Hunger triggers feelings of hunger and prepares the stomach to accept food. You must be able to recognize if your stomach is hungry, sometimes you can mistake the feeling of hunger for thirst. Try drinking a glass of warm water next time you are hungry…but you don’t think you should be, maybe you have eaten a short while ago. A glass of water 15 minutes before you eat can also lead to eating less. Hunger will make you uncomfortable if it is not properly managed. It could lead to a mild form of binge eating, as you are so hungry and have built up anticipation of the food. This could lead to a cycle of overeating.

Here are ways to help you keep hunger in control and avoid the chance of becoming a compulsive eater.

Measure and delay hunger
Hunger has different intensities. Every time you feel hungry, mark the intensity of the hunger in your mind; 1 as a little hungry and 5 as very hungry. Delay hunger if you can. You overcome the hunger, and eating is postponed. Do you feel good? Relish your success!

Eat small portions
Hunger prepares the stomach for food. Eat small portions, the food will taste better, and the digestive systems will not be overworked. Eating this way will give you a blast of energy better than that of coffee.

Decide how much to eat
Eat predetermined quantities, and decide how much is enough. Chew your food well. Slow down and relax. Feel content as you eat. Enjoy your food and savor every bite. Relish each moment as if it was the last meal.

Drink at the end of the meal
Herbal tea is relaxing; it is a nice drink after a meal and will help you move out of the mode of overeating. This will give your stomach the feeling of contentment. You feel the satisfaction now? Be thankful that you are satisfied.

The next time you are hungry, face it and be at peace. Hunger can cause feelings of being deprived. Ignore it. Hunger stir uncomfortable emotions. Again, ignore it. You can do it!

Butterflies are beautiful, unique, and display an incredible process of transformation. What was a fat, leaf-chomping, tree crawler is now one of the most beautiful creatures in flight. In the same way, humans can transform from tree crawlers being driven by the lower nature to that of a free creatures, flying the skies, enjoying all the blessings of life.

Steps to Change Compulsive Thoughts

1. When you are ready to eat, take a moment to thank God for all He has given.
2. Chew the food well, slowly tasting and enjoying each bite.
3. Enjoy the food and relish each bite. Eat slowly, chewing, tasting and enjoying till the food becomes liquid.
4. Feel content when your stomach tells you have eaten enough.
5. Do not let your mind wander, stay focused on the act of eating.
6. When you finish eating, congratulate yourself for doing well. You have eaten in a disciplined manner. Feel good that you are giving your body good nutrition.

Before you eat, consider your goals for the day. See yourself accomplishing them easily and feeling good about it. Visualize yourself enjoying the day. Decide to be loose and be child-like. Get determined to have some fun, relishing each second, as though they are the last moment on earth.

If you are feeling lonely, question the thought. If you feel worthless, challenge it. You are a kind, loving, patient person who works hard at whatever you do. You are not worthless; you are a good person, rare and unique. Be at peace with yourself. Forgive your mistakes most especially yourself. You don’t have to be perfect. Let go of those uncomfortable feelings and trust in God. Give Him your doubts and suffering. You do not need food for comfort. Food cannot give you what you want. Straighten up your shoulders, loosen up, let go, and be at peace. There is nothing to worry about. It will all work out.

The cares and pressures of the day will steal your enjoyment if you let it. Stay focused on the food. Make the decision and be firm to leave any problem in God’s hands. If you are tense, take a few deep breaths, inhale and slowly exhale to the word “peace”. Do not let your thinking get negative. Declare to your soul: “This is going to be a good day!”

You are eating healthy and disciplining yourself and you should feel good about that. At the end of the meal, feel the guilt-free contentment of what you have eaten. There will be times you may still feel a little hungry, ignore the feeling of hunger and move to your next activity. If after all these positive thoughts, you find yourself still wrestling with the desire to eat more, create a feeling of revulsion then get moving.

Great effort is needed to end the uncontrollable desire for food. For that reason, develop your fighting skills to conquer compulsive actions.

This battle is for freedom; refuse to fail. You can feel intense emotions and choose not to give in. Tell yourself, “I refuse to quit. I refuse to give in. I refuse to fail.” During the emotional windstorms caused by temptation, ask yourself, “what do I really want?” Eating to relieve stress is not what you want. What you really want is to be at peace. Eating out of anger is not what you want. What you want is to resolve the issue. Eating to relieve fear is not what you want. What you really want is the courage to face it. Eating in the place of boredom is not what you want. What you really want is a challenge that will stir some excitement within you.

Do not fight obsessive thoughts, but deflect them into positive thoughts and activities. Use mini-breaks to change your mood and break cycles of obsessive thinking. Do something you enjoy for a few minutes until the emotions diminish. Play an instrument, exercise, go for a short walk, or do some stretching. Not only will you be fighting obsessive thoughts, but improving your life one mini-break at a time. Do not give in to an urge; each time you do, the pleasure will create a craving to repeat it. Remind yourself that junk food is artificial pleasure that steals from your body. If you do not feed a craving, it will die. If you become anxious take a slow, deep breath, holding for one second, and then release, think peace. Let go and let God.

Create the feeling of revulsion to the point of nausea: finger nails scratching a blackboard, a hair in your soup, dog vomit on your carpet, a wet fur ball on your bed, or a bug in your shoe. Find what image best works for you. Use negative labeling. Bacon is burned strips of cholesterol and fat. Make up your own negative labels for the foods you are trying to quit. Play the mental tape to the end; look at the big picture. Don’t look only at the pleasure, but focus on all of the negative consequences.

When we discipline ourselves, we feel as though we have lost something, and feel deprived. Fight that feeling with the fact that you have what you need to be happy. Challenge the feeling of loss.

Remind yourself of the bad qualities of the food you hate. Refuse to eat them. Avoid triggers like donut stores and bakeries. Avoid spending time in the kitchen or at the dinner table when you start to feel tempted. Plan your meals. Have fruit or vegetable snacks ready.

The first few days can be the toughest. If you feel weak and out of it, it will be difficult to discipline your thoughts. Discipline is work, and feeling toxic creates an ‘I don’t –care’ feeling. It will pass once the blood clears of toxins. Do the best you can during these times to remain resolute.

Compulsive behavior destroys one’s sense of worth. It takes a strong willpower to rebuild self-esteem.

Failure can challenge us to try again or smash our self-worth. It can create determination or erode what resolve we have. We can use the failure to dig into our character and pull out strength, or lose all hope. The easy way is to give up. We stop trying so we won’t get hurt again. All of your energy is sapped. We feel hopeless. But it is at this very point where victory is won. This is the point of faith where we can draw on the deepest strength and use it to build the determination to try again.

The effect of failure distorts our thinking. It is like entering a dark tunnel. We can’t see our goals or even remember why they were important. We tell ourselves, “so what, it never really mattered.” But, we are lying to ourselves. Don’t let yourself get away with it. Remind yourself of the value of your goals. Build desire and enthusiasm. Tell yourself why it is important. Don’t get mad at you; get mad at the behavior. Where is your fighting spirit? Are you going to sit back and take it? Are you going to let a stupid little failure push you around? You’re tougher than that!

Write out your goals and what you want to accomplish. Enthuse yourself about your goals by visualizing you achieving them. Make achieving them feel pleasurable. See the things that will tempt you from your goals and create a feeling of revulsion as you think of them. Spend time building the desire to achieve.

Biblical Perspective

We spend so much of our life on the little useless details. We easily become sidetracked. We forget what our goals are and lose enthusiasm. Put your energy toward what is important. You need to invest time in encouraging yourself to move forward. When you feel like giving up, remember where you are going and why you are going there. And most importantly, pick your goals in prayer and humility before God, for it is only by His hand that they can be reached. Remember, What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? (Matthew 16:26)

Thou shalt not eat cookies. Thou shalt not eat ice cream. Thou shalt not eat peanut butter cups. And when you do, a big mean god up in heaven shakes his head with disgust. “Look at the failure I’ve made.”

But if you failed, God failed because He made you. But God didn’t fail. Everything in nature is unique including you, and nothing is perfect. Even the most perfect orchid is not perfect, and neither is anyone here on earth. God does not make us imperfect. He makes us unique. So it is time to give yourself the privilege of making mistakes and loving yourself in spite of them.

The message of Christ is forgiveness; we can never meet the standard required to get into Heaven, so He met it for us on the cross. We are accepted as we are; all we are asked to do is try. We think of repentance as a sad sinner before an angry god, but repentance is simply living with the desire to be right with Him. Repentance is feeling bad about hurting God and wanting to do it His way.

“I’m sorry God. I made a mistake. What I did was wrong. I really want to change. Please help me. Lord, I love you.”

A prayer like that puts us in a position where we are ready to change. “The action was wrong, but I know you love me and I do want to change.”

The Bible holds out the highest calling as a challenge: Be holy, because I am holy. (1 Peter 1:16) Wow! You can’t get much higher than that. But it is not a standard. If you tried to live up to that as a standard, you’d fail every three nano seconds. But all we are asked to do is to try with all our hearts. Trying is the goal.

God is proud of you. He is looking down, smiling with love. Encouragement sparkles in His eyes. He looks upon one whom He dearly loves. God can’t hate us. He loves us too much. He loves you no matter what sin you commit. His arms of welcome are always open.

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.
Galatians 5:24

All sin is a test of loyalty to God. We are constantly forced to choose between self-gratification and living a disciplined spiritual life. This is the challenge of God. What are you willing to give up? Are you willing to put an end to your selfish nature that your godly qualities may shine like a star in the heavens? He has many gifts for those who overcome.

To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on His throne.
Revelation 3:21