There has to be a less traumatic way to lose weight... no ma

Random question....sorry if you've answered it before....

Are you literally hungry, like the actual NEED food?
OR
Is it an appetite thing, where you desire to eat?

i honestly don't know, but i really think it's a combination. i don't like the sensation of an empty stomach and am not used to even the feeling of a non-stuffed-to-the-brim stomach. i know i have mental issues associated with food, but how can i change my eating if i can't stand being hungry?

This may sound crazy.....but maybe hypnosis?? I know this has helped people out there.....

i honestly don't know, but i really think it's a combination. i don't like the sensation of an empty stomach and am not used to even the feeling of a non-stuffed-to-the-brim stomach. i know i have mental issues associated with food, but how can i change my eating if i can't stand being hungry?

i would suggest going to a therapist or something like that for the mental issues associated with it,
but yes that plan sounds like a good idea to me, it cant hurt to try it
good luck!:flowerforyou:

E ~ You are taking the first step by being here... That being said, maybe it is a combination of those things. I would highly recommend you not only journal your foods, but what you are feeling along with the motivation for eating. This may help just a bit. In the mean time, keep in mind that you are doing great - you are losing pounds, but most of all you are using the site for support. KUDOS!

Would eating every hour on the hour help? Small meals, low cal, high protein, filling stuff and lots of it.

BTW, I don't go hungry either. Even if I bust my calories for the day, if I am hungry, I eat. But I try to eat "healthier" items like carrots and hummus, or rice cakes, or a banana. Not necessarily low cal items, but still healthier than a candy bar or bag of chips.

e--I understand where you are coming from--it almost feels as though someone else takes over your body and it isn't really you eating the food and you are just along for the ride. It becomes an obsession for me--thinking about how, where, when I can get my fix. You turn around and a whole large pizza is gone and you have no idea where it went.

My advice (as was others) talk to some one who is trainned in eating disorders. You'll more than likely find out what it is and why it is--and they wil point you in the direction you need to go. Food is a hard drug of choice.

Just know there are all kinds of people here who know what you are going through and love and support you always.

....I think, if that is how you need to handle this journey, then taking small steps is the way to go. However, I would start shifting what types of foods you are consuming. I don't know what you eat to run up the calories as high as you mentioned, but taking a look at the TYPES of food you are "binging" on and start eating healthier. Even if you still are consuming 3000 calories, at least make a good chunk of those healthy. See what happens.

I was just thinking the same thing. Plus you could divide your calories into five or six meals like someone else said. Don't beat yourself up too much. The fact that you are aware of what you're doing to yourself and acknowledge the fact that it's not good for you, is great. Whatever you do, don't give up on yourself! :flowerforyou:

That's a great idea! You could also incorporate a lot of salad/veggies to increase the bulk that enters your stomach. Hunger is partly mental (appetite--that sounds yummy so now I want to taste/eat it), partly hormones (hunger-my body fat is producing hormones and/or my blood sugar is somewhat low so I am feeling physical hunger), and partly nerves (more extreme hunger-- my stomach is empty and the nerves in the lining are causing my brain to release hunger hormones and my blood sugar is probably pretty low). By filling your stomach with lettuce, celery, and cucumber, (all of which have very few calories)you can help negate the sensation of hunger, so at least you're not battling all 3 sources.

If it is a serious problem, you could consider visiting a doctor for an appetite suppressant. It would be a really good idea to maybe talk to a therapist to help get the mental part under control as well.

Ok, E, I have another idea....you said you binge by eating out....which costs money, so lets say you still eat out once a day, but the other times you think of binging, eating out, you save that money for something you have always wanted?? And you go home and if you still have the urge to eat you eat fruit, salad, sugar free/fat free dessert, something! Anything! I mean really eating out has tons more calories than eating in, and you have incentive to not binge, because you know you will be able to reward yourself with something later?? Maybe I am just talking too much and have no idea what I am saying? But I can't stop thinking that it has to be almost a habit....couldn't the Dr. give you some kind of something to help out for a while? Like somesort of appetite suppressant, or maybe that wouldn't even work? It sounds so much to me like OCD (which I have)....you get to the point where your actions become so ingrained that you don't even realize you are doing them anymore....or you can't control them. Maybe somesort of antidepressant? Please don't be offened byt this I have just been thinking of you and your situation all night and realized how much it sounds like some of the things I do with OCD, and I can't control it without medicine, so how would what you are experiencing be any different? Oh well....that is my Dr. genius rant, and rambling thoughts....I really do only wish you the best of luck though!

i honestly don't know, but i really think it's a combination. i don't like the sensation of an empty stomach and am not used to even the feeling of a non-stuffed-to-the-brim stomach. i know i have mental issues associated with food, but how can i change my eating if i can't stand being hungry?

i would suggest going to a therapist or something like that for the mental issues associated with it,
but yes that plan sounds like a good idea to me, it cant hurt to try it
good luck!:flowerforyou:

I agree...perhaps seeing a Professional...to explore what's really going on underneath....so much can be happening under the surface as we begin to lose weight and continue losing it.

I see a therapist and I've found it most helpful... after losing a big chunk of weight in the past year...I needed to really explore how I was feeling and what to do with those feelings....I used to eat the 'feelings'...now I go workout and talk about it instead of eating them a couple times a week.:laugh:

Losing weight is a HUGE psychological change for not only our bodies but our whole being.

I wish you well on your journey:flowerforyou:

Something else you could try...

Once you logged in your foods for a week (without rescricting your calories), take a look close look at what you took in and I'll bet you'll be able to say "I could've done without that, that day". Then set yourself a goal. So instead of say...ordering a full value meal at McDonalds, you order a happy meal instead and eat inside the McDonalds. Don't order through the drive-thru...and bring a friend. As soon as you're done eating, leave.

- It can be such a PITA (pain in the *kitten*) to have to park and then go through the trouble of standing in line.
- Bringing a friend and knowing that there are others around you, may make you think twice about going in line a second time, for something else.

Then maybe later you could even reduce that by still ordering the happy meal, but only eating half of it and sharing the other half with a friend. This is just a small suggestion. Basically, just take one step at a time and baby steps at that. You'll get there faster with baby steps than just standing still.

Have you tried Overeaters Anonymous? Some people find it really helpful.

I don't like being hungry, either!

and, I don't like not smoking, and I don't like doing the dishes, and I don't like cleaning toilets.....

but I'm going to say now what I tell the 2nd graders in my class when they don't want to take a test or walk in the hallways:

there are times in our lives when we have to do things we don't like doing because it's what's best for us.

MFP family, please don't judge me or think I'm cruel.
I smoked for 6 years, and then a year and a half ago, I overheard a doctor tell the woman in the next exam room that she had lung cancer from her pack-a-day habit. I was planning my wedding and planning for my future and realized that to have that future, I needed to be ALIVE. I'll be honest - it was TERRIBLE. I quit cold turkey. I was grouchy, short-tempered, and craving them so much. But I knew it was what was best for me.

I graduated high school at around 150 pounds, and it took just 6 years to get to 215. 10 pounds at a time, ladies and gentlemen. One size at a time. One burger at a time, one beer at a time, one milkshake at a time.

My new husband and I went on our honeymoon over New Years this year and I was humiliated by the photos of us at Disney World and Sea World. I felt like I was a bigger whale than Shamu. And it dawned on me... if I could quit smoking for my health, for my future, I could get the rest of my body healthy.

I threw out the junk food, quit ordering lunch, and ate more salad than I care to admit. Slowly I began to realize that even though the hungry feeling was uncomfortable, it was my body's own warning signal for me to nourish it - just like a baby cries for its mother to feed it. I realized that eating crap was NOTHING compared to boost in self esteem when I lost hte first ten pounds, dropped below 200, wore a smaller size, got compliments from friends, compliments from family, acquaintances making comments. Not only do I FEEL amazing, but I LOOK amazing, too! I feel confident, sexy, and healthy. I could still lose 20 pounds, but I know that I have the tools to do it now. Just like I have the tools to be a non-smoker for the rest of my life.

Sure, I eat pizza. But a slice or two - not a whole pizza. I eat burgers, but one (or even just half) instead of a Big Mac with fries and a drink. I eat everything I did "before" but I realize that I'm going to wear whatever I eat. I'll wear it on my gut, in my arms, in my butt, on my heart, in my liver, in my colon.


It's hard! If it's an addiction or habit, it won't be easy to break. It will not be easy.

I think as soon as I recognized that it would never be easy, it made me a much tougher person with more courage to keep fighting.

You are strong. You are stronger than this. It won't be easy, but you can do it! We're all behind you!