How did we get so afraid of feelings? After all, emotions,
including the so-called negative ones, are a natural part of
being human. Everyone experiences them – each and every day. Yet
some people cope with difficult emotions by repressing them. It
becomes an automatic habit to sweep unpleasant feelings under
the rug and to stop consciously noticing what the body is
feeling. Emotional eating can in part be the consequence of not
allowing feelings to flow naturally. Emotions themselves are
felt in the physical body. Notice how emotions can sometimes be
felt as a knot in the stomach, a gripping feeling in the chest
area, a tightening of the shoulders and neck, or perhaps a
pounding tension in the head. If an emotion becomes blocked and
is unable to flow freely, it gets trapped in the body. A natural
response is to seek some way to make ourselves feel better.
Eating, or starving, can serve as a temporary antidote to the
feelings of sadness, depression, hurt, anger, self-hate, guilt,
stress, boredom, and so on. F