We’ve all been there. A breakup, a death in the family, or perhaps you may have just had a bad day at work. Whatever the case may be, our most emotional days send us rickashaying down a spiral that we never thought we’d go down. But instead of trying to deal with it, we cope with by binging on snacks, candy, and food guaranteed to put pounds on us later.

If you’re a slave to emotional eating, here are some ways to avoid it:

1. Ask Yourself, Are You Really Hungry? – Often our dilemmas will lead to the kitchen, when really it’s our mental state that is completely messed up. Emotionally and physical hungers tend to be are different. So order that extra large pizza, ask yourself, “Am I Really Hungry?”
2. Distract Yourself – Instead of slathering those chips with extra sour cream, think of other things that you need to get done – maybe you’ve been putting off reorganizing that closet for months now, cleaning the house, or doing a bit of exercising. If you need to, distract yourself from heading to kitchen.
3. Don’t Snack on Junk – If you must eat, don’t keep junk food around the house. Sure, snacks are comfort food and can bring you an immediate fix, but they will pack on the pounds. Keep some healthy treats around the house, yogurt, nuts, or fruit perhaps, so that if you need to satisy those cravings, you can in a healthy way.