The 6 Keys To Happiness That Reduce Comfort Eating

Comfort eating has little to do with our need for food and everything to do with our need for love and happiness. The happier we are, in life, the less we reach out for food inappropriately. The more we love ourselves the greater our emotional stability. The more emotionally balanced we feel, the less we need to use food as a substitute for comfort and happiness.

Of course, happiness for most people is not a permanent state of being. However we can make a choice, in our lives, to fill each day with as much happiness as possible.

We also have a choice about how we handle the things that make us unhappy. The fact is that unhappiness is a state of mind that generates uncomfortable, stressful emotions, which many of us then try to bury with food. What we are missing out on is the lesson those emotions are there to tell us. They are actually the needle of our internal barometer, indicating to us when we are off course.

· Stress in our daily lives is indicating that our life is out of balance and needs us to give ourselves some 'Me Time' or family and friends time

· Stress caused by difficult relationships with friends, family or work colleagues indicate that we have something to learn about ourselves that the other person is mirroring back at us

· Stressful situations that cannot be changed by anything we say or do and that only wind us up more and more as we experience or think about them. Let go of your battle with 'What is' where it is outside your influence to change it

To get back on track or stay on a course for happiness and reduced comfort eating, there are 6 Key things we can do...

1. Make the choice to seek and focus on happiness every day

2. Acknowledge the things that are outside our influence to change and let go of them or they will continue to cause stress, pain and upset

3. Practice noticing your thoughts as they focus on negative past events and remembrances. These are gone and cannot be changed but they will cause unhappiness if you allow them to. Let them go by bringing all your attention to the here-and-now.

4. Practice labelling your thoughts into categories such as judgmental, fearful, depressive, guilty, helpless, worried, lonely, jealous, sad or anxious. Let them go by creating and taking actions to overcome them. It is in the inaction that unhappiness lies.

5. Practice noticing when you are focussed on fears and worries of the future. Acknowledge that these things have not occurred as yet and may never do so. Let go and stop wasting the happiness of the moment on things that may never be, or take action to prevent your fears materialising.

6. Practice Mindfulness, living in the moment as much as possible, without past or future thoughts. See the joy, beauty and happiness in whatever you are doing, no matter how mundane.

Happiness is your birthright, isn't it time you claimed it for yourself and reduced your comfort eating in the process?