I Have No Willpower With Pastries and Chocolate, Help!

There is much debate among health experts and laypersons on the subject of food cravings. Some say it is a sign of a nutritional deficiency, excess or other imbalance. Some say it's Psychological and is a sign for a need for comfort or therapy. Others say it has physical causes and hormone balancing is the answer. Others chalk it up to weakness and lack of willpower.

Well, it could be any one or a combination of these things, but one thing I know for sure is that it's not due to a lack of willpower. It's never about willpower; there is always another reason. In fact, the patients with food cravings who I have seen have been highly successful and in all areas of their lives, and yet struggled with this specific area, that is, until they came to see me. After seeing me, they were in charge of their eating, and no longer felt bad because supposedly they lacked willpower.

In my work with patients that had food cravings and resolved them, it became clear to them during our work together that they were stuck in an old habit pattern that was no longer serving them. They had outgrown this pattern long ago, but were still operating on some level as if they could get what they wanted. Lack of willpower was not the issue, and never was.

You've heard the saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result? In the case of food cravings, this is often what happens. A triggering event occurs, and by default, we return to an old outdated coping skill as a way to deal with it. We're not always conscious of this, but it happens nonetheless. Part of us still hopes that we will find a different outcome, but we just don't.

The work that I do with patients helps them quickly identify this outdated coping skill and resolve it on the spot, and it happens without effort. New neural pathways are created and the outdated neural pathways are 'retired.' Then and only then, can we develop new, current and up to date behaviors that serve our highest good, in the present time and situation.

Cravings Can Be Driven By Old Memories

So, how does this work for a person with cravings for sweets like pastries and chocolate? As an example, I recently worked with a patient that had very strong cravings for sugary foods, chocolate and bakery items. She couldn’t pass a bakery without going in and buying something. Before booking our session, she told me that she remembered feeling the most loved when her mother took her to the bakery and encouraged her to eat because she was so skinny. She didn't even really like the pastries, but she loved the whole experience with all the smells and warm feelings of love. Now, the key here is that she knew about this old memory, but the knowledge of it had not changed her behavior.

So, in her adult life, when she felt stressed or otherwise a little out of balance, her brain recalls the memory of the bakery experience. It felt good in the past, and that's the strategy that her brain knew to work, even though it was many decades outdated. The session however, changed her behavior and did so immediately and permanently. She automatically found a new strategy, that didn't involve that old, outdated habit. She was now free to walk by the chocolates and pastries around her and not be tempted. Before, she would not only have been tempted, but also indulged and then felt bad, as she knew better! She didn't need more willpower; she just needed to let go of an old pattern.

I'm always happy when this happens for my patients, even if it means I only see them once. Things are just easier when you're in charge of your eating. So, here's a question for you:

How would your life be different if you didn't have Food Cravings?

How would if feel to be in charge of your eating?

Contact me, I'm here if you want a little help.

Yours in Health,

Kara Sorensen, MS, LAc
The Food Craving Solution
15066 Los Gatos-Almaden Rd
Suite 200
Los Gatos, CA
e: kara(at)karasorensen.com
p: 408.805.5272 (KARA
p: 800.514.1406