a dilemma - looking for support

courtneyscott42

caution: tl;dr ahead

i'm having an issue with overeating. last summer, i gained about 40 lbs because of stress (and over the course of the last year i've managed to lose a measly 10). once again, my life has hit a major stress course (my dad's been hospitalized for about two weeks and then he'll be on disability for about three months, plus we have quite a few family friends going through hell, and i'm leaving for college in three weeks, plus more). i'm not even going to pretend that i can manage to lose weight while dealing with such stress, but i would at least like to not GAIN weight.

i gained all the weight a year ago because i completely went nuts with overeating, and definitely found solace in food (i was eating 3000-5000 calories a day, and it embarrasses me still to admit that). i've recognized over the past five days that i'm quickly getting back into that habit. i don't believe i've had a 3000+ day (i think i've hit 2,800 once though... yikes), and i want to leave it that way.

i want to stop this before it gets out of hand, but i'm not sure how to. i've been bingeing on bad foods too (cookies, ice cream, ritz crackers, etc.). i'm a vegetarian. i've monitored my caloric intake every single day for the past two and a half years, and i know what i should and shouldn't be eating. i'd like to do a three-or-four-day cleanse and eat ONLY fruits and veggies (with maybe some legumes or a greek yogurt or two a day), instead of having bread and crackers and veggie burgers etc. would that be a good option?

only reason i ask is because i'm a relatively active person, especially running to and from the hospital as of late. i'm also not finding it easy to eat at home. i go out with friends almost every night (hello, it's summer!), and so i'm usually eating on the go. i don't want to be the weird friend with the lunchbox, but i'm really feeling so completely crummy that it's all i can think to do. my skin is oily, my hair is greasy, my tummy feels bloated all the time, i'm not regular in my bowels, my fingernails are brittle and dirty, and i'm always tired. i'm 100% sure a raw diet would be good for me for a couple days.

i'm also entertaining the idea of trying out a hydroxycut-type product (even though i know i absolutely shouldn't. i'm against them in every way and will always tell others to never try OTC diet pills). i'd just really like an appetite suppressant, i guess. any thoughts?

or, do you have any stress-relief ideas? or just ways to get me back on track? i don't have a lot of extra time for exercise, but i do try to get at least 30 mins of cardio in per day.

thanks,
courtney

18 y/o, 5' 3"
CW: ~160
HW: ~170
LW: 128
GW: 150
UGW: 125-130

trblmakr23

appetite suppressants didn't work for me at all. I've gotten to the point now that if i I feel a binge coming on that I will make myself walk to the local coffee shop and I will treat myself to a coffee or 2 depending how bad urge is. That's it, no food, and then walk back home. Sometimes meeting friends at coffee shop will help too, especially if you have a close friend to talk to too even for a few minutes. I sometimes had friends who would want to walk around the track after the coffee also, so that helped out alot too

I used to say I didn't have much time either, but figured the time I was wasting binging, I now used as extra exercise excuse and then reward myself with a coffee. It has helped for me. Still have bad binge days, but they are not so frequent now.

msdeeb

Well I'm no professional councilor, but it sounds like u have all the right answers, you just need to do it. And sometimes that's the hardest part but once u begin, just keep pressing fwd. and I Agee, don't take the OTC pills, they'll end up doing more harm than good. You're young, it'll b easy!!! Just Do It! ;-)

RedHeadDevotchka

I would see if you can do some simple things to start. You can't do a 180 change overnight, it's okay.
If you go out to eat, can you get salad? Can u pack veggies to snack on or like wheat crackers and low fat cheese or peanut butter....you know portable stuff.
Sleep as much as you can, drink water, and have you tried to journal? You sound stressed and these things help me when I get that out of control feeling.

courtneyscott42

@trblmakr23 i like your idea! i'm not much of a coffee drinker, but i could definitely walk down to our local duke station, get a tea, and take the long way home. is there anything you've found at all for suppressing appetites? or just control... i lack control

@msdeeb the only thing about "just doing it" is that the other life stresses hinder that. when i try to just do it, i get even more frustrated with myself and fall into a depressed state. i just don't want to do that. thus far, i've managed to avoid depression/suicidal thoughts, which is an improvement!

courtneyscott42

@redheaddevotc i think i'm just going to have to prioritize. instead of going out EVERY night, i should go out 3-4 times a week and stay at home the other days and make sure i'm resting/helping out around the house. but i will definitely have to start packing food with me, or getting salad/steamed sides at restaurants (i don't know why it took me so long to realize you can just order sides instead of overhaul meals -.-)