|
Dr.
Dale Atkins, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist and media
commentator who appears regularly on the Today Show .
The author of five books, she has contributed to such national
magazines as Ladies' Home Journal, Cosmopolitan,
and Parents. She lives in Westport, Connecticut.
Recently, I sat down with her to discuss binge eating.
Kathleen:
Day to day binges, weekend binges and holiday binges plague
so many of us. There's such a negative stigma attached to
binge eating. It's easy to deny the behavior applies to us.
What defines a binge eater?
Dr. Dale Atkins: Most people
who eat in binge patterns do it when they're alone and more
often than not, when they are not hungry. Most of them eat
quickly.
Kathleen: What's the first step
in overcoming this behavior?
Dr. Dale Atkins: By being conscious
of our "eating patterns" we can become more aware
of what we eat, when we eat and why we eat. Self-awareness
is an integral of the process. Since many of us have food
rituals, we need to become mindful and conscious of what they
are in order to assess and deal with them.
Kathleen: How can people teach
themselves to take back control?
Dr. Dale Atkins: Tuning into
your body's needs, like knowing when you are hungry, is an
important aspect of taking control of these patterns.
Kathleen: It's no secret that
binge eating is directly related to our emotions. How can
we learn how not to turn to food when we're upset?
Dr. Dale Atkins: Thinking about
how you are feeling and staying with the feeling sometimes
writing it down, instead of stuffing it with food, is helpful.
It is also useful to reach out to someone. Call a good friend
and share with them how you're feeling.
Kathleen: Is it possible to stop
a binge, mid-binge?
Dr. Dale Atkins: Yes, certainly
it's something you can teach yourself to do. Sometimes, once
we begin to eat, we do not think we are capable of stopping
and we forget we still have the ability to choose and behave
in the way we would like.
When you are eating normally, take time to eat slowly, savor
each bite, enjoy the food, taste it and allow yourself to
be present while you're eating. This helps you to develop
a different relationship to food and that will make you feel
better and give you confidence.
Kathleen: If someone wants to
begin the process of taking control over bad eating habits
right this very minute, what's the first step?
Dr. Dale Atkins: They can begin
to act as a person who has the ability to eat healthfully
and comfortably, who can make choices, feel good about food
and appreciate its positive value in their life. Visualizing
this ideal self will help you move closer to that image.
Kathleen: And what if deep down
you just don't believe it's possible?
Dr. Dale Atkins: Removing judgment
from the equation is an important aspect of this self-assessment.
We do better when we examine our behavior and stay away from
such damaging self talk as "I'm such an out of control
pig," "I've never been successful before,"
"I'm a lost cause."
I worked with a young woman who began to visualize herself
as a person who could take control of her eating patterns.
After everyone went to bed, she'd go into the kitchen and
eat a box or more of cereal.
To break herself from this habit she learned to question her
behavior. Just prior to gathering the cereal boxes to pour
bowl after bowl, she learned to ask herself, "What would
my ideal self do?" Over time, she was able to take control
and have an inner dialogue with that "ideal self"
without judgment or chastising herself.
She began to embrace the idea that she was becoming her ideal
self. She no longer had 10 bowls of cereal at 11:30 at night.
She began to cut back by telling herself she was making progress.
And more importantly, she started believing she was making
progress.
Kathleen: A lot of people get
really discouraged early on. How important is it to acknowledge
the tiny behavioral changes we make?
Dr. Dale Atkins: So much of our
success is tied into noting our progress as we deal with the
incremental changes in behavior as well as becoming more aware
and accepting of our feelings.
Kathleen: Thank you, Dr. Atkins.
I know this information will be a positive spring board for
many.
Dr. Dale Atkins' latest book, I'm
OK, You're My Parents: How to Overcome Guilt, Let Go of
Anger, and Create a Relationship That Works,
draws on twenty-five years of experience as a relationship
expert to present a comprehensive guide to repairing difficult
relationships, gaining control, and building a life that
you and your parents can live with for years to come.
For
more information on binge eating disorders, consult your
physician and click on: http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health/nutrit/pubs/binge.htm
Click
here for more info on I'm OK, You're My Parents
(Requires the free Acrobat
Reader; click the button below to download the Reader)
Other
books by Dr. Dale Atkins:
Sisters
From
the Heart: Men and Women Write Their Private Thoughts About
Their Married Lives
dratkins@kathleendaelemans.com
|
