Emotional Eating, CPTSD & Nervous System Healing: 3 Simple Skills to Stop the Spiral

Emotional eating. It's my biggest problem in trying to lose weight. When I feel good. When I'm relaxed and happy, I don't feel the need to search for food, especially sugar to shove down my throat. Unfortunately, I don't feel calm and relaxed and happy very often.  But that's another topic and one that I'm working on in my other video series about healing trauma.

And honestly… if you’re here reading this, it’s probably because emotional eating has been a struggle for you too. You saw the title, you felt the recognition, and something inside you said, “Yeah… that’s me.”

You’re not alone.

I’ve spent years stuck in this cycle. I’ve lost over 100 pounds—twice—and gained it back. I’ve tried the plans, the programs, the willpower, the medications, the “fresh starts.” And every time life got overwhelming, painful, lonely, or stressful, I went right back to food. Not because I’m weak. But because food became my coping mechanism.

This past year, I’ve done deep trauma work. EMDR. Therapy. Healing old wounds. Digging through childhood pain. And while that healing has been powerful, I’ve learned something incredibly important:

Healing trauma alone isn’t enough.
I also have to learn new skills.

Real change happens when healing and skill-building go hand in hand.

So instead of trying to “fix everything at once,” I’m slowing way down. This time, I’m taking it one step at a time. And this week, my only focus is this:

Learning how to regulate my nervous system before I eat.

Not dieting.
Not restricting.
Not forcing.
Just pausing.

Because I don’t want to live reactively anymore. I want to live wisely.

Why Emotional Eating Keeps Pulling Us Back

I turn to food when I’m stressed.
When I’m overwhelmed.
When I’m lonely.
When anxiety hits.
When life feels like too much.

And you probably have your own reasons too.

That’s why quick fixes don’t last. GLP-1 medications, diets, surgery, programs—they don’t address the emotional root. I’ve watched friends go through weight loss surgery, lose everything, and gain it all back plus more. Not because they failed… but because emotional eating was never healed.

I don’t want that life anymore.
I want sustainable healing.
Real healing.
Nervous system healing.

So here are the three skills I’m practicing to begin breaking the emotional eating cycle.

1. Regulating Through Breathing

The first skill is simple—but powerful: intentional breathing.

Any time I feel the urge to eat emotionally, my only goal is to pause. That’s it. Pause and breathe.

Box breathing (inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4)
Slow breathing
Gentle breathing
Whatever feels calming

The goal isn’t perfection. The goal is to bring my body back to safety before I make a decision.

If I’m calm and still want to eat? That’s okay.
But I no longer want to eat from panic, stress, or emotional overwhelm.

2. Grounding With the 5-4-3-2-1 Method

The second skill is grounding. Specifically, the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique, which is widely used in trauma therapy, anxiety treatment, and DBT.

• 5 things I can see
• 4 things I can touch
• 3 things I can hear
• 2 things I can smell
• 1 thing I can taste

This pulls your mind out of spiraling thoughts and back into the present moment.

I even created grounding bracelets with bead groupings to help make this easier and more tactile, because touch is incredibly regulating for the nervous system. Sometimes I don’t even count—I just hold the beads, breathe, and let my body settle.

And the difference is real.

3. Bilateral Stimulation

The third technique is bilateral stimulation, which activates both sides of the brain and helps calm emotional overwhelm.

This can look like:
• Alternating tapping on your legs
• Butterfly hug tapping
• Audio tones moving ear to ear
• Eye movement tracking
• Gentle rhythmic movement

It’s grounding. It’s regulating. And it helps interrupt emotional spirals before they take over.

This Is About Permanent Change

In the past, I’d read every self-help book, try everything at once, burn out, and quit. This time I’m choosing something different:

Slow progress.
One skill at a time.
Sustainable change.

Because the changes I want aren’t temporary.
They’re lifelong.

Like the butterfly—real transformation takes time. It takes patience. It takes process. And that’s okay.

If you’re struggling with emotional eating, trauma-related weight issues, CPTSD, anxiety, or feeling disconnected from your body… I see you. You’re not broken. Your nervous system has just learned survival strategies that no longer serve you.

And healing is absolutely possible.