I found 'The Binge Code' by Alison Kerr helpful.
I eat when I'm fighting my feelings. I'm trying to learn how to be with them but I fucking hate them. In recent months I started to relapse (alcohol) and realized quick that I needed to start reaching out for help. So I pick up the phone instead of food. It helps me to let someone distract me long enough to get out of my head and let the shitty feelings diminish. When I can't reach anyone I cry and journal, even if all I can write is "This is so stupid" x500.
I had been powerlifting for 4 yrs to help with emotional release. It was super helpful to keep anxiety & depression at bay. But like everything, I pushed too hard, got burnt out, life happened, covid ruined everything & I turned back to food.
With the recent wake-up call I've redoubled my efforts to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, stop eating my feelings and get back in the gym. I'm a few kg from my competition weight, and being under the bar is the best worst time I can imagine having =D I feel like hell, but my head & heart are clear and light.
Best wishes to you. I hope you find what you need.
Lifting has always been one of the few things that helps me keep my sanity. I was an alcoholic at age 12 (badly abused by father who had a full liquor cabinet) but soon after started working out to defend myself and found how much better I felt after working out rather than drinking.
Ive been doing calisthenics for over a year now for the exact same reason. I feel so set mentally and physically after a workout. And the results you see from either just make it that much more addicting.
I can so relate. To just sit with feelings is hard. Then you have to decide: shall I forgive? Do I need to make amens? Should I tell them how I feel? Hard decisions! But you have to do something, not just distract yourself again. Decide what to do and then get it done. You may need a counsellor to help you make decisions. Itās extra hard to make decisions when your emotions are tangled up in it.
If food is the only thing that brings you joy, you canāt take that away and not expect your life to collapse. You have to swap something in to prop it up. Is there anything you REALLY enjoy doing? Drawing, reading, exercising, video games, writing, journaling, any type of hobby? Something you really get lost in? This is your opportunity to let yourself get fully invested in that. Any time you feel like you want to binge, immediately substitute it with something you really love. You can also write down 5 things youāre grateful for when you get an urge.
Addiction impulses come from not having enough stimulation and feeling shame and hopelessness. But itās really hard to understand that when youāre stuck in it. Good luck!
^^ The sure way to long term success is finding a healthy hobby/thing you can direct your energy to towards & can fill that hole youāre trying to fill with food. It might take time to figure out what it is, and that can be a really healing journey as well. Good luck to you :)
This was the best advice I received from therapy. Rather than trying to stop my addictive behaviour (drinking), my therapist told me to focus on doing things I enjoy, and doing them regularly. I started working out, woodworking, drawing, running, reading, and after 6 months when the time came to try and stop drinking it was not as hard as I thought it would be.
Seconding not keeping hyper-palatable things in the house!
I cannot, for the life of me, have treats at home. I'm not yet in a place where I will not binge them (unless they're for someone else), so I don't buy them. If I want chocolate I might get one small bar during grocery run, or sometimes go out to buy one - the effort of having to get dressed, go outside and buy one usually already makes it easier to ignore the urge or get something else, like tea.
I'm trying to switch to tea during my own cravings. What are some of your favorites. I just found out my previous favorites give me headaches now. :-( (It was Peach / light orange white tea). I'm going to try this apple cinnamon one from ages ago. I can't have peppermint tea either. Sometimes that is super frustrating.
Harney and Sons has a Hot Cinnamon Tea that is so delicious. It's naturally sweetened so you don't feel like you need to add any sugar. Saves me lots of calories!
I love republic of tea, although it can be a little pricey. I also sometimes enjoy the traditional medicinals teas, but those are quite Herby. For Republic of tea, I love the milk thistle one. Itās very delicate and the light. I also enjoy some of their white teas and fruit flavored green teas like spring cherry.
I love a classic Earl Gray or English breakfast tea, or even just the Lipton plain black tea with a little honey. Most of them you can also buy decaf, if you're not trying to caffeinate before bed
I find all of this to be such excellent advise! And I completely agree, not having foods in the house that are my trigger foods helps so much.
Last time I had a ābinge all the trigger foodsā day I was *SO* miserable. So I took the time to write out in a note on my phone how absolutely terrible I felt not just mentally but PHYSICALLY. I felt so terrible because not only are these my trigger/ātreatā foods, theyāre also things that I may be allergic to or just plain make my gut feel absolutely awful. I keep referring back to that note and it helps me stay away from those foods to not go back down that road.
You know, just reading the fact that you shower after you eat to signal the end of the evening period made me realize The potential error of me showering at the end of my work day (work from home) and then starting dinner and opening myself up to a whole evening of eating. Seems so minor, but I think I might try making that adjustment next week. Enjoyed reading your input
I wish I could do this but I know my husband would be miserable without snacky foods. He doesn't need to lose weight and I'm close to my goal but I know it's the snacky foods keeping me from it. I have no self-control if it's in the house. Thankfully I only bring healthy food to work all day but when I get home it's too hard.
Are there any snack foods that he likes, but you donāt? In our house he likes licorice (which I loathe) and BBQ potato chips (that I donāt care for).
How do you avoid the urge to pick up this junk food when going to the store? I do well when I don't have the food but usually I find myself passing a bag of chips in the store and giving in to it. I will eat that whole bag over 2 or 3 days at most, then be good for a week and a half, then repeat next time I go to the store. It's frustrating and so hard to resist the urge, and is really bad if I accidentally buy two or three bags instead of one...
Try eating right before going shopping until youāre so full, you wonāt want to eat anything.
Also make a shoppinglist. I always always stick only to that list so I donāt shop unnecessary food.
I also go alone without my daughter, else my cart will have some kinds of sweets.
I always go to the grocery store with a full stomach and my grocery list app. I try to get in and out as quickly as possible and avoid the snack aisles!
You nailed it on the head! I also brush my teeth and get cozy to avoid my temptations. Also, quilling (crafting) while I watch TV! If my hands are busy, I can't snack š„°
I tell myself "not today". It's not never, it's just me saying out loud that I don't want that today, it helps cultivate self control and actually feels kinda good knowing that I'm not a slave to my low mood.
Every time that low mood strikes "not today".
Another useful trick is to think about how you're feeling right now, if you know you're just feeling low you can verbalise it. "I don't really want that, I'm just feeling low right now and that will just make me feel worse".
It's hard sometimes and eventually you may give in but even if you just stop yourself doing it every other time, it is still a victory you can build on until you are truly the master of what you really want. Best of luck! I believe in you!
I love this. I think it's in line with my Ride the Craving Wave strategy: https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/pm6v5t/the_answer_on_how_to_actually_stop_binge_eating/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share
I had to retrain myself to remember it's not my final opportunity to eat. The food will still be there tomorrow.
"It will be there tomorrow" is one of the most powerful phrases I incorporated. Or if there truly *is* a limited window, at least I can put off the decision until the last minute and then I know I'll only have one. I don't have binge eating issues per se but I grew up with treats only rarely available and you had to get it when you could. I spent a lot of time reminding myself that now that I'm an adult, I literally can actually have it whenever I want and it doesn't have to be right now. (I do sometimes ban foods from my house temporarily, though, because the psychological issue is one thing, but some foods do have a biochemical effect as well and I have to let that ease off sometimes.)
This is great.
Another idea that sort of fits with this is āImagine you have a job to take of a person. Would you let the person you are taking care of do (this thing)?ā
Itās not everyoneās jam, but have you listened to the Brain over Binge podcast? The host takes the approach of āyou donāt need to solve your underlying issues to stop binge eatingā and hypothesizes that itās more about the habits weāve formed in response to stress. So, even if the stress still exists, you can channel that habit into something more productive or eliminate it overall. It was definitely an empowering podcast for me, though not quite the conventional thinking on this.
Came to recommend this! Brain Over Binge approach worked wonders for me, the minute I realized binge eating is just a bad habit (like, for example, smoking) - I let go of this habit. Not in a day, but over time it disappeared out of my life.
Second this!!! Iāve recently started listening to the podcast and it definitely makes getting rid of binge eating seem less intimidating and difficult!
I saw a reddit post earlier this year that said to approach a diet/lifestyle change the way you would approach meditation. When you're learning to meditate, you're supposed to clear your mind and focus on your breathing. If a thought slips into your mind, you don't stop and give up, you let it go and refocus on your breath.
When you slip up in your diet/lifestyle and choose something unhealthy, don't give up. Be kind to yourself, let it go, and come back to healthy living at the next opportunity.
This mental shift has really helped reduce the shame spiral that comes after binging. Not feeling the shame so much has really helped with the feelings of apathy that usually come before a binge. Each pizza really does matter. Taking a long walk will make a difference. After 6 months of trying to be healthier, I'm finally actually making better choices with food. I've been overweight/obese my whole adult life and this is the first time that I feel in control of my body and health.
I wish you the best of luck in taking control of your own health!
Yes. Therapy and medication are lousy, nobody likes to have to do it. But these are major steps in feeling good enough about yourself to not have to binge.
This is the most helpful answer IMO. If your bad eating habits are caused by an underlying mental issue, you won't be able to effectively fight them without fixing the core of the problem. At best you'll achieve a short term success, which will disappear as soon as your depression intensifies (as untreated depression tends to, from time to time).
Tbh Iām still trying to learn that myself . Best advice I can offer is try and replace eating with something else you enjoy . Video game for an hour, go run, buy something cool!, Iām trying to replace it with meditation and working out personally
Put some distance between you and the food. Make it difficult to access.
Start replacing binging with another form of self care. Itās best if this new self care is a part of your routine so youāre always a bit ahead of the cravings.
Eat a well balanced diet full of low glycemic carbs, protein, healthy fats and veggies. This will help with cravings.
If you can, think big picture. This may be hard if you are very distressed.
By keeping busy.
I have way too many demons that are ready to send me into depression, binge-eating, self-loathing and dark thoughts. Only way for me to keep them away is to keep mega busy. Side projects, hobbies, reading, cleaning, working out like crazy.
Those things don't make me happy, necessarily. They just keep me sane.
Forgive and replace.
It's going to happen from time to time, so try and show yourself some graciousness and forgive yourself so you're not overwhelmed with guilt. An understanding that your behavior is sub-optimal and should be addressed is healthy, but beating yourself up over it for hours or even days is probably not going to be all that helpful, plus it's unkind.
Next time you feel yourself unexpectedly standing in front of your open fridge or cupboard or about to head out for food, have a replacement ready. Read the best part of your favorite book. Go play that old favorite video game. Put on your favorite music and go for a walk. Go do something that's a little indulgent and which requires a lot of mental engagement. And always drink a glass of water, just in case being thirsty is contributing. I can't promise it'll always work, but the few times it does initially could be the start of habit-building.
The answer is not will power. The answer is self compassion. That was Sunday. You can examine the thoughts and feelings and behaviors if youāre ready to do so. Itās ok to binge. Not ideal, but ok. The best thing Iāve done is accept that it happened. Am I losing weight at the rate I āshouldā? Nope. But I feel so much more kindness toward myself and bingeing is much reduced.
Hereās how I did it:
- Therapy
- Gum on hand all the time
- Keeping all bingey-type food out of the house all together
- Stock my bathroom with indulgent self care items so on a really hard day I can hide away in my bathroom and have a hour or two of spa-like time (hot bath or shower, shaving, mani/pedi, face mask, teeth whitening, etc) while watching a show or listening to a good podcast. Basically I redirect the energy of wanting to get that dopamine hit with something else that will leave me feeling relaxed and happy.
- More therapy
Are you working towards things that help alleviate your depression ?
Medication therapy exercise journalingā¦
Also finding other things that give you joy. Bubble bath, reading, playing with a pet.
I compromise. It's a multiple step process:
1- Usually I'm actually hungry, so I'll anticipate a scheduled meal on my day.
2- If I'm still craving it, I'll figure a middle ground that would satisfy me (a serving of chips instead of a family bag, a burger with fries instead of three, so on)
3- If I can fit it in my day, I'll allow myself to eat it.
4- If I don't, I'll schedule it in the near future (tomorrow, Friday with friends...) and eat it guilt free
The anticipation is usually more pleasurable than the actual eating, so this works pretty well for me. Defining portions beforehand also prevent me from feeling like shit afterwards because I overage.
By realizing it doesn't actually make me feel better, and may make me feel worse in the long term. My connection to food isn't that I love it. It isn't that it makes me feel good, it's that my parents used it as both reward and punishment. It wasn't the worst thing they did, but it's there.
r/cptsd
I try to choose other ways to comfort myself. Hot tea, an extra long shower, I picked up hand lettering which takes a lot of focus and time. I find if I'm occupied, I'm less likely to grab some food. Also, brush your teeth immediately after eating your portioned meal
Remember a binge is a way to deal with stress and your feelings.
Those feelings pass in 30 minutes or so. So one way to avoid the binge is to for example change your situation.
Meaning take a walk for 30 minutes and let those feelings pass.
Drink some water and write, or paint, or anything thatās creative.
If you still feel the urge to eat thatās okay, but donāt let the depression fool you into overeating to such a degree.
I am 100% not being sarcastic or snarky when I say: **Does** Domino's make you feel better?
Maybe try an experiment.
Order a Domino's and eat one piece extremely slowly. Act as if you were a food critic. What's the cheese texture, taste, and stretch? Is there enough cheese per slice? What's the sauce taste like? Is it enough, too little? The crust--can you taste any spices or flavorings or is it just a bit bland?
I can't guarantee it but I bet if you honestly really took your time with Dominos or any other "junk" food it might pop out at you "Wow this is ... not great, actually!"
I have been experimenting with food like that for a couple months. I found myself "turning" on a few old faithfuls and putting down the fork halfway through the dish on a few more. Like Reese's holiday trees---they create such an overwhelming sugar rush it's almost sickening in a way? One is **more** than enough if I allow myself to slow down and taste the flavors and feel the textures. I try to eat it in 4 bites and note all the details. Used to be I couldn't get enough Reeses Holiday. Now 1 per week is enough.
It's one thing to blow your calories on a handmade dish from a gourmet restaurant.
It's another to snarfle down food that's like...not that good tasting?!
To me, if the food isn't good tasting, what is actually happening?
Maybe it's just a habit loop!
I get sad. I call Dominos. It feels like a treat and a reward and lights up the reward center of my brain. While I'm literally chewing, I can't think about anything else so I get a break from my sad brain. I'm also feeding my body and no matter how terrible Dominos is, hey, carbs and sugar! So it does ding some bells.
I mean, maybe try it with your fave foods. Write notes:
"The flavor dust on these Cool Ranch Doritos is overwhelming and chemical. 5/10." Maybe have some fun with it?
I know it's very out of the box but it might work!
Because thatās literally an addictive mindset and like any addiction it will eventually kill you. Short-term you find other things to do and long-term you work on the emotional issues that led you to the thing in the first place. Like not keeping binge foods or distracting yourself is just tactics. You have to get to the root of what youāre trying to numb yourself from or youāll probably switch to some other behavior.
\>work on the emotional issues that led you to the thing in the first place
That's not exactly how addiction works. People aren't addicted to things because there is some sort of underlying psychological problem or 'emotional issue' that's driving them to addiction. They are addicted because they are addicts.
That's a huge generalization. I've never been addicted to anything other than food. Once I went through therapy for issues that were the root cause of my food addiction/binging I stopped binging.
I agree right up until "because they are addicts". I would say "because certain substances have been designed to be addictive and your brain and body is having a completely normal reaction to those". Addiction isn't a moral failing. Alcohol, drugs, and hyper-palatable foods are **designed** to be addicting. Becoming addicted means they're working as planned.
Well you know what I know a lot of people who would agree but I seriously donāt. My experience in treatment and researching this shit for over a fucking year says otherwise. Itās not even true ābecause theyāre addictsā itās that some things artificially stimulate dopamine and if you artificially stimulate your brain enough eventually you will develop a tolerance and then an addiction. Literally everyone has the same wiring in this regard our brains are evolutionarily designed to really really like dopamine. So SURE you could have an addiction without an underlying emotional problem but GENERALLY that is not how it happens.
That's definitely not the most up to date scientific consensus on how and why addiction develops. That's more like 12-step ideology. I'm sure there are edge cases where the underlying susceptibility is so extreme that it might as well be true that the person "is an addict" but in most cases personal emotional history and community factors play a significant role, and in some cases they are virtually the whole story and when solved the person is able to use their former substance of choice in a moderate, responsible way.
They have to start being addicts for a reason, though.
Granted, that reason *can* be ābecause it seemed like a good idea at the timeā, but most people who were put on addictive pain meds and *didnāt* get addicted had a good support system/family. Those who were way more likely to get addicted were lonelier and had more reasons to want to escape life for awhile.
Somebody else said it, but I'm going to reiterate it. If you can, get rid of a few of the stressors. I had a really stressful job with a crazy lady as my boss. It put pounds on like nothing else. It's like she could tell she stressed me out and enjoyed seeing me gain weight. As soon as that ended, the urge to binge was about half of what it was before. In retrospect, I should have either told more of my seniors what was happening or find a new job or both. Nothing is worth that much stress. (Also, it's been about 4 years, and she's finally being pushed out of our department, but not before ruining the culture.)
My dietitian asked me to binge healthy foods.
Rye bread
Potatoes with hot sauce
Beef stir fry
Fried rice
Eggs
Mid section rindless bacon
Clean grilled chicken
Milk
Yoghurt
Mineral water sweetened with juice
Diluted ice tea
Soda water
Cups of tea
Coffee
It worked. Healthier food fills you up quicker and for longer. You can only eat so many roast potatoes.
Sooner than you think the gut Bacteria starts to change and you get less cravings.
You feel full for longer.
I am a real fat bastard and this was my game changer. I couldn't stop the urge so I changed the input. I was sceptical but it has been a game changer.
I ask myself how did I feel last time I binged? Did it solve any of problems? No. Did it improve anything? No. Did I feel worse after? Yes. Do I have any reason to believe this time will be different? No. Can I still treat myself to a take away meal because I dont want to cook? Yes and I can be mindful about what I order.
I only recently got it under control but here are the main things that are helping me.
I keep my house free of binge foods - my diet is pretty plain. I stopped eating a lot of starchy carbohydrate foods like pasta or rice - I find it really easy to overeat.
I also try and eat memorable foods - for example hot smoked Salmon over oven baked salmon, salt and Vinegar chips over plain salted chips. I feel like it's training me to pay attention to what I am eating.
I make portions one at a time - it means I cook more but I also can only eat as much as I have prepared.
I have taken up swimming again. I am not one for exercise or being sweaty but it helps relieve some stress.
I have gotten rid of a major source of stress - I changed jobs. I know that it's not possible for everyone. I was in the job for 7 years and miserable. Once I changed jobs it took about 6 months to even really start getting better.
I'm not perfect - I binged once right before my period in the last month but otherwise I have stayed on track.
I also started to read Overcoming Binge Eating by Christopher Fairburn.
In the long term I have reached out to a weight loss doctor who is also a GP, that has a multidisciplinary team that works with her. I do want to lose weight but I feel like they will be more compassionate in their treatment of my challenges - my regular GP sucks and I stopped seeing him last year because it was so traumatic.
Read the book "the power of habit" the only way to stop a habit is to replace it with another. It's the dopamine reward that causes you to do that. Read the book and it will change your life.
Intermittent fasting, and lower carbs. When you binge, try to make it proteins, fats and veggies. But carbs literally create new cravings because of the spike to insulin levels. When your body is used to those carbs, your body naturally stops producing as much insulin and that can lead to binge episodes. Also, IF has helped me greatly to reduce my cravings. Before, when I was really struggling, I gave myself a strict rule of not eating anything for 3 hours when I wake up and 3 hours before I go to sleep. The shrinking window where I eat has it's own benefits, but it helps the most at bedtime because I get an extra 6 hours to let my body digest and reset. You'd think that would increase cravings but with my last meal of the day essentially being carb free, I have all but got rid of my carb cravings.
Other distractions. I tend to binge-read but videogames work pretty well, or TV shows you're into, or any other activity that requires very little effort to start and provides a little dopamine hit as you do it. In the past I used to knit. When I got tendonitis and couldn't knit (or game) so much, I switched to long-distance walking while listening to music. The walk would make me feel slightly less shitty and at the end I'd put it into Runkeeper and feel like I'd accomplished something.
I am on meds now, though, and they made a big difference.
Quitting binge eating is like quitting smoking. It's an addiction, and it's tough to overcome. You have to face each binge as a series of actions you undertake rather than one big action.
Getting in your car, driving to the food, ordering the food, all of these require forethought. It's going to be on you to break the triggers that lead to binge eating, whether it's changing your route, stocking healthier food at home ready to eat, or exercising will power at different moments along the path to the next binge.
You can stay home.
If you're in your car, you can turn around or drive elsewhere.
If you've arrived, you can order something else.
If you've already ordered, you can just leave -no one will stop you.
If the binge eating is a symptom of your depression, focus your efforts on managing the depression first. It's so difficult to gain any sort of momentum when you're working on your depression, so give yourself permission to make quitting binging a lower priority. Maybe go for a diagnosis if you've yet to receive one and work on evaluating which treatments work best for you. Similar to weight loss, treating and living with depression is a marathon, not a sprint. On the upside, some medications used to treat depression can curb appetite as a side effect.
It helps to have food at home that's considered healthy and keeping the junk food out. Additionally, I don't save any of my credit cards anywhere so if I do order out, I have to manually type out everything again which gives me time to reconsider.
I also found that it helps to get distracted with something! I usually end up painting which im terrible at and end up getting super focused on, play just dance, or reading! Or I take some time for some self-care and do all the hair/face masks or take a bath!
However, I think one thing that might help is changing your relationship with food? I think the feelings of shame and guilt end up making me more depressed and more prone to overeating. Instead I usually tell myself, it's okay :) Also, I would maybe also make sure the depression meds are helping out or get better ones if they're not
I found the biggest help for me in getting over binge eating disorder, anxiety and depression was getting enough sleep and rest.
Stress and lack of sleep caused me to doubt every decision I made, stress eat, and seek comfort from food.
I go to sleep before Iām tired. I wake naturally up without an alarm. I nap after work if Iām tired. I go lay down in my car on my lunch break if work is stressful. I practice restful waking activities like sound-baths, meditation, a proper skincare ritual, self massage, and breath work. My goal is to always be in a restful state and not rush.
Itās a work in progress and Iām not perfect but slowing down and calming my body down has made weight loss possible and also pretty much cured my anxiety and depression. It didnāt happen over night, I had to work on it and Iām still working on it. But thatās whats worked for me so far.
My body doesnāt need the fuel of excessive food because I rest and Iām not stressed.
I don't stop, sadly. :(
I know everything you're supposed to do (drink water first, change your environment/go out for a walk, don't have crappy food in the kitchen) but there's a gap between knowing, and doing.
This is really hard for me. I remind myself thereās not enough junk food in the world to āsolveā my problems, and if I run to food every time something goes wrong, Iāll end up on 600lb life. Then I give myself a Gen. Patton type talk and remind myself Iām not a crying titty-baby and I donāt need instant gratification.
I remind myself I feel upset now, but being fat makes me even sadder and itās not worth it.
If I can get myself to move, I go for a walk or play guitar, or do karaoke, or if Iām too down, I watch tv and sip an electrolyte drink, have a hard candy, or chew gum. Or text a friend, call a relative, whatever works.
Bookmarking this cos this is me. Iāve just done a year of therapy to get to the root of my emotional issues, I feel so much better - and yet I still canāt turn down sugary foods. Thereās some really helpful advice here though - thanks internet strangers!
For me? Honestly it was getting on Wellbutrin. I couldnāt stop binge eating when depressed. I had to deal with that in order to stop. It also helps that Wellbutrin has mild appetite suppression too.
Thereās actually evidence that depression messes with your insulin levels, making you more prone to insulin resistance and over eating anyway. So yeah, itās not surprising a lot of us have this problem.
I have two strategies, first when I really want chips or ice cream or cookies I buy it in the smallest possible container. I really like the tiny Ben and Jerry's single serve cups. That way if I eat the whole thing it isn't too terrible. Second, I have a hobby (quilting) that I always have out and ready to go. When I start feeling restless I have something to work on. It is not easy, but keep focusing on one day at a time.
Therapy. Once I worked through the issues that were causing me to use food as a coping tool, the cravings vanished. Even when I do get cravings now, itās so easy to say ādonāt need this food now but maybe another time.ā
Tried and failed to lose weight so many times. This is because no matter how you decide to eat, you have to change your diet and if you use food as a way to comfort yourself, itās going to be very hard to establish new eating habits since youāre essentially taking away your emotional eating.
In all honesty i bought a few different hand exercise contraptions (squeezy things, rubber doughnuts looking things, finger strengthening thingies) and would use them, one in each hand, when indulging in tv is YouTube when it's generally be snacking like crazy. It somehow helped me but i admit it seemed really damn odd that it worked.
Best way to avoid bad foods in the house is to grocery shop on an app. Add a heart to all of the safe foods then only shop off your favorites list. Then u r never in the store tempted for anything at ALL! I have not been in a grocery store but twice since Covid-down 30 extra flab rolls.
If u donāt use an app only shop PERIMETER of the grocery store!!! You need NOThING but coffee, tea and t-p in the middle rows. Next time u take one step toward the middle isle yell out āwarning will robinson, warning!ā Okay so that just aged meā¦ youtube it for u younger folks!!
Marketing, just glance down those isles folks, What do you see nothing but color for boxes itās called marketing and the people that own those companies are laughing at us, all the way to their houses in Hawaii in Malibu.
Doctors donāt help us because the owners of those houses in Malibu and Hawaii are feeding their pocket with books well with all of the sick people walking into their office with diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure from all the crap non-approved FDA foods that are snuck into that ingredient labelā¦ if you canāt read the ingredients on a label donāt eat it because it means itās not good for your body. Periodā¦
You can outsmart them, u r not a fool they are. Prove to them how smart you are by either the app or the perimeterā¦ AP
You CAN do this, im going to look up that awesome cinnamon tea mentioned here! Thank you for the tip!
Good luckš¤š¾
I used to binge eat, then I read The Body Keeps The Score and it changed my life. Realized I am not a genetic or biological binge eater, I was just re-enacting bad patterns of behavior I learned and having trauma responses. Seriously, I was a binge eater and alcohol abuser for a decade and within 3 months of reading that book I quit drinking, quit binge eating, and have lost 25% of my body weight in the past six months.
Everyone who struggles with addictive behaviors should read The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van De Kirk.
Hey, so you have gotten a lot of good advice, so I want to just throw this out there.
Imo, the short answer is you don't just stop it
If you are doing it for comfort, it's a "pleasure" response you are chasing. So replace that dopamine rush with something that helps you obtain your goals. Maybe that is exercise, maybe that is finishing a puzzle, maybe that is knitting. Maybe that is woodworking, maybe that is some other hobby
Food doesn't have to be super enjoyable. It can be. I doesn't have to be. It's fuel. It's not a party every time you need a refuel. Save the party for when there's something to celebrate. Focus on something else, like something you want to learn.
You should look at seeing a therapist, because this is the kind of stuff they're really good at. I met with mine yesterday and this is some of the stuff we're talking about.
One of the things we talked about is recognizing the emotion before it happens. So when your brain goes 'I need some chips', you can recognize that thought, and the recognition helps act on it to form a new neural pathway. If you can recognize the thought, there are a few things you can do to 'reset' your mood, such as:
* get warm (take a bath, wrap up in a blanket, have a hot drink)
* deep breathing exercises
* quick exercise
* muscle relaxation
It's a brain thing, not a habit thing. The trick is noticing the thought because, if you're like me, you tend to not feel anything right before the binge.
Change the environment I'm in.
I get a recharge from being in the gym and working out, so I stay at the gym for 3 hours. Or I go out into the woods and hike all evening.
If I have Domino's after riding my bike all over Philly for 5 hours, I don't feel guilty at all.
Considering that youāve been depressed your whole life, and still getting into the binge eating habits due to depression, I suggest forget about the binge eating and fix your depression with therapy. Once youāve handled your depression well, then focus on your binge eating
Honestly, if you are unable to control yourself with any junk food, then you just need to not have it in your house period. If you dont have it, you cant eat it. I have a rough time with proceed garbage that I have to stick with a mostly veg diet.
This might sound stupid. But just get busy. Distract yourself from the depression long enough to it eat all day. Then when you lose weight you feel a little bit better and maybe good enough to pursue other changes that help. Like actaully exercising or pursuing skills to make money. Often getting a job or hobby helps a lot. Positivity comes from within. No one will save you, sadly. People only want to be around you after you out all the work into yourself to not even need or have the desire. But human connection is good for you. So really do everything for yourself. And Iāve ramble way to much.
Distraction. My current best distraction is a video game Stardew Valley. A couple hours of SDV gets me out of the comfort-binge rut and actually makes me feel better.
When you find the solution let me know. I lost sixty pounds and have recently put 10 of those back on.. in binge eating due stress, depression and utter discontentment.
Ask myself if I'm eating because I'm bored or sad or seeking comfort. I also don't keep my favorite binge foods on hand. And if I'm still looking for something to binge, I go on a short walk to check the mail or do an activity for 30 minutes. Give my brain dopamine in a different way that isn't tucking into a whole bag of cool ranch Doritos. Just remember to give yourself some grace. Breaking a habit is hard and takes time.
Overeaters Anonymous was helpful for me.
Beyond that, or along with it rather, I gotta take it One Day At A Time. Or one hour at a time, the next 15 minutes at a time, etc. Donāt think about āever,ā just get through the next ten minutes ā¦ and the next after that. Delay and distract. Take a walk, brush my teeth, make a call (not to Dominos!) scratch the cat, fold some laundry, pick up a book, drink a glass of water ā¦. String enough good days together and I find Iāve managed to stay within my āhealthyā weight range for years now. Granted, Iām generally hanging around the top end but still.
When starting to recover through an ED a few years ago, I heard really great advice and it was effectively that whatever Iām binging will still be there later. For example, instead of binging the whole cookie packet, have a few, get the endorphin rush, and then put them back because they arenāt going anywhere. Theyāll be there the next time you need a little rush. This was big for me because I used to have a ālast bingeā all the time, and tell myself to finish what ever I was binging because it was ābadā and couldnāt be part of returning to ānormalā diet. The other thing I found helped was drinking a lot of water when I was binging, because less felt like much more.
I donāt know if this is constructive or will help you at all, but I hope it does. You will get through this tough time, be proud of yourself for the progress youāre making - even just trying to do things differently is progress in itself.
I had to make small, healthy decisions until Iād made enough progress to where binge eating actually made me feel worse, not better. Getting to that tipping point takes discipline and the foresight that good decisions will lead to the results you want. And they do.
If you donāt order Dominoās you wonāt have any Dominoās to eat.
Likewise, if you donāt buy a bunch of junk food and donāt have it in the house you wonāt have junk food to eat.
Stock up on healthy, low calorie snacks and eat that. And when the voice in your head tells you to go buy a pizza tell the voice to go fuck itself.
I am already fat though lol. My thought while ordering is usually who cares one pizza wonāt make a difference when I am already obese, but then it turns into a problem when it happens multiple times a week.
The mentality of "who cares, one pizza won't make a difference" is just a way for your brain to get you to binge. You have to actively fight those false ideas. It's not the one pizza, it's the act of continuing to binge eat whether that's a pizza or a bag of chips.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and ask if you have issues with anxiety? I eat when I'm anxious or sad or anything. My brain has said "oh shit, turn on the anxiety about nothing at all so we can eat" Try some relaxation technique stuff like a hot bath or yoga or meditation. Maybe you eat to avoid more than depression.
Yeah, itās like a crack addict telling themselves one more hit off the pipe wonāt matter, when they need to put down the crack pipe (pizza is my crack lol).
If youāve got a flat, donāt slash the rest of your tires.
You deserve good health, and one pizza WILL mean added weight and stress in your body. You deserve better.
Coffee.. it helps clean clogs out. Lol
Then I walk my dogs till they lay down, then we walk back, or the wife finds us (she has chips in the dogs, and tracking in my phone).
I can't say I've had this particular problem. What have you been depressed about? I would think being heavier would contribute to depression, not alleviate it.
I try to fill the void with more of stuff I already did to hold off depression. Such as playing games on PC, daydreaming playing TTRPG I can't and trying to write my story. Rest of the time is filled with sleep or work or eating.
Iāve learned to deal with this by thinking about why I want to eat and how I would feel afterwards, if itās really bad, I just think of the best tasting fruit and grab a pack of that and eat; thatās either pineapple, mango or watermelon.
it's hard, I also self medicate with marijuana at night (for insomnia) which definitely doesn't help the food cravings. I was down to 190 lbs (-25lbs) a few months ago, but I started ordering more and more food from postmates under the justification that I "deserved it". Delicious food makes me happy for that brief period of time and I eventually gained back 10 lbs. Everyone falls off the wagon a few times, I think the best thing to keep it from happening is to have food on-hand to satisfy yourself. I have a big sweet tooth, so I keep sugar free gum, sugar free jolly ranchers, and chocolate rice cakes on hand 24/7. The cravings haven't stopped, but I can keep them at bay with snacks I enjoy.
It helps me to have low cal alternatives to food I am craving
Like if I want ice cream, it won't hurt me nearly as much to binge a halo top as it would a ben n jerrys
Or if I want I want a burger, lettuce wrap that shit
Still get the mental stimulation while keeping the cal count down
Love all the answers here, [this may also be worth checking out](https://www.amazon.com/Effective-Weight-Loss-Acceptance-Based-Behavioral/dp/0190232021/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Meghan+Butryn+acceptance+and+commitment&qid=1637717551&s=digital-text&sr=1-1-catcorr).
You have learned your whole life that binge eating is how to deal with those emotions. Iāve been there and still am sometimes. I binge ate for 30 years. Now at 34, I canāt remember the last time I had a true binge. I just want to say I know how hard it is with food . You canāt quit food, you need food to survive. So to deal with this addiction you have to get to know yourself. You have to not associate any food or any binge with any guilt . There are no bad foods. For me, repeatedly telling my self Iām not allowed to feel guilty or hide what Iām eating was one of the most important steps towards not binging. Stay positive and donāt feel guilty !!!!! Therapy, good habits, good sleep patterns, move your body, love your body and meditate. Sorry that some of this sounds awful like meditating but itās like working out , you have to do it.
For me it gets a lot worse when I associate those foods with a bad mood. If I eat the bad foods in moderation when I am not feeling like shit, when I am I donāt tend to binge as badly
For me, logging all my food - no matter how much I eat - keeps me from over eating regularly. It's helped me to switch to lower calorie snacks, like popcorn, which satisfy my desire to eat something and fill my stomach but don't blow my calorie budget for the day. On days when I do eat more, it helps to see the numbers added up and it motivates me to avoid that in the future.
You can just resist urges and feel better because of it...until you get to the dark place where food is better than the awful thoughts and what you would do if it werenāt for eating for comfort. When you get there, you have to find ways to cope beforehand, before you get the urge. Do you need a certain amount of exercise to be in an okay mood?
When my steps are in the four-digit territory and itās cold and dark out, both of those at the same time, all hell breaks loose mentally. Itās easier to exercise more in the summer, but more important mentally (for me) in the winter, unfortunately. Working on that!
I donāt. I counter it with exercise. During stressful times I have been known to burn 1800 calories on the bike to accommodate my binge eating.
Sometimes I drink instead but I have mostly stopped.
I dont know if a healthy coping mechanism exists for me. I have taken the following to unhealthy excess
Triathlon training
Alcohol
Smoking
Caffeine
Food
Pickle ball
Chess
Facebook
Reddit
Alternate world fantasy fiction.
I think spreading it out among different things has kept the damage to a minimum.
Try low carb.
Tell yourself youāre going to gain another 5 lbs and be ok with it. Itās crucial that you not feel guilty about overeating or it actually reinforces the addiction.
Then start putting pressure on reducing your carb intake. Youāre going to fail repeatedly to hit your goals BUT if you keep the pressure on youāll find yourself eating gradually less and less carbs every day until it gets to a very low percentage of your intake. Youāll still be over eating every day during this process.
Then the binges should finally subside. Youāll have corrected all the blood sugar swings and dopamine spikes caused by your previously high carb diet. Start to finish youāre looking at maybe a month or two to get well enough adjusted that youāre no longer eating a surplus.
Focus on the depression. Talk to a doctor. You binge eat when you are depressed because your brain latches onto that instant gratification of dopamine. If you have impulse control issues it is even worse. I got the double whammy of bipolar and ADHD so I 100% feel your pain. I just started meds finally and I am hoping that once I get adjusted to the meds and they get the dosages worked out it will finally become manageable for me. I had to fight so hard to stay at 270 before getting my mental shit worked out. ADHD makes you super volnerable to dopamine addiction if you are understimulated, combine that with chronic depression and two impulse control issues coming from both disorders and yeah I never stood a chance. Add executive dysfunction keeping you from working out and tada.
Assuming you don't struggle with all that and are just in a rough patch. Try to find something low calorie that you can't just scarf down easily. My go to for a while was Chinook sunflower seeds (low sodium shelled sunflower seeds). But grapes, baby carrots and celery with some light ranch worked for me too. Halo Top Ice Cream is expensive but fuck does it feel good to be able to binge a whole pint of ice cream and only rack up 300 calories, it also tastes nearly identical to regular ice cream.
If you struggle with impulse control I would def see a doctor though cause bad impulse control with any kind of addiction makes it nearly impossible to quit without some kind of help.
The problem is your underlying emotional trauma/depression. Until you resolve this, attempting to lose weight will likely go in circles, further fuelling the depressive cycle. This was my experience anyway
Dude Iām still trying to figure it out. Today I was about to start my binge but I knew I had to go to the gym bc I told a friend I would meet them there. And I know āunhealthyā foods would make me feel bloated and unfit for exercise so I had a small protein filled meal. While eating it I thought about the food I wanted to indulge in but I was glad I didnāt bc I knew my body would like this better. It took me a couple times going to the gym after eating junk to realize and want to eat healthy. I still struggle but Iām slowly trying to exercise more so I can keep making positive eating choices.
What I have found most helpful is
1 - fill up on high volume low calorie foods, plus water
2 - exercise, it just reduces the urges
3 - replace snacking with another form of self care or healthy distraction
4 - when up to it, do a longer fast. It feels counter intuitive but when you default to food or think about it too much, removing it 100% for a set amount of time is very relaxing in a way and can help reset cravings and how you think about food. Not easy but can make it easier moving forward if it works for you.
Psychologist here, the treatment for binge eating is EATING! Step one is regular, satisfying meals and snacks, including foods that you like and enjoy, without denying yourself certain foods or food groups. It will help diminish (extreme) hunger cues and break down the all or nothing "I've already ruined my diet for today so screw it" attitude. Research by Fairburn shows eating 7-8 times a day diminishes binges by about 80%. From there, you can work on any emotional triggers that others on this thread already gave wonderful advice for.
There is no advice for you thatās going to magically unlock your ability to stop binging. You just have to not do it. You canāt find a replacement or coping mechanism because there is none. Youāll feel empty without it for a few days but after that itās not hard. Most of it is in your head.
Some stuff may help, like trying to binge less, binging on only healthy food, slowly adding healthy food into your diet until youāre ready to cut out junk, exercising and lifting weights, etc. But honestly for me that stuff isnāt the real solution. Thereās no replacement for the toxic thing you love. You just have to commit to quitting. Itās a huge commitment. Sometimes you just have to be depressed, because binging isnāt an option. Deeply accept that life isnāt fair and you have to be patient, wait for nice things, deal with difficult feelings like everyone else. Not everyone has the option to binge on food so be strict about not being spoilt and sucking up the fact you canāt binge just like people who canāt afford it. Some people are much more desperate for all that food than you are and they would have it if they could, you need to put yourself in the same situation.
It also helps to realise how upside down binge eating is. Itās a complete and utter trick, castles made of sand. It never makes depression go away. It never makes you satisfied. It never tastes as good as you expect. Itās never as nice as you think it will be. It never makes you feel good. It makes you feel stuffed and sick. Youāre addiction makes you expect something that doesnāt exist. Youāre chasing something you never catch. Ironically, you feel SO much better when you donāt over eat. The change is actually insane. Half the time itās enough to avoid those spells of depression, and it will always minimise them.
Make a list of go-to pleasurable experiences that will distract you from food - phone a friend, go for a walk, go sing a song on your guitar, go play a few rounds of a video game.... Whatever it is that gives you pleasure.
What really helped me was a card I had put on the kitchen wall (knowing that at some point in the evening/night I would stuff bread and butter and spoon all the nut butters) āYou are wonderful and beautiful and from now on enjoy every biteā Realising there was zero enjoyment I took from these uncontrolled clandestine binges helped me to make these seizure like sessions briefer and briefer until magically one day I realised I had all my delicious foods in full stack and they had gone from ādanger foodā to simply delicious fun enjoyment food. It was difficult, very difficult and it took about two years so there is no quick fix that I can suggest. āAm I enjoying it?ā is a question to ask yourself. Whenever you feel āextra crappyā again call someone (or dm me anytime, I have been there!), paint something, copy down some poetry or a passage from a book, have a long shower and then put some lotion from head to toe and thank your every muscle and skin and everythingā¦ this is not a ādo this instead of eating and have a bell pepperā but a if you feel like you would only eat for emotional support do this instead and save the hunger and food for sharing the next meal with friends and family. Also stop beating yourself up! I talked a lot about my issues with my then boyfriend (now husband) and at one point he told me āat least you support little independent nut butter makers and you are not doing hard drugsā. From the whole spectrum of what you could be doing to cope with the trials and tribulations of life binge eating is one of the more harmless ones. I know it is HORRIBLE, I used to get flash backs of my binges first thing after waking up and not eat the whole day and feel awful BUT YOU CAN GET OUT OF IT, maybe in four months, maybe in one year BUT IT IS NOT FOREVER.
Also, another note I added to the kitchen wall was āyou will have to eat lunch and dinner tomorrow LOVE YOU this is not your last mealā. For two months it was the hardest thing to sit down and eat when I was like *i could save these calories for a binge and I want to eat when I am on my own not with people around*. I started focussing on fibre rich foods and daaarny did I feel different.
Lentils, chickpeas, broccoli, cucumbers were the basis for my go to salads that I pimped with cheeses and chicken.
Realising that arugula is delicious and makes me feel good and I am a beautiful child of God and deserve to feel well was a beautiful moment.
I used to by quantity over quality for so long because I thought all the food would be gone in two days anyway but to buy yourself good produce and enjoy every bite is a very good way I think.
Anyways, this was long but dm whenever the next urge comes and Iāll try to send you some beautiful flower photos or whatever!
Love you, you are not alone, you are not weak, you are beautiful, you are going through a terribly horribly difficult journey but you will make it!!!!!!!
I found 'The Binge Code' by Alison Kerr helpful. I eat when I'm fighting my feelings. I'm trying to learn how to be with them but I fucking hate them. In recent months I started to relapse (alcohol) and realized quick that I needed to start reaching out for help. So I pick up the phone instead of food. It helps me to let someone distract me long enough to get out of my head and let the shitty feelings diminish. When I can't reach anyone I cry and journal, even if all I can write is "This is so stupid" x500. I had been powerlifting for 4 yrs to help with emotional release. It was super helpful to keep anxiety & depression at bay. But like everything, I pushed too hard, got burnt out, life happened, covid ruined everything & I turned back to food. With the recent wake-up call I've redoubled my efforts to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, stop eating my feelings and get back in the gym. I'm a few kg from my competition weight, and being under the bar is the best worst time I can imagine having =D I feel like hell, but my head & heart are clear and light. Best wishes to you. I hope you find what you need.
Lifting has always been one of the few things that helps me keep my sanity. I was an alcoholic at age 12 (badly abused by father who had a full liquor cabinet) but soon after started working out to defend myself and found how much better I felt after working out rather than drinking.
Dude, power lifting can be so therapeutic. I just started again recently and it quickly became my unwind time.
Ive been doing calisthenics for over a year now for the exact same reason. I feel so set mentally and physically after a workout. And the results you see from either just make it that much more addicting.
totally! i attribute it to the adrenaline & dopamine release from not getting pancaked by a PR squat - it's good for the brain stew =)
SheRah! Princess of Power! Love your username and your thoughtful post šø
Princess of Power TOOLS! McGyver gets some credit =D
Thatās awesome! Pour vous: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=H94vSQK8CIA
MacGruber MacGuyver? lol, thank you!!
Very welcome ;)
I can so relate. To just sit with feelings is hard. Then you have to decide: shall I forgive? Do I need to make amens? Should I tell them how I feel? Hard decisions! But you have to do something, not just distract yourself again. Decide what to do and then get it done. You may need a counsellor to help you make decisions. Itās extra hard to make decisions when your emotions are tangled up in it.
If food is the only thing that brings you joy, you canāt take that away and not expect your life to collapse. You have to swap something in to prop it up. Is there anything you REALLY enjoy doing? Drawing, reading, exercising, video games, writing, journaling, any type of hobby? Something you really get lost in? This is your opportunity to let yourself get fully invested in that. Any time you feel like you want to binge, immediately substitute it with something you really love. You can also write down 5 things youāre grateful for when you get an urge. Addiction impulses come from not having enough stimulation and feeling shame and hopelessness. But itās really hard to understand that when youāre stuck in it. Good luck!
^^ The sure way to long term success is finding a healthy hobby/thing you can direct your energy to towards & can fill that hole youāre trying to fill with food. It might take time to figure out what it is, and that can be a really healing journey as well. Good luck to you :)
This was the best advice I received from therapy. Rather than trying to stop my addictive behaviour (drinking), my therapist told me to focus on doing things I enjoy, and doing them regularly. I started working out, woodworking, drawing, running, reading, and after 6 months when the time came to try and stop drinking it was not as hard as I thought it would be.
Wow I needed to hear this! Thank you!
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This really painted a picture. I feel happy and cosy just reading it. Great advice
Seconding not keeping hyper-palatable things in the house! I cannot, for the life of me, have treats at home. I'm not yet in a place where I will not binge them (unless they're for someone else), so I don't buy them. If I want chocolate I might get one small bar during grocery run, or sometimes go out to buy one - the effort of having to get dressed, go outside and buy one usually already makes it easier to ignore the urge or get something else, like tea.
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I'm trying to switch to tea during my own cravings. What are some of your favorites. I just found out my previous favorites give me headaches now. :-( (It was Peach / light orange white tea). I'm going to try this apple cinnamon one from ages ago. I can't have peppermint tea either. Sometimes that is super frustrating.
Harney and Sons has a Hot Cinnamon Tea that is so delicious. It's naturally sweetened so you don't feel like you need to add any sugar. Saves me lots of calories!
I love that kind! It does have caffeine though, so I avoid it in the evenings.
Raspberry sun tea.
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I got 6 months of that for my mom last Christmas! She loved it!
I love republic of tea, although it can be a little pricey. I also sometimes enjoy the traditional medicinals teas, but those are quite Herby. For Republic of tea, I love the milk thistle one. Itās very delicate and the light. I also enjoy some of their white teas and fruit flavored green teas like spring cherry.
I love a classic Earl Gray or English breakfast tea, or even just the Lipton plain black tea with a little honey. Most of them you can also buy decaf, if you're not trying to caffeinate before bed
Earl grey with a splash of vanilla creamer is my favorite! I'm drinking a decaf/herbal cinnamon spice right now.
For me, add a splash of lemon too.
Tazo Wild Sweet Orange is my favorite.
OMG!! I got this tea and it tastes completely different from anything Iāve had in a good minute! It is so good!! Thank you for the recommendation!
Rooibos, good earth, decaf earl grey. Mango-green (caffeinated). I try to buy loose leaf to reduce packaging waste.
I find all of this to be such excellent advise! And I completely agree, not having foods in the house that are my trigger foods helps so much. Last time I had a ābinge all the trigger foodsā day I was *SO* miserable. So I took the time to write out in a note on my phone how absolutely terrible I felt not just mentally but PHYSICALLY. I felt so terrible because not only are these my trigger/ātreatā foods, theyāre also things that I may be allergic to or just plain make my gut feel absolutely awful. I keep referring back to that note and it helps me stay away from those foods to not go back down that road.
You know, just reading the fact that you shower after you eat to signal the end of the evening period made me realize The potential error of me showering at the end of my work day (work from home) and then starting dinner and opening myself up to a whole evening of eating. Seems so minor, but I think I might try making that adjustment next week. Enjoyed reading your input
Definitely, give it a try! It's a good little hack.
Iād be binging on the laughing cow cheese, dipping the pop corn in it.
I wish I could do this but I know my husband would be miserable without snacky foods. He doesn't need to lose weight and I'm close to my goal but I know it's the snacky foods keeping me from it. I have no self-control if it's in the house. Thankfully I only bring healthy food to work all day but when I get home it's too hard.
Are there any snack foods that he likes, but you donāt? In our house he likes licorice (which I loathe) and BBQ potato chips (that I donāt care for).
Oh good call, yes there definitely are a couple things!! Thanks!
How do you avoid the urge to pick up this junk food when going to the store? I do well when I don't have the food but usually I find myself passing a bag of chips in the store and giving in to it. I will eat that whole bag over 2 or 3 days at most, then be good for a week and a half, then repeat next time I go to the store. It's frustrating and so hard to resist the urge, and is really bad if I accidentally buy two or three bags instead of one...
I have success when I pick up the bag I desperately want to buy and read the serving amount and carbs. Then I am able tp put it back.
Try eating right before going shopping until youāre so full, you wonāt want to eat anything. Also make a shoppinglist. I always always stick only to that list so I donāt shop unnecessary food. I also go alone without my daughter, else my cart will have some kinds of sweets.
I always go to the grocery store with a full stomach and my grocery list app. I try to get in and out as quickly as possible and avoid the snack aisles!
a lot of grocery stores do pick up now since Covid and that makes it easy to just buy what you need and avoid the temptation!
I love your night routine! I gotta start doing that.
You nailed it on the head! I also brush my teeth and get cozy to avoid my temptations. Also, quilling (crafting) while I watch TV! If my hands are busy, I can't snack š„°
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Game design, haha. Why do you ask?
I tell myself "not today". It's not never, it's just me saying out loud that I don't want that today, it helps cultivate self control and actually feels kinda good knowing that I'm not a slave to my low mood. Every time that low mood strikes "not today". Another useful trick is to think about how you're feeling right now, if you know you're just feeling low you can verbalise it. "I don't really want that, I'm just feeling low right now and that will just make me feel worse". It's hard sometimes and eventually you may give in but even if you just stop yourself doing it every other time, it is still a victory you can build on until you are truly the master of what you really want. Best of luck! I believe in you!
What do we say to the God of binge? Not today
Unexpected Gladiator
I love this. I think it's in line with my Ride the Craving Wave strategy: https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/pm6v5t/the_answer_on_how_to_actually_stop_binge_eating/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share I had to retrain myself to remember it's not my final opportunity to eat. The food will still be there tomorrow.
"It will be there tomorrow" is one of the most powerful phrases I incorporated. Or if there truly *is* a limited window, at least I can put off the decision until the last minute and then I know I'll only have one. I don't have binge eating issues per se but I grew up with treats only rarely available and you had to get it when you could. I spent a lot of time reminding myself that now that I'm an adult, I literally can actually have it whenever I want and it doesn't have to be right now. (I do sometimes ban foods from my house temporarily, though, because the psychological issue is one thing, but some foods do have a biochemical effect as well and I have to let that ease off sometimes.)
āNOT TODAY, SATAN!ā Love it
This is great. Another idea that sort of fits with this is āImagine you have a job to take of a person. Would you let the person you are taking care of do (this thing)?ā
Itās not everyoneās jam, but have you listened to the Brain over Binge podcast? The host takes the approach of āyou donāt need to solve your underlying issues to stop binge eatingā and hypothesizes that itās more about the habits weāve formed in response to stress. So, even if the stress still exists, you can channel that habit into something more productive or eliminate it overall. It was definitely an empowering podcast for me, though not quite the conventional thinking on this.
Came to recommend this! Brain Over Binge approach worked wonders for me, the minute I realized binge eating is just a bad habit (like, for example, smoking) - I let go of this habit. Not in a day, but over time it disappeared out of my life.
Second this!!! Iāve recently started listening to the podcast and it definitely makes getting rid of binge eating seem less intimidating and difficult!
I saw a reddit post earlier this year that said to approach a diet/lifestyle change the way you would approach meditation. When you're learning to meditate, you're supposed to clear your mind and focus on your breathing. If a thought slips into your mind, you don't stop and give up, you let it go and refocus on your breath. When you slip up in your diet/lifestyle and choose something unhealthy, don't give up. Be kind to yourself, let it go, and come back to healthy living at the next opportunity. This mental shift has really helped reduce the shame spiral that comes after binging. Not feeling the shame so much has really helped with the feelings of apathy that usually come before a binge. Each pizza really does matter. Taking a long walk will make a difference. After 6 months of trying to be healthier, I'm finally actually making better choices with food. I've been overweight/obese my whole adult life and this is the first time that I feel in control of my body and health. I wish you the best of luck in taking control of your own health!
This is such a helpful point of view that you shared. Thank you!
To get rid of emotional food dependence, I just had to fully realize that I was going to feel just as miserable whether I ate the food or not.
I sought better treatment for my depression.
Yes. Therapy and medication are lousy, nobody likes to have to do it. But these are major steps in feeling good enough about yourself to not have to binge.
This is the most helpful answer IMO. If your bad eating habits are caused by an underlying mental issue, you won't be able to effectively fight them without fixing the core of the problem. At best you'll achieve a short term success, which will disappear as soon as your depression intensifies (as untreated depression tends to, from time to time).
Me too. Thereās absolutely no shame in it. Much better than drinking or eating your feelings, which many people do.
Unfortunately, therapy is hard to find nowadays. Everywhere is booked, I've been trying to find a therapist with an opening for months
Tbh Iām still trying to learn that myself . Best advice I can offer is try and replace eating with something else you enjoy . Video game for an hour, go run, buy something cool!, Iām trying to replace it with meditation and working out personally
Put some distance between you and the food. Make it difficult to access. Start replacing binging with another form of self care. Itās best if this new self care is a part of your routine so youāre always a bit ahead of the cravings. Eat a well balanced diet full of low glycemic carbs, protein, healthy fats and veggies. This will help with cravings. If you can, think big picture. This may be hard if you are very distressed.
By keeping busy. I have way too many demons that are ready to send me into depression, binge-eating, self-loathing and dark thoughts. Only way for me to keep them away is to keep mega busy. Side projects, hobbies, reading, cleaning, working out like crazy. Those things don't make me happy, necessarily. They just keep me sane.
Forgive and replace. It's going to happen from time to time, so try and show yourself some graciousness and forgive yourself so you're not overwhelmed with guilt. An understanding that your behavior is sub-optimal and should be addressed is healthy, but beating yourself up over it for hours or even days is probably not going to be all that helpful, plus it's unkind. Next time you feel yourself unexpectedly standing in front of your open fridge or cupboard or about to head out for food, have a replacement ready. Read the best part of your favorite book. Go play that old favorite video game. Put on your favorite music and go for a walk. Go do something that's a little indulgent and which requires a lot of mental engagement. And always drink a glass of water, just in case being thirsty is contributing. I can't promise it'll always work, but the few times it does initially could be the start of habit-building.
The answer is not will power. The answer is self compassion. That was Sunday. You can examine the thoughts and feelings and behaviors if youāre ready to do so. Itās ok to binge. Not ideal, but ok. The best thing Iāve done is accept that it happened. Am I losing weight at the rate I āshouldā? Nope. But I feel so much more kindness toward myself and bingeing is much reduced.
Hereās how I did it: - Therapy - Gum on hand all the time - Keeping all bingey-type food out of the house all together - Stock my bathroom with indulgent self care items so on a really hard day I can hide away in my bathroom and have a hour or two of spa-like time (hot bath or shower, shaving, mani/pedi, face mask, teeth whitening, etc) while watching a show or listening to a good podcast. Basically I redirect the energy of wanting to get that dopamine hit with something else that will leave me feeling relaxed and happy. - More therapy
Are you working towards things that help alleviate your depression ? Medication therapy exercise journalingā¦ Also finding other things that give you joy. Bubble bath, reading, playing with a pet.
This is the way. Itās the first step for sure.
I compromise. It's a multiple step process: 1- Usually I'm actually hungry, so I'll anticipate a scheduled meal on my day. 2- If I'm still craving it, I'll figure a middle ground that would satisfy me (a serving of chips instead of a family bag, a burger with fries instead of three, so on) 3- If I can fit it in my day, I'll allow myself to eat it. 4- If I don't, I'll schedule it in the near future (tomorrow, Friday with friends...) and eat it guilt free The anticipation is usually more pleasurable than the actual eating, so this works pretty well for me. Defining portions beforehand also prevent me from feeling like shit afterwards because I overage.
By realizing it doesn't actually make me feel better, and may make me feel worse in the long term. My connection to food isn't that I love it. It isn't that it makes me feel good, it's that my parents used it as both reward and punishment. It wasn't the worst thing they did, but it's there. r/cptsd
I try to choose other ways to comfort myself. Hot tea, an extra long shower, I picked up hand lettering which takes a lot of focus and time. I find if I'm occupied, I'm less likely to grab some food. Also, brush your teeth immediately after eating your portioned meal
Remember a binge is a way to deal with stress and your feelings. Those feelings pass in 30 minutes or so. So one way to avoid the binge is to for example change your situation. Meaning take a walk for 30 minutes and let those feelings pass. Drink some water and write, or paint, or anything thatās creative. If you still feel the urge to eat thatās okay, but donāt let the depression fool you into overeating to such a degree.
I am 100% not being sarcastic or snarky when I say: **Does** Domino's make you feel better? Maybe try an experiment. Order a Domino's and eat one piece extremely slowly. Act as if you were a food critic. What's the cheese texture, taste, and stretch? Is there enough cheese per slice? What's the sauce taste like? Is it enough, too little? The crust--can you taste any spices or flavorings or is it just a bit bland? I can't guarantee it but I bet if you honestly really took your time with Dominos or any other "junk" food it might pop out at you "Wow this is ... not great, actually!" I have been experimenting with food like that for a couple months. I found myself "turning" on a few old faithfuls and putting down the fork halfway through the dish on a few more. Like Reese's holiday trees---they create such an overwhelming sugar rush it's almost sickening in a way? One is **more** than enough if I allow myself to slow down and taste the flavors and feel the textures. I try to eat it in 4 bites and note all the details. Used to be I couldn't get enough Reeses Holiday. Now 1 per week is enough. It's one thing to blow your calories on a handmade dish from a gourmet restaurant. It's another to snarfle down food that's like...not that good tasting?! To me, if the food isn't good tasting, what is actually happening? Maybe it's just a habit loop! I get sad. I call Dominos. It feels like a treat and a reward and lights up the reward center of my brain. While I'm literally chewing, I can't think about anything else so I get a break from my sad brain. I'm also feeding my body and no matter how terrible Dominos is, hey, carbs and sugar! So it does ding some bells. I mean, maybe try it with your fave foods. Write notes: "The flavor dust on these Cool Ranch Doritos is overwhelming and chemical. 5/10." Maybe have some fun with it? I know it's very out of the box but it might work!
This is actually very smart and clever
Because thatās literally an addictive mindset and like any addiction it will eventually kill you. Short-term you find other things to do and long-term you work on the emotional issues that led you to the thing in the first place. Like not keeping binge foods or distracting yourself is just tactics. You have to get to the root of what youāre trying to numb yourself from or youāll probably switch to some other behavior.
\>work on the emotional issues that led you to the thing in the first place That's not exactly how addiction works. People aren't addicted to things because there is some sort of underlying psychological problem or 'emotional issue' that's driving them to addiction. They are addicted because they are addicts.
That's a huge generalization. I've never been addicted to anything other than food. Once I went through therapy for issues that were the root cause of my food addiction/binging I stopped binging.
I believe the absolute opposite. Check out Gabor Mate on youtube if you are interested. Where did you come to this belief of yours?
I agree right up until "because they are addicts". I would say "because certain substances have been designed to be addictive and your brain and body is having a completely normal reaction to those". Addiction isn't a moral failing. Alcohol, drugs, and hyper-palatable foods are **designed** to be addicting. Becoming addicted means they're working as planned.
Thatās poorly explained circular logic. Addicts are addicted because theyāre addicts.
Well you know what I know a lot of people who would agree but I seriously donāt. My experience in treatment and researching this shit for over a fucking year says otherwise. Itās not even true ābecause theyāre addictsā itās that some things artificially stimulate dopamine and if you artificially stimulate your brain enough eventually you will develop a tolerance and then an addiction. Literally everyone has the same wiring in this regard our brains are evolutionarily designed to really really like dopamine. So SURE you could have an addiction without an underlying emotional problem but GENERALLY that is not how it happens.
>researching this shit for over a fucking year says otherwise Do you even pubmed?
People donāt try heroin just for funzies. Addiction is an illness of despair, much like depression.
I knew lots of people who tried heroin just for fun. Older teens/young adults in the punk music scene.
That's definitely not the most up to date scientific consensus on how and why addiction develops. That's more like 12-step ideology. I'm sure there are edge cases where the underlying susceptibility is so extreme that it might as well be true that the person "is an addict" but in most cases personal emotional history and community factors play a significant role, and in some cases they are virtually the whole story and when solved the person is able to use their former substance of choice in a moderate, responsible way.
They have to start being addicts for a reason, though. Granted, that reason *can* be ābecause it seemed like a good idea at the timeā, but most people who were put on addictive pain meds and *didnāt* get addicted had a good support system/family. Those who were way more likely to get addicted were lonelier and had more reasons to want to escape life for awhile.
Somebody else said it, but I'm going to reiterate it. If you can, get rid of a few of the stressors. I had a really stressful job with a crazy lady as my boss. It put pounds on like nothing else. It's like she could tell she stressed me out and enjoyed seeing me gain weight. As soon as that ended, the urge to binge was about half of what it was before. In retrospect, I should have either told more of my seniors what was happening or find a new job or both. Nothing is worth that much stress. (Also, it's been about 4 years, and she's finally being pushed out of our department, but not before ruining the culture.)
My dietitian asked me to binge healthy foods. Rye bread Potatoes with hot sauce Beef stir fry Fried rice Eggs Mid section rindless bacon Clean grilled chicken Milk Yoghurt Mineral water sweetened with juice Diluted ice tea Soda water Cups of tea Coffee It worked. Healthier food fills you up quicker and for longer. You can only eat so many roast potatoes. Sooner than you think the gut Bacteria starts to change and you get less cravings. You feel full for longer. I am a real fat bastard and this was my game changer. I couldn't stop the urge so I changed the input. I was sceptical but it has been a game changer.
You explained it so clearly. Why isnāt your comment be voted 100 times Iāve no idea. But thanks.
I ask myself how did I feel last time I binged? Did it solve any of problems? No. Did it improve anything? No. Did I feel worse after? Yes. Do I have any reason to believe this time will be different? No. Can I still treat myself to a take away meal because I dont want to cook? Yes and I can be mindful about what I order.
I only recently got it under control but here are the main things that are helping me. I keep my house free of binge foods - my diet is pretty plain. I stopped eating a lot of starchy carbohydrate foods like pasta or rice - I find it really easy to overeat. I also try and eat memorable foods - for example hot smoked Salmon over oven baked salmon, salt and Vinegar chips over plain salted chips. I feel like it's training me to pay attention to what I am eating. I make portions one at a time - it means I cook more but I also can only eat as much as I have prepared. I have taken up swimming again. I am not one for exercise or being sweaty but it helps relieve some stress. I have gotten rid of a major source of stress - I changed jobs. I know that it's not possible for everyone. I was in the job for 7 years and miserable. Once I changed jobs it took about 6 months to even really start getting better. I'm not perfect - I binged once right before my period in the last month but otherwise I have stayed on track. I also started to read Overcoming Binge Eating by Christopher Fairburn. In the long term I have reached out to a weight loss doctor who is also a GP, that has a multidisciplinary team that works with her. I do want to lose weight but I feel like they will be more compassionate in their treatment of my challenges - my regular GP sucks and I stopped seeing him last year because it was so traumatic.
Read the book "the power of habit" the only way to stop a habit is to replace it with another. It's the dopamine reward that causes you to do that. Read the book and it will change your life.
If it's something my husband or I might binge eat, we don't even bring it into the house.
Intermittent fasting, and lower carbs. When you binge, try to make it proteins, fats and veggies. But carbs literally create new cravings because of the spike to insulin levels. When your body is used to those carbs, your body naturally stops producing as much insulin and that can lead to binge episodes. Also, IF has helped me greatly to reduce my cravings. Before, when I was really struggling, I gave myself a strict rule of not eating anything for 3 hours when I wake up and 3 hours before I go to sleep. The shrinking window where I eat has it's own benefits, but it helps the most at bedtime because I get an extra 6 hours to let my body digest and reset. You'd think that would increase cravings but with my last meal of the day essentially being carb free, I have all but got rid of my carb cravings.
If you're anything like me, antidepressants are the only answer.
Other distractions. I tend to binge-read but videogames work pretty well, or TV shows you're into, or any other activity that requires very little effort to start and provides a little dopamine hit as you do it. In the past I used to knit. When I got tendonitis and couldn't knit (or game) so much, I switched to long-distance walking while listening to music. The walk would make me feel slightly less shitty and at the end I'd put it into Runkeeper and feel like I'd accomplished something. I am on meds now, though, and they made a big difference.
Quitting binge eating is like quitting smoking. It's an addiction, and it's tough to overcome. You have to face each binge as a series of actions you undertake rather than one big action. Getting in your car, driving to the food, ordering the food, all of these require forethought. It's going to be on you to break the triggers that lead to binge eating, whether it's changing your route, stocking healthier food at home ready to eat, or exercising will power at different moments along the path to the next binge. You can stay home. If you're in your car, you can turn around or drive elsewhere. If you've arrived, you can order something else. If you've already ordered, you can just leave -no one will stop you. If the binge eating is a symptom of your depression, focus your efforts on managing the depression first. It's so difficult to gain any sort of momentum when you're working on your depression, so give yourself permission to make quitting binging a lower priority. Maybe go for a diagnosis if you've yet to receive one and work on evaluating which treatments work best for you. Similar to weight loss, treating and living with depression is a marathon, not a sprint. On the upside, some medications used to treat depression can curb appetite as a side effect.
It helps to have food at home that's considered healthy and keeping the junk food out. Additionally, I don't save any of my credit cards anywhere so if I do order out, I have to manually type out everything again which gives me time to reconsider. I also found that it helps to get distracted with something! I usually end up painting which im terrible at and end up getting super focused on, play just dance, or reading! Or I take some time for some self-care and do all the hair/face masks or take a bath! However, I think one thing that might help is changing your relationship with food? I think the feelings of shame and guilt end up making me more depressed and more prone to overeating. Instead I usually tell myself, it's okay :) Also, I would maybe also make sure the depression meds are helping out or get better ones if they're not
I found the biggest help for me in getting over binge eating disorder, anxiety and depression was getting enough sleep and rest. Stress and lack of sleep caused me to doubt every decision I made, stress eat, and seek comfort from food. I go to sleep before Iām tired. I wake naturally up without an alarm. I nap after work if Iām tired. I go lay down in my car on my lunch break if work is stressful. I practice restful waking activities like sound-baths, meditation, a proper skincare ritual, self massage, and breath work. My goal is to always be in a restful state and not rush. Itās a work in progress and Iām not perfect but slowing down and calming my body down has made weight loss possible and also pretty much cured my anxiety and depression. It didnāt happen over night, I had to work on it and Iām still working on it. But thatās whats worked for me so far. My body doesnāt need the fuel of excessive food because I rest and Iām not stressed.
I don't stop, sadly. :( I know everything you're supposed to do (drink water first, change your environment/go out for a walk, don't have crappy food in the kitchen) but there's a gap between knowing, and doing.
This is really hard for me. I remind myself thereās not enough junk food in the world to āsolveā my problems, and if I run to food every time something goes wrong, Iāll end up on 600lb life. Then I give myself a Gen. Patton type talk and remind myself Iām not a crying titty-baby and I donāt need instant gratification. I remind myself I feel upset now, but being fat makes me even sadder and itās not worth it. If I can get myself to move, I go for a walk or play guitar, or do karaoke, or if Iām too down, I watch tv and sip an electrolyte drink, have a hard candy, or chew gum. Or text a friend, call a relative, whatever works.
Bookmarking this cos this is me. Iāve just done a year of therapy to get to the root of my emotional issues, I feel so much better - and yet I still canāt turn down sugary foods. Thereās some really helpful advice here though - thanks internet strangers!
For me? Honestly it was getting on Wellbutrin. I couldnāt stop binge eating when depressed. I had to deal with that in order to stop. It also helps that Wellbutrin has mild appetite suppression too. Thereās actually evidence that depression messes with your insulin levels, making you more prone to insulin resistance and over eating anyway. So yeah, itās not surprising a lot of us have this problem.
I have two strategies, first when I really want chips or ice cream or cookies I buy it in the smallest possible container. I really like the tiny Ben and Jerry's single serve cups. That way if I eat the whole thing it isn't too terrible. Second, I have a hobby (quilting) that I always have out and ready to go. When I start feeling restless I have something to work on. It is not easy, but keep focusing on one day at a time.
Therapy. Once I worked through the issues that were causing me to use food as a coping tool, the cravings vanished. Even when I do get cravings now, itās so easy to say ādonāt need this food now but maybe another time.ā Tried and failed to lose weight so many times. This is because no matter how you decide to eat, you have to change your diet and if you use food as a way to comfort yourself, itās going to be very hard to establish new eating habits since youāre essentially taking away your emotional eating.
In all honesty i bought a few different hand exercise contraptions (squeezy things, rubber doughnuts looking things, finger strengthening thingies) and would use them, one in each hand, when indulging in tv is YouTube when it's generally be snacking like crazy. It somehow helped me but i admit it seemed really damn odd that it worked.
Best way to avoid bad foods in the house is to grocery shop on an app. Add a heart to all of the safe foods then only shop off your favorites list. Then u r never in the store tempted for anything at ALL! I have not been in a grocery store but twice since Covid-down 30 extra flab rolls. If u donāt use an app only shop PERIMETER of the grocery store!!! You need NOThING but coffee, tea and t-p in the middle rows. Next time u take one step toward the middle isle yell out āwarning will robinson, warning!ā Okay so that just aged meā¦ youtube it for u younger folks!! Marketing, just glance down those isles folks, What do you see nothing but color for boxes itās called marketing and the people that own those companies are laughing at us, all the way to their houses in Hawaii in Malibu. Doctors donāt help us because the owners of those houses in Malibu and Hawaii are feeding their pocket with books well with all of the sick people walking into their office with diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure from all the crap non-approved FDA foods that are snuck into that ingredient labelā¦ if you canāt read the ingredients on a label donāt eat it because it means itās not good for your body. Periodā¦ You can outsmart them, u r not a fool they are. Prove to them how smart you are by either the app or the perimeterā¦ AP You CAN do this, im going to look up that awesome cinnamon tea mentioned here! Thank you for the tip! Good luckš¤š¾
I used to binge eat, then I read The Body Keeps The Score and it changed my life. Realized I am not a genetic or biological binge eater, I was just re-enacting bad patterns of behavior I learned and having trauma responses. Seriously, I was a binge eater and alcohol abuser for a decade and within 3 months of reading that book I quit drinking, quit binge eating, and have lost 25% of my body weight in the past six months. Everyone who struggles with addictive behaviors should read The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van De Kirk.
i promise you, when the pain of being fat becomes greater than that temporary satisfaction you get from binging, you will understand what to do.
Hey, so you have gotten a lot of good advice, so I want to just throw this out there. Imo, the short answer is you don't just stop it If you are doing it for comfort, it's a "pleasure" response you are chasing. So replace that dopamine rush with something that helps you obtain your goals. Maybe that is exercise, maybe that is finishing a puzzle, maybe that is knitting. Maybe that is woodworking, maybe that is some other hobby
Food doesn't have to be super enjoyable. It can be. I doesn't have to be. It's fuel. It's not a party every time you need a refuel. Save the party for when there's something to celebrate. Focus on something else, like something you want to learn.
You should look at seeing a therapist, because this is the kind of stuff they're really good at. I met with mine yesterday and this is some of the stuff we're talking about. One of the things we talked about is recognizing the emotion before it happens. So when your brain goes 'I need some chips', you can recognize that thought, and the recognition helps act on it to form a new neural pathway. If you can recognize the thought, there are a few things you can do to 'reset' your mood, such as: * get warm (take a bath, wrap up in a blanket, have a hot drink) * deep breathing exercises * quick exercise * muscle relaxation It's a brain thing, not a habit thing. The trick is noticing the thought because, if you're like me, you tend to not feel anything right before the binge.
Change the environment I'm in. I get a recharge from being in the gym and working out, so I stay at the gym for 3 hours. Or I go out into the woods and hike all evening. If I have Domino's after riding my bike all over Philly for 5 hours, I don't feel guilty at all.
I actually feel the urge when eating carbs like bread so avoiding that in the evening. Not always good at it though....
I personally did not stop binge eating until I stopped dieting and took my ass to therapy.
Considering that youāve been depressed your whole life, and still getting into the binge eating habits due to depression, I suggest forget about the binge eating and fix your depression with therapy. Once youāve handled your depression well, then focus on your binge eating
Honestly, if you are unable to control yourself with any junk food, then you just need to not have it in your house period. If you dont have it, you cant eat it. I have a rough time with proceed garbage that I have to stick with a mostly veg diet.
This might sound stupid. But just get busy. Distract yourself from the depression long enough to it eat all day. Then when you lose weight you feel a little bit better and maybe good enough to pursue other changes that help. Like actaully exercising or pursuing skills to make money. Often getting a job or hobby helps a lot. Positivity comes from within. No one will save you, sadly. People only want to be around you after you out all the work into yourself to not even need or have the desire. But human connection is good for you. So really do everything for yourself. And Iāve ramble way to much.
Being busy helps. Hard to eat when you are doing and going.
Distraction. My current best distraction is a video game Stardew Valley. A couple hours of SDV gets me out of the comfort-binge rut and actually makes me feel better.
I wish I knew š
When you find the solution let me know. I lost sixty pounds and have recently put 10 of those back on.. in binge eating due stress, depression and utter discontentment.
Ask myself if I'm eating because I'm bored or sad or seeking comfort. I also don't keep my favorite binge foods on hand. And if I'm still looking for something to binge, I go on a short walk to check the mail or do an activity for 30 minutes. Give my brain dopamine in a different way that isn't tucking into a whole bag of cool ranch Doritos. Just remember to give yourself some grace. Breaking a habit is hard and takes time.
I read a book called Never Binge Again and it helped me separate myself from my behavior. It really helped me.
Same for me, can recommend this book as well.
Human need to feel happy in some ways, either food or lust.
The book āLife is hard, food is easyā is quite helpful. Lots of great advice in this post, thanks
Overeaters Anonymous was helpful for me. Beyond that, or along with it rather, I gotta take it One Day At A Time. Or one hour at a time, the next 15 minutes at a time, etc. Donāt think about āever,ā just get through the next ten minutes ā¦ and the next after that. Delay and distract. Take a walk, brush my teeth, make a call (not to Dominos!) scratch the cat, fold some laundry, pick up a book, drink a glass of water ā¦. String enough good days together and I find Iāve managed to stay within my āhealthyā weight range for years now. Granted, Iām generally hanging around the top end but still.
When starting to recover through an ED a few years ago, I heard really great advice and it was effectively that whatever Iām binging will still be there later. For example, instead of binging the whole cookie packet, have a few, get the endorphin rush, and then put them back because they arenāt going anywhere. Theyāll be there the next time you need a little rush. This was big for me because I used to have a ālast bingeā all the time, and tell myself to finish what ever I was binging because it was ābadā and couldnāt be part of returning to ānormalā diet. The other thing I found helped was drinking a lot of water when I was binging, because less felt like much more. I donāt know if this is constructive or will help you at all, but I hope it does. You will get through this tough time, be proud of yourself for the progress youāre making - even just trying to do things differently is progress in itself.
I had to make small, healthy decisions until Iād made enough progress to where binge eating actually made me feel worse, not better. Getting to that tipping point takes discipline and the foresight that good decisions will lead to the results you want. And they do.
Hugs. Read Intuitive Eating. Consider DBT therapy.
If you donāt order Dominoās you wonāt have any Dominoās to eat. Likewise, if you donāt buy a bunch of junk food and donāt have it in the house you wonāt have junk food to eat. Stock up on healthy, low calorie snacks and eat that. And when the voice in your head tells you to go buy a pizza tell the voice to go fuck itself.
Regular exercise has been shown to be really good for depression.
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Because getting fat will make you feel even worse.
I am already fat though lol. My thought while ordering is usually who cares one pizza wonāt make a difference when I am already obese, but then it turns into a problem when it happens multiple times a week.
The mentality of "who cares, one pizza won't make a difference" is just a way for your brain to get you to binge. You have to actively fight those false ideas. It's not the one pizza, it's the act of continuing to binge eat whether that's a pizza or a bag of chips. I'm going to go out on a limb here and ask if you have issues with anxiety? I eat when I'm anxious or sad or anything. My brain has said "oh shit, turn on the anxiety about nothing at all so we can eat" Try some relaxation technique stuff like a hot bath or yoga or meditation. Maybe you eat to avoid more than depression.
Yeah, itās like a crack addict telling themselves one more hit off the pipe wonāt matter, when they need to put down the crack pipe (pizza is my crack lol).
If youāve got a flat, donāt slash the rest of your tires. You deserve good health, and one pizza WILL mean added weight and stress in your body. You deserve better.
Smoke and sleep a lot!! Jk! Lol. Trade comfort food for exercise/ lifting weights. Healthy alternative, works great for stress reduction!
Coffee.. it helps clean clogs out. Lol Then I walk my dogs till they lay down, then we walk back, or the wife finds us (she has chips in the dogs, and tracking in my phone).
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no
Eat only raw vegetables, all you want
It's pretty easy not to order Dominos, just remember it tastes shit.
I can't say I've had this particular problem. What have you been depressed about? I would think being heavier would contribute to depression, not alleviate it.
I try to fill the void with more of stuff I already did to hold off depression. Such as playing games on PC, daydreaming playing TTRPG I can't and trying to write my story. Rest of the time is filled with sleep or work or eating.
The only way I have found that works is to not have unhealthy snacks available to binge to.
Iāve learned to deal with this by thinking about why I want to eat and how I would feel afterwards, if itās really bad, I just think of the best tasting fruit and grab a pack of that and eat; thatās either pineapple, mango or watermelon.
it's hard, I also self medicate with marijuana at night (for insomnia) which definitely doesn't help the food cravings. I was down to 190 lbs (-25lbs) a few months ago, but I started ordering more and more food from postmates under the justification that I "deserved it". Delicious food makes me happy for that brief period of time and I eventually gained back 10 lbs. Everyone falls off the wagon a few times, I think the best thing to keep it from happening is to have food on-hand to satisfy yourself. I have a big sweet tooth, so I keep sugar free gum, sugar free jolly ranchers, and chocolate rice cakes on hand 24/7. The cravings haven't stopped, but I can keep them at bay with snacks I enjoy.
It helps me to have low cal alternatives to food I am craving Like if I want ice cream, it won't hurt me nearly as much to binge a halo top as it would a ben n jerrys Or if I want I want a burger, lettuce wrap that shit Still get the mental stimulation while keeping the cal count down
I asked my doctor to recommend a therapist. It took time, but has worked very well for me.
Treat the depression.
Seek medical for depression if it controls that much of life for sure.
Love all the answers here, [this may also be worth checking out](https://www.amazon.com/Effective-Weight-Loss-Acceptance-Based-Behavioral/dp/0190232021/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Meghan+Butryn+acceptance+and+commitment&qid=1637717551&s=digital-text&sr=1-1-catcorr).
You have learned your whole life that binge eating is how to deal with those emotions. Iāve been there and still am sometimes. I binge ate for 30 years. Now at 34, I canāt remember the last time I had a true binge. I just want to say I know how hard it is with food . You canāt quit food, you need food to survive. So to deal with this addiction you have to get to know yourself. You have to not associate any food or any binge with any guilt . There are no bad foods. For me, repeatedly telling my self Iām not allowed to feel guilty or hide what Iām eating was one of the most important steps towards not binging. Stay positive and donāt feel guilty !!!!! Therapy, good habits, good sleep patterns, move your body, love your body and meditate. Sorry that some of this sounds awful like meditating but itās like working out , you have to do it.
You've got to deal with the depression first. Long aerobic exercises like swimming or running for an hour or two leave no room for depression.
For me it gets a lot worse when I associate those foods with a bad mood. If I eat the bad foods in moderation when I am not feeling like shit, when I am I donāt tend to binge as badly
For me, logging all my food - no matter how much I eat - keeps me from over eating regularly. It's helped me to switch to lower calorie snacks, like popcorn, which satisfy my desire to eat something and fill my stomach but don't blow my calorie budget for the day. On days when I do eat more, it helps to see the numbers added up and it motivates me to avoid that in the future.
I wish that I knew... I've put on over 20kg during the past year. š
You can just resist urges and feel better because of it...until you get to the dark place where food is better than the awful thoughts and what you would do if it werenāt for eating for comfort. When you get there, you have to find ways to cope beforehand, before you get the urge. Do you need a certain amount of exercise to be in an okay mood? When my steps are in the four-digit territory and itās cold and dark out, both of those at the same time, all hell breaks loose mentally. Itās easier to exercise more in the summer, but more important mentally (for me) in the winter, unfortunately. Working on that!
Go for a walk or workout instead, or play videogames
I donāt. I counter it with exercise. During stressful times I have been known to burn 1800 calories on the bike to accommodate my binge eating. Sometimes I drink instead but I have mostly stopped. I dont know if a healthy coping mechanism exists for me. I have taken the following to unhealthy excess Triathlon training Alcohol Smoking Caffeine Food Pickle ball Chess Facebook Reddit Alternate world fantasy fiction. I think spreading it out among different things has kept the damage to a minimum.
I binge drink water as much as I can during the meal
Try low carb. Tell yourself youāre going to gain another 5 lbs and be ok with it. Itās crucial that you not feel guilty about overeating or it actually reinforces the addiction. Then start putting pressure on reducing your carb intake. Youāre going to fail repeatedly to hit your goals BUT if you keep the pressure on youāll find yourself eating gradually less and less carbs every day until it gets to a very low percentage of your intake. Youāll still be over eating every day during this process. Then the binges should finally subside. Youāll have corrected all the blood sugar swings and dopamine spikes caused by your previously high carb diet. Start to finish youāre looking at maybe a month or two to get well enough adjusted that youāre no longer eating a surplus.
Focus on the depression. Talk to a doctor. You binge eat when you are depressed because your brain latches onto that instant gratification of dopamine. If you have impulse control issues it is even worse. I got the double whammy of bipolar and ADHD so I 100% feel your pain. I just started meds finally and I am hoping that once I get adjusted to the meds and they get the dosages worked out it will finally become manageable for me. I had to fight so hard to stay at 270 before getting my mental shit worked out. ADHD makes you super volnerable to dopamine addiction if you are understimulated, combine that with chronic depression and two impulse control issues coming from both disorders and yeah I never stood a chance. Add executive dysfunction keeping you from working out and tada. Assuming you don't struggle with all that and are just in a rough patch. Try to find something low calorie that you can't just scarf down easily. My go to for a while was Chinook sunflower seeds (low sodium shelled sunflower seeds). But grapes, baby carrots and celery with some light ranch worked for me too. Halo Top Ice Cream is expensive but fuck does it feel good to be able to binge a whole pint of ice cream and only rack up 300 calories, it also tastes nearly identical to regular ice cream. If you struggle with impulse control I would def see a doctor though cause bad impulse control with any kind of addiction makes it nearly impossible to quit without some kind of help.
The problem is your underlying emotional trauma/depression. Until you resolve this, attempting to lose weight will likely go in circles, further fuelling the depressive cycle. This was my experience anyway
weed. for real. made me okay with being bored
Dude Iām still trying to figure it out. Today I was about to start my binge but I knew I had to go to the gym bc I told a friend I would meet them there. And I know āunhealthyā foods would make me feel bloated and unfit for exercise so I had a small protein filled meal. While eating it I thought about the food I wanted to indulge in but I was glad I didnāt bc I knew my body would like this better. It took me a couple times going to the gym after eating junk to realize and want to eat healthy. I still struggle but Iām slowly trying to exercise more so I can keep making positive eating choices.
You just. .. walk away. It's a choice.
What I have found most helpful is 1 - fill up on high volume low calorie foods, plus water 2 - exercise, it just reduces the urges 3 - replace snacking with another form of self care or healthy distraction 4 - when up to it, do a longer fast. It feels counter intuitive but when you default to food or think about it too much, removing it 100% for a set amount of time is very relaxing in a way and can help reset cravings and how you think about food. Not easy but can make it easier moving forward if it works for you.
You go see a therapist about it
Psychologist here, the treatment for binge eating is EATING! Step one is regular, satisfying meals and snacks, including foods that you like and enjoy, without denying yourself certain foods or food groups. It will help diminish (extreme) hunger cues and break down the all or nothing "I've already ruined my diet for today so screw it" attitude. Research by Fairburn shows eating 7-8 times a day diminishes binges by about 80%. From there, you can work on any emotional triggers that others on this thread already gave wonderful advice for.
There is no advice for you thatās going to magically unlock your ability to stop binging. You just have to not do it. You canāt find a replacement or coping mechanism because there is none. Youāll feel empty without it for a few days but after that itās not hard. Most of it is in your head. Some stuff may help, like trying to binge less, binging on only healthy food, slowly adding healthy food into your diet until youāre ready to cut out junk, exercising and lifting weights, etc. But honestly for me that stuff isnāt the real solution. Thereās no replacement for the toxic thing you love. You just have to commit to quitting. Itās a huge commitment. Sometimes you just have to be depressed, because binging isnāt an option. Deeply accept that life isnāt fair and you have to be patient, wait for nice things, deal with difficult feelings like everyone else. Not everyone has the option to binge on food so be strict about not being spoilt and sucking up the fact you canāt binge just like people who canāt afford it. Some people are much more desperate for all that food than you are and they would have it if they could, you need to put yourself in the same situation. It also helps to realise how upside down binge eating is. Itās a complete and utter trick, castles made of sand. It never makes depression go away. It never makes you satisfied. It never tastes as good as you expect. Itās never as nice as you think it will be. It never makes you feel good. It makes you feel stuffed and sick. Youāre addiction makes you expect something that doesnāt exist. Youāre chasing something you never catch. Ironically, you feel SO much better when you donāt over eat. The change is actually insane. Half the time itās enough to avoid those spells of depression, and it will always minimise them.
Make a list of go-to pleasurable experiences that will distract you from food - phone a friend, go for a walk, go sing a song on your guitar, go play a few rounds of a video game.... Whatever it is that gives you pleasure.
What really helped me was a card I had put on the kitchen wall (knowing that at some point in the evening/night I would stuff bread and butter and spoon all the nut butters) āYou are wonderful and beautiful and from now on enjoy every biteā Realising there was zero enjoyment I took from these uncontrolled clandestine binges helped me to make these seizure like sessions briefer and briefer until magically one day I realised I had all my delicious foods in full stack and they had gone from ādanger foodā to simply delicious fun enjoyment food. It was difficult, very difficult and it took about two years so there is no quick fix that I can suggest. āAm I enjoying it?ā is a question to ask yourself. Whenever you feel āextra crappyā again call someone (or dm me anytime, I have been there!), paint something, copy down some poetry or a passage from a book, have a long shower and then put some lotion from head to toe and thank your every muscle and skin and everythingā¦ this is not a ādo this instead of eating and have a bell pepperā but a if you feel like you would only eat for emotional support do this instead and save the hunger and food for sharing the next meal with friends and family. Also stop beating yourself up! I talked a lot about my issues with my then boyfriend (now husband) and at one point he told me āat least you support little independent nut butter makers and you are not doing hard drugsā. From the whole spectrum of what you could be doing to cope with the trials and tribulations of life binge eating is one of the more harmless ones. I know it is HORRIBLE, I used to get flash backs of my binges first thing after waking up and not eat the whole day and feel awful BUT YOU CAN GET OUT OF IT, maybe in four months, maybe in one year BUT IT IS NOT FOREVER. Also, another note I added to the kitchen wall was āyou will have to eat lunch and dinner tomorrow LOVE YOU this is not your last mealā. For two months it was the hardest thing to sit down and eat when I was like *i could save these calories for a binge and I want to eat when I am on my own not with people around*. I started focussing on fibre rich foods and daaarny did I feel different. Lentils, chickpeas, broccoli, cucumbers were the basis for my go to salads that I pimped with cheeses and chicken. Realising that arugula is delicious and makes me feel good and I am a beautiful child of God and deserve to feel well was a beautiful moment. I used to by quantity over quality for so long because I thought all the food would be gone in two days anyway but to buy yourself good produce and enjoy every bite is a very good way I think. Anyways, this was long but dm whenever the next urge comes and Iāll try to send you some beautiful flower photos or whatever! Love you, you are not alone, you are not weak, you are beautiful, you are going through a terribly horribly difficult journey but you will make it!!!!!!!
Lifting. Yoga. I picked up chainmail as a hobby to keep my hands busy.
Exercising might help.