It’s not unusual to reach for a snack when there isn’t much else to do, even when you aren’t actually hungry. Helping business-owners and professionals get control of their drinking. If you want to access my free video training on how to make stopping drinking effortless and enjoyable, click here.

You might not want to hear people express concerns about your alcohol consumption or see their disapproving looks. If you drink alone, monitor drinking out of boredom how often you do this and consider why. If it becomes frequent, try to taper off or contact an alcohol addiction treatment center.

Make new habits

The pandemic has been here and, at the time of this writing, is continuing to keep our world in a state of flux. This puts those who have formed an attachment to alcohol in a very vulnerable position. By focusing on eating healthy, nourishing foods, you are actively working on reversing those https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/what-are-sober-living-homes/ symptoms. Getting outside and communing with nature is scientifically proven to reduce stress and improve mental health and cognitive function in both kids and adults. But if you can’t or aren’t able to do a group class, at the very least, take a tech-free 30-minute walk every day.

  • Soon it can seem weird NOT to have a glass in your hand, even if the rest of you is thinking about something else (or not thinking about very much at all).
  • BPS, The Boredom Proneness Scale, measures our level of boredom; the average boredom number is 81 to 117.
  • You may believe you must hide your drinking from others, so you drink solo.

Yet, if boredom eating is affecting your mental or physical health with side effects like weight gain and anxiety, you may be looking for a way to stop. Particularly between 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people reported increased feelings of boredom and altered eating habits, as well as side effects like weight gain (1, 27). Even if you think boredom eating is circumstantial or temporary, it’s a good idea to try to reign it in. Overeating can become both a physical and psychological habit that could carry over into more normal times.

tips to stop eating out of boredom

There will always be a long lost friend who arrives on your doorstep looking to catch up over a few drinks. Be ready for these moments when they arrive, and they will, give yourself a wry smile, then make the choice that fits with your goals. It sounds over the top, but we know, when it comes to going alcohol-free winging it simply does not work.

Balancing blood sugar can help avoid dips in energy, which may trigger eating out of boredom. Sometimes a quick 10–20-minute walk is all it takes to recenter yourself and forget about the urge to snack out of boredom. To be bored means that you’re feeling uninterested in your current activity.

Drinking When Bored? What It Could Mean

Boredom is the best excuse to finally getting around to doing these things that can enhance one’s life. Boredom has an emotional quality to it, and cognitive behavioral therapy teaches that feelings are an outgrowth of thoughts. Someone who’s bored and drinking on a couch probably didn’t get there by accident. Typically, whether they’re aware of it or not, there was a thought or a sequence of thoughts that preceded this outcome. Find a support group and make contact with them regularly.