Has anyone experienced this?

waldo56

And yes, waldo... for someone recovering from restriction, 1,500 feels like a really big binge. I could explain what it does to our body when we eat that much in one sitting (the digestive upset, the constipation, the bloating, the lightheadedness, the anxiety). But I'll spare the details. Some of it is gross. But, OP, that gets easier, too.

I get that. Whether it is recovering from an ED or bulking for muscle gain, a lot of the same things occur. They are after all about the same process. The big difference being that when bulking you don't have that hunger from being malnourished so have to force it down even if you aren't hungry.

And yes, I also understand malnourished hunger quite well, the hormones involved and what it feels like, cutting for sharper abs has exactly the same side effects if you do it too long. Dreaming of thanksgiving dinner. Permahunger that doesn't go away, even if you eat a large meal. Nerotic, almost frantic focus on your hunger and need to eat. This is perfectly normal, signs of the hormone leptin and its interactions with ghrelin (which makes you feel hungry) and serotonin (which makes you not crazy). Eating a massive whallop of carbs (think 1000+ cal of pure carbs in a single sitting) will make it go away temporarily, for a few days usually (it will cause a strong leptin pulse that will linger a bit). Eating at maintenance or above sustained for a few weeks/months (depending on how bad you let it get, obv ED recovery is going to be on the long end) will make it go away for good, or at least until you cut too long when too lean again.

Where you draw the line with what is and isn't a binge, 1500 cals is quite small. I mean any standard bacon cheeseburger with fries in a bar with a beer on the side is going to be over 1500 cals. A full stack of pancakes with butter, whipped cream, and syrup and a side of hash browns and glass of OJ at the IHOP is going to be over 1500 cals.

cwoyto123

And yes, waldo... for someone recovering from restriction, 1,500 feels like a really big binge. I could explain what it does to our body when we eat that much in one sitting (the digestive upset, the constipation, the bloating, the lightheadedness, the anxiety). But I'll spare the details. Some of it is gross. But, OP, that gets easier, too.

I get that. Whether it is recovering from an ED or bulking for muscle gain, a lot of the same things occur. They are after all about the same process. The big difference being that when bulking you don't have that hunger from being malnourished so have to force it down even if you aren't hungry (and yes, I also understand malnourished hunger quite well, the hormones involved and what it feels like, cutting for sharper abs has exactly the same side effects if you do it too long).

Where you draw the line with what is and isn't a binge, 1500 cals is quite small. I mean any standard bacon cheeseburger with fries in a bar with a beer on the side is going to be over 1500 cals. A full stack of pancakes with butter, whipped cream, and syrup and a side of hash browns and glass of OJ at the IHOP is going to be over 1500 cals.

This.

Some of my normal meals are 1500-2000 calories regularly.

I consider a binge 2500+

waldo56

EDs are all about control; is there any education/materials out there that explains the hormones involved, what various symptoms mean, and how you can control them?

I mean bodybuilder types (and science) has worked out much of the anti-starvation system.

Leptin is the master controller, like a thermostat. When high there are no symptoms. When low, symptoms get increasingly more powerful the lower it gets. Leptin is created in fat tissue by a signal sent by your glycogen reserves (stored carbs in the body). Having high glycogen levels or high fat levels is enough to create stable leptin levels, which is why when lean carbs are going to minimize the negative side effects the fastest and easiest. This signal goes hand in hand with your energy state, leptin levels drop when you are in a calorie deficit, rise when you are in a calorie surplus. If you are going to binge, binging on pure carbs will reduce or eliminate the feeling you need to binge for the near future.

Ghrelin is created in the stomach and makes you feel hungry (the rumbly tummy feeling when you are hungry around meal time, that is ghrelin). Ghrelin is released in anticipation of your usual schedule, if you always eat at a particular time, you will always be hungry at that time, even if you don't really have any need for food. As leptin levels drop, eventually the body starts really pumping on the ghrelin, which makes you hungry 24/7, meals having no effect on it.

Sex hormones interact strongly with leptin. As leptin levels drop so too does sexual desire. Even further decline will cause your reproductive system to totally turn off. Men lose the ability to get wood, women lose their period. Reproducing is a calorie expensive process, low leptin tells the body it is starving, which causes the reproductive system to shut off.

Thyroid hormones (and possibly brown/beige fat) also interact with lepin. They can modulate your metabolism, low leptin will cause the body to throttle back your metabolism as much as possible to conserve itself. One obvious side effect of this is being ccccooooolllldddd.

Finally leptin also interacts with serotonin. A lack of serotonin pretty much makes you crazy. When leptin gets low, this will cause you to become extremely neurotic about food, thinking about it 24/7, absolutely frantic to eat. Again, this is a chemical process in the body, a side effect of low leptin. You fix this by raising leptin levels.

uglyclub

I know that restrictive eating leads to binging, but how can I stop restricting if I can't stop binging? I feel like I'm stuck...

How can you stop restricting if you can't stop binging? What do you mean? Are you restricting to compensate for your binges? Because that's a big no-no, especially in AN recovery. If you truly want to stop "binging", eat more. Keep eating your recommended amount. The more consistent you are with your eating, the less likely you are to "binge" in the long run.

Are you still counting calories? How much are you eating on a non-binge day? Maybe you're still not eating enough. Personally, my binges stopped once I reached a BMI that was healthy for my body (and by that I don't mean 18.5 - not everyone's considered healthy at that BMI).

VeganEquestrian

On a non binge day I'm eating like 2500 cals! My bmi is 17.2... And I do around 600-1000 cals of exercise a day...

ovi212

Stop exercising.

VeganEquestrian

I'm a working student under the guidance of a pro rider and I'm working on becoming a pro myself, so I exercise every day as part of my job.

Kestrelwings

For what it is worth:

"Binge" eating is extremely common in people recovered/recovering from AN. The normal hormonal feedback governing appetite is derranged, and takes a very long time to re-balance (even after reaching healthy weight it can go on for months or longer).

Strategies to reduce the 'binges' and the mental fallout include:

1) Ensure you are eating enough calories, no sly 'skimping on portions' or 'forgetting' to eat
2) Include planned snacks throughout the day, you should be having three main meals and three snacks, so you do not go longer than about 3 hours between eating something
3) Eat a balanced mix of carbs/protein/fats, and aim for slow-release energy sources (eg complex carbohydrates with some protein and fat at the same time)
4) Ask friends/look on MFP to get an idea of what other people eat, and you will see that what you call a 'binge' may be a regular meal for someone else
5) If you do have a 'binge', be kind to yourself. See if you can work out what triggered it & how to reduce the risk of it happening again, then start over with a 'clean slate' (i.e. no compensatory restricting or extra exercising).

:flowerforyou:

nancy10272004

I'm a working student under the guidance of a pro rider and I'm working on becoming a pro myself, so I exercise every day as part of my job.

Well this is a problem. Is it possible you're now dealing with a different type of disorder? Binging covered up by exercise? I forget the name of it but when I was in treatment for binge eating, I had a couple of people in my group who did this.

I'm not sure how you can be a professional athlete (I think?) if you're not eating right.

nancy10272004

And yes, waldo... for someone recovering from restriction, 1,500 feels like a really big binge. I could explain what it does to our body when we eat that much in one sitting (the digestive upset, the constipation, the bloating, the lightheadedness, the anxiety). But I'll spare the details. Some of it is gross. But, OP, that gets easier, too.

I get that. Whether it is recovering from an ED or bulking for muscle gain, a lot of the same things occur. They are after all about the same process. The big difference being that when bulking you don't have that hunger from being malnourished so have to force it down even if you aren't hungry (and yes, I also understand malnourished hunger quite well, the hormones involved and what it feels like, cutting for sharper abs has exactly the same side effects if you do it too long).

Where you draw the line with what is and isn't a binge, 1500 cals is quite small. I mean any standard bacon cheeseburger with fries in a bar with a beer on the side is going to be over 1500 cals. A full stack of pancakes with butter, whipped cream, and syrup and a side of hash browns and glass of OJ at the IHOP is going to be over 1500 cals.

This.

Some of my normal meals are 1500-2000 calories regularly.

I consider a binge 2500+

Binges aren't about numbers. They're about behaviors and emotions.

uglyclub

Well, just keep eating 2500 calories or more if you want. You still have a lot of weight to gain and your body is begging for food after being starved for so long. My binges stopped once I regained the weight I needed to gain.

glenmchale

something you might want to think about (not sure if someone has mentioned it before) if you are craving food then you might want to think about what you are craving because its (as someone has previously stated) your body needing some type of nutrient, try this:



hope you get over this hurdle and level out at your target weight

good luck

chelseavanchilli

Keeping yourself busy is always a good idea! When I binge, it's because I'm pretty much procrastinating or bored, which gives me the chance to start thinking about food, and thus crave unhealthy stuff. If you feel you're going to start, try leaving your house (and carrying an appropriate snack with you is a good idea too).

worldofalice

I'm going through a similar thing at the moment, so I feel your pain. I had some weeks where I would have binges several days straight! However am starting to get a handle on it, one thing I've learned is DO NOT restrict the day after you feel you've overeaten, as this will simply trigger another binge. The day after is always tough but it's important to carry on through with regular healthy meals. It's a hard thing to get your head round, but the excess calories from one binge session will not do any damage at all if you eat normally the next day. It's when you begin the binge-restrict cycle that it starts to become damaging. I find a different coping mechanism, instead of restricting, is exercise. Not excessively of course, just a nice walk or some moderate weight resistance. It will boost your mood and make you feel better about yourself which is crucial on the road to recovery!

mank32

:creeps:

navyrigger46

1500 calories for a meal is a binge?

Apparently I binge just about every day....

Heck, if that is the measure then I binge twice a day.

OP, after reading the thread I'm just going to ay this, you're young, active, and under weight, and even though I don't know your stats, I can comfortably say that 1500 calories is not a binge, it's a meal, and with your level of activity, it's happening because you simply are not fueling your body properly, you should essentially be bulking at TDEE+10% in order to get your weight up to a healthy range, that's probably about two "binges" per day. Eat up.

Rigger

ButtVibes

I haven't red the other comments but...
Just let it go. Let it go. Let your body fed itself. No food is forbidden. Of course, it isn't as simple as calories in, calories out - some foods are 'healthier' than others, but I must ask you, which mind set is healthy when restricted?
What you are experiencing is a natural reaction - your body is catching up, and is more powerful than your mind. Let it guide you. Learn to detach yourself from the guilt. Try to visualize this as an experience, a new adventure. You are discovery the power of your body. Of course, anorexia is about control. I know, I experienced it. But isn't the mind ridiculously juvenile in comparison to the body? Your body is such a complex mechanism - it has evolved for thousands of years now. Your mind on the other hand, was born with you and will die with you. It is unique, an experience less thing, not as wise as your body.
Control and most importantly obsession isn't healthy. I've just recently understood this. Don't count calories. Just don't. Don't focus on your binges. Ok, this happened. There. What are you going to do`Well you will NOT focus on them - because if you do, that is when the true problems will start and that is when you will truly develop binge eating.
If you speak french, I could link you to a very interesting forum of young women and men recovering. The advice there is absolutely fabulous - but what really stood out that, all those who recovered said that binging was a natural stage of recovery and that, with time, it would reduce, to finally disappear when the body (not the mind!) was at a happy weight. And when you are there, do not diet. You'll just relapse. The fat tissue that will have formed upon your body will redistribute upon your body and your body will take care of it - if you learn to listen to it, you'll discover that it has a balance of its own. If there is too much fat, then, naturally, it will get rid of it (by decreasing your appetite or your activity levels). If there isn't enough, the inverse is true.
I understand how difficult it is to realize (nut understand) what I am telling you. But really, once you do, you'll find the way out. I wish you the best :flowerforyou:

EDIT: by the way, I just wanted to say that I don't believe that what I say is the absolute truth. I just wanted to make you understand that you shouldn't try to control or fight those binges. Let them wash over you, like a wave, and the FORGET over them. And I have to be honest, don't try to find a substitute to what you want. You want some chocolate? Take some! Enjoy! But forget about guilt. Life is not something can control. Life is something you can make the best of but ultimately, there will always be something that doesn't go as planned. So instead of dwelling over it, learn about it. And most importantly, learn to respect your body. It's much wiser than you think.

EDIT 2: I truly hope this isn't triggering, but check out her meals and realize that, just like her, you need a lot to repair. You haven't just lost weight, you've damaged your internal organs, your mind. Repair yourself wholly. http://misshealthgeek.tumblr.com/

Soloflyergirl2

I'm not going to impose organized religion on you, but I will say that It is helpful to realize you are not the center of the universe. There are higher powers, whether you want to call it God, is up to you. So when you get up in the morning.... thank whomever that you are given another chance to live a good life. You deserve a good life. You have to believe that.
Secondly, write out what your meals will be for the week. Look at healthy diets online. There are many ... and they are free.
Focus on protein to fill you up, vegetables and fruits, and drink water. Don't eat fast food, greasy foods. Remember , you want to live a long and healthy life. It's not easy...... don't we know??? This website has helped many people... Not everyone has a strong support group, but for some reason total strangers will support each other in this challenge.... Take advantage of it.... and know that you are inspiring others to eat right and live well, too....

I'm older... not necessarily wiser.... But.... plan out your eating..... Try to find at least one in person friend who will listen to you and your trials and tribulations..You are not alone.

Log your food intake and exercise in Myfitnesspal.....Talk with people in the Community session....... and take small steps to pat yourself on the back... Life is good..... You don't have to be a skinny bones to look good..... ( I'm Italian.. never was a skinny bones.... but trying to be healthy.).....

All the best to you.... and take one day at a time..... Yes, many people have experienced what you have....... and working on it, just like you...:flowerforyou:

WLG1974

Lots of good advice here.

clarajean123

Your fears about food are quite real for anyone that has an eating disorder, whether it be anorexia, Bulimia, or compulsive eating, The fact that you recognize that you have this fear is good. Denial can be a comfort, but it's really an enemy in disguise. Food binging is just result of all those feelings stirring inside. Make a goal and find the motivation. Just take it one day at time. We are not perfect, and failure is inevitable, but success is always on horizon and reachable.