6 Pack Abs - somewhere under there

I wake up this morning and feel the "flat" "empty" stomach under my hands - of course I must first push the mounds of flesh to the side. I lay there with this unfamiliar feeling and remember my friend/client saying a few weeks ago how she has lost 10 lbs and is feeling uncomfortable with the flatter stomach she has. She's uncomfortable with not being full all the time. All of this takes me back to 5 years ago during my counseling for Emotional Eating. I would lose about 10 lbs and then sabotage myself. After a few times of this I began to realize that I hated the feeling of my stomach feeling flatter and I hated the feeling of not being full. The most obvious question is, "Which areas of life are empty that need to be filled, where you're using food instead?" I would sit and contemplate this over a big lunch. But this morning I had another thought. Waking up without feeling guilt over the day/night before - waking up with the reality of my body, not the bloated aftermath body I used to create - this is an awkward feeling. It's reality. This morning I likened it to someone that misuses alcohol - they use the alcohol to avoid feelings of reality. It's much easier to deal with the "walk of shame" or the hangover than to deal with what you are trying to avoid. For an Emotional Eater, it's MUCH easier to focus on the bloat and "why did you do this to yourself again??!!" question than "why are you so unhappy?" or "what do you really need to feel happier". People coming off addiction have a horrible time looking at themselves in the mirror without the smoke screen of their addiction - it's too real. And the same is true when losing weight. That bloat and blubber is comforting and distracting and to wake up without guilt or self-hatred is a bit disquieting and too real. Man, we're messed up!! But I say that in the most loving way.