One thing that often comes up for people endeavoring to eat in a more mindful way is guilt when they do not feel like eating. This often shows up looking something like this: “why didn’t I want to eat breakfast (or any other meal) today, I should have eaten breakfast it’s bad to miss a meal etc”. This can come up in spite of the fact that we weren’t hungry for said meal or snack at the time. This is something I think it’s important to clarify. While certainly undereating can be problematic, it is also important that we recognize that there will be times where we may be less hungry (as well as more hungry) for a variety of reasons. Most importantly, there is no reasons to judge ourselves for what is a normal part of being human-fluctuating appetite!

Certainly, this can be easier said than done, and if we notice a recurring issue with under or over eating getting help is appropriate, but it’s also important to realize that our body does naturally average out our appetite over periods of time. That’s why when we are doing well with listening to our hunger and fullness cues we may notice things like being extra hungry the next meal or day after not eating as much the day before.

Questions about appetite or anything else food or body related? Feel free to get in touch!