Binge Eating Disorder (BED) Help!!

I think that those people who suggested that you get in touch with overeaters anonymous gave you some excellent advice...This group really takes eating disorders like yours very seriously and should be able to offer you some guidance and direction with your struggle. They have a website for your country. www.oagb.org.uk/
Good luck, Catherine.

Hi...I (and one of my sisters) do this, too. We've been told by our mom that we had no self control; however, I can tell you, I don't think that's the issue. My sister and I just talked about it this week--I'm overweight, and she's bulimic. She said she gets the most support out of going to AA meetings (she's NOT an alcoholic, but she likes the 12 steps). She tried Over Eaters Anonymous but said it didn't work for her. She also sees a therapist (her issues are worse than mine). I, too, would recommend taking a friend you trust with you. I know a lot of people don't "tell" other people what they do (my sister and I comfortable with one another, but we don't tell friends bc we're embarrassed). I'm hoping to learn a little more by reading what everyone else says on your post.

I also read somewhere about cognitive behavior therapy and am reading up on it... Good luck to you, and if you'd like to be MFP friends, that'd be great....I can relate to what you're going through.

I have binge eating disorder, well I haven't been diagnosed with it but I 100% have a MASSIVE FOOD PROBLEM. It has developed over the last year or so for various reasons (I know what they are) and over the past few weeks has got to the stage where it could be seriously affecting my health (I binge on mainly sugar). I NEED to see some sort of counsellor/nutritionist about this issue asap, just haven't found the time yet. Reading this thread has been really useful though, it's relieving to discover I'm not a total food-obsessed psycho and there are other people in a similar situation. I get really angry when I can't have the food that I crave (e.g. when there are people about so I can't binge), so much so that I actually start crying with frustration.... BED is definitely an eating disorder, one that is just as dangerous as anorexia or bulimia, and I believe it should be regarded as such.

its definately real
and sooo hard to control
id go out and buy whole birthday cakes , packs of multi packs of crips chocolate icecream pizzas and eat it all. then feel like crap then do it again cos i dont c the point if ive eaten it already i might as well carry on. the urge is always there for me but i try as much to control by keeping busy and plenty of excersise and making sure i eat snacks wen im hungary so i dont binge.
i have ww ice creams to satisfy my sweet tooth.
its a horrible thing and i dont think it ever goes away xx

I wouldn't want to go to a regular doctor either, but I would want a referral to a nutritionist specializing in binge eating if I could get one and had the insurance for it.

I know that what I eat affects binge cravings significantly. A nutritionist with a personalized plan for you might be able to help you deal with your cravings by eliminating triggers in your diet.

its definately real
and sooo hard to control
id go out and buy whole birthday cakes , packs of multi packs of crips chocolate icecream pizzas and eat it all. then feel like crap then do it again cos i dont c the point if ive eaten it already i might as well carry on. the urge is always there for me but i try as much to control by keeping busy and plenty of excersise and making sure i eat snacks wen im hungary so i dont binge.
i have ww ice creams to satisfy my sweet tooth.
its a horrible thing and i dont think it ever goes away xx

I'm exactly the same I can eat whole cakes, packets of biscuits, crisps chocolate etc all in one sitting....people just laugh it off when I tell them, but it's a serious issue and i genuinely can't stop (I binge about once/twice a week, meant to be dieting but that just fails). One tip I read somewhere, was envisage yourself as the person whose body you admire (for me- Jessica Ennis!). then think - would they eat all this? what would they think of someone who ate all this? just put yourself in their frame of mind and envisage yourself as them. However, I know this is soooo much easier said than done..i lose motivation so quickly.

I have binge eating disorder, well I haven't been diagnosed with it but I 100% have a MASSIVE FOOD PROBLEM. It has developed over the last year or so for various reasons (I know what they are) and over the past few weeks has got to the stage where it could be seriously affecting my health (I binge on mainly sugar). I NEED to see some sort of counsellor/nutritionist about this issue asap, just haven't found the time yet. Reading this thread has been really useful though, it's relieving to discover I'm not a total food-obsessed psycho and there are other people in a similar situation. I get really angry when I can't have the food that I crave (e.g. when there are people about so I can't binge), so much so that I actually start crying with frustration.... BED is definitely an eating disorder, one that is just as dangerous as anorexia or bulimia, and I believe it should be regarded as such.

I do agree with you completely and should you need someone, I'm here to help ... we can help eachother
and likewise I know a few of the things that have set me off and I can also relate to the frustration part, it happens a lot to me, not only with food but when I'm performing too (I act regularly) I'm never pleased with my performances (not many of them anyway) Sorry I'm going off on a tangent again sorry.
I really hope this thread has helped you, it's good to know that someone else, other than me, is getting something from all this
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haha i ramble too! it's all good.. maybe if you focus on your acting to distract from food, and achieving goals related to that? like any spare time you have where you'd be eating, take that to develop your acting (e.g join another acting group as well as the one you're already in...or join a sports club or something and meet new people which in turn may help with confidence & possibly your acting skills) i realise money/time are also issues.... oh well, we WILL get over this somehow!! the thread has totally helped, and i will continue to check it regularly.

Yay
I find one of the most annoying things about acting is that there are two types of actors. One is extrovert and full of confidence on and off stage (y'know the sort, really loud and sometimes supporting a huge ego (not always though I hasten to add) ) and then there's those that are really confident and brilliant on stage and shy and insecure as hell off stage. I unfortunately fall into that last category, much to mine and my parents disappointment.
I am already part of a youth drama group, performing arts classes and a fencing club so I already have a lot on and if it wasn't for school I would be happy to take on more, but I am not the sort of person to start something while on holiday and give up as soon as school restarts or things get difficult.
If I'm involved I am involved for the long run ... if that makes sense.
But thank you for the suggestion and I hope it helps someone on here and please do I hope this continues to be useful for you x

Maybe try logging what you're about to eat before putting it in your mouth? If you can force yourself to do that, it might slow you down or help you get a grip on the binge?

For instance, let's say you open a 14.5 ounce bag of Lay's Classic Potato Chips. When you go to log it, you'll see that there is 160 calories in each ounce. Doing the math, you see that there is 2,320 calories in that one bag. Could I eat that whole bag? Yes I can. Would I love to sit there and eat the whole bag? Yes I would. Am I willing to trade my hard weight loosing work (which is what I would be doing eating 2,320 empty calories) for what I would get out of that? No. No, I'm not. Forcing myself to put that 2,320 calories into my log would be a big reality check for me. I hope this would help you, too.

You know, even if you do have BED, you have two choices.....overcome it or not. Not means you continue doing it and it sabotages your weight loss or worse, you put on more weight. Overcoming it is not the easy thing to do, but it is the healthy thing. Don't use the "I have a disorder" excuse. Don't allow yourself to fall for that. Figure out what triggers your binges and go to work both trying to figure out how to react in a healthy way and loosing weight.

Good luck. I know it's not easy, but I'm sure you can do it, too.

I believe this is the same disorder as Compulsive Overeating, I'm not sure which name is being used officially or if both are used interchangeably. Compulsive overeating is as real as anorexia nervosa or bulimia is real. ENDOS is also an eating disorder, which simply put, is like a combination of the existing disorders or a different unhealthy relationship with food.
I have struggled with ednos for years. I was bulimic for a long time as a teen and didn't get any help. My mom just yelled at me for wasting food and implied anorexia would be a better choice for her finances. It is difficult, and if you have the ability to see a doctor I would recommend. Ask if your insurance will help you with seeing a counselor and a nutritionist, if you have insurance. The combination could help you work through your food issues while giving you some good information about what you should be eating.

Hon I am the same way....and it took years but I've finally figured out (at least for me) why I do it and got professional help. I went to a therapist and got on some anti anxiety medicine. I felt ashamed at first that I couldn't handle life without medical help until I realized what I am doing with medicine was what I was doing with food anyway. This helped me keep the right mindset about food...it's fuel it's not a crutch.

My dad always says we go once a year to check and make sure our bodies aren't overstressed, why do we not check our minds too?

Good luck girl! You have a ton of people who sympathize I know it!

Okay,
I'm going to have to be really short about this because I have a tendency to ramble.
I haven't been officially diagnosed but I am certain I have BED and since a lot of my family and friends don't believe it's actually real ( a lot of them think it's an excuse to be lazy or just means I have a lack of self control) it makes getting help and support quite hard. I want to go and see my dr to sort out once and for all if I have the disorder and get some professional help because I don't think I can so this alone at all, I have tried so many times to combat it alone, with no lasting results.
My one problem is I'm nervous around dr's anyway, the ones at my local surgery seem to just want to stuff drugs down my throat and the idea of telling one of them that I use food as an emotional crutch and then have him come back to me and tell me that I just lack self control is the scariest thing in the world.
I just burst into tears thinking about it last night.
I don't know what to do, how to sort this out or how to get through this, is it possible that I don't have BED, every checklist I've been on says I have but so many ppl are saying it's not real and even if it is how do I get help when I'm so scared of the dr's as it is ?

A) It is real. It is mentioned in the DSM-IV-TR (the most current revision of the book used by psychiatrists and psychologists to diagnose and determine treatment for mental disorders). It is currently listed as something in need of further study, but diagnostic criteria are listed. It will mostly likely have a full entry in the DSM-V, scheduled to be released in May.
I have it too.
C) I finally got mine under control, using DBT for BED/BN (Dialectic Behavior Therapy for Binge Eating Disorder/Bulimia Nervosa). I strongly recommend this therapy. It is very effective. On the downside, you have to be seriously committed to making it work. It is not something that is done to you or for you, it is a method for retraining your thoughts, your emotions, and your responses to those thoughts and emotions. It's pretty intense and takes some hard work. It feels a lot better than binging ever did, though. I would recommend you look for a counselor in your area with experience using this treatment. It is sometimes done as group therapy, and sometimes individual. There are benefits and drawbacks to both types. But it is out there.
D) If you cannot find DBT in your area, I strongly recommend counseling anyway...binge eating is a psychological problem. Most people who binge do it to avoid painful emotions they do not know how to handle. Counseling of any type (with an effective counselor) can teach you how to handle those emotions.
Good luck!