I agree with the PP: you need to give yourself more time eating strict paleo. It takes at least a week for the cravings to subside and for your body to adjust to less carbs, more fat and protein. Have you ever tried doing a Whole30? It sucks for the first week, but many say it's helped them finally commit to the paleo lifestyle.

I'm with NikIsSkinny on this.

Who cares if your kids are eating popcorn, or if someone else is eating something different? Your body, your life, your choice. If you're meeting up with friends or going out to a party, I get the feeling it's more about the socialization than the food itself - don't feel the urge or compulsion to eat just because they are, or just because they expect you to.

To control your binging, I honestly reckon you should just stick to three good meals a day. That's all you really need. And don't just make the three meals salads or bacon and eggs, either, as that'd just get repetitive and lead to more cravings. Get creative! Want chips? Slice up a sweet potato into wedges, crack an egg over them and rub it in (I prefer it over olive oil, personally - crispier) and garnish it in spices like paprika and garlic pepper. Serve alongside portobello beef/chicken/fish burgers for a perfect Primal take on on junk food. Hell, you can even make nachos if you put some ground beef on top with guacamole, sour cream and homemade salsa.
Make no mistake - Primal and Paleo food doesn't have to be boring, and can be just as good as- no, better than "normal" food. Trust me: just get a little creative and you won't miss a thing about the old crap.

I hope you don't take this comment the wrong way.

I lived with an alcoholic for a long time and went to a lot of AA and rehab meetings. When I read your post, it totally reminded me of what I heard alcoholics say. Everyone trying to get sober said exactly the same things as you... Just substitute alcohol for the foods you mentioned.

I agree that a whole30, and I mean being really prepared for your whole30, might be key. It requires you to be strict. No cheats. And the 30 days is really important. That's why most rehab is minimum 30 days. You really need the time to go through the cravings, the mourning for the behaviors you need to say goodbye to, and then finally getting to a feeling of success and empowerment.

I'm not suggesting you have a food addiction. Just that your post reminded me of addict feelings. And food can have just as powerful pull on our brains as a chemical substance can have. Changing habits is damned hard.

It might help to read "It Starts With Food" for motivation.

Scooze, Paleo/primal is a hard lifestyle to get into sometimes. One thing i did I converted in stages. Initially, after my problems with CW, I did something from Dr. Hydeman's books, Supermetabolism (his latest book is Blood Sugar Solution). It is basically a very good version of whole foods, with the elimination of only processed grains. You still can cook and eat whole grains (you can further restrict it to non-glutenous ones if you suspect gluiten sensitivity), basically all hot cereals and legumes. You can also include tubers and white potatoes. In my experience people have less trouble with eliminating the damaging oils, so I would just do that. Keep raw honey to sweeten things up at times, but try to clean out artificial sweeteners. Maybe trying that and then phasing out in stages
-grains
-dairy (if you intend to eliminate dairy)
-most or all fruit

will help you. I know, as I become comfortable with elimination of some things, I became more comfortable with eleiminating more and more. The strictest I did was Whole 30 without a shred of fruit, nuts and dairy.

In fact, I am not entirely convinced that dropping legumes, white potatoes and non-glutenous grains is a good move anyway for an active person for optimal health (that's another experiment I am going to do later)

Binges are very individual. I know that for me, dairy and fruit does trigger binges. In the past, nuts did too, but I managed to control it, by ridiculously super-satiating for nuts - for a while I ate 2 oz of macadamia every morning with my coffee for breakfast and after that nuts stopped being a Holy Grail.

Unfortunately, that did not happen with fruit. On Sundays, when I do my second carb up day right now, I still eat fruit by the bucket. However, i am not afraid to go without fruit for prolonged periods of time no more.

I think we all have that threshold that we cross with something particular to us, when food stops being symbolic, all food, and you can stop eating anything, and do not experience the "I can't live without it!" symptom any longer.

I will also recommend Susa Albers' "But i deserve this chocolate" and "50 ways to soothe yourself without food" books.

What you eat is part of what you are. When you let go of what you are, you become what you might be.

Good luck!

I agree that we need some sugar in our diet. I eat my share of dark chocolate, fruit, some honey, the ice cream treat. But our brains do not need donuts or candy. That's our cravings/habits taking over the brain. If you walk past a donut shop and think, "hmmm, I MUST have a donut"... that is a desire, not a physiological need.