The festive season brings many stresses and pleasures – not least of them the Christmas meal which sees the UK consuming approximately 10 million turkeys and spending about £22bn over this period.
According to YouGov, the average household spending £835 on Christmas. Of this, £161 is thought to go on food and drink and the rest on gifts (£634), cards, trees and decorations (£40).
It is estimated that 76% of UK households will serve up a succulent roast turkey as the centre piece of their festive meal this Christmas. But turkey is a relative newcomer to the Yuletide table. It was a luxury right up until the 1950s when they became more widely available, says the British turkey website.
Prior to the turkey tradition Christmas fare included roast swan, pheasants and peacocks. A special treat was a roast boars head decorated with holly and fruit.
But a large part of the problem for many of us over this period is the over-eating. Besides the main meal, there is often a plethora of starters, nibble, chocolates and, quite often, an excess of drinks – and dessert afterwards.
Little wonder, then, that many of us tend to over indulge and then come up with a New Year resolution not to do it again – until next year! But, for some, this is a problem that is more regular than just at special occasions.
Binge-eating, says the NHS, is an eating disorder where a person feels compelled to overeat on a regular basis through regular binges. People who binge consume very large quantities of food over a short period of time, even when they are not hungry.
The need to binge, says the NHS, can be brought about by low self-esteem and a lack of confidence, depression or anxiety, feelings of stress, anger, boredom or loneliness and stressful or traumatic events in the past – among others.
Binge eating can sometimes develop following a strict diet, particularly if meals are skipped, certain foods cut out or not enough is eaten. The NHS adds that these are unhealthy ways to lose weight and may mean a person is more likely to binge at another time.
The National Council for Hypnotherapy says binge-eating is an unwanted habit or a ‘problem behaviour’ which can be treated with hypnotherapy.
“If you come to see a hypnotherapist for overeating, you may find you are nourishing yourself with food, rather than love. Of course, we all need nourishment, we just need to discover the healthiest and happiest way to nourish ourselves,” says the NCH.
Managing weight loss is one of the most effective results of hypnotherapy.
“Rather than just reducing calories that you are likely to put on again in the longer term, hypnosis gets you in touch with the reasons why you unconsciously eat,” says the NCH. “If you are the type of person that struggles to stop after a small piece of chocolate and feels compelled to finish the packet then a hypnotherapist can help you understand why and help you create new healthy self-management techniques.”
Clinical hypnotherapy has a good track record in treating eating disorders as well as issues like stress, anxiety and low self-esteem.
Finally, a survey by Food Network shows that, on average, British women do not attempt their first Christmas lunch until the age of 34. Nearly half of women polled said they felt a real sense of achievement when finally dishing up the Christmas dinner and 28% of British men admit that their partner’s dinner is better than their mother’s.