If you’ve been following me for a while, you know I’m about keeping things real. In this post, I want to share a recent experience that brought me face-to-face with stress eating—a behavior I’ve worked so hard to overcome. Even after years of healing my relationship with food, emotional eating still rears its head sometimes. And that’s okay! The key is learning to handle it with compassion and self-awareness, which is exactly what happened during Hurricane Helene.
Let me take you back to last week.
The Storm is Coming
We had been hearing about Hurricane Helene for days, and if you’ve ever lived through a major weather event, you know the stress it can bring. My husband was traveling for work, the kids were on fall break, and I was in full prep mode. We had crazy winds, torrential downpours, and the constant fear of power outages. To say I was anxious would be an understatement. The storm was looming, and so was the familiar feeling of stress creeping in.
With everything swirling around me—quite literally—I found myself turning to food for comfort.
A Different Kind of Stress Eating
Here’s what’s fascinating: I knew I was stress-eating, and I was okay with it. This wasn’t the autopilot binge-eating Amy from years ago. I wasn’t mindlessly stuffing food into my face and feeling regret later. I was fully aware of what I was doing. I even told my husband, “I’m going to stress eat.” And then I did, but in a much different way than I used to.
In the past, stress eating looked like devouring an entire carton of ice cream, a dozen cookies, or whatever was available in the pantry. It felt like I had no control over it. But this time? It was a bowl of ice cream, a few cookies, and some snacks—foods I don’t normally eat but chose intentionally in response to the stress I was feeling. And the best part? I didn’t beat myself up about it.
Compassion Over Criticism
This is where the real transformation lies. In the past, I would have spiraled into self-criticism and guilt. I would have been angry at myself for “slipping up,” feeling ashamed of gaining weight and struggling to get back on track. But now? I’ve learned to quiet that inner critic and replace it with compassion.
When you’re in the thick of emotional eating, it can feel like you’re completely out of control. But here’s the truth: it’s possible to have a different relationship with food, one that doesn’t rely on perfection. After years of doing the work—of healing my relationship with food and my body—I’ve built the confidence to handle these moments with grace. I know that stress eating is just that: a moment, not a failure.
Getting Back on Track, No Drama Required
What was even more incredible to me was how easy it was to get myself back on track. The anxiety faded and my eating habits returned to normal. I didn’t wallow in guilt or feel like I had to “make up” for what I ate. I knew the extra pounds from those days of eating differently would drop once I resumed my usual eating patterns. And you know what? That’s exactly what happened.
What changed isn’t just my behavior around food, but my mindset. I’ve cultivated a self-compassion that allows me to acknowledge when I'm eating due to stress without making it mean anything more than what it is. There’s no need to punish myself or dwell on it for days. Life happens, and stress eating may occasionally happen, too—and that’s perfectly okay.
The Lesson: It's Not About Perfection
What I want you to take away from this is that healing your relationship with food is a process, and it doesn’t mean that emotional eating will never happen again. The goal isn’t perfection. The goal is to change your response to these moments when they do occur.
By learning to show yourself compassion, you can avoid the endless cycle of guilt and shame. You can eat a few cookies during a stressful time and move on without spiraling. And most importantly, you can know that you have your own back through it all.
Final Thoughts
If you’re struggling with emotional eating or feel like food has more power over you than it should, I want you to know that change is possible. It’s not about eliminating stress eating entirely but about learning to manage it in a healthier, more compassionate way.
This journey to reclaiming my confidence around food has been one of the most empowering experiences of my life. And if my story can help even one person realize that they’re not alone and that they, too, can find peace with food, then I’ve done my job.
Remember, it’s not about being perfect—it’s about making progress and showing yourself grace along the way.
Until next time,
Amy
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