DBT Method to Say Goodbye to Emotional Eating (8) - Positive Emotions

Research shows that people who binge eat are more likely to experience negative emotions.

In fact, to say goodbye to emotional eating, the focus is on "emotion". How to control emotions becomes the key to changing binge eating.

When we are sad or depressed, we like to seek comfort through food, and people who overeat are more likely to have negative emotions in the first place.

Establishing positive experiences has become an important breakthrough for us to increase positive emotions.

01

The book introduces four methods to balance your life and move it in a positive direction.

1. Increase the number of happy events every day

To put it bluntly, it means coaxing yourself to be happy in various ways, and you will be happy as you want. On a higher level, just enjoy life.

For example, go shopping with good friends, drink coffee, call the people you like, go on vacation, go to hot springs, enjoy the sun, laugh, etc.

You must understand yourself and know what you like. And when your time is occupied by work, you must make time to do the things you like. Experience more, and you will find that it is not just overeating that can comfort yourself.

2. Accumulate long-term positive emotions

Based on your own values, describe one or more long-term goals. These goals will help you achieve higher life satisfaction.

In life, only when you have a goal can you have small goals to achieve it, so that you can complete the goal more effectively.

Establishing long-term positive goals can accumulate long-term positive emotions.

3. Deal with your interpersonal relationships

Good interpersonal relationships are part of a meaningful life.

People who overeat are always accompanied by lack of self-confidence. Once they are not confident, they will fall into self-doubt and shrink from getting along with others.

We dare not communicate with others because we care about other people’s opinions. Therefore, we must learn to be wise, trust that our friends will not make fun of us because of our imperfect appearance, and trust that they are sincere.

Be more social, don’t be ashamed of yourself, and build new relationships will help you regain your confidence.

4. Avoid escaping

When you solve a problem through overeating, it proves that you are avoiding the problem.

We should learn to face problems, not only to face the current problems, but also to face the new problems that are coming.

No one feels positive when they avoid solving problems or doing what is necessary. Feeling more intense happiness requires you to be actively engaged in your life. Avoidance almost always results in negative feelings rather than a sense of mastery, confidence, and control.

Say you are depressed, but there is a social event you must attend. At this point, you tend to withdraw or isolate yourself, not participating and binge eating at home.

Avoiding avoidance means actively blocking the urge to skip activities and binge eat. Instead, you act contrary to those impulses, approach what you want to avoid, and act in a way that makes you feel capable and confident.

02

Being aware of positive emotions can help maintain a pleasant mood rather than letting secondary reactions (worry, guilt, etc.) ruin your fun.

In our daily life and work, we can pay attention to our positive emotions and pay full attention to them. Or transfer your negative emotions to positive emotions.

There is a form below (increase positive events). Fill in the form to set goals for yourself and increase positive emotions.