The Difference Between Emotional Eating, Overeating, and Binge Eating

Are you confused about the difference between emotional eating, overeating, and binge eating? These terms are often used interchangeably and yet they actually have very different characteristics.

Before we dive into what those differences might be, I want to preface by saying that any kind of relationship you have with food is happening for a reason. Food can support with regulating your nervous system, it can be a distraction, it can bring individuals together over a meal, it can be there to keep you alive, it can be a source of pleasure, it can provide a feeling of control, it can support in feeling safe. Every time we eat, that experience can alter how we're feeling. This means if it feels unsafe to be in your body, eating can be there as a resource to navigate your body and it's sensations with more ease.

As we explore the differences between emotional eating, overeating, and binge eating, remember that

Each way of eating has wisdom to offer.

There is no "wrong" way to eat and how you're eating can be guiding you toward where you're being called to heal and grow.

1. Emotional Eating

We need to redefine emotional eating. You're a human being with a body that is constantly feeling and sensing and emoting. The way we have defined emotional eating only takes into account the emotions we have often labeled as intense like stress, anger, sadness, frustration, despair, grief. You're constantly feeling other emotions as well like joy, contentment, and excitement.

With that in mind, we can redefine emotional eating as eating with or without physical signs of hunger present. You may eat for a joyous occasion, like eating birthday cake even though you're not physically hungry or to self soothe after a stressful day or because you're truly physically hungry and it also makes you feel good.

Emotional eating will be a part of your food journey no matter what because you're a human being who feels. Every time you go to reach for food, you can explore if you're feeling physical hunger and what emotions are also present in that moment. Allowing emotions to feel heard, seen, and held can be a crucial step in healing your relationship with food so there is less judgment, shame, and guilt. You are not weak. You are a human who eats and feels and that is always happening at the same time.

2. Overeating

Overeating can be consuming more than your physical body needs. It can occur for either physical or emotional reasons. Sometimes, if you're eating too quickly, you might not notice the subtle cues of satiation in your body and end up overeating. Sometimes, you might bypass satiety cues on purpose and keep eating out of fear of feeling hungry, out of fear of not having enough, or out of not wanting to be present with an emotion.

Overeating is a natural part of eating and happens for everyone. This is very important to note as there can be a lot of stigma and shame around how we eat. Think of "normal" eating as the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Sometimes you might discover you didn't eat enough in a day, sometimes you may notice you overate and felt quite full, and other days you will hit it just "right." All of these ways of eating will be a part of your food journey. When you zoom out to look at a whole month, you will see that overall your body got exactly what it needed nutritionally to thrive.

Bring in compassion in those overeating moments. Let's reframe a potential inner story that overeating means you did something "wrong." Thank goodness you have these bodily cues from your body letting you know how much nourishment you need. You did nothing wrong if you feel overly full. You can take those sensations as information and get curious about what occurred during that eating experience that the subtle cues of satiation was missed. That eating experience just gets to be an opportunity to learn more about you.

3. Binge Eating

While emotional eating and overeating can be experiences anyone has every now and then, the experience of binge eating has more specific criteria. This kind of eating feels like an uncontrollable eating experience that usually occurs in a short amount of time where a large amount of food is consumed. Some characteristics of binge eating can include quick eating, typically eating a lot of food when physical hunger is not present, usually happens alone, and leaves the body feeling very full.

I want to go one step deeper. This kind of eating is not really about the food or the eating. It can be a physiological response to feeling unsafe, unseen, and disconnected. If you have been chronically dieting, binge eating can occur as your body is going to take over to make sure you're getting the nutrition it needs. If you have experienced trauma, binge eating can be there to try to regulate your nervous system. If you were taught emotions are not something to be felt, binge eating might feel safer to do than to feel what is arising in your body.

If this is a behavior you have or are currently engaging in, be gentle with yourself. This is not a sign of a lack of willpower or that something is wrong with you. It's a wise strategy to support your body in navigating something with as much ease as possible. Reaching out to a therapist, counselor, or coach can be helpful to dive into what the binge eating patterns are here to teach you.

There is one common theme between all of these ways of eating. A sense of disconnection and disembodiment. When we eat in an embodied way, we can more easily notice our fullness cues, we can be cognizant of our emotions and sensations, and we can have more space to assess what kind of hunger is present, physical or emotional, and satiate that kind of hunger in more attuned and satisfying ways. It takes time and practice to become a Somatic Eater and you get to take all the time you need.