August 2026 can have a slightly different rhythm.
Summer is still here, but there is also a sense that things are beginning to shift. Holidays are coming to an end, routines are on the horizon, and September can suddenly feel much closer than we expected. It can also be a time when we finally notice how we are really feeling.
Perhaps you have spent the summer keeping busy, looking after everyone else or simply getting on with things. From the outside, you may appear to be coping perfectly well. However, on the inside, it might feel very different.
As an Interpersonal Psychotherapist (IPT), I often meet people who would not necessarily describe themselves as struggling. Instead, they will tell me:
“I’m managing.”
“I just need to get on with it.”
“Other people have much more to deal with than I do.”
And yet, when we begin talking, something else emerges. They have been coping for so long that they have stopped noticing how much emotional energy it’s taking.
Coping and Feeling Well Are Not Always the Same Thing
We can be incredibly good at adapting, going to work, looking after our families, responding to messages, make dinner and smile when someone ask’s how we are…so life continues. Functioning does not necessarily mean we are feeling emotionally well. However, sometimes there are quieter signs that things are not quite right.
Perhaps you are more irritable than usual. Maybe you are withdrawing from people or finding socialising exhausting. Your sleep might have changed, or you are feeling increasingly low, anxious, or disconnected.
For some people, changes in their relationship with food can also be a sign that something emotionally feels difficult.
What Has Been Happening Around You?
When we are struggling, it is easy to turn the problem inward.
“What’s wrong with me?”
IPT encourages us to consider a different question:
“What has been happening in my life and relationships?”
Maybe an important relationship has changed. Perhaps you are dealing with conflict that never seems to be resolved. You may have experienced a loss. Your role within your family or workplace might have changed.
Or perhaps you have gradually become more isolated and are not feeling as connected to other people as you would like. These experiences can have a significant effect on mood. IPT helps us make those connections.
Not to blame other people for how we feel, but to understand our emotional responses in the context of what is actually happening in our lives.
When Food Becomes a Way of Coping
Sometimes emotional distress shows itself through our relationship with food. After a difficult day, food might provide comfort. After an argument, eating may offer temporary relief from feelings you do not quite know what to do with. Loneliness, rejection, stress or feeling overwhelmed can all influence eating.
For someone experiencing binge eating, that temporary comfort can become part of a difficult cycle. You might binge, feel guilt or sadness afterwards, promise yourself that tomorrow will be different and then find yourself turning to food again when another difficult feeling arrives.
Instead of immediately asking:
“How do I stop eating like this?”
it can sometimes be helpful to become curious about:
“What was happening before I needed food?”
Was I lonely?
Angry?
Hurt?
Overwhelmed?
Did something happen with someone important to me? Understanding the emotional and interpersonal context does not excuse behaviour that is causing distress. It gives us somewhere meaningful to begin.
Why Relationships Matter
One of the central principles of IPT is that our mood and our relationships influence one another. When we are feeling depressed, we may withdraw. When we withdraw, we may feel more isolated. When we feel isolated, our mood may become lower.
And sometimes we find ways to soothe those feelings including through food. This can become a cycle that is difficult to recognise when you’re in the middle of it. Therapy provides a space to slow things down and begin making sense of those connections.
You Don’t Need to Wait Until Things Become Unmanageable
There is a common belief that therapy is something we should only consider when we have reached crisis point.
It does not have to be.You do not need to prove that you’re struggling enough. Sometimes the right time to seek support is simply when you realise:
“I don’t want to keep feeling like this.”
That can be enough.
A Different Kind of Support
In my work as an Interpersonal Psychotherapist, I help people understand the relationship between what is happening in their lives, their relationships and their mood.
For people experiencing binge eating, I also work collaboratively with a dietitian through our specialist clinical pathway, bringing together the psychological and nutritional aspects of recovery.
This means we are not simply looking at food in isolation. We are interested in the person behind the eating. What is happening emotionally? What is happening relationally? And what support might help things begin to feel different?
A Question to Take Into the End of Summer
As August draws towards September, we are often encouraged to think about getting organised and returning to routine. Perhaps there is another question worth asking:
“How am I, really?”
Not how you are functioning. Not whether you are managing to keep everything going. But how you are actually feeling underneath it all.
And if the answer is “not as well as I’d like”, you do not necessarily need to have worked out why before reaching out. That is something we can begin to understand together.
If you are experiencing depression, difficulties in your relationships or binge eating and would like to explore whether Interpersonal Psychotherapy could be right for you, you’re welcome to get in touch. janetaylormadeipt@gmail.com or 01470 517214