Replacements for anxiety/stress eating

I know I'm an emotional eater. I eat my feelings - happy, sad, anxious, stressed. I haven't done any of that in 17 months. But I still have those instincts for sure. I see a therapist for other things and obviously these things too.

I'm super anxious/stressed the last few weeks and I haven't been overeating at all but I can feel the pull - walking through the mall seeing the signs for the pretzel places, cookie places, etc. I felt a pang of omg I want those and I haven't been feeling that the last year and a half.

What have you guys replaced your emotional eating with?

I color and I read but neither one is cutting it right now.

Shopping....LOL.  NOT recommending it at all, but...it happened.

I've kept a journal since 1987. It's seen me through my darkest days, my best days...and everything in between. I can be as bat**** off the wall, ****** up crazy as I want. Some of my entries....yikes; they scare me now, but writing down all my frustrations, *****es, triumphs, failures, and monumental **** ups kept me from totally losing my mind. I got away from it for a lot of years, and I wish I hadn't because I feel SO much better after a good "scream on paper". I still use a folder and notebook paper, or a spiral notebook, and a pen.

It helps me when no amount of distracting myself in others ways helps.

I love this Audrey and need to start it again myself. I always journaled growing up, but stopped sometime in early adulthood. I have also noticed shopping as being a "thing" for me, and cannot afford for it to become my new addiction.

I'm working on "bike until I'm exhausted," but it's hard because it's so freakin' hot right now.

I've taken to Zentangle lately-- I have a much easier time with it than coloring because I don't have to stress over color selection. (Yay quilting obsessiveness?) I can focus on the process, rather than the results, and that's been very helpful for me.

Can't find any snapshots of mine, but this is an example of the style:

I tried to get into zentangle before coloring got big and I found myself stressing over what design to do lol! Maybe I should try it again. I think I still have all of the supplies.

I have so so many coloring books and I love to do it but it's getting kind of boring, or rather I don't have any more free pages that I'm interested in doing and the new books I find are not designs I like when I get them.

I'm looking for something I can do that will be relaxing me. I thought about trying to learn how to knit but I don't know if I'll be able to do that, I tried a long time ago and I couldn't figure it out.

I've got a PDF with a few hundred designs in little sample squares. I'll pick a random page from the pile, close my eyes, and drop a finger. Whatever I land on, I use in the next available space.

Knitting is HARD if you're trying to figure it out yourself! I have a very hard time converting pictures to making my hands do what I need. Youtube videos help quite a bit, but they're no substitute for in-person help. Michael's and Jo-Ann have Saturday morning classes to teach you the basics, they're very helpful. I'd suggest trying crochet too, I find it's a bit easier to visualize and transfer to hand movements.

I'm glad to hear that I'm not alone in finding knitting so difficult lol. I've looked at the Jo-Ann's and Hobby Lobby near me before and unfortunately what they have mainly are cake decorating classes - so not what I need! Plus the stores that have any classes are an hour from me, which would be fine if it were a class I was really interested in...I did crochet once upon a time and even made my niece a blanket when she was born, so I guess 13 years ago now? I'd have to totally re-learn that too though, I remember that one was easier and I guess I was thinking it was knitting but sounds like no!

Knitting is harder to learn, but easier to do-- you can sort of "zone out" while you do it.

Crochet is easier to learn, but you have to pay more attention to what you're working.

In my experience, at least :)

Check Craftsy-- they have some wonderful online classes! I've taken a few quilting ones and they're very well done. This one looks like a great starter course for knitting!

Not only did I teach myself to crochet, but I'm left handed so I had to picture everything backwards!  As my mom is fond of saying... "Nothing is hard once you know how" but... she can knit :)

I always find substitutes for food that I can feel comfortable about eating.  Quest protein potato chips, sugar and flour free recipes for cookies or cakes, quinoa chips from Simply 7 with salsa, Crystal Light, rootbeer floats with diet root beer and sugarfree ice cream. 

They are not the same as what you buy at the mall, but they also will not make me gain weight.