Emotional Eating vs Food Addiction

What is the difference between emotional eating and food addiction - and does emotional eating turn into food addiction.

I have always labelled myself as an emotional eater, as for me that is someone who eats when they aren't hungry, will eat things that I don't necessarily like - leading to binging which for some - maybe something else entirely.

I have also said before - one doesn't get to be my size without being addicted to food. Addiction by definition is when there is a compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance. I also recognize that I have a addictive personality in other aspects of my life that I have to be aware of.

But this is where I question addiction - because I question if food in and of itself - say a bowl of chips is addictive - but whether instead its the associated feelings/emotions to food that is the addiction.

We all may crave certain foods - lots of scientific studies to show that there are certain components that we can become addicted too - but .. I think largely for the most part at least speaking for myself - its the result of the uncontrolled eating that I am addicted too.

Feelings that for me include - escapism, numbing, avoidance, self punishment.

That is where the emotional eating part comes to play as well, it is the negative cycle we find ourselves in.

Now the big question is - how to stop that emotional eating.

Well - for myself, its identifying the triggers - the reasons why I eat, what it is I get from eating and the EXTREMELY slow process of re-wiring myself to not associate those feelings with food.
It can be done. I refuse to think it can't be.

It also doesn't matter how many times one starts over or starts again.

For myself, I know some of the triggers - one being stress - which is so cliche but .. then for me its then breaking down that stress - to pinpoint exactly what it is. I used to think it was night time eating I had problem with - as often that is when I binged - but what I realized is that I had formed the habit of when the house was quiet in the evenings -that is when I would start to think of the day and what had gone on with the kids or how was I going to pay for something or thinking over a disagreement I had with someone -it was that that I reacted too by eating so that I didn't think of those things - that instead - I stuffed my mouth as a way of "avoiding" having to think.
During the day - for myself - its easy for me to stay OP but its the night-time when I have time to "think" that is when the problems can start.

So I would eat, and eat and often binge eating which then comes with its own associated feelings - BUT guess what - I stopped thinking of the problem with my daughter or how I was going to pay the bill etc.

So what I have been trying instead is to turn that negative obsessing - into constructive problem solving. To journal about it - to talk it over with a friend - and if I really can't get my brain to shut down - to sit on my front porch - drinking a cup of tea listening to music- anything to move me out of that moment.

Bottom line - FOOD IS NEVER THE ANSWER to a problem unless its true hunger.

****previously written, edited October 2014