The Habit of Eating Junk Food - Assignment Example

I have tried counseling sessions to help remedy my problem but still, it appears that I have a long way to go, especially with regards to my attitude. I need help, but the problem is whether I am really ready to commit to getting assistance in the best way possible (McSweeney and Eric 45).  

I think that my environment greatly contributes to the nature of my behavior. I live in a society where eating junk food is the order of the day since it is the easiest to prepare and the cheapest as compared to real food in the majority of the cases. Besides, not much emphasis is given to eating the right way from a young age so a person grows up not valuing the importance of eating right at every point of their lives. Another reason why I have this habit is that I have not mastered how to deal with my emotions appropriately. Instead of expressing myself verbally, I resort to eating to distract my attention or make me feel comfortable with my emotions at that time (McSweeney and Eric 45).

In terms of classical conditions, any situation that causes annoyance to me makes me automatically resorts to eating. More specifically I eat junk food. When watching movies, any scene that makes me feel annoyed also makes me eat more. The more annoying or emotionally upsetting the scene is, the more I eat, especially when I am without company. Mostly I will end up eating sweets, cakes, ice cream, or cookies. Once in a while I also do burgers. I am so used to this kind of life to an extent that even when my friends tell me their stories and I get upset I always just want to eat and eat.

During the counseling sessions that I had with my counselor, I tried using operant conditioning to control my behavior (McSweeney and Eric 45). Whenever I was watching or facing a situation in which I was bound to get angry I would grab a fruit and eat it. I had to set my mind to perceive junk food aromas as being harmful to my health. Suppose I came into contact with them, I had to change routes or develop a feeling of being disgusted. By so doing, I would definitely think twice before grabbing some snacks to eat. I think that the reason why I continuously find myself eating junk food because most of my developmental life was not properly directed at helping me to develop good habits. I ended up associating angry emotions with eating junk food in every situation. As I grow up, I realized that if I do not watch what I eat then I am headed for the worst health condition. To rectify this condition, I have to take advantage of operant conditioning.