Re:Not hungry

[Guest guest]

,

I'm wondering if the fatigue you feel is one of your hunger signals...Once I learned about IE, I had to really ask myself...how do I really know when I'm hungry? I realized that I didn't know the answer to that question. So, I started asking other people around me how did they know when they were hungry...and most people I knew also couldn't answer that question. I also went on the internet and researched hunger and I did get some good pointers, but nothing that made understanding my own hunger more clear. So, I decided to do some personal research. I normally didn't feel hunger in the morning. So, I spent a whole day and waited to see how long it took me to get hungry when I first began IE (formally). I didn't get noticeably hungry (that I could identify) until like 5 p.m. I went the whole day without eating anything. Then I thought of something that I read in the book about how our hunger signals can get muted or sometimes stop because we may

not have paid attention to or ignored those signals most of our life. So, a HUGE part of the journey for me is been tracking and learning my own signals. So, if I where you, if I hadn't eaten in a while and felt that sense of fatigue, I'd try giving myself a little something to eat and see if my energy level changes.

A big part of integrating the IE process into my life has been experimentation and figuring out what's really truly helpful for my body. I've also been told that it's better to eat 5 smaller meals throughout the day. Sometimes, my nibbling during the day turns into 5 small meals...most of the time it doesn't. Again, if I have the energy I might try eating 5 small meals each day for a week or so and see how my body (energy level) responds to it. I've come to believe that I need to test these so-called "rules" 8 glasses of water a day, 30 minutes of aerobics everyday, 5 meals a day...and see how MY body responds.

You are not alone. There are countless times when I've eaten and figured out immediately after that I wasn't really hungry and I was eating out of some emotional issue that I didn't realize consciously. Again, one of the biggest things for me has been getting more clear about what my hunger signals truly are and what my other bodily signals mean. Writing in a journal has also been helpful for me too. Immediately after I wake up from my "auto-pilot eating episodes", I really feel into what was going on in my body...did I feel heaviness, nothingness, coldness, anger...sadness...can I put a word, sound, or color to how I was feeling, I ask myself what's going on in my life that is stressful? I usually can go back to and really consciously sense into what was going on with me.

I guess my experience has shown me that the more awareness I bring to me (my habits, emotions, sensations, thoughts, etc), the more I can figure out ways to meet my needs without using food. I've been able to build a system of body signals over the past few years. For example, I now know that when I get really cold in my body that I'm feeling disconnected. I would eat warming foods like fries to make myself feel better. What kind of foods are you eating during those times? With my coldness signal tagged, I normally don't eat when I feel that sensation anymore. I consciously recognize that feeling, so I can feel it, deal with it (I visualize warming my body or I move around the room), and I don't have to "blackout" as much. I know that, before, I didn't know how to handle my overwhelming feelings and emotions. I and my body knew that food would work...food would make me feel better and take the pain away. Now, I know and my body knows

that I have other options that work too. Find out and practice what helps you feel better for your own circumstances. IE has become a vital part of a journey into myself...into understanding, working with, and honoring my body.

Latoya:)

[Guest guest]

Absolutely marvelous post Latoya! This is the living 'practice' of IE

that we are all shooting for. Reading that you have done this as well

as how you did it is a fabulous gift to this group. I am inspired

too.Thank you for posting this!

ehugs, Katcha

>

> ,

>

> I'm wondering if the fatigue you feel is one of your hunger

signals...Once I learned about IE, I had to really ask myself...how do

I really know when I'm hungry? I realized that I didn't know the

answer to that question. So, I started asking other people around me

how did they know when they were hungry...and most people I knew also

couldn't answer that question. I also went on the internet and

researched hunger and I did get some good pointers, but nothing that

made understanding my own hunger more clear. So, I decided to do some

personal research. I normally didn't feel hunger in the morning. So, I

spent a whole day and waited to see how long it took me to get hungry

when I first began IE (formally). I didn't get noticeably hungry (that

I could identify) until like 5 p.m. I went the whole day without

eating anything. Then I thought of something that I read in the book

about how our hunger signals can get muted or sometimes stop because

we may not have

> paid attention to or ignored those signals most of our life. So, a

HUGE part of the journey for me is been tracking and learning my own

signals. So, if I where you, if I hadn't eaten in a while and felt

that sense of fatigue, I'd try giving myself a little something to eat

and see if my energy level changes.

>

> A big part of integrating the IE process into my life has been

experimentation and figuring out what's really truly helpful for my

body. I've also been told that it's better to eat 5 smaller meals

throughout the day. Sometimes, my nibbling during the day turns into 5

small meals...most of the time it doesn't. Again, if I have the energy

I might try eating 5 small meals each day for a week or so and see how

my body (energy level) responds to it. I've come to believe that I

need to test these so-called " rules " 8 glasses of water a day, 30

minutes of aerobics everyday, 5 meals a day...and see how MY body

responds.

>

> You are not alone. There are countless times when I've eaten and

figured out immediately after that I wasn't really hungry and I was

eating out of some emotional issue that I didn't realize consciously.

Again, one of the biggest things for me has been getting more clear

about what my hunger signals truly are and what my other bodily

signals mean. Writing in a journal has also been helpful for me too.

Immediately after I wake up from my " auto-pilot eating episodes " , I

really feel into what was going on in my body...did I feel heaviness,

nothingness, coldness, anger...sadness...can I put a word, sound, or

color to how I was feeling, I ask myself what's going on in my life

that is stressful? I usually can go back to and really consciously

sense into what was going on with me.

>

> I guess my experience has shown me that the more awareness I bring

to me (my habits, emotions, sensations, thoughts, etc), the more I can

figure out ways to meet my needs without using food. I've been able

to build a system of body signals over the past few years. For

example, I now know that when I get really cold in my body that I'm

feeling disconnected. I would eat warming foods like fries to make

myself feel better. What kind of foods are you eating during those

times? With my coldness signal tagged, I normally don't eat when I

feel that sensation anymore. I consciously recognize that feeling, so

I can feel it, deal with it (I visualize warming my body or I move

around the room), and I don't have to " blackout " as much. I know that,

before, I didn't know how to handle my overwhelming feelings and

emotions. I and my body knew that food would work...food would make me

feel better and take the pain away. Now, I know and my body knows

that I have

> other options that work too. Find out and practice what helps you

feel better for your own circumstances. IE has become a vital part of

a journey into myself...into understanding, working with, and honoring

my body.

>

> Latoya:)

>