EMOTIONAL EATING EXPLAINED

Emotional Eating Treatment

We help individuals move away from shame, guilt and emotionally-driven eating, supporting a more balanced, flexible and compassionate relationship with food.

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Emotional Eating EXPLAINED?

What Is Emotional Eating?

Emotional eating is a common human response to difficult emotions such as stress, worry, sadness, loneliness, boredom or even excitement. Eating for comfort or pleasure is not inherently a problem — most people do this occasionally, and it is a normal part of being human.

1.25M

people living with an eating disorder

However, emotional eating can become difficult when it is the primary or only coping strategy for managing distress.

Although eating may provide short-term soothing or distraction, it does not resolve the underlying emotion or situation.

46%

of Adults feel unhappy about appearance

Physical vs Emotional Hunger

Physical Hunger

Physical (biological) hunger is your body’s natural signal that it needs nourishment. Signs can vary between individuals and may include:

  • Low energy, tiredness or sluggishness
  • Feeling faint, lightheaded or unable to concentrate
  • Irritability or low mood
  • Stomach rumbling or discomfort
  • Salivation or a dull ache in the mouth or throat

Emotional Hunger

Emotional hunger is triggered by a specific feeling, situation or internal state. Common features include:

  • Sudden, urgent cravings
  • Eating when no physical hunger is present
  • Preference for specific “comfort” foods
  • Eating that doesn’t lead to lasting satisfaction
  • Disconnected or automatic eating
OUR APPROACH

Our Approach to Emotional Eating

At The London Centre for Eating Disorders and Body Image, we take emotional eating seriously and recognise the impact it can have on self-esteem, mental health and daily life. Our clinicians use evidence-based psychological models to help you.

For individuals without an active eating disorder, we offer a structured 8-week Emotional Eating Programme designed to provide focused, practical and sustainable support.
  • Understand your eating patterns
  • Identify emotional and situational triggers
  • Build emotional regulation and distress tolerance skills
  • Develop alternative, healthier ways of coping
  • Reduce shame and guilt around food
  • Improve your relationship with your body and self

The Emotional Eating 8 Week Programme

A brief one-to-one course based on evidence based psychological and nutritional principles and delivered by an experienced clinician.

Week 1: Comprehensive Assessment (60 minutes)

We begin by gaining a clear understanding of your eating patterns, lifestyle, emotional triggers and goals, allowing us to tailor the programme to your needs.

  • Set realistic and collaborative treatment goals
  • Explore beliefs about food, weight and body image
  • Learn about emotional eating and what maintains it
  • Increase emotional awareness and recognition of triggers
  • Identify your own emotional eating triggers
  • Strengthen emotion regulation and resilience
  • Build a personalised coping toolkit
  • Reintroduce everyday pleasure, balance and self-care

Weeks 2–7: Weekly Sessions (50 minutes each)

Week 8: Review and Next Steps

We review the progress you’ve made, consolidate the skills you’ve developed, and work together to create a personalised maintenance plan. If further therapeutic work would be helpful, we will explore appropriate options.

Who Is The Programme For

This Programme May Be Suitable If You

  • Often turn to food as your main coping strategy
  • Experience guilt, shame or anxiety around food or eating
  • Feel out of control when eating in response to emotions
  • Do not have an active eating disorder
  • Want to enjoy food without fear or overthinking
  • Want to feel more comfortable and connected to your body
  • Are tired of the diet–relapse cycle

What You Will Learn By The End Of The Programme

  • Understand the concept of emotional eating in depth
  • Recognise and map out your eating patterns
  • Identify personal emotional triggers
  • Explore and challenge unhelpful food and body image beliefs
  • Build emotional awareness and tolerance
  • Learn coping strategies that do not rely on food
  • Understand and practise self-compassion
  • Improve your relationship with your body
  • Often turn to food as your main coping strategy
  • Want to enjoy food without fear or overthinking
  • Experience guilt, shame or anxiety around food or eating
  • Want to feel more comfortable and connected to your body
  • Feel out of control when eating in response to emotions
  • Are tired of the diet–relapse cycle
  • Do not have an active eating disorder

Who Is The Programme For? This Programme May Be Suitable If You:

What You Will Learn By The End Of The Programme

  • Understand the concept of emotional eating in depth
  • Build emotional awareness and tolerance
  • Recognise and map out your eating patterns
  • Learn coping strategies that do not rely on food
  • Identify personal emotional triggers
  • Understand and practise self-compassion
  • Explore and challenge unhelpful food and body image beliefs
  • Improve your relationship with your body
FAQ’s

FAQs About Emotional Eating Treatment

Not necessarily. Emotional eating is common. It becomes concerning when it causes significant distress or is your only coping strategy. If we identify features of an eating disorder, we will guide you to the most appropriate treatment pathway.

No. This programme is specifically for individuals without an active eating disorder. If eating disorder symptoms are present, we will discuss evidence-based treatments more appropriate for your needs.

Yes. Although this 8-week emotional eating programme is delivered by our Clinical Nutritionist, some people also benefit from additional psychological therapy alongside it. If this is something you feel may be helpful, we can advise on suitable options and coordinate support with our wider clinical team where appropriate.

This is very common. The programme includes work on reconnecting with internal cues and rebuilding trust in hunger and satiety signals.

No. The aim is not weight loss. We focus on psychological well-being, sustainable behaviour change and a healthier relationship with food.

Weight change is not a goal. Some people notice natural changes in appetite regulation as emotional eating reduces, but this varies and is not the focus of treatment.

You are welcome to continue therapy. Many people choose to deepen the work or address underlying themes, and your clinician will discuss options with you.

Contact our administrative team at info@thelondoncentre.co.uk to book the initial assessment or ask any questions.

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Our team conducts a comprehensive evaluation, leveraging the expertise of multiple specialists, to ensure that our bulimia therapy is effective and tailored to your personal recovery.

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