hi everyone

I've already posted here about food. Just wanted to share my thoughts. I have had food addiction for so long, I can't date it, but back to my childhood anyway. I've been struggling a lot this last year because I have put on so much weight. EFT has helped me a lot but I have never tapped enough for my issue to go away. Recently I have decided to really tackle the problem and tap tap tap anytime I needed to. I keep having binge eating and each time it happens I promise myself Itll never happen again but of course the next day I do it again after trying to control myself like mad. Then I really tried to understand what was it I was feeling inside, why did I need to eat so much. It always starts in the afternoon, around 2pm until bedtime, I want to eat all the time, I basicaly think about food all the time. I know it's partly beause of hormones imbalance but there's also sthg else to it and even when I dont want to eat I want to want to eat if you know what I mean? as if I needed this to feel happy. So I asked myself, ok what would happen if you were fed by a tube and couldnt eat through the mouth all day? and I feel actually empty, sad and frustrated. I dont know why really but not being allowed to eat for me is really hard, it s not a matter of feeling full or satisfied, but more a way of giving me pleasure I suppose. I also thought it was linked to boredom but I realise that even when I'm busy or having a great time with my friends for ex I want to eat, especially when I feel exhausted but that now I know is caused by the adrenals and low cortisol. So I have decided to tap every day "even though I feel empty and sad when I dont eat, I deeply love and accept myself". I so want to eat only when I'm hungry and not to give the pleasure I cant give myself otherwise. I have had this addiction for so long ts so part of me and hard to shift for me. Also like I said sometimes I dont esp want to eat my apple but i want me to want it. Now I want to it for my bodys needs and find another way of giving me pleasure. I'm sure EFT will help and will keep yo posted on my progress!

Hi Caroline,

I will give you one part of sensory test that if you try this and get some reaction, and let me know then I will tell you more of what this may suggest for you.

 I gather that you are fairly good with knowing how to sense things in your body after you tapped on yourself, as in what body sensation comes up next? And if so, I want you to try this, imagine your self earting some things that you feel that you are allergic too, think of eatiing them and try to sense what body sensation comes up. Do the same with more foods, see if eating certain foods give your body some sensory reaction and if some not ok?  And if  this food sensory test works for you, then I will tell you how I used  this tp change from stop eating some foods all together.

 Harry

Hi Caroline & All,

What I basically did not say was this, I was press for time when doing my last message,  was that about 4 weeks ago, I began to have this idea of how foods make my body feel, and how using the EFT sensory technique, of how somthing make me feel, this led me to come to learn that with me, that I can go to a health food store and just imagine my eating some pasta, this and that dish, a fruit and any vegetable, that those foods that gave me some sense of body sensation, to not eat them. I did this and in few days, to my amazement, it been going on about one month that I had no food cravings, this obvious led to some weight lost, no feeling bloated at all.after eating.

But what I too learned later, that I had to more so imagine chewing and chewing some foods, and this is the better acid test of if my body can better handle them. It kind of make some sense as why the imagining of chewing may make this work better. So it may be this by doing this, this may better allow you to eat foods that have you zero to less craving, thus ridding you of what possible food adiction you may have.

Harry

 Hello Harry!

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read my post and then reply!

I'm not sure I have understood everything you said, so you meant that when I want some food, let's say chocolate, I need to concentrate on the feeling it would give me if I ate it, right? cos you talk about allergy too but I have food addictions that are not allergies so it can work for other food items I suppose.

 Right now, for example, we had dinner, we had guests and at the end of the meal they had bread and cheese (it's a French thing), now I want tome bread and butter so badly, also because this is my favourite food but I have resisted so far. Ok so I imagine I'm eating it, what can I feel? I love bread because it's very thick and it satisfies you much when you eat it, if you know what I mean? IT's not like a cracker with which you need ten to be a bit satisfied. I love butter on bread because it gives it such a wonderful taste, I think it's not the same without butter. For me bread with butter is the utmost pleasure in food, well also it depends on wether I want something sweet or not of course but I love it so deeply, I guess it is linked to my childhood maybe? when we would eat bread and margarine a lot? I don't know. I can't really explain what I feel except that it gives me great pleasure, food gives me sthg that nothing else does, thats why whenever I try to resists and do sthg instead of eating, sthg I like, it doesnt't last, I'll always want to eat anyway, unless I tap it away but even tapping doesnt help somtimes cos a bit later the craving will be back.

So Harry, your advice is to imagine eating the food you want and then the craving will go away? cos then your mind thinks you have eaten the food and you dont want it anymore? Is this correct? I will try that, I have never thought of that before!

Thank you!

Have a good day!

Hi Caroline,

For me it may been that  all my life there been some foods that I may been more semi allergic too and just never had no idea of this being true. Now what I said was more simple this,, that if you are about to eat a food, imagine yourself eating it and chewing and chewing on it, and if your if your feel any bodiily sensation, the same as using one EFT sensory perception, so it be like your  in thinking of eating a food, as how it will make your feel body sensation wise, and if you do feel something, this may indicate that this food is not good for you, and if you feel nothing, it be ok for your body. So by eliminating and not eating foods that may give you a reaction, in days this may lead to your not having any food cravings, this is what this did for me, and it may too work for you and others on this forum. I hope what I just said was clearer?

So too, in all I said was not of some matter of say healing one's food craving and addition, but more of using a method that one not eat some foods that in eating them, they help in a person having a food addition.

Harry

 thanks Harry, ok I understand what you mean but I dont know if I can feel anything really when I imagine eating a food. Besides, what is the EFT sensory technique? I dont know if I'm allergic to some food, I mean according to some tests, I'm intolerant to casein, almonds and cacao but you know these stuff are not reliable, plus you can be allergic/intolerant to stuff that dont show on these tests. What I sometimes have is I feel weird after having grains, even gluten free grains, like a rush inside, so it might not suit me, esp when I eat too much of it, same with fruit, I guess it has to do with the glycemia.

Thanks for your help!

carox

Hi Carox,

I gather that you are doing EFT work on yourself? And most of it is like if your have some issue or pain, that you put your attention on be it a pain of what you feel and then began to tap on yourself,  this is what I am referring to as the EFT sensory technique. Or too after you tap on some issue or matter, you focus your attention on what feelings come up next. This is called "chasing the pain, as it changes". This too is an aspect of  EFT wise using your sensory abillities to sense the sensation of what you feel next. So all I am asking you is to change things up a little, and that be thinking of eating some food and chewing it, so you be asking and sensing to yourself as what you feel, if any thing, sensation wise that may come up ok? I hope you got this now?  And repeating myself once again, it you feel nothing, this may suggest that what food you are thinking of eating is ok, but it you do feel something, this may suggest the opposite. This is how I learned that there are many more foods that I am likely allergic to or may be just not good for me. And as I said before too, by base my food selection on doing this food eating/chewing sensory technique, this seem to lead that I now have zero food cravings. This been going on about a month now.

 Harry

 hello Harry! thank you for your quick reply!

Well yeah I understand how you mean but except feeling that it gives me great pleasure, I cant feel anything physically really when imagine eating a food. I have intolerances but I cant feel any difference physically when I eat the forbidden food so..

I so need to get rid of this issue! I feel lost most of the time and dunno what to tap on for starters but I'll get there!

thanks!

Hi Carox,

Ok, and this idea came to me out the blue sort of ok? You know what psychological reversal is? It is mainly the rubbing the karate chop point, doing my left hand work best for me, and it may be better to do the sawing of the bothing of your hand together, that is using the sawing motion of rubbing the KC point of both hands together.

So in doing a PR on your self before doing this food sensory/imagining exercise on somthing you are thinking of eating, that may free you up to feel something ok? I not thought this of myself before due to this always worked for me, and many times that things that work for me and not others, I show them how to do PR on themself, then it work for them, sorry my bad for not thinking of this before, and I hope it works if this is to be.

Harry

 thank you Harry, this is really nice of you to help me, I'll try what you suggested! BTW I havent eaten badly since Monday now so I'm happy about myself, I tap at the moment and it's hard cos it makes me cry and I hate feeling this pain inside. I hope I can fix this food issue, I'm contemplating going to sessions like AA but for eating disorders. that can only help to talk about it as I'm a bit skint to see a therapist!

carolinejili:

I keep having binge eating and each time it happens I promise myself Itll never happen again but of course the next day I do it again after trying to control myself like mad. Then I really tried to understand what was it I was feeling inside, why did I need to eat so much. ...as if I needed this to feel happy. So I asked myself, ok what would happen if you were fed by a tube and couldnt eat through the mouth all day? and I feel actually empty, sad and frustrated. I dont know why really but not being allowed to eat for me is really hard, it s not a matter of feeling full or satisfied, but more a way of giving me pleasure I suppose.

Hi Carolinejili

You are finding out that really your addiction, as with any addiction, is not about the substance to which you are seemingly addicted - food - but the feelings that are being numbed by the addictive action. You have no problem with food at all. You have a problem with feeling empty, sad and frustrated. Putting food into your body isn't so much seeking pleasure as a habitual or learned way of numbing those painful feelings. So your setup phrase "even though I feel empty and sad when I don't eat..." is great.  It's spot on. Take it from there and look at all the things that make you feel empty and sad, especially the kind of emptiness we feel when there is a lack or insufficiency of love in our lives.

The difficulty is in facing all those painful feelings and allowing them to be what they are - memories from the past stuck in the present moment. There are several ways to tackle this, and EFT is probably the most gentle and effective way. If the focus on food starts around 2pm, what are you thinking about and doing say an hour before at 1pm? Can you really step back from yourself and just notice what you are thinking and feeling that triggers the compulsion. You say this addiction is part of you - can you challenge that thought? Is it really true that it is a part of you?  Does it have to be that way? What if you could let that thought go?

Addictions are deeply rooted in emotional pain and trauma and I sincerely recommend you find a practitioner to work with this, even if it's on a mentoring level, so he or she guides you and you do all the EFT. Many practitioners offer reduced rates for people on low incomes and it doesn't mean you have to commit yourself to working with just one person. You can do this on your own, but getting help and guidance from someone who understands the complexities of the addictive behaviour could get you through it faster.

with love

 Hello Bodhileaf!

Thank you for your lovely message! This rings so true to me! What is so hard to do is fill in this emptiness and finally grieve and I wondered if tapping could help me grieve, I think I'm scared to forget, you know? But grieving doesnt mean forgetting the person I guess. Like I said in another post, I miss my stepdad and I think about him a lot, am tapping about his loss at the moment.

Thanks for helping me!

Have all a nice evening!

 Hi Caroline

You are so right, grieving isn't about forgetting the person at all. If you like, grief is about shifting our relationship with the deceased to a new way. Have you looked at Jan Luther's work around grief? She is an EFT Master and Grief Specialist, she has written a book called Grief is Mourning Sickness and has a video here http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5339464700747506734# on using EFT for grief.

There's also yourself to grieve for, the parts of you that feel lost. Any movement towards wholeness means letting go of ways we have been habitually identifying ourselves, and surprisingly, that can bring up really deep grief too. I have done so much grieving in these past few years yet am lucky enough to have all my close family and friends still alive, healthy and well. I have grieved for the relationship I didn't have with my sons when they were born because I was not in a stable place. I also know when I have another grief piece waiting in the wings, so to speak, because my eating habits change. I reach for the childhood comfort foods more. Thanks to much tapping I can now be content with this and shift my focus from the food to my emotional needs - I don't deny myself the food, I just notice that I'm feeling a need, acknowledge that, then go looking for the place where I'm holding onto something emotional that's coming up ready to be released.

Thank you for doing your healing work - everyone benefits when each of us looks within and heals the traumas of our past. How beautiful is that?

with love

Marian