Rooted & Rising: Healing Binge Eating Through Trauma-Informed Care

Are you stuck in a pattern of binge eating and you’re wondering why you are having difficulty regaining your control with your relationship with food? In this blog, we will explore what binge eating is, how and why it may be difficult to overcome, and some strategies to try to help you interrupt the binge eating cycle from a trauma informed perspective. 

WHAT IS BINGE EATING?

Binge eating often involves eating a large amount of food within a 2 hour period that is larger than what most people would eat in that same amount of time, and will occur at least once a week for 3 months. People struggling with binge eating can often feel out of control and experience immense amounts of shame, guilt, disgust, or numbness after eating. Signs of binge eating can include:

• Eating beyond fullness, often to the point of physical discomfort.

• Eating so quickly that it’s hard to notice how the food feels in your body.

• Eating large amounts of food even when you’re not physically hungry — sometimes right after a meal.

• Using food as a way to cope with stress, overwhelm, or painful emotions.

• Eating in secret or avoiding eating with others out of shame or embarrassment.

• Structuring your day or plans around opportunities to binge.’

• Stashing food in hidden places for later, even when it’s not needed.

• Feeling the need to hide how much or how often you eat from others.

• Constant preoccupation with food, cravings, or what you’ll eat next.

• Cycling through frequent dieting, often without sustainable changes.

The triggers for eating differ from person to person and can also involve biology or learned habits. 

TRAUMA INFORMED CARE IN TREATING BINGE EATING DISORDER

Do you find yourself binge eating when you’re feeling overwhelmed, or when your emotional or relational needs are not being met? If you have a history of trauma, binge eating is often not a food problem or a lack of control with food consumption, but a coping strategy to find emotional regulation within the nervous system. The body is communicating to you and it says “I don’t feel good and I have found something that alleviates this feeling” even if it's only temporary. You found a way to care for yourself when other options may have been limited. That’s not failure. That’s wisdom shaped by struggle. 

When our bodies are in a safe and social (ventral vagal) state, eating is more attuned to your hunger and satiety cues. You will enjoy eating food without the feeling of urgency, guilt, or shame.

In a stressed (sympathetic/fight or flight) state, food may offer: a moment of control, an escape from uncomfortable feelings, give you a sense of comfort, a way to self soothe, a feeling of being more grounded, or a sense of protection.

In a shut down (dorsal vagal/hypo-aroused) state, eating might temporarily bring back a sense of feeling or alertness/aliveness within your body. 

Your body is biologically driven to find internal balance and will find ways that are accessible or familiar to you. For other people this maladaptive regulation strategy may involve excessive cleaning, binge drinking, online shopping, or gambling. 

Working from a trauma informed perspective in therapy, you will be asked questions such as: How does binge eating help you regulate? or What does binge eating distract you from thinking or feeling? These can include:

“I’m not good enough”

“I am a failure”

“I don’t want to feel this”

“I didn’t learn how to comfort myself and food was there for me”

“Food was the only consistent thing in my life”

Binge eating is not an enemy or something to be ashamed of, it is a messenger worth exploring. 

Shame asks “Why do you keep doing this?”

Truma informed care says “Let’s explore what binge eating keeps you safe from” 

HEALING THROUGH CONNECTION

If you experience binge eating, another strict food plan will likely not be the solution you need. Instead, you may need:

• Nonjudgemental, compassionate curiosity into your experiences

• To build your tools for nervous system regulation

• Increased tolerance for emotional distress and sensations within your body

You can begin building awareness with what your body feels like when you sense the urge to binge eat. Do you notice tension in your stomach, chest or throat? Anywhere else in your body? If you had to guess, what emotion are you feeling? (maybe putting an image of an emotion wheel?) What thoughts are you having? Writing these things down in a notebook can be helpful to track any themes. 

If you notice anything at this step try not to worry about fixing the urge to binge eat. Instead explore strategies that work for you to make your body feel safe. 

BREATHING TECHNIQUES

Box Breathing- Inhale 4 seconds → Hold 4 → Exhale 4 → Hold 4

4-7-8 Breathing- Inhale 4 → Hold 7 → Exhale 8

Diaphragmatic Breathing (Belly Breathing) - Breathe deeply into the belly, allowing it to rise, then slowly exhale

Breathe of Fire (when eating in a shut down state ) - Quick, rhythmic inhales and exhales through the nose while engaging the core

GROUNDING TECHNIQUES

5-4-3-2-1: tune into 5 things you see, 4 things you feel, 3 things you smell, 2 things you hear, 1 thing you taste

Go for a walk

Dance

Work out

Mindfully scan your body 

Connect with your pet

Visualize a safe place 

Take a relaxing shower

Picture a loved one

ASK FOR SUPPORT

If you have a trusted loved one, ask them for a hug. Their bodies' calmness will help your body find calm. Confide in them to help you follow through with a new regulation strategy. 

FROM SHAME TO SAFETY

Healing starts not with restriction or shame, but with compassion, curiosity, and connection. As you begin to notice the emotional and physical cues that surround your binge eating experiences, know that you don’t have to navigate this alone. With the right support and a deepening sense of safety in your body, new possibilities for regulation and nourishment begin to emerge.

Food isn’t the enemy, and neither are you. The more you understand your relationship with eating, the more space you create for healing.

Hayley