Last updated on September 1st, 2024 at 08:38 pm
Having a fear of being hungry is not normal. However, if you are someone who struggles with an eating disorder, a chronic illness, or digestive problems the fear of food can be genuine.
Fear of hunger can be caused by:
- Anorexia/atypical anorexia
- A history of binge eating
- Gastroparesis
- Structural abnormalities of the GI tract
- Diet pill abuse
This article explores how to navigate the fear of hunger when it is related to an eating disorder/disordered eating or cultural pressures to restrict your food.
Why Do I Have a Fear of Being Hungry
Society places a lot of pressure on being thin. You have probably learned from a young age that you shouldn’t trust your hunger cues.
Reasons you might fear hunger include:
- Not knowing if it’s hunger or appetite you’re experiencing
- The fear of eating emotionally
- Fearing eating past fullness
- Pressure from the food police to “eat right”
- You get extreme hunger every time you feel hungry
- You’re afraid of gaining weight
- You’re hungry but nothing sounds good to eat
Regardless of what reasons you have for fearing hunger, you deserve to fully enjoy food again.
Diet culture will tell you that it is never good to feel hungry. It will tell you that in order to enjoy food, you need to be in the smallest body size possible. All of these ideas are not true and will spike your fear of hunger and lead to a poor relationship with food.
7 Ways To Fight The Fear of Hunger
Eat on a Schedule
If you are constantly skipping meals, fasting, or irregular in your eating patterns then hunger can feel very chaotic and overwhelming.
Eating on a schedule allows your body to:
- Trust that food is plentiful
- Naturally, be able to feel when it’s time to start and stop eating
- Make food choices based on needs and preferences rather than urgency
Keep a Variety of Foods In the House
Your fear of hunger might come from feeling like you will be out of control with certain types of foods. You might feel out of control with all types of foods if you are restricting your food.
Keeping a variety of foods in the house can help:
- You not feel like you won’t get your favorite foods again
- Food is plentiful
- You have the ability to eat intuitively
Practice Eating Socially
Sometimes you might be afraid to get hungry if you know you’re going to be eating around other people. Knowing that your body knows what it needs more than people around you is key to reducing anxiety about eating around others.
You might fear being hungry around others because:
- You’re afraid of what they might think if you eat more than them
- They might judge your food choices
- They might judge your body size based on what you eat
- You feel uncomfortable eating around a romantic partner
Practicing eating around other people you trust and exploring different food options in social settings can help you feel safer feeling hungry in these situations.
Honor All Types of Hunger
If you are afraid of being hungry because you feel out of control with food, it is probably because you aren’t honoring all types of hunger.
Taking the stigma away from eating for reasons other than strictly feeling hungry can help you better navigate your hunger and fullness and feel safe around food.
Remember it’s okay to eat:
- Outside of scheduled meal times
- Just because the food tastes good
- Because the food is only available on special occasions
- Just because someone made it for you
Stop Dieting
Dieting messes up your hunger cues. You might feel like extreme hunger or extreme fullness is the only way your body gets messages about food.
Dieting can make hunger feel scary because:
- You feel out of control when you get access to foods you have restricted
- You always feel guilty after you eat
- You’re afraid of gaining weight if you eat too much
Break Food Rules
Food rules include having off-limits foods or limiting the quantity of certain foods you allow yourself to have.
Breaking food rules helps reduce your fear of hunger because:
- You no longer have fear foods
- All food is neutral and doesn’t feel so powerful
- You’re free to eat whatever you want whenever you want
Eat Enough
This might sound simple, but make sure you are eating enough to satisfy your physical and emotional hunger needs fully.
You are not eating enough if:
- You still feel physically hungry after you eat
- You are not emotionally satisfied with how much you ate
- You intentionally restrict your calories
- You’re constantly thinking about food
- You’re not properly fueling for a workout
Coping With Hunger Fear
Learning to trust your body instead of fearing hunger is one of the best ways to respect your body.
If you are feeling overwhelmed with the fear of hunger or fullness, this might be a sign of an eating disorder. If this is the case, seeking the help of professionals trained in eating disorders is critical.
Even if you are doing everything right to eliminate hunger fear, sometimes it can feel like a long journey.
Some tools that can help you cope with hunger fear include:
- Meditation or deep breathing
- Calling a friend
- Ditch the scale
- Meal support
- Journaling
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