE I'M STRESSED AND I'M STRESSED BECAUSE I EAT
Question: Do you catch yourself automatically grabbing a cracker or cookie as you pass by your kitchen counter? Do you find yourself mindlessly snacking right after you've finished eating a meal? If you feel caught up in the cycle of caregiver stress eating, just know you are not alone and then this word might be just for you.
For example: You know you're not hungry, since you've just finished eating a full meal less than 20 minutes ago, but you find yourself still having a case of the munchies. Perhaps you’re thinking - a little cracker here, a couple of chips there, so what's the big deal? Well, the big deal for me was when I realized my snacking was actually due to stress of caregiving. I found, when I was feeling overwhelmed, stress snacking, as I like to call it, became coping mechanism. And I found many other caregivers with the same issue of using food to muddle through whatever was happening at the time.
DIFFERENT STROKES FOR DIFFERENT FOLKS
Now perhaps you may not have the same issues as I experienced with stress eating, but for me, it became a way to cope with all the daily responsibilities and interruptions of caregiving, The snacking helped move my attention away from whatever was bothering me emotionally at that moment.
Of course, Different people handle the stress of caregiving in different ways – With me, snacking and nibbling became my comfort food and I found it was a way to reduce my stress while I was preparing a meal or other caregiving related chores. On the other hand, when I was providing direct one-on-one care to MY MOM, such as bathing or giving medications, it required my full attention. So, when I stopped to nibble at the counter, it gave me a chance to think things out and also to mask my sadness and grief as I saw her health continued to decline right before my eyes.
MY CLARITY MOMENT
My junk food habit had been a gradual progression. My snacking habits started out harmless enough, with a few crackers and cheese, and blossomed from there. Initially, it was a way of being efficient by not having to spend time looking for something to keep my energy up and plus my snacks were quick, tasty and easy.
Frankly, I hadn't realized that it had turned into a health issue until a fateful day I attended a health fair and decided to have my blood pressure checked. When the nurse saw the results, she advised me that my reading was on the “high side” and suggested that might want to follow up with an appointment with my health provider.
To say I was shocked was an understatement! And after getting my numbers FROM THE NURSE, I continued to stroll around to all the different exhibits, but my mind was on that reading for the rest of the fair.
And at first I was in total denial and refused to face the truth and tried to convince myself that it wasn’t really a problem To calm myself I reasoned that although my READINGS were a little high, it wasn’t a urgent situation since my blood pressure had been excellent over the past years. But, after retracing my daily routine and my pattern of eating, I finally had to admit: I had become “a junk food junkie”!
To Be Continued…PART 2 NEXT BLOG
Be Well - Stay Well - Because Caregivers Need Care Too!!
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Coach Gloria
Life Strategies/Wellness Coach & Patient Advocate
Owner: GJ Brown & Associates
Blog: Glo’s Caregiver Wellness Connection
Email: gbrown1gjba@gmail.com
Website: coachglozcaregiverwellness.com
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