Calling all Binge Eaters

Regina727

I am a 54-year-old woman who, for the first time, started binge eating in September 2015. I gained 13 pounds in less than two months. I've never in my life been a binge eater so I'm a bit at a loss as to why this is happening now. Any advice and/or support would be greatly appreciated. And before you ask, there have been no major life events or changes to account for this sudden binge eating.

jaga13

Can you describe a typical binge? Where are, what are you doing, what do you eat, how often does this happen?

Regina727

My husband was in India in September and then had business trips in several other places in October. The binge eating started while he was in India. I thought it was due to anxiety because he was away. However, the binge eating continued even after he was home. I binge eat when I am alone watching television. I have eaten a bag of caramels, a package of cookies, a bag of chips, etc. It is not like me to eat an entire package of anything in one sitting so I don't understand what is going on.

jaga13

Maybe it started with the anxiety over his travel and now it's just a habit? I wish I had great advice but I've struggled for a long time

lilbitfit3

I would see your doctor. You'd want to rule out any changes in your body that could be causing such a big behavioral change.

brb_2013

Perhaps you made it a habit. Sure the binge sucks once you're done, but I hear very few people talk about the feelings during to the binge. I'm not exactly pleased with myself during the act but the food surely tastes good, makes me feel at the least pacified and at most I feel a little spinny/euphoric until the crash of guilt. But this small amount of positive feeling while eating, even if there is guilt after, builds a habit. That's all my opinion. But I think you had a trigger of anxiety and loneliness and now you have a bad habit.

ecdce

So, you started binging while your husband was away and you were alone, and now you continue to binge while you're alone in the evenings? If it's become a habit- you just eat while you're alone and bored (and not indicative of a larger problem)- disrupting the habit, to make yourself more conscious of just how much you're consuming during prime-binging times. It can seriously be anything that makes it harder for you to continuously eat without pausing - preportioned packages, where getting up to get a new pack might slow you down. Or wearing mittens, where opening candies is difficult and requires your focus. Snacking on things where there's visib,e evidence of how much you've had, like shells or wrappers for each bite, has also been shown in studies to cut down on the amount consumed.