When Holiday Leftovers Feel Like a Threat

This holiday week might have been really hard. Surrounded by family, arguments, familial patterns, working on staying connected, trying to enact different patterns with food, and feeling overwhelmed and dysregulated. 

And for others, ​this week may have included huge wins. You noticed yourself regulating your nervous system, staying connected, choosing other options besides food to connect with yourself, and you got to witness just how far you've come in your food recovery. 

​But today, three days after the actual holiday, it may feel like food is even more of a struggle than it was a few days ago. The​ experience of joy, connection, stress, exhaustion, social pressure, and emotional intensity of the day ​may be ove​r, ​but the food is still here.

​Maybe you had a plan leading up to the holiday. You had your friends on stand by via text, you had your somatic practices you've learned here or in a session, you showed up for yourself, you tried to stay connected, and so now you may feel utterly confused that you got through the holiday just fine, but want to binge on every holiday leftover food you can find. 

In this week's Satiated Podcast episode, I chat about: 

• Why leftovers can feel like a threat
• What has changed in your nervous system the day after a holiday
• Making sense of your urge to binge leftovers 
• How to somatically process the leftover food binge 

You can also read the transcript to this week’s episode ​here​: https://www.stephaniemara.com/blog/when-holiday-leftovers-feel-like-a-threat

I'll be putting out a special New Years' episode next week so if there is anything you'd like me to add to this episode on how to somatically enter the new year without diet promises and exercise rules, respond to this email with any questions you have! 

With Compassion and Empathy, 

Stephanie Mara Fox