being honest

Yep, it's recreational eating. If I only ate when I was hungry I wouldn't be in this mess.
When I'm happy - I eat
When I'm sad - I eat
When I celebrate - I eat
When I mourn - I eat
When I'm bored - I eat
When I'm partying - I eat
and the list goes on & on. None have anything to do with HUNGER.

This, and also getting into the mindset that "its a holiday" or "it's my sons birthday" or whatever, I'd go crazy on those days and just eat, but it would continue for days afterwards! Also the not exercising, that is a real killer!

When I initially gained weight, it was partially because my incredibly fast meabolism slowed down as I aged and had to accept that I could no longer eat as much of whatever I wanted and maintain a small size. So, basically, ate too much and didn't move enough.

I lost that weight and maintained for a couple years. Then I got Mirena and ballooned up 25 pounds and gained and couldn't lose no matter what I did.

So now the Mirena is gone and I'm working on losing again.

I had that put in too- for 2 wks -no change in my diet and I ballooned up 15 lbs!!!! Not to mention I was on an emotional rollercoaster ugh!! That is poison lol

Oh no! Mine wasn't quite that dramatic. I had it a total of three years. I just gained 5 at first and was able to very slowly lose for a while. But the longer I had it, the worse it got. I would maintain for a long time, then gain a whole bunch all at once, maintain, gain.

I was eating 500 calories a day for a couple weeks just to see what would happen and I GAINED. Yell "starvation mode" all you want (the general "you"), but no full grown adult gains weight on 500 calories a day.

I had it out and lost 7 pounds the first month without even watching what I was eating or working out. That easy lose has leveled off, but I know I can drop weight again now. I'm so angry I ever got that thing.

This is me! I gained acouple of kilos in the first week of mirena. And then I found I slowly gained without being able to lose it. I had the mirena 5 years and co-incidentally, my weight loss started to happen easily after I had it removed. I have a flat stomach now for the first time since I had the mirena placed in. I know the food I ate didn't help - we entertain a lot - but it wasn't an issue for my weight until the last few years.

Horrendous depression. And then they put me on meds that are known (before anyone scoffs and says its an excuse) to cause weight gain Mirtazipine and then (now) Olanzapine, with betablockers and valium which slowed me down to a stop almost, no motivation to exercise - feeling helpless and bereft. HOWEVER, I have gained some willpower and I'm trying to get back on the horse, I went down to 126 and maintained for a year several years back (admittedly without the meds, but I just figure now that it will just take longer) so I can do this. I know I can.

After my recent BC experience, I do not doubt your medication was an issue.

I read this thread earlier this morning and I've been thinking about it since. It would be easy for me to blame it on the mental health issues I've had to deal with over the last 8 years (where approx. 60 pounds of my excess weight comes from), but I don't think that would be the whole story: I was already roughly 30 lbs overweight when the depression first hit. I've had problems with food ever since I was little; there were constant fights at home about whether I would eat what my mom cooked. I really started undereating in junior high (skipping meals, a cup of yogurt for dinner): I think it was just easier not to eat than to argue about what I ate.

I think the bottom line has been control: when I'm in control of what I eat, I make good choices and I get healthier. As a kid, I didn't have much control. When mental health issues overwhelm me, I lose the power to exercise that control (or develop a warped sense of control = serious weight gain). Now, I cook what I like to eat, I pay attention to nutritional information and deprive myself of nothing, have the mental health issues under control, have a good relationship with food and am losing weight :happy:

ETA: Please don't read this and think I'm saying that people with mental health issues are using this as an excuse. I know first hand exactly how devastating and destructive they can be. But in thinking about my own situation, I know my problems go back even further in time (though my therapist might tell you that my control issues are the source of my mental health issues, so maybe it's all the same anyway!)

Yep, it's recreational eating. If I only ate when I was hungry I wouldn't be in this mess.
When I'm happy - I eat
When I'm sad - I eat
When I celebrate - I eat
When I mourn - I eat
When I'm bored - I eat
When I'm partying - I eat
and the list goes on & on. None have anything to do with HUNGER.

This is pretty much me in a nutshell. In addition, I had about 5+ years of extremely high stress in my life, one thing after another. Food was the easiest most convenient drug I had on hand. It still took a couple of years after the main stressors resolved for me to change my habits though.

I started over eating in middle school. Teenage depression and self-loathing with parents who worked was a perfect recipe for after school pig-outs. I'd eat a whole box of mac & cheese plus chips and other snacks while cooking it. Then I'd have to eat a full dinner with family so my mom 'wouldn't know' I was food crazy all afternoon (mom's know everything; we never talked about my weight gain and how much mac & cheese we were going through).

I got used to the 'comfort food solution' and it stayed with me - I grew to like the heavy full feeling I had when I overate, it made me feel safe and warm and sleepy. Even today, after a stressful day, I find myself eating 3 or 4 bowls of cereal which gives me that full sleepy feeling, calming me down.

try a low cal healthy soup instead- one bowl without crackers and you feel full happy and sleepy

What a great testimony, I believe when I began my stages of Menopause was when my weight gain began. At first, I paid no attention to the weight, I shrugged it off, but suddenly I had gone from an 8 to a 14 overnight! I didn't and still don't understand what my trigger foods are when it comes to my weight. I have to admit that as I get older my energy level is depleted and at times I don't want to work out. I'm a finicky eater, I didn’t like drinking water and I find it impossible to eat 6 meals a day.

I want to lose the weight for health reasons and feel better about myself. It’s a struggle but it’s nice to be able to share my failures and success as I try to get me back! Good luck to everyone in the New Year, if you don’t achieve your goal don’t be discouraged, keep pushing ahead! I know I am! :flowerforyou:

Because I was bulking up!!! Now it's time to start cutting up slowly!

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition