Eating Without Distraction

My husband and I have pinpointed one of our issues that leads to overeating.  We don't sit down together at a table and eat with no distractions.  Actually the only time we really sit down and eat while doing nothing else is when we go eat at a sit-down restaurant.  We almost always eat while we are doing something else.  We eat in the car or eat at home watching tv.  We eat while we watch stuff on the computer or snack while we play a computer game.  We don't concentrate on eating.  We eat in a distracted way.

I want to work towards eating in a deliberate way.  I want to be present while I am eating.  I think that could help me a lot.  I have so many problems with food and I know this is one of them.  I even snack while I'm reading a book.  I'm embarrassed to share this but I have been known to eat something while I'm taking a bath.  I know.  It sounds gross when I say it aloud.

I remember reading somewhere that after the surgery I should plan to do nothing else while eating.  The suggestion was even that I don't talk to anyone either.  I should eat completely free of any distraction.  My husband had a hard time with this suggestion.  He and I really enjoy talking to each other and it's often our ritual to talk about things while we eat--especially if we are actually sitting down at a table.  He's worried that we will lose that very special time together.  I think that's part of the trap for food though.  Food is social ritual.  That's a lot of my Mom's worry too--how it will change my enjoyment of family holidays and get-togethers.  But if I can't change my attachment to food then I will never lose the weight--surgery or not.