87: How to Stop Emotional Eating (From a Nutritionist Who Lost 100 Pounds!)

We’ve all been there. It’s midnight, we’re up late, and suddenly hunger strikes … for chocolate!

But can craving chocolate really be hunger, or is it just emotional eating? It’s pretty easy to guess the answer. Emotional eating wrecks our healthy eating habits more than we probably realize (especially among women, I’d dare say).

My guest today, Stephanie Dodier, knows this all too well. Her story is all about transformation from the inside out and freedom from emotional eating. She lost over 100 pounds as a result!

I’m so thankful she’s here to share!

The Emotional Eating Test: Do You Pass?

Maybe you don’t think emotional eating plays that much of a role in your life. I didn’t think it did in mine. Then Stephanie shared with me her emotional eating “test.” It’s pretty simple:

When you have a craving, ask yourself:

1. Am I suddenly and urgently craving something very specific?
2. Did I eat something and immediately feel guilty after?

If you answer “yes” to either of these, you are experiencing emotional eating … not physical hunger.

I had to admit these questions shed new light on certain food cravings of mine, especially around a certain time of the month!

The Unconscious Habit of Emotional Eating

Stephanie had it all … or she thought she did. She had a great career as a senior executive in a Fortune 500 company. But take it from her: success does not always equal happiness.

Overweight and overworked, Stephanie had a wake-up call in the form of a debilitating (and public) panic attack. She decided she could ignore her body’s signals no longer. She quit her high-paying job and left it all behind to forge a new path toward transformation and wellness.

Through trial, error, and research she found ways to identify and heal her powerful physical and emotional attachments to food. The results were nothing short of transformation. She lost 100 pounds in about a year and healed herself of her panic attacks and other health problems.

Today as a clinical nutritionist and emotional eating health coach, Stephanie helps others (especially women) break the cycle of stress and emotional eating. Her projects include the “Beyond The Food” podcast and “The Crave Cure,” which teach how to tackle food cravings holistically by aligning body, mind, and food.

In This Episode You’ll Learn:

• how Stephanie healed her food cravings … and lost 100 lbs!
• the real reasons why we crave food (other than actual hunger)
• the mind-body connection and why it matters so much
• homeostasis: what is and why it’s essential to our bodies
• what we really want when we crave certain foods (like chocolate)
• why sugar makes us happy … but only in the moment
• 7 signs of physical hunger vs. 7 signs of emotional craving
• keys to “decoding” the body’s emotional messages about food
• the best kind of diet for someone who struggles with emotional eating
• why Stephanie decided to train specifically as a GAPS practitioner
• how food labels like paleo, ketogenic, vegan, raw, etc. may actually work against healthy eating
• realistic steps to get started today on a path to weight loss and emotional balance

How about you? Do you struggle with emotional eating? Do you think Stephanie’s advice will help?

Resources We Mention:

Podcast: Beyond the Food

The Crave Cure Program (with Free Guide)

Book: The Anatomy of the Spirit: The Seven Stages of Power and Healing by Carolyn Myss

Special Thanks to Today’s Sponsors

Today’s podcast is brought to you by Four Sigmatic. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve probably seen me mention them because I have been using and loving and Instagramming their products for years. They have an amazing instant mushroom coffee.

Hear me out … I know it sounds weird! But it’s not only the best instant coffee I’ve ever tried, it’s also pretty high up on the list of best coffee I’ve tried. It has super food mushrooms like Lion’s Mane, Cordyceps, and Chaga mushrooms. And these mushrooms have some big health benefits, and especially immune benefits. I especially love them for the energy and the mental clarity without the jitters from traditional coffee. And did I mention how good it tastes?

If you aren’t a caffeine person, they also have a variety of mushroom tea and other products that don’t have the coffee so you can get the benefits without the caffeine. And I love them so much that I reached out and they agreed to give a discount to my listeners. So, go to foursigmatic.com/wellnessmama and use the code “WellnessMama” to get 10% off.

This podcast is also brought to you by Thrive Market. If you live in a real food desert like I do, it can be difficult to find certain organic foods, specialty foods, or allergy-friendly foods. Thrive Market is my solution to this problem. They carry thousands of the non-perishable foods that I use most often at discount prices. I think of them as a combination of Costco, Amazon, and Whole Foods. They are online like Amazon, have a yearly membership fee to unlock discounts like Costco, and carry high quality foods like Whole Foods.

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