AYURVEDA PERSPECTIVE ON INDISCRIMINATE EATING

You must find a way to awaken the mind from its stupor in order to overcome an indiscriminate or compulsive eating pattern. Bitter herbs are the wake up call for a dull mind, pulling you out of an urge to eat indiscriminately. You might also try splashing cold water on your face, which quickly draws a hungry mind back to the moment. Try celery, it has an inspiring crunch and tends to depress appetite.

Generally following a kapha-pacifying diet which is full of bitter green vegetables and dry, spicy, pungent foods can lighten a dull kapha mind, increase energy, and revitalize the body. Limiting processed food, refined sugars and flours which create fogginess and aggravate kapha is equally important. The best way to avoid addiction triggering foods is by not buying them at the grocery store. Or, at least keeping them out of reach.

Indiscriminate eating is also an opportunity for growth, despite the pain and shame it may carry. Take a moment to examine your relationship with yourself and your relationship with food. When not caught up in the urge to eat, consciously consider the meanings and significance that food holds for you. Do you restrict certain foods from yourself, skip meals, or refuse to eat in front of others, only to find yourself mindlessly gorging later? Is food a source of comfort, a source of fuel, a distraction from boredom or unhappiness, a liberation from pain? Do you believe that your body size restricts your right to eat and nourish yourself fully? Notice your mood and the time of day that you tend to eat indiscriminately and come up with a plan so that you will not be tempted, or how to stop yourself if you are. As with many maladaptive habits and patterns, bringing awareness to your behaviors without judging yourself harshly starts to unravel their power and gives you back control.

Many people who struggle with indiscriminate eating use food as a way to numb uncomfortable emotions. It is a way to "stuff something away." For this reason, cultivating your ability to examine, experience and tolerate discomfort without using food or other distractions can bring greater emotional resilience and help you overcome indiscriminate eating. The more mindful you can be towards your emotions and your eating habits, the more your relationship with food becomes intuitive and instinctive, as opposed to dispassionate and thoughtless. Ayurveda shows you how food is medicinal and teaches you how to truly enjoy your food and remain aware while eating so that you can create health as opposed to degrade it. Remember, your body is your piece of God and your emotions are its messenger. Recognize your intrinsic worth, listen with curiosity, and feel fully so that food can become a source of nourishment instead of a mindless, thoughtless habit.