The San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute would like to suggest a Thanksgiving story idea about eating and the holidays. Eating is a basic pleasure. From infancy, human instinct equates a full belly with feeling filled up with goodness inside. The reasons for overeating are complex. Different families have different cultures about food.
Some families are big eaters and habits regarding overeating can begin early in life.
At the other end of the spectrum, overeating can occur when people internalize their struggles with other people, but play out these struggles in their eating behavior. While overeating is often associated with people rewarding themselves, it can also be a means of self-inflicted punishment or rebellion. An adolescent may overeat if a mother puts too much emphasis on her child to remain slim. Overeating can also be a symptom of depression. Just being aware of the reasons for overeating can help individuals cope as they face Thanksgiving and that extra piece of pie.