im an addict!

KatiesRunnersHigh

ok people use the word addict loosely usually when it comes to sweets like "im addicted to chocolate!!" when to me they are ok w chocolate. they can stop. me im a hot mess. i kick butt w exercise and do everything right in that area but i sabotage myself almost nightly w sweets. i feel calm when its in the house like its a security blanket but then i eat it all. i cant just have one square. when i dont have it and im swearing it off i think of it constantly. i easily eat half my calories in sweets. if i didnt eat sweets i would be in tip top shape...i just dont know how to cut the addiction. i work in a bakery btw lol. i dont eat a lot there because im too busy but yeah any ideas...i think im a binger too

MindyG150

Ok, well the first step with a problem is recognizing it. Not sure what the second is but I'm hoping someone else does.

Good Luck!

oats4breakfast

When and where do you buy it ? Perhaps tackling those patterns will be easier.
e.g.
Pay at the pump
Don't make special trips to buy
Know that you will throw something into the basket when waiting to check out, so be prepared.

I did all these things and more.

It may be that you can't kill the problem of eating the entire chocolate bar (I'm right there with you) but you can eliminate/reduce the opportunities to get it. And be prepared for them.
If someone brings you some, throw it out immediately.

I will destroy a candy aisle if given the opportunity. That impulse will remain but the opportunities are minimized.

oats4breakfast

Also do a no candy for a month challenge or something. See how you go.

issyfit

Two weeks of following phase 1 of South Beach really works for getting rid of sweet cravings.

wolfchild59

If you truly think you an addict, then you need to cut it out 100%. Alcoholics don't just have one drink while out with friends, they stop drinking entirely.

If you are truly an addict, prepare for withdrawal and a horribly bad recovery and "cure" period of time when you stop eating chocolate. Having friends and family to support will be best.

But if you're like most folks with stuff like that, you're not actually addicted in the clinical sense of the word. Which means that you just need to use willpower and inner strength to control your chocolate eating. Try things like pre-portioning your chocolate. Add the amount of chocolate in the portions that you've given to your log early in the day so it's already allotted and you have it to look forward to.

Personally, eliminating anything 100% from what I eat only makes me want it more, even if it's not something I love. It's a grass is always greener sort of thing. So I just plan times when I eat certain things and allot them into my calories for the day.

But you have to be strong or this whole journey is going to be extremely hard. At my work, there is a bowl or two on my aisle that is always stocked with candy. And one of the guys on my staff brings in chocolate (the good stuff) in a never ending supply. Add to that constant potlucks and catered lunches and this job is what landed me at MFP in the first place. But I pick and choose my treats. I can walk by that pile of sugar every day (a few dozen times a day) or the catered lunches and not succumb because I know that I have my own allotment of chocolate, or a small ice cream sandwich, a cupcake, a special meal, a favorite food, or whatever it is, waiting for me later that day. Or, if there's something at work I know I really want, then that's what I put in my food log so I can enjoy it.

Mind over matter and don't deny yourself the simple pleasures in life.