I hate BED

x3yippee

I’m struggling so much. BED + antipsychotics make me constantly hungry. Trying to lose weight but it feels so hopeless since I’m heavier than I ever was. I wish I would just hate myself less. Trying to focus on other things like college and drinking water. Any advice please because I have little to no willpower 😭

AnnPT77

Since you're on antipsychotics, I'm hoping you have a robust treatment team that's working with you in that context, and that's aware of the BED as an issue you're having? If not, that's the place to start, I think.

I feel concern for you, even as a stranger, but don't feel very competent to help.

As a generality, relying heavily on willpower is not a thing I try to do myself, because I have a limited budget of that. (Ditto for discipline, consistency, . . . .).

I don't know whether this will resonate with you, and I know it's zero help with the psychological factors, but it helps me to think in terms of analyzing my situation as if it were a science fair project, looking for relatively easy/tolerable ways I can change my routine habits in more positive directions.

When my limited willpower budget has a positive balance, I experiment to find some new habits like that, practice them until they're as close as possible to autopilot, then go with that new routine until the willpower tank fills up to do another round of experiment/practice. Rinse and repeat, progress happens. Slowly, sometimes, but better than no progress at all.

Your situation is more complicated, though; so I'd go back to that advice to work with a good professional support team. I don't know about your college, but mine had a service where we could get direct help or referrals for things like that. It might be a thing to look into.

I hope you're able to find a solution, sincerely!

kshama2001

Yes, do reach out to your treatment team and see what resources there are on campus.

Also find what foods fill you up the most and focus on them. When my mental health isn't good, I want sugary, fatty foods, but am less inclined to go overboard on them if I've had plenty of fiber and protein.

My brother is on antipsychotics and does eat quite a bit, but he maintains his weight as he is very very active. Your schedule is no doubt busier, but do try to fit in exercise.

# 1 though is reach out for professional help.

scarlett_k

Don't keep trigger foods in the house. Set yourself up for success by having some light snacks to hand. I keep fruit, celery, carrots, rice cakes/corn cakes, boiled eggs, miso soup, cup a soups to name a few. Eat regular balanced meals. Maybe try working through a self help book like Overcoming Binge Eating.

ddsb1111

x3yippee wrote: »

I’m struggling so much. BED + antipsychotics make me constantly hungry. Trying to lose weight but it feels so hopeless since I’m heavier than I ever was. I wish I would just hate myself less. Trying to focus on other things like college and drinking water. Any advice please because I have little to no willpower 😭

I’m so sorry you’re going through this, it’s heart breaking. Wish I could give you a hug and let you know how amazing and beautiful you really are 🥺.

pridesabtch

I go through phases of binging/disordered eating and take a handful of psych meds to keep me stable. Stress increases my binging and there has been a fair amount of that lately. So I'm in a refocus/restart mode. Having a good mental health team is crucial. For me it took about 5 years to find a combination of medications that stabilized me. Everyone is different and most people don't take as long as I did to find their balance, but I tell you this so you don't give up. That didn't address the binging, just kept me from doing stupid *kitten*.

I am in a different stage of life than you, based on the statement that you are in college, but I was there once. My personal downfalls in college were being too strict with myself and seeing every minor misstep as a failure rather than a part of life. Whether is was a score on a test or trying to diet, I would simply self destruct if I couldn't be perfect. I wasn't big when I started college, but I wasn't "perfect". The fear of failure and chasing perfection led to binging (food & alcohol) more and more often. Then I'd get bigger and more depressed and more stressed out, triggering more binges. It was a viscous cycle.

For me the path forward was learning moderation in all aspects of life. I'm better about taking things in stride rather than feeling like a failure ALL THE F'ING TIME. Here are some practical skills that have helped me.

• View your calorie goal as a range, MFP Goal plus or minus 150 calories. Make sure you eat enough, stick to that lower limit to ensure proper fueling. Give yourself a little leeway on an off day, if you go over by a 100 cals you are still on track. It will usually average out over time. If you find you aren't losing weight, lower your goal by 100 cals and reset the range. There can be a lot of trial and error in weigh loss even under ideal circumstances.
• Secondly, eat throughout the day, and don't let yourself get too hungry. Skipping meals is a bad habit for me that almost always causes binging.
• Get some sort of activity, but don't go overboard. Make sure you eat a few more calories if you do intense exercise (calorie burns are all estimates, so keep that in mind). For me if I go for a stroll, or spend a day shopping, I don't eat back those "walking" calories, but if I go for an intense walk for exercise purposes I eat back about half. The activity is as much or more for my stress levels and mental health than weight loss.
• Lastly and most importantly Don't settle for feeling "ok", you deserve to feel "good". Be open and up front with your mental health professionals. BED meds didn't help me personally (they may for you) but getting the rest of my life in control did. For me that meant trial and error with different medications until we found a winning combination. As I said it can be a long process, but it is worth it when you reach a sweet spot in life.

I hope some of this is useful. Take it easy and lighten up a bit. You are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalms 139:14)

Nikki

kshama2001

pridesabtch wrote: »

I go through phases of binging/disordered eating and take a handful of psych meds to keep me stable. Stress increases my binging and there has been a fair amount of that lately. So I'm in a refocus/restart mode. Having a good mental health team is crucial. For me it took about 5 years to find a combination of medications that stabilized me. Everyone is different and most people don't take as long as I did to find their balance, but I tell you this so you don't give up. That didn't address the binging, just kept me from doing stupid *kitten*.

[snip]

Yes, my brother has gone through this process multiple times, as his psych meds stop giving him the results he needs every 15 years or so. Finding a new good combo did indeed take him less time, I think less than a year.

And then my mother, in her infinite wisdom, decided he didn't need Thorazine anymore (after reading the Caffeine chapter in Michael Pollan's "How to Change Your Mind" she didn't like that he was drinking a lot of coffee to combat the drowsies) and convinced his psychiatrist to taper him off, and of course he got psychotic again, and she denied her involvement in it, and things will never be the same

Lildarlinz

I was put on medication when I went through psychosis…I feel your pain…I didn’t want to eat meals but eat full bars of Cadbury chocolates or biscuits and crisps…

Have a word with your treatment team to start with and see if there is an alternative medication you can have and switch up the snacks for protein bars and foods that will fill you up for longer xx

Wishing you lots of love and luck xx

Momof1bmw

Drink 16oz Water before eating.
Smoothies
Slim fast shakes
Chicken, steak
Protein shakes
Greens drinks
Herbal teas
*Green tea
Detox tea
(Teas tend to really fill you up)
Pistachios help with cravings.

Cinnamon regulates your blood sugar

Keto diet pills help with suppressing your appetite.

Also their are different options of depression, anxiety/other medecine that will actually help you lose weight.

pridesabtch

Momof1bmw wrote: »

Drink 16oz Water before eating.
Smoothies
Slim fast shakes
Chicken, steak
Protein shakes
Greens drinks
Herbal teas
*Green tea
Detox tea
(Teas tend to really fill you up)
Pistachios help with cravings.

Cinnamon regulates your blood sugar

Keto diet pills help with suppressing your appetite.

Also their are different options of depression, anxiety/other medecine that will actually help you lose weight.

Some good suggestions on filling foods/drinks, but I wouldn't recommend taking diet pills of any kind without discussing with her docs.

kshama2001

Momof1bmw wrote: »

Drink 16oz Water before eating.
Smoothies
Slim fast shakes
Chicken, steak
Protein shakes
Greens drinks
Herbal teas
*Green tea
Detox tea
(Teas tend to really fill you up)
Pistachios help with cravings.

Cinnamon regulates your blood sugar

Keto diet pills help with suppressing your appetite.

Also their are different options of depression, anxiety/other medecine that will actually help you lose weight.

I used to work for a company that sold "detox" teas and keto supplements. The only ingredient in the detox teas that actually did anything was laxatives, usually senna. We sold every diet ingredient touted by Dr Oz and the only loss they were good for was the customer lightening their bank account.

Janellew86

I'm on antipsychotics too...and I binge on the weekends.