Are you scared of feeling hungry?
Monday, September 30, 2024
Are you scared of feeling hungry?
The fear of feeling hungry is REAL...
Which I know, seems kind of crazy in this day and age of food everywhere, that people could fear feeling hungry. But it's actually more common than you think. I see so many clients with it. Clients who don't realise that is what's happening for them.
You may even have it. How do you know?
Here are seven signs to look out for:
1. Your fridge and pantry shelves are always full to overflowing.
2. You don't allow yourself to get hungry before eating again.
3. You graze all day long.
4. You skip breakfast because when you eat it, you get hungrier during the day.
5. You drink LOTS of water throughout the day because you find that keeps your hunger at bay.
6. You keep yourself busy, throwing yourself into your work or exercise to distract yourself so that you won't notice your hunger signals.
7. You spend an excessive amount of time planning what to eat and try to "control" your hunger by eating specific foods (like lots of protein, or low calorie, diet foods).
Now doing any of those things doesn't guarantee that you fear feeling hunger, but it certainly makes it a lot more likely.
So what is hunger? And why do we find it so scary?
Hunger is a natural body signal that alerts us when it’s time to eat. What happens is, when your stomach is empty it produces the hormone ghrelin that then travels through the bloodstream to the part of the brain called the hypothalamus that's responsible for regulating hunger.
The most important thing to realise is that hunger is meant to feel uncomfortable. It's designed to motivate you to go find something to eat, which years ago (think cave-man times) wasn't as easy to do as it is today. Back then it could have taken you hours of foraging to find a handful of berries!
So lets have a look at some of the reasons you might fear hunger. And there are many reasons why, but these are the four I most commonly see:
1. As a child, you weren’t always fed consistently, or there were times when you didn’t get enough to eat. And even though you are an adult now with access to as much food as you want, this memory is really hard to shake.
2. Or, like me, you might have been told, “You’re not really hungry, just drink some water,” so you tried your best to make the hunger to go away, but most of the time it didn't and you remember just how painful that was (yes, I used to have the fear of being hungry too!)
3. Possibly THE most common reason I see is that you spent years dieting, often feeling hungry but not “allowed” to eat, which can now cause you to feel very anxious when you even just THINK about being hungry.
4. And another common reason is that in the past when you got hungry, you ate too fast or too much, felt sick or uncomfortable and now you’re afraid that if you allow yourself to get hungry again, you'll overeat like that again.
The issue with fearing hunger is that it makes it difficult to tune into your Perfect Gauge. When you're afraid to let yourself feel hunger, you'll end up eating pre-emptively—before your body signals that it's time.
This leads to eating more than your body needs, which over time can cause weight gain or make losing weight harder. You’ll remain disconnected from your body’s needs and struggle to build a healthy, balanced relationship with food.
So what can you do? What's the fix?
Well the first step is awareness. So stop and ask yourself honestly if this could be an issue for you.
And if it is, the next most important thing to realise is that there are two kinds of fear: The first one is logical, rational fear. The second, mind story fear.
Logical fear is based on real, tangible risks—like staying away from the edge of a cliff to avoid slipping and falling over. This type of fear is protective and keeps you safe.
Whereas mind story fears aren't real. They stem from the stories you tell yourself about what "could" go wrong. Or "will" go wrong. And it's usually stated in a way that suggests that somehow you can predict the future!
While these fears may feel very real, they are projections of your mind’s beliefs and worries. For example, the fear of hunger could come from a belief that if you get hungry, you'll lose control, overeat and gain weight. And herein lies the problem.
If you have been listening to the podcast or if you've read any of my previous posts, you'll know that YOU GET WHAT YOU THINK.
So this fear of hunger will more than likely cause you to do exactly what you're afraid of. Overeat and gain weight or (subconsciously) prevent yourself from losing weight. Further feeding this fear and keeping it alive!
Become aware of what's actually happening
Hunger is simply your body’s way of reminding you to eat—without it, you might forget. And since eating is essential for survival, it’s actually a life-saving signal. It's time to make peace with hunger.
Practice tuning into and responding to your true hunger cues in a timely manner. This way you can eat consciously. Choose food that you genuinely want to eat and make sure you eat “enough” to satisfy your hunger. The more you practice this, the more evidence you’ll gather that hunger isn’t something to fear. Over time, this will quiet the anxious stories your mind is currently creating.
Hunger isn’t something to fear — it’s simply a guide, a signal like the signals that tell you when you need to wee and poo.
Start by taking small steps to acknowledge and trust your hunger, knowing you’ve got the tools to manage it, like planning and preparing delicious, satisfying meals and over time, this will help ease your fear.
And if you need help with this, please get in touch.
Hey! I'm Caroline
Dietitian & Eating Psychology Coach
Don't waste your time, destroy your energy levels or mess with your health by going on diets, restricting carbs or counting calories.
Life it to be enjoyed.
I believe you can live life AND manage your weight.
I share my thoughts on how you can do that on this blog...
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