The After Dinner Pages

The After Dinner Pages is a collection of thoughts on food, eating, self-trust, and the complicated relationship we can have with both.

Why Do I Binge Eat? Understand the Urge to Eat When You’re Overwhelmed
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why Do I Binge Eat? Understand the Urge to Eat When You’re Overwhelmed

For a long time, I thought the solution to binge eating was to get better at controlling myself. But the harder I tried to fight my cravings, the more I realized I needed to understand what was driving them. Here's what changed when I stopped treating food as the problem and started paying attention to what I actually needed.

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Why Do I Have No Self-Control Around Certain Foods?
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why Do I Have No Self-Control Around Certain Foods?

If you feel like you have no self-control around certain foods, you’re not necessarily lacking willpower. Food rules, scarcity, mental restriction, and the “last meal” mentality can make certain foods feel impossible to stop eating. Learn what’s really driving the cycle and what you can do to finally feel more in control around food.

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Why You Can't Stop Eating Certain Foods: How Food Scarcity Drives Overeating
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You Can't Stop Eating Certain Foods: How Food Scarcity Drives Overeating

Ever feel like you need to eat as much as possible because you don’t know when you’ll be “allowed” to have that food again?

A scarcity mindset around food can make certain foods feel urgent, increase food noise and cravings, and lead to overeating or binge eating.

Learn how mental restriction creates the “I need to eat it now” cycle, and how to start rebuilding trust around food.

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Why You Overeat After a Stressful Day: When Productivity Becomes a Coping Mechanism
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You Overeat After a Stressful Day: When Productivity Becomes a Coping Mechanism

You’re successful, disciplined, and productive in almost every area of your life, but food feels like the one thing you can’t control. If you spend your days constantly accomplishing, pushing through, and saving rest for when everything is done, food can become your reward, your break, and your only way to relax. Learn how a productivity and achievement-focused mindset can increase food noise, overeating, bingeing, and nighttime eating, and what you can do to break the cycle.

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Why You Crave Food When You're Bored or Have Nothing to Look Forward To
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You Crave Food When You're Bored or Have Nothing to Look Forward To

What if your constant thoughts about food aren't simply because you "love food"? When joy and pleasure are missing from your everyday life, food can become your main source of reward, relaxation, and excitement. Learn how a lack of joy can contribute to food noise, overeating, and binge eating and what you can do to change the pattern.

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Why Trying to Control Your Eating Can Make You Want to Eat More
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why Trying to Control Your Eating Can Make You Want to Eat More

The more you try to control your food, the more out of control you may eventually feel around it. Learn how rigid food rules, tracking, restriction, and fear of the unknown can lead to overeating, binge eating, and constant food noise, and how to rebuild trust with your body.

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Why Perfectionism Makes You More Likely to Overeat
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why Perfectionism Makes You More Likely to Overeat

You were perfect all day, until one small “slip” turned into a full spiral. If you feel out of control around food, perfectionism (not lack of discipline) may be the real cause. Here’s how the cycle works and how to break it.

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Why You Can’t Focus on Anything But Food: The Real Reason You Zone Out While Eating
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You Can’t Focus on Anything But Food: The Real Reason You Zone Out While Eating

Have you ever finished a meal and realized you barely remember eating it? You were so focused on the food in front of you that everything else faded away. This isn’t because you lack discipline or control, it’s often a sign that your body is seeking safety, regulation, and relief. Learn why you zone out while eating and how to rebuild trust with your body so you can feel present and in control around food again.

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Why You can’t “Out-Discipline” Emotional Eating
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You can’t “Out-Discipline” Emotional Eating

You don’t struggle with emotional eating because you lack discipline. You struggle because your body is trying to communicate something your mind keeps ignoring. Here’s how to understand what’s really driving your eating habits and how to break the cycle.

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Sunday or Bingeday? Why Sunday is Your Biggest Trigger for Overeating
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Sunday or Bingeday? Why Sunday is Your Biggest Trigger for Overeating

It's Sunday evening and the Sunday Scaries are hitting you hard.

You tell yourself tonight is for relaxing, but somehow it always ends the same way: takeout, an entire bag of chips, and a feeling of being overstuffed and dreading the week ahead.

If this cycle feels impossible to break, you're not alone, and it's not a willpower problem. Here's what's really going on.

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Emotional vs Physical Hunger: How to Tell the Difference
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Emotional vs Physical Hunger: How to Tell the Difference

Can’t tell if you’re actually hungry or just bored, stressed, or craving something? You’re not alone, and it’s not just “emotional vs physical.” In this post, I break down the 6 types of hunger so you can understand what your body is actually telling you and stop feeling out of control around food.

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Why You are “good” all day, only to lose control at night (And What Your Body is trying to tell you)
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Why You are “good” all day, only to lose control at night (And What Your Body is trying to tell you)

You’re disciplined all day. You make the “right” choices. You stay on track. And then 8pm hits… and it feels like something takes over.

If you’ve ever wondered why you can be so in control during the day and completely lose it at night, you’re not alone and you’re not broken. This isn’t about willpower.

It’s about what’s happening beneath the surface: Your thoughts, your body, and the patterns you’ve been stuck in without even realizing it.

In this post, we’re breaking down what’s actually driving your late-night cravings and how to start shifting it for good.

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How to Enjoy Sweets Without Guilt (And Stop Overeating at Night)
Tori Karach Tori Karach

How to Enjoy Sweets Without Guilt (And Stop Overeating at Night)

You don’t feel guilty because of what you ate. You feel guilty because of why you ate it.

If you’ve ever told yourself you’ll “be good all day” just to earn dessert… only to end up overeating and feeling worse, this isn’t a willpower problem. It’s a pattern.

In this post, I’m breaking down the real reason you feel out of control around sweets and how to finally enjoy them without guilt, restriction, or obsessing over every bite.

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Late Night Sugar Cravings: What Causes Them + How to Stop Them Without Restriction
Tori Karach Tori Karach

Late Night Sugar Cravings: What Causes Them + How to Stop Them Without Restriction

Late night sugar cravings aren’t random, they’re your body trying to tell you something. Whether it’s undereating during the day, running on low energy, or using food to cope with stress, this guide will help you identify the root cause and respond in a way that actually supports your body. No restriction, no guilt, just practical strategies that work.

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