Eat for Calm

Inspired by the work of nutritionist Luis Mojica

If you're feeling overwhelmed, anxious, exhausted, or easily triggered—it's not all in your head. It might be in your blood sugar. In your adrenals. In the way your body is metabolizing the foods you're eating.

One of the most powerful shifts I’ve made in my healing journey was learning how to eat for calm. Not to lose weight, not to look a certain way—but to feel steady, regulated, and like myself again.

This framework comes from the brilliant work of nutritionist Luis Mojica, who teaches that food isn’t just fuel—it’s a signal to the nervous system. Some foods help you regulate. Some destabilize you. Some numb you out. When you start to notice the difference, everything changes.

The Real Reason You’re Tired, Wired, or Checked Out

According to Luis, there are three types of foods:

• Stimulants, which rev up your nervous system.

• Depressants, which numb or sedate your system.

• Balancers, which support and stabilize your system.

It’s a radical reframe—and also incredibly simple. You don’t need a new diet. You need a new lens. Let’s break them down:

Stimulants: The Stress Accelerators

These are the foods that make your heart race, your mind scatter, and your stress response activate. They include sugar, caffeine, chocolate, and refined carbs.

They feel good for a moment because they give a spike of energy or dopamine. But that spike is followed by a crash. And to recover from that crash, your body releases adrenaline, putting you right back into a state of fight or flight. Even if nothing in your external life is stressful, your biochemistry is stressed.

This is one of the hidden reasons so many people feel anxious, wired at night, or emotionally reactive during the day. Their food is keeping them in a loop of internal stress.

Depressants: The Numb-Out That Backfires

These are the heavy, rich, comfort foods we often crave when we’re overwhelmed: fried food, creamy dairy, alcohol, baked goods, processed snacks, cannabis.

They slow you down—not by regulating your system, but by dulling it. They pull your energy into digestion and give the illusion of calm. But once your body finishes digesting, the original discomfort returns—often stronger. The stress you tried to suppress hasn’t gone anywhere.

Over time, this numbing cycle creates fogginess, disconnection, bingeing, and guilt. It mimics trauma in the body, even when there’s no external crisis happening.

Balancers: Your Nervous System’s Best Friend

Balancing foods are the quiet heroes. They nourish without stimulating, ground without sedating, and help you build true emotional and physiological stability.

Examples include:

• Beans and lentils

• Whole fruits and vegetables

• Animal protein

• Healthy fats from nuts, seeds, and olive oil

When you eat mostly balancing foods, your blood sugar stays stable. Your adrenals get to rest. Your nervous system stays in a regulated, resilient state.

What does this look like in real life?
You sleep better.
You feel more patient.
You think more clearly.
You recover from stress faster.
You stop reacting impulsively and start responding intentionally.

This is what it means to eat for calm.

My Story: Why This Matters to Me

I came to this work through necessity. I’m healing from a lifelong injury to my stress response, shaped by extreme childhood stress and trauma. For years, I thought I just had to manage it—white-knuckle my way through life. But through Luis Mojica’s course, I learned there was another way.

By changing what I eat—and understanding why it matters—I’ve found steady, quiet progress in my nervous system. It’s not instant. It’s not perfect. But it is consistent. And it’s working.

I’m calmer. Less reactive. More myself. Food has been one of my most important tools.

If you want to explore this work more deeply, you can visit Luis Mojica’s website here.

Final Thoughts: You Deserve a Calm Body

You don’t need more willpower. You need more regulation.
You don’t need another diet. You need a way of eating that brings you home to yourself. You don’t need to push harder. You need to support your system.

Eating for calm is one of the kindest things you can do for your body and your future.

Start by noticing what foods make you feel steady. What meals help you think clearly? What snacks help you stay present? What habits actually support your peace? Then begin to choose those more often—not from fear or pressure, but from a place of care. Your body wants to heal. And food can help it get there.