Stop emotional eating with hypnotherapy

Emotional eating is eating to change how you feel rather than because you’re hungry. A bad day at work, a row, a quiet evening on your own or just feeling flat, and suddenly you’re in the kitchen. For a few minutes it helps. Then the feeling comes back, often with guilt on top.

Comfort eating is very common, and it isn’t a sign that you’re weak. Food is quick, legal and always there, so it’s an easy thing for the mind to learn to lean on. I’m Adam Cox, a clinical hypnotherapist with 17 years in practice, and this page explains how to stop emotional eating, how hypnotherapy can help and where to find free support.

Signs you're eating to cope with your feelings

You eat when you're stressed, upset, lonely or bored, even soon after a meal
The urge comes on suddenly and wants a particular food, often something sweet or salty
You eat quickly, sometimes without really tasting it
You feel better for a few minutes, then worse
You hide what you've eaten, or eat differently in front of other people
A hard day feels like it has earned you a treat

Why it's hard to stop stress eating

Food changes how you feel, quickly. Something sweet or rich gives a short lift and a sense of comfort, and the brain remembers what worked. Do it enough times and the link becomes automatic: the feeling arrives, and the urge to eat arrives with it, before you've had a chance to think.

That's why diets and food rules rarely fix emotional eating on their own. They take away the food but leave the feeling with nowhere to go. Real change usually means two things: finding other ways to deal with the feeling, and weakening the automatic link to food.

How hypnotherapy can help you stop emotional eating

In sessions we work on both sides. We look at the feelings that set off your eating and the situations where they show up, and in hypnosis we rehearse calmer responses to them. Sometimes it also helps to look at where the pattern started, for example food being used as comfort or a reward when you were young.

You'll still have hard days, and you'll still be the one making choices about food. Sessions won't take that away, and how much they help is different for everyone. What they can do is put a little space between the feeling and the fridge, so the choice you want to make is easier.

Hypnotherapy isn't a treatment for an eating disorder. If you make yourself sick, skip meals or eat large amounts and feel out of control, please speak to your GP or Beat first.

How to stop emotional eating: things you can try today

Name the feeling. When an urge comes, say to yourself what's really going on, such as tired, angry or lonely. Putting a word to it often takes some of the heat out.
Do a hunger check. Physical hunger builds slowly and almost any food will do. Emotional hunger comes on fast and wants something specific.
Wait ten minutes. Set a timer and do something else first. If you still want to eat afterwards, sit down, eat slowly and notice how it feels.
Make a feelings list. Write down one or two things that help with each feeling, such as a walk for stress, a phone call for loneliness or an early night for tiredness.
Eat regular meals. Going a long time without food can make emotional eating harder to resist.
Drop the guilt after a slip. Guilt is another feeling food tries to fix, so it tends to keep the cycle going.

If you mostly reach for sweet things, see my page on sugar addiction. If eating feels out of control more generally, see overeating, and if it's mostly grazing in the evening, see snacking.

When to talk to your GP or Beat

If you often eat large amounts and feel out of control, or you make yourself sick, skip meals or exercise to make up for eating, please talk to your GP or call Beat on 0808 801 0677.

Beat is the UK's eating disorder charity, and its helplines are for anyone struggling with food and feelings, including people who aren't sure they have an eating disorder. They're open weekdays, 3pm to 8pm. If you live in Scotland, call 0808 801 0432. In Wales it's 0808 801 0433, and in Northern Ireland 0808 801 0434.

If emotional eating is tied up with low mood, anxiety or stress that won't lift, your GP can help, and in England you can refer yourself for free to NHS Talking Therapies. If you're feeling hopeless or thinking about ending your life, call Samaritans free on 116 123, any time.

Common questions

What is emotional eating?

Emotional eating means eating to cope with feelings rather than hunger. It might be stress eating after work, comfort eating when you're sad or lonely, or eating out of boredom. Most people do it now and then. It becomes a problem when it's your main way of coping, or when it leaves you feeling worse.

How do I know if I'm hungry or just emotional?

Physical hunger tends to build slowly, comes with signs like a rumbling stomach, and most foods will satisfy it. Emotional hunger tends to come on suddenly, wants one particular food, and often carries on after you're full.

Is emotional eating an eating disorder?

Not on its own. Many people eat emotionally without having an eating disorder. But if you often eat large amounts and feel out of control, or you make yourself sick, skip meals or exercise to make up for eating, please talk to your GP or call Beat on 0808 801 0677.

How many sessions will I need?

It depends on how long food has been your way of coping and how many different feelings it's tied to. Some people start with one 90 minute session on their hardest moment, such as the evening after work. Others choose three, which gives us room to work on stress, loneliness and boredom separately. We can decide together on a consultation call.

How do sessions work?

We meet one to one over Zoom, so you can join from home. We build each session around the feelings and situations that send you to the kitchen, and you get a recording of the hypnosis to listen to afterwards.