Binge eaters out there needing support

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  • alittlelife14
    alittlelife14 Posts: 339 Member
    Many posts on here I can very much so relate to as well and binge eating has been running a big part of my life for the last year and a half. Initially I was severely restricting calories successfully somehow for a while. Then binges hit. Since then I have been on the terrible binge and restrict vicious cycle and it is very frustrating, disabling and just mentally physically and emotionally crappy as many other posters have adequately described.

    I finally seeked out help and am seeing an eating disorder psychologist and have a medication specialist that put me on Vyvanse. It has helped in many ways. My binges have reduced in frequency and severity but in all honesty haven't been completely removed from the big picture. In the time of the past year I have tried keto and actually did well on it while I sustained it and then when I had the hard to ignore and finally gave into it carb binge it all went to crap, then I tried upping protein dramatically and it just didn't work out and now I am trying to and finally realizing that yes I need balance. I need some carbs, definitely protein, and healthy amount of fats. I am trying to kind of construct a meal plan that sets me up for success but I am struggling in some ways. I do think and strongly believe that at least for myself sugary carbs do cause issues and too dramatic of blood sugar spikes and it causes me to get a high from it physiologically in some ways and crave more and not obtain any actual fullness from the useless carb sources I devour during a binge. I also am going to now avoid any majorly artificial products like the sugar free maple syrups, sugar free chocolate sauce and such because they seem to trigger me to crave more authentic sweets and send me into a problematic spiral. I was doing well with oatmeal doused in those but then I started to over do it.

    I think to be successful I need to incorporate all things and somehow let go more and more of tracking and obsessing over calorie counts and such too.

    Add me if any binge issues and feel free to send me a message or request. Would love new friends.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Wicked_Seraph wrote: »
    Two things have helped immensely in controlling this:

    MFP and running.

    MFP forces me to be accountable for what I'm eating - and there's been MANY times where I don't eat a "trigger" food because it's either not worth the calories, or because the hassle of weighing and logging it is more effort than I'm willing to put forth. It also forces me to be realistic. Seeing that it's okay to have a "bad" day once in a while - because overall, I'm still losing - helps with the guilt and sense of failure that can often send one into a tailspin of future binges.

    Running also helps. It gives me a goal to work towards and feel good about. I've found a pattern between running and generally good habits about exercise and binging. When I'm unable to exercise or run - perhaps I have an injury, I'm busy, I'm sick - I tend to be MUCH more prone to buying and gorging on those trigger foods. Exercise makes me feel more in-control of myself and my life. I tend to find myself thinking about running, and looking forward to that, rather than obsessing over food. It doesn't hurt that running tends to curb my appetite a bit!

    In both cases - it's all about giving yourself control. Binging makes us feel powerless. Find something that makes you feel powerFUL, and in control of yourself. Don't feel horrible if you have a day where you eat over your calories - just acknowledge that it happens and move on. :smile:

    Ditto for me (except sub various other types of exercise for running.) When I get the happy hormones from exercise, I'm not prone to seeking them from food, and I instinctively make better food choices.

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