Shrink Yourself is a book on emotional eating by Roger Gould

Roger Gould

Roger Gould, M.D. is an American writer, psychiatrist and leading authority on adult psychological development.In his book, “Tranzformaers” , Gould presents his view that adult psychological development consists of the “dismantling of the illusions of safety developed in childhood.” Gould’s theory...

. In Shrink Yourself, Gould suggests that the powerlessness people feel over food cravings is a cover-up for a deeper sense of powerlessness in five other areas of their lives.

The five areas he identifies are:

1. The Self-Doubt Layer: feeling powerless about how to deal with self-doubts.
2. The Frustration/Reward Layer: feeling powerless about how to get real satisfaction in life.
3. The Safety Layer: feeling powerless to insure personal safety.
4. The Rebellion Layer: feeling powerless to appropriately assert personal independence.
5. The Emptiness Layer: feeling powerless to fill oneself up when feeling empty inside.

By recovering one’s power in these five areas, Gould suggests one also recovers power over food cravings.