How to Stop Binge Eating

I'm a "bored binge eater". My wife works nights, my son is 17 1/2 and does his thing, I sit in front of the pc and next thing I know, I've eaten an unbelievable amount of food. I've found that even eating 3 meals and 3 snacks doesn't help. I will eat, just because it's there. I have to TRY really hard to not go make something, or grab something.
I have found, for me, that I have no resistance. I have tried small meals in the day and a huge supper, didn't help. I've tried 6 equal caloric meals a day, didn't help. I always end up grabbing food, when I get bored.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I also ate when I was bored or just because it was there. At times, I would stuff my face as much as I could almost as if I was in fear that I would never get to eat junk again. When I decided to give up junk, I was not miserable at all. I still have the occasional donut, but at this point, it really doesn't taste great to me. If I want something sweet, I go for fruit because its far sweeter and more satisfying than junk food is. I think there are several things that you can do to over-come this habit.

1) Are you really ready for change? I think a lot of "diets" fail because they are nothing more than a diet. Someone wakes up and decides they are going to lose weight. They realize its not easy because they want results without change. As a society, we often fear change, but change is good - especially when it involves your health. For me, I decided I didn't like the way crappy food made me feel. I didn't like the fact that I knew every person that worked at every fast food restaurant. I didn't like how I felt when I went through the drive-thru of a fast food restaurant - I thought they were all looking at me thinking about how much fatter I'd gotten since the last time they'd seen me. I just hate the way I felt - tired and lazy all the time. If you are really ready for change, you aren't just ready for a slimmer you, you are ready for a healthier you.

2) What motivates you? Everyone is different and realistically, I don't believe the idea of "a slimmer body" or "looking good in a bathing suit" is true motivation. For most people, even after the weight loss, they wont feel great baring their body to the world. Everyone's motivation is different. For me, I never got to the point where my BMI read overweight, but it got really close. I struggled from extreme back pain to the point where I knew Id have to have surgery one day. I was always tired and felt too lazy to do anything. I also watched my father develop type 2 diabetes which resulted in some pretty major medical complications. All things I did not want to be a part of. When I decided what would motivate me, it was not the idea of fitting into a size 2 again (although that's an added perk). I was motivated by wanting to be healthy. I didn't want the back pain and I didnt want the surgery Id have if I didnt do something about it. I didn't want type 2 diabetes and I was tired of being tired. Your screen name has diabetes in it. Are you diabetic? This could be a motivator for you!

3) Avoid triggers and temptation. Triggers (like your PC) and temptation (like chips in the cabinet) are always going to be there, but you can remove them from your life until you feel comfortable saying no. Like I said, a point in your life will come where you will walk right past a bag of chips and have zero interest in them. Instead of thinking about how satisfying they are, you will remember how crappy they made you feel. You said your son is 17 years old, you can certainly remove all of the bad food in the house and replace it with good food. If your son isn't happy about it, well, he is 17 and like you said, he does his own thing.

4) Food in general. As I have mentioned several times, the cravings will go away. I remember thinking I wanted brownies and I had to have them. I made a batch and took a small sliver. To me, they tasted horrible. I never touched another one. I used to love brownies, but once I got used to eating what made me feel great, eating crap wasn't satisfying. Everyone's eating is different and although I do not eat perfectly clean, I eat fairly well for the most part. Plan ahead. Know where you are going to be and what you are going to be doing. Start switching your foods to healthier versions: wheat bread instead of white bread, mustard instead of mayo and water instead of soda or juice. Don't feel the need to make the change over-night. You didn't get where you are at over-night, so dont expect the change in you to be over-night, either.

So my advice to you is to make the commitment to yourself. Don't make the commitment to lose 20 pounds or 50 pounds, make the commitment to live a healthier lifestyle. Losing weight is only temporary if you don't commit to a lifestyle change. If you struggle with this, make a motivational board. Take a before photo of yourself and record your weight and your BMI. Put it on the board. Next to it, right you cholesterol levels, your health concerns (diabetes etc), and write a little something to your future self. Write how you feel (tired, lazy etc). On the opposite side, leave a space for a new photo. Write down the opposite of what is on the left side - your goal health levels, fitness expectations, how you think you'd feel (energized and happy etc). Put the board where you look at it all the time - on the fridge or next to your PC. Keep that reason in the front of your mind at all times.

When you are ready to commit, the journey will have its ups and downs, but having your motivation beside you will help guide you in the right direction. I hope I was helpful - good luck on your journey.