Self-Help Books
WHAT TRIGGERS YOUR EATING?
A QUIZ TO PUT YOU IN CONTROL
Very Very
Unlikely Possibly Likely
Social:
1. Arguing or having conflict with 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
someone.
2. Being with others when they 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
are eating.
3. Being urged to eat by someone 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
else.
4. Feeling inadequate around others. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Emotional:
5. Feeling bad, such as being 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
anxious or depressed.
6. Feeling good, happy or relaxed. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
7. Feeling bored or having time 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
on my hands.
8. Feeling stressed or excited. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Situational:
9. Seeing an advertisement for 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
10.Passing by a bakery, cookie 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
enticement to eat
11.Being involved in a party, 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
celebration or special occasion
12.Eating out. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Thinking:
13.Making excuses to myself about 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
why it's okay to eat.
14.Berating myself for being so 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
fat or unable to control my eating.
15.Worrying about others or about 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
difficulties I am having
16.Thinking about how things 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
should or shouldn't be.
Physiological:
17.Experiencing pain or physical 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
discomfort.
18.Experiencing trembling, head- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
ache or lightheadedness associated
with not eating or too much caffeine.
19.Experiencing fatigue or 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
feeling overtired.
20.Experiencing hunger pangs or 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
urges to eat, though I've eaten recently.
To Score:
Add your rating scores for each of the items and enter the total score
for each set of items as indicated. Then rank the scores by marking the
highest score as "1", the next highest as "2", and so forth.
Then look at your individual scores in each area. More than 24 in any
area is a high score, and indicates you need to work on this particular
area. For instance, if you scored 25 in Social, and this was your
number-one ranking score, you need to begin by focusing on handling
social influences better.
Total Rank Order
Items 1 - 4: SocialTotal Score =
Items 5 - 8: EmotionalTotal Score =
Items 9 - 12: SituationalTotal Score =
Items 13 - 16: ThinkingTotal Score =
Items 17 - 20: Physiological Total Score =
SCORE INTERPRETATION:
Social -- A high score here means you are especially susceptible to
influence from other people. You need to develop skills in
communicating more assertively, handling conflict and managing anger.
You also need to examine and challenge your beliefs about the need to be
polite, and the obligations you feel you must fulfill.
Emotional -- Emotions, both negative and positive, are important
triggers for inappropriate eating habits for many people. A high score
here means you need to develop skills in coping more effectively with
emotions. You need to learn to avoid situations that produce emotions
and to react differently to upsetting events that do happen. You need
to learn new ways to respond to old situations. Developing skills in
time management, stress management, communication and thinking will
help.
Situational -- A high score here means you are especially susceptible
to external influences. Perhaps you are creating this susceptibility by
worrying too much about food, weight and dieting. In any event, you
need to learn whenever possible to avoid cues to eat and to respond
differently to those you cannot avoid. You need to rearrange your
environment so that inappropriate eating is less likely. This involves
changing the way you buy, store, cook and serve food -- and the way you
clean up afterward. It involves anticipating potential problems and
planning ahead how to handle them effectively.
Thinking -- An important factor in inappropriate eating is the way you
think; including how you talk to yourself, the pictures in your head,
the beliefs you hold and your memories and expectations. You need to
learn to be less self-critical, less of a perfectionist and more
flexible in your beliefs about the way things ought to be. You need to
recognize when you are making excuses or rationalizations that allow you
to eat, and to focus your thoughts on the benefits to be gained from
persisting in your weight- management efforts, as well as the costs you
will pay if you don't.
Physiological -- Often, the way you eat, what you eat, or medications
you are taking, will affect your eating behavior. A high score here
means you may be skipping meals, which can cause trembling or headache.
Or, you may be eating to reduce physical arousal or to deal with
physical discomfort. Some medications affect hormones that cause you to
feel hungrier. Too much caffeine can cause your body to produce more
insulin, which can produce low blood sugar and accompanying trembling
and other physical symptoms.
You need to eat three regular meals a day and, perhaps, plan regular
snacks in order to keep your blood sugar and your insulin at fairly even
levels throughout the day. You may need to learn more effective ways to
cope with pain. You should examine the medications you are taking to
determine if they contain caffeine or some other ingredient that
produces adverse physical reactions for you -- and switch to an
alternative, if necessary. If your medications could be affecting your
hormones, discuss possible alternatives with your doctor.
Source: "Maximize Your Body Potential": 16 Weeks to a Lifetime of
Effective Weight Management, by Joyce D. Nash, Ph.D., Published by Bull
Publishing Co., Palo Alto, CA, 1986.