Mental Snacking

Small moments to support mind & body during perimenopause

While listening to a nutrition podcast a few months back, I was introduced to the concept of exercise snacking. I loved the idea of fitting small, intentional bursts of physical activity into our busy lives and even into our most hectic days, as if we are taking a “snack of exercise” or a “bite of workout, and I instantly felt its potential in the work I do with my clients. I began applying this concept in a practical way - integrating mini-moments of mental wellness - and I’ve been thrilled to see how well it’s been received. My clients have responded positively, and many have reported feeling more grounded, focused, and connected to their wellbeing. Enter mental snacking!

As we go through perimenopause, the changes in our bodies and minds can feel intense and sometimes disruptive. Symptoms like fatigue, mood swings, hot flashes, and cravings can significantly influence daily life and may suddenly come up and intensify, even when everything else remains as busy as usual.

Mental snacking offers a simple solution: brief, intentional practices (see below) that support your mind and body throughout the day. These “mental snacks” don’t require a lot of time or effort, just as the name suggests, but can make a big difference, providing relief and balance during this transition.

Just like exercise snacking encourages short bursts of physical activity, mental snacking brings mini moments of mental wellness. These practices are drawn from tools like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), hypnotherapy, and mindful eating, all of which help reduce stress, promote mental clarity, and support positive eating habits – especially helpful during (peri)menopause or any hormonal fluctuations.

Why mental snacking is great!

Perimenopause brings shifts in hormones, energy levels, and mood that can feel intense and unpredictable. Mental snacking is an approach that provides support in “bite-sized pieces”, helping you handle the physical and emotional waves of perimenopause with more ease and even in a fun way. These quick mental check-ins can help stabilize mood, reduce stress, and encourage positive eating habits that may alleviate symptoms like fatigue, cravings, and anxiety.

Here are a few ways to incorporate mental snacking into your day:

1. Mindful Eating Moments

During perimenopause, changing hormone levels can lead to fluctuations in appetite, cravings, and even food sensitivities. These shifts can make eating feel more compulsive and may affect energy, mood and metabolism. Mindful eating moments offer a way to connect with your body’s needs and make food choices that genuinely nourish you. These brief, purposeful pauses help align eating habits with physical and emotional health.

Before a meal or snack, take just a minute to pause. Use this time to ground yourself in the present moment, checking in with your hunger and fullness levels and any emotions around food. A few slow breaths can help shift you from "eating on autopilot" to a more mindful, intentional experience. This practice helps foster a healthier relationship with food.

2. Quick Hypnosis for Cravings

When a craving hits, rather than immediately reaching for a snack, take a mental snack instead. Visualize yourself feeling calm and satisfied or imagine the sensation of making a nourishing choice for your body. This quick visualization can help you build resilience against automatic responses to cravings and create a more conscious approach to eating. Practice makes perfect in this case: the more you practice visualising or ‘the idea’ of the situation you want to visualise, the better you will become at it.

3. Affirmation Moments

Sprinkle affirmations into your day as a way to support mood and reinforce positive beliefs. Before eating, try saying something like, "I am nourishing my body" or "This food supports my energy." These short statements, when practiced regularly, can help shift your mindset around food and selfcare, making healthier choices feel more aligned with your goals.

4. Bite-Sized Breathing Exercises

When you feel overwhelmed or stressed, a few calm breaths can be incredibly grounding. Try inhaling calmly, holding for a moment, and then exhaling slowly. Repeat this three times. This simple exercise can be done in less than a minute and has a powerful impact on both mental clarity and physical relaxation.

5. Mindful Nutrition Check-Ins

Practice checking in with your body’s needs throughout the day. Rather than waiting until you’re starving or craving sweets, pause for a few seconds every few hours. Ask yourself: Am I hungry? Am I thirsty? Could I benefit from a glass of water or a balanced snack that will nourish my energy and mood? This practice helps you make balanced food choices, and it keeps energy stable, which supports mental clarity and focus.

The Benefits of Mental Snacking

Just as exercise snacking builds strength over time, mental snacking nurtures emotional resilience and mindfulness. These quick practices encourage a more compassionate relationship with food, reduce stress, and create moments of calm amid the chaos of daily life and the changes that come with (peri) menopause. They’re an easy way to get into the habit of selfcare, and they help us manage our wellbeing in a way that feels sustainable.

Final Thoughts

Mental snacking is a gentle reminder that mental wellness doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing effort. By adding a few mental snacks into your daily routine, you can feel more grounded, focused, and in tune with your body’s needs. These small practices may seem minor, but they have a cumulative impact on how we feel, think, and interact with the world.

So next time you find yourself reaching for a snack, consider adding a mental snack to the menu – a small, intentional moment to reset and reconnect. Just like a balanced diet, these mindful mental practices will nourish both your mind and body, helping you to thrive.

It’s also helpful to remember that many symptoms—whether hot flashes, fatigue, or cravings—are messages from your body, offering information that needs attention. Rather than seeing these symptoms as obstacles, you can view them as signals guiding you towards what your body and mind might need. By responding to these messages with compassion and intentional mental snacks, you can manage this transition with greater ease and self-understanding. So, as you move through (peri)menopause, think of mental snacking as a way to connect with and honour your body’s needs.

I challenge you to incorporate mental snacking into your routine for the next 10 days and notice the difference. Take a few minutes each day for these small, intentional practices and see how they affect your mood, energy, and relationship with food. I hope you find it as helpful and impactful as my clients have.

If you’re ready to start this journey and would like guidance on integrating these practices into your daily life, I’m here to help. Reach out to me to explore how mental snacking, combined with CBT-hypnotherapy and nutrition, can support your wellbeing through perimenopause.