We’re drawing closer to the festive season – a time when many struggle with overeating or emotional eating. This happens especially when life feels busy, stressful, exhausting, or depressing for whatever reason. These patterns aren’t a sign of weakness or failure; they’re your body and mind asking for something, and the first step is learning to listen before showing yourself care.

From my early days of being diagnosed with PCOS, I’ve walked this path myself. For years, I struggled with overeating and sugar cravings that seemed impossible to manage. Part of having PCOS meant that my body produced higher levels of testosterone and was slightly insulin resistant. I remember never feeling quite full – even after a large meal – and often being caught in cycles of guilt and frustration. What I learned, over time, was that this was both a physical and emotional journey. On a practical level, it meant learning to stabilise my blood sugar through having protein at every meal and understanding how different foods affected me. On a deeper level, it meant learning to listen to my body’s signals – to recognise that stress and a lack of emotional safety were just as powerful triggers as hunger. Healing, for me, was never just about food; it was about nourishment, awareness, and self-compassion.

Here are my best tips for recognising your eating patterns and taking practical steps to feel empowered, nourished, and cared for so you can finish the year strong.

Recognising Physical vs Emotional Eating

The first step in breaking a cycle of non-nourishing eating is noticing the source of your pattern – is it physical hunger or an emotional response?

Physical reasons for overeating could be low blood sugar, fatigue, or lack of sufficient protein in your diet. Emotional reasons might be stress, loneliness, boredom, or a need to soothe or distract yourself.

To get clear, grab a notebook and make a note each time you feel the urge to eat outside of hunger – or even if you catch yourself after it’s happened. Record the time, how you’re feeling, and what’s happening around you. Over a short time, you’ll start to notice patterns – maybe it’s always after work, in the evenings, or triggered by particular emotions or situations.

Observing your patterns without judgment gives you the power to respond with awareness and self-kindness rather than reacting automatically. And also, please remember, you’re human. It’s easy to shame yourself after overeating and then try to starve yourself to ‘make up for it’. But we can only evolve and heal through support – starvation only increases stress and blood sugar fluctuations. Approach yourself with the same care and kindness you would offer a friend.

Supporting Your Body with Nutrition and Sleep

If you’re noticing your patterns arise from a physical need, start to provide the support your body craves. Small adjustments can make a huge difference in reducing cravings and preventing overeating.

If you’re experiencing energy dips at certain times, like before or after lunch, or sugar cravings in the evening, begin to include protein with every meal – breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Protein helps stabilise blood sugar, keeps your energy steady, and reduces the sudden sugar dips that often trigger overeating.
If you’re feeling sluggish during the day, prioritise sleep. Food and sleep are your body’s two main sources of energy. When you don’t get enough rest, you’re more likely to feel irritable or reach for quick fixes like sugar or caffeine.
Plan your alcohol intake. Alcohol and hangovers in particular can lower our mood and cloud decision-making, which often leads to overeating. Being intentional about when and how much you drink helps you stay within integrity and care better for yourself.

These steps aren’t about restriction or discipline for the sake of it; they’re about giving your body the stability it needs so you can make conscious, aligned choices.

Responding to Emotions with Self-Kindness

If you notice you’re eating in response to emotional triggers, being kind to yourself and choosing to support yourself instead of reaching for food is where you need to focus. It’s incredibly easy to eat to numb out, but the truth is, eating will not nourish us in the way we truly need. What will nourish us is listening and taking supportive action.

So grab your notebook and be your own best friend. When you catch yourself reaching for unnecessary food, write down on paper: How am I feeling? What is hard right now? What do I long for? How would I feel supported? Allow yourself to be honest and write down exactly what’s on your mind and in your heart. Chances are, you’ll be surprised at what you find when you give yourself a real outlet.

By doing this, you’re beginning to address your underlying need. A walk or a glass of water will never fix emotional trouble. What does help, however, is showing up for yourself, listening, taking your own needs seriously, and finding a way to meet them.

The key is to treat yourself with the same kindness you’d offer a friend. Overeating doesn’t make you weak, and shame only reinforces the pattern. Meeting your emotions with the willingness to listen without judgement, awareness and care is how lasting change happens.

Finishing the Year Strong

Breaking habits and growing our awareness can be challenging. However, with overeating or patterns of emotional eating, we’re often experiencing disempowerment, feeling out of control, and developing a harsh inner critic. This affects so much of our life.

When, in turn, we decide to show up for ourselves, we create an upward-moving, positive spiral of increased self-kindness, confidence, and accomplishment. Suddenly you’ll feel lighter, more in control, and more in tune with what your body and mind truly need.

Every small choice to care for yourself adds up, building momentum and a sense of pride in what you’ve accomplished. Finishing the year with this awareness allows you to step into the new year rooted in your own strength, calm, and self-respect.

This isn’t about perfection or performance – it’s about feeling good in your body and experiencing that you can trust yourself to care for you with kindness. And this is also when we can be the best version of ourselves for the people who matter most to us.

I hope this is helpful – and please do reach out if you need support.

Much love,
Mai

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