As a psychologist and eating behavior specialist, both women and men often turn to me with problems of overeating. Globally, these overeating events are different; they are based on different triggering mechanisms. One type of overeating is emotional. I have a whole article about this type, but today we will talk about eating one emotion, which in practice I encounter most often. As you understand, this is boredom. In this article, from personal experience and the experience of clients, I will discuss why boredom becomes a trigger for overeating, as well as how to deal with it. What is “boredom”? Before we move on to overeating, let’s generally understand what it is boredom. I've read different opinions on whether boredom can be called an emotion, but there is no consensus. But in fact, this does not matter to us, so we will not dwell on these arguments. But there is something else that is important for us to know to understand the nature of boredom. Most often in Internet sources, boredom is described as an emotion or state that is characterized by two criteria: lack of activity and/or lack of interest. But in fact, this is not entirely true. In global terms, a person is always doing something. Even if he is lying on the sofa, then this is also the activity that he is busy with at the moment. I can lie on the couch and I may or may not be bored. Based on this, we cannot characterize boredom only as a lack of activity. The criterion of “interest” is more correct. Indeed, a lot of boredom is a lack of interest in the activity I am doing. But also in boredom there is such an element as “satisfaction from activity.” After all, we can do something that does not cause much interest (for example, a business that is familiar to us), but we will receive satisfaction, so there will be no place for boredom. Therefore, in a broader sense, boredom is a lack of interest and satisfaction in the current activity. In 2013 A group of German scientists conducted a study of boredom and identified 5 main types: 1. Indifferent boredom is neutral boredom with the absence of dissatisfaction, it is also called “positive” boredom or “positive fatigue.”2. Calibration boredom - you may feel dissatisfied, but do not seek alternative actions. Usually occurs during routine/repetitive tasks.3. Search boredom is an average level of dissatisfaction. Such boredom already prompts a person to change activities; you begin to look for something else to do so that it is interesting and enjoyable. If it doesn't work, go to the next level.4. Reactive boredom - the level of dissatisfaction with current activities is high. The person begins to experience aggression, the experience of boredom becomes almost unbearable, and the search for activity for a change intensifies.5. Apathetic boredom - can be either a consequence of helplessness from the latter, or an independent unit, for example, a consequence of depression. It is characterized by a lack of satisfaction, as well as a lack of incentives to change. It is not for nothing that I devote an entire section to understanding what boredom is. This understanding will go a long way in helping us find tools to deal with boredom eating. But we’ll talk about this a little later. For now, let’s figure out at what point and why food appears. Why do we eat up boredom? I’ve already written about why we eat up emotions in general in this article. I recommend that you read it to understand the issue in more detail. In this article I will only repeat briefly: A person eats emotions because food is for him at the moment the fastest, or the simplest, or even the only possible way to cope with an emotion. An emotion is arousal in response to a certain stimulus. Due to the fact that out of our 5 basic emotions only 2 are “positive” and 3 are “negative”, it is logical to believe that this very excitement is not always pleasant. I don't think many of you enjoy feeling afraid, angry or anxious. Therefore, a person tries as!