What Causes Emotional Eating? Insights from an EMDR Trauma Therapist
- Dana Carretta-Stein, LMHC
- 12 hours ago
- 3 min read
Asking yourself, "What Causes Emotional Eating" is the First Step to Healing
Emotional eating is one of the most misunderstood behaviors that I see in my work as an EMDR therapist specializing in eating disorders. If you or someone you love finds themselves reaching for food when stressed, overwhelmed, sad, bored, or even happy, you're not alone—and there is help available, no matter how scared you may be to start.
From the outside, emotional eating might seem like a lack of willpower or discipline. But from a trauma-informed lens, it’s so much more than that. It’s often a deeply rooted survival strategy developed in response to early attachment wounds, unresolved trauma, or a chronically dysregulated nervous system.
Let’s talk about what really causes emotional eating, and other eating disorders—and why EMDR therapy can be a game-changer in healing it.
What Is Emotional Eating?
Emotional eating happens when we use food to regulate our emotions instead of responding to physical hunger. It can look like stress-snacking, bingeing late at night, restricting and then "losing control," or turning to food during high-stress moments.
It becomes a problem when it starts to create guilt, shame, or health issues—or when it feels like the only coping tool available.
Why Emotional Eating Isn’t About Willpower
In our culture, there's a harmful narrative that people just need more "control" over food. But that mindset ignores the fact that food is often the first and most consistent tool we learn to self-soothe.
Especially for those who grew up in emotionally unpredictable homes, food may have become a reliable source of comfort, safety, or even connection. The body remembers that. The nervous system remembers that. Which brings us to how trauma is connected to emotional eating and other eating disorders.
Trauma, the Nervous System, and Food
When we experience trauma—whether acute (like a single event) or chronic (like emotional neglect or bullying)—our nervous system stores those experiences. Trauma can leave us stuck in survival states: fight, flight, freeze, or fawn.
For many of my clients, emotional eating shows up as a way to regulate a dysregulated nervous system. Feeling anxious? Food soothes. Feeling numb? Food stimulates. Feeling unworthy? Food becomes punishment or reward.
In these moments, the logical brain goes offline. It’s not about making a choice. It’s about survival.
How EMDR Therapy Helps with Emotional Eating
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is a powerful, evidence-based treatment that helps people heal from the roots of trauma—not just the symptoms.
With EMDR, we don’t focus on food or behaviors first. We look at the experiences, beliefs, and emotional pain that created the need for those behaviors. We target:
Early attachment wounds (e.g., "I’m not safe," "I’m not good enough")
Memories of shame, bullying, or body-based trauma
Perfectionism and fear of judgment
Chronic anxiety, depression, or numbness
By processing the underlying memories and shifting the nervous system response, clients start to feel safer in their bodies—which reduces the urge to reach for food as a coping mechanism.
It’s Not Just About Food—It’s About Safety
Healing emotional eating isn’t about restriction or control. It’s about creating safety. Emotional, relational, and nervous system safety.
When that safety is restored through trauma-informed therapy like EMDR, the nervous system no longer needs food to survive emotional overwhelm. You begin to build new coping strategies that actually work long-term. And perhaps most importantly, you begin to trust yourself again.
Ready to Heal Your Relationship with Food?
If emotional eating is affecting your life, know that it’s not your fault—and you don’t have to navigate this alone. I specialize in helping teens and women in Westchester, NY (including Scarsdale, White Plains, Mamaroneck, and beyond) who are ready to heal from eating disorders and emotional eating using EMDR therapy.
Healing is possible. Let’s take the first step together.
About Stephanie Polizzi, EMDR Therapist Specializing in Eating Disorders
Stephanie Polizzi, LMHC, is an eating disorder EMDR therapist at Peaceful Living Mental Health Counseling in Westchester, NY. She specializes in EMDR therapy for eating disorders, body image issues, and trauma recovery.
Stephanie helps clients of all ages heal their relationship with food by addressing the root causes of eating disorders with Peaceful Living's trauma-informed methods. This approach helps clients achieve real, lasting relief for good.