40: Emotional Eating: Why We Do It and How to Stop with Tricia Nelson

Bag of chips. Pint of ice cream. Pick your favorite vice. Ever caught yourself thinking, “I’m not even hungry—so why am I eating this?”

In this episode, I’m joined by Tricia Nelson, founder of Heal Your Hunger and author of Heal Your Hunger: 7 Simple Steps to End Emotional Eating Now. After losing 50 pounds and healing her own relationship with food, Tricia has devoted decades to helping women uncover the real reasons behind emotional eating.

We talk about:

✔️What emotional eating actually is (and how to recognize it)

✔️How it gets more complicated in midlife

✔️The PEP test (Painkiller, Escape, Punishment) and how food plays each role

✔️Why diets fail and what to do instead

✔️Practical steps to break the cycle and find freedom

🎧 Listen in to discover how to stop reaching for food when what you really need is something else entirely.

CHAPTERS:

02:28 What is Emotional Eating?

04:30 Why Do We Turn to Sugar and Carbs?

05:52 Tricia's PEP Test for Understanding Why We Emotionally Eat

09:49 Are Some of Us Predisposed to Emotional Eating?

15:47 Breaking the Cycle of Emotional Eating

19:56 The 3 Things That Drive Emotional Eating

24:21 How To Care For Yourself When You're Emotionally Eating

28:05 Emotional Eating in Midlife

34:59 Tricia's Coaching Program

40:07 Key Takeaways

Connect with Tricia:

➡️ Tricia’s website

➡️ Take Tricia’s Emotional Eating Quiz

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