Amy Shah, MD, leading medical doctor and Instagram personality @fastingmd, shares her proven 5-step program for battling excessive hunger and food cravings by harnessing the power of psychobiotics and intermittent fasting.

“My mission is to revolutionize the way we think about hunger and nutrition, and to help people manage hunger and cravings and break free from the tyranny of diets and battles with food. I’ve seen my program work for people all over the world. And it will work for you, too.” —from the introduction by Dr. Amy Shah

Dr. Amy Shah kept hearing the same complaints from her patients: “I feel hungry all the time, even when I just ate.” “My cravings are out of control.” They were white-knuckling it through yet another diet plan, only to feel depleted, frustrated, and really effing hungry.

So she created I’m So Effing Hungry, a science-based plan designed to help you take charge of your health and your cravings, without feeling deprived. As Dr. Shah explains, cravings aren’t your fault—and eating a healthier diet isn’t just a matter of self-discipline or willpower. There are powerful biological forces at play in your body that govern your hunger levels and cravings.

Drawing on the emerging science of psychobiotics—healthy gut bacteria that help improve mood and regulate hunger, weight, and cravings—Dr. Shah has created a 5-step plan to help you make peace with food and your body:

STEP 1. REPLENISH: your body by eating more nourishing, mood-balancing foods.

STEP 2. REWIRE: your brain to undo the addiction pathways and cravings for processed foods.

STEP 3. RESET: your circadian rhythm to activate hunger hormones that reduce your appetite.

STEP 4. REFRESH: with a good night’s sleep, using proven good sleep habits used by the U.S. military.

STEP 5. RETRAIN: your body with exercise that regulates key neurotransmitters that influence our hunger response.

Complete with more than thirty delicious recipes and peppered with easy Hunger Hacks and Cravings Crushers—like eating walnuts to reduce hunger and getting direct sunlight first thing in the morning—I’m So Effing Hungry is a complete guide to help you reframe decades-old dieting patterns and stop fighting the scale.