Managing Cravings

From 'Dreaming of a Light Christmas' by Paula Goodyer in today's Age newspaper.

'If you have a craving for cake - or a drink - trying to supress it can sometimes make the craving worse, [psychologist] Kavanagh explains.

"Not only are you trying not to focus on the craving, you're also mentally checking to make sure you're not thinking about it," he says.

That's where mindfulness comes in - the practice of allowing thoughts to float into your head, rather than fighting to keep them out.

"The idea is to try to see unwanted thoughts - like cravings - as paper boats floating past on a stream. You can grab them or you can let them drift past," he says, adding that, with practice, we can learn to let the thoughts go - and perhaps replace them with more positive images of how we want to be.'