Anorexia.. now full blown binge eating??

chene249

Hi guys..

Recently i've approached my goal weight and now I'm in the healthy weight range. However, I have been doing a lot of binge eating lately. Sometimes it gets triggered in the morning and I just excessively eat and I don't even notice my hunger signals.

Today I've had like 8 pieces of toast with like 3/4 tub of peanut butter and nutella. And THAT was just a "snack/ lunch.." I had even more unhealthy "junk foods" for breakfast (tim tams, oreos, granola bars...). I keep saying to myself I'll do better tomorrow. I might restrict for a while, but then I just do the same thing again - binge.

I was just wondering if anyone has gone thorugh this sort of thing. I'm weight restored, but then why is it NOW that my body suddenly craves food so much to the point where I can't stop? i don't NEED to gain anymore weight! I don't emotionally eat - I do have a therapist and I've gone to see a nutritionist.

This has never happened to me before. Why is it that I'm weight restored but I binge on almost 4000-5000 calories every other day for the past 2-3 weeks?

Im getting FAT now... not HEALTHY.

ThePhoenixIsRising

Do you have access to healthy foods? Can you choose to eat eggs, nuts(instead of nut butters), chicken, fruit, veggies, fish, pork, beef....

Choose to eat nutrient rich foods. You will find they are harder to bing on long term. It is also possible your body is wanting or needing specific nutrients and this is triggering the binges. Have you had blood work done recently?

chene249

Perhaps that might be the reason. I have exams coming up and the stress and studying has got me staying at university till late. I try to eat, but I end up eating like two sushis before heading home around 11pm and then binging on whatever junk food is in the cupboards.

I thought it might be the lack of nutrients, so i deliberately went home for the past couple of days to have a "proper" dinner. Only this has not worked at all, and I have started binging again today.. even after eating normal, "whole" meals for the past two days..

Is there something mentally or physically wrong with me

starcollapsing

This is very common in recovery & the best thing you can do is to make absolutely sure you never ever restrict and eat all your normal meals and don't be too hard on yourself. For me, it passed as soon as I stopped trying to restrict (even a little bit) and decided I would accept whatever weight I ended up at. I haven't binged in a year probably and have no urge to, I'm a healthy weight for ME, which is not at the very bottom of the 'healthy' bmi but not overweight and I look slim and athletic and I eat what and whenever I want to. I do also have to eat fairly often when I'd rather not, because I know I can only stay healthy if I don't skip meals or skimp ever. Don't panic! Talk to any Drs or therapist you're seeing.

Penny5518

This is very common after recovery. Personally I struggled with it on and off for a year or so before gradually losing the compulsions to eat. You have to give your body time to adjust, especially if you're still restricting the rest of the time. What helped for me was making sure I ate enough every single day, and didn't beat myself up for the days I went over, and I gradually stopped wanting to overeat. I'm a healthy, slim weight now and have been for years (although I have gained 10 pounds from all the partying at university, heh). I'd keep trying to have healthy foods, and lower your sugar intake as much as possible, as that can be a big trigger for binge eating.

ThePhoenixIsRising

chene249 wrote: »

Perhaps that might be the reason. I have exams coming up and the stress and studying has got me staying at university till late. I try to eat, but I end up eating like two sushis before heading home around 11pm and then binging on whatever junk food is in the cupboards.

I thought it might be the lack of nutrients, so i deliberately went home for the past couple of days to have a "proper" dinner. Only this has not worked at all, and I have started binging again today.. even after eating normal, "whole" meals for the past two days..

Is there something mentally or physically wrong with me

You are recovering mentally, physically, and emotionally! It takes time to let things heal. Many times we want things to heal long before they do. Give yourself time, talk to your dr about your worries, and remember you are worth it!!!

Patttience

" I'm weight restored, but then why is it NOW that my body suddenly craves food so much to the point where I can't stop?"

My guess is that you've crossed a carb threshold. You are eating too many carbs and or you've buggered up your leptin receptors. (chuck out the nutella)

So the way to get this back under control is to cut out the carbs like bread and cereals and high sugar stuff completely for a while. Any carbs like pasta you eat, keep the portion small.

Maximise your vegetable and fruit intake. Keep on eating healthy amount of dairy, protein. top up your energy needs with fat, not carbs.

Cuttings carbs, especially sugar, helps you get your appetite back under control quickly. Eat til you are satisfied and eat when you are hungry. Eat slow release carbs like vegetables, legumes and fruit. This way you will eat less than when you are eating anything you desire.

Eat meals, not snacks.

Another aspect of this sort of ravenous appetite is mood and stress. Maintain an optimistic attitude and do not let small things and disappointments take you down a slide of negativity. It seems to me that when disappointments start accumulating, your mood starts falling. Stress has a similar effect but it feels different. Both these things lead to increased desire for carb foods, especially sugar and junk food. They seem to lead to drops in seratonin which causes carb cravings.

If you've been eating a lot of sweet foods, now is the time to cut it out and get it into a healthy place so that you do not start piling on the weight. My firm conviction now is that bingers or people prone to losing control of their sugar intake can not do better than basically quitting all sweets. With one caveat so that the future is not unbearably bleak.

I eat sweets when other people offer them to me outside my home and i would not finagle an offer. After 10 months of this, with only fresh fruit and the odd bit of dried fruit but no honey, sugar or artificial sweeteners, i feel great and more in control of my weight than ever before in my life. My commitment to doing this permanent is strong. The other important part of this is enjoying eating my vegetables. Plenty of vegies cooked in yummy ways (I had leak and potato gratin for lunch with roast tomatoes and steamed kale; grated salad tonight with carrot, beetroot, apple and i should have thought of adding in some ginger. in addition to a small plate of pasta with a quite oily asparagus sauce from a jar plus raspberries and yoghurt for dessert. this was rather short on the protein element but i forgot. Breakfast was pretty dull today with just oats and milk and a banana but i still like it.

starcollapsing

carb threshold bollocks, I don't think that is helpful for someone in recovery. I hope you will not pay attention to the above post, OP.

girlviernes

I'm sorry Pattience, but this is terrible advice and it is scary you are giving this to someone who is recovering from anorexia!! I think the carb thing will be true for some people who have trouble with binging (like myself, since i have insulin resistance), however this poster is recovering from anorexia and bingeing is explained by that alone! And the key to getting past it is to give up restriction, not impose more restriction by limiting carbohydrates. Frankly, your advice is irresponsible.

Graelwyn75

I suggest totally ignoring the advice given by that Pattience individual, speaking as someone with a history of EDs. It is totally unhelpful and probably detrimental to someone who is in recovery from anorexia. I wish posters would show a bit of responsibility and not post if they have little to no idea of how easily various restrictions can be very triggering for those with an ED history. I had assumed it was common sense.

Binge eating is very common in recovery and after. I have had and still have issues with it myself, even decades after my initial bout of anorexia. The more you fret and try and restrict between binges, the more likely it is to happen. It is almost like a sort of subconscious rebellion to attempts at trying to control your weight like you did before. Try to keep your mind focused on just eating enough and away from losing weight for the time being and push your attention onto other things. Also look into mindfulness...have awareness of what you are doing when you are binge eating, as sometimes this can enable you to stop in the midst of it. Pause and ask if you are actually hungry or just eating through boredom, habit etc.

JayRuby84

girlviernes wrote: »

I'm sorry Pattience, but this is terrible advice and it is scary you are giving this to someone who is recovering from anorexia!! I think the carb thing will be true for some people who have trouble with binging (like myself, since i have insulin resistance), however this poster is recovering from anorexia and bingeing is explained by that alone! And the key to getting past it is to give up restriction, not impose more restriction by limiting carbohydrates. Frankly, your advice is irresponsible.

^This. I cannot believe someone is suggesting restricting!

anna_doe1986

Graelwyn75 wrote: »

I suggest totally ignoring the advice given by that Pattience individual, speaking as someone with a history of EDs.

Agreed. Pattience, I think you meant well, but a bingeing problem for a former/current anorexic has a completely different etyology. And the danger of relapse is the primary concern.

Chene249, I would suggest the following (and don't take this as offical therapist advice - just one ED-recoverer to another):

1) Don't freak out as if something abnormal is happening. Have you read about the Minnesota Starvation Experiment? Totally unethical study (like..wow), but it shows that overeating after a period of starvation is completely normal.

2) Don't try to "undo" binges, even if it's simply a tiny bit of exercising or skipping a snack. Guilt, fear, and compensatory behaviors give power to the binge.

3) Don't only eat "bad food" during binges. I've been training myself to eat junk food in safe places, like when I'm out with friends or right before I have to leave the house. Again, it takes power away from the binge and makes life so much more enjoyable!

4) Find an inspiration, and remind yourself about it before, during (if you can; it's hard to think of anything "during" one..), and after. For me, it's my faith:)

Good luck in recovery!

19rosehill

Chene249 I totally totally get where you are coming from.like the other fellow sufferers- I too went through this extremely bewildering stage and I do believe (and still feel at times) I must have lost my complete sanity. It actually angers or frustrates me that the therapists of our care either don't know that this is a following stage yet in their studies, or they keep us in the dark from knowing about it ?for if we knew there is no way we would work towards recovery.if every recoverer on here has experienced it and says its 'common' then why are we not guarded and supervised better for this period.i felt so left to my own carnage! There's no hospital wards for bulimia putting ON rapid weight, we just aren't allowed to drop weight!! Stick with us here chene. We are here for you.
- Pattience means well but there is no such thing as the ordered kind of thought she is trying to put to it.if our minds had that kind of order we wouldn't have this problem and you wouldn't be posting in the first place.
- There is no such thing for us as 'keep binge foods out of the house' part of our behaviour is to drive to a shop and purposely buy it in a comoatosed zombie blanked mind.and this is in full view of our totally horrified anorexia brain cells.
-SO chene what helped me was find a spare cupboard in the laundry or garage, get a chain, lock and key.lock any problem food in it then put the key in a small container and hide it in - your garden? Neighbors garden( if they are supportive ones) just anywhere that's really inconvenient for you to go and get the key.if you buy more, put it also in the cupboard, lock it in the boot of the car etc
This is so you are treating one bit at a time but mostly making it hard to get to the result of eating when in the 'binge frenzy zone'
I did this for months and I can now leave it unlocked for longer periods of time, but I've still had a lapse recently where I wished I'd kept it locked.
It allowed more time to pass as I was healing to work on recognising the building of my mind panicking or building into the zombie zone.
The second thing that helped was whinge cry express it all , ups and downs to us hear.typing it allows you to see it in words before your eyes and deciphering what's happening, and getting at least 50% of supportive helpful notes back to you from US - who have been you too.
Hope this is helpful and not too long winding.