March 2026
March is often seen as a month of movement. The days begin to stretch out, there is a sense of things shifting, and the quiet heaviness of winter slowly starts to lift.
But internally, change does not always feel so straightforward.
For many people, March can highlight a gap between how they want to feel and how they’re actually feeling. You might notice your mood fluctuating, your energy uneven, or your relationship with food feeling more intense or difficult to manage.
From an Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) perspective, this is not random.
There is often a meaningful connection between your mood, you’re eating patterns, and what’s happening in your relationships.
Why Mood and Food Are Closely Connected
When emotions feel overwhelming, food can become a way of coping. Not because something is wrong with you but because it works, at least temporarily.
You might notice:
- Eating more when feeling low, stressed, or alone
- Losing your appetite during conflict or uncertainty
- Feeling caught between restriction and overeating
- Using food to manage feelings that feel difficult to express
In IPT, we do not just look at the eating itself. We ask:
“What is happening in your life, and in your relationships, that might be affecting your mood right now?”
Because when mood shifts, eating often follows.
The Interpersonal Focal Areas: Making Sense of the Bigger Picture
IPT focuses on four key areas that commonly impact mood and, in turn, eating patterns. March can be a helpful time to gently reflect on whether any of these feel relevant for you.
🌿 1. Grief and Loss
Loss is not always recent, and it isn’t always obvious. It could be the loss of a person, a relationship, a version of yourself, or even a life you imagined.
Grief can bring waves of sadness, emptiness, or numbness all of which can influence how and when you eat. Food may become a source of comfort, or something that feels difficult to engage with at all.
Rather than pushing grief away, IPT helps you acknowledge and process it, allowing your emotional world to feel less overwhelming.
🔄 2. Role Transitions
March often sits in the middle of change new routines, shifting responsibilities, or life transitions that may still feel unsettled.
This might include:
- Starting or leaving a job
- Changes in relationships
- Becoming a parent or adjusting to children growing up
- Shifts in identity or direction
Transitions can feel destabilising, even when, they are positive. During these times, eating patterns often change as a way of managing uncertainty.
IPT supports you in adjusting to these changes, helping you feel more grounded in who you are now.
⚡ 3. Interpersonal Disputes
Ongoing tension or conflict in relationships can have a significant impact on mood. When something feels unresolved whether it’s spoken or unspoken it can create emotional strain that shows up in other areas, including eating.
You might find yourself:
- Eating after arguments
- Feeling on edge or unsettled around certain people
- Struggling to express what you need
In IPT, we work on understanding and improving communication, so that relationships feel less stressful and more supportive.
🌫️ 4. Interpersonal Sensitivities (Feeling Disconnected or Isolated)
Sometimes the difficulty is not a specific conflict or transition, but a more general sense of disconnection feeling on the outside, unsure how to build or maintain relationships, or carrying a long-standing sense of loneliness.
Food can become a companion in these moments. A way to fill space, soothe discomfort, or manage difficult feelings.
IPT offers a space to explore these patterns gently, helping you build more meaningful and supportive connections over time.
March as a Moment of Awareness, Not Pressure
With the change in season, it can be tempting to think:
“I should be feeling better by now.”
But emotional change does not follow the calendar.
March does not have to be about fixing everything. It can simply be a moment to notice:
- What is affecting your mood
- How your eating is responding
- What might be happening in your relationships
From there, change can begin not through force, but through understanding.
You Do not Have to Work This Out Alone
If you’re starting to notice links between your mood, you’re eating, and your relationships, it can feel both clarifying and overwhelming.
This is exactly the space where Interpersonal Psychotherapy can help.
Together, we can explore what has been happening, identify the areas that feel most relevant, and support you in making changes that feel realistic and sustainable.
Moving Forward, Gently
March invites movement but not urgency.
If something in this resonates, you do not have to act immediately. You can simply stay curious. And when you feel ready, support is here.
You are not stuck even if it feels that way right now, you don’t have to manage this on your own, together we can navigate a way forward. Contact 01470517214 or email janetaylormadeipat@gmail.com