Help!!! Binge eating...

Ugh, school stress can really do a person in. (I am writing my master's thesis presently. . . taking a few minutes break and looking at MFP!)

You've found a good website here! The tools it provides will be very helpful. Use them -- the calorie calculator, the food diary, etc.

First, it sounds like you need to find a way to have some snacks on hand. Weird that the school's meal plan doesn't include lunch, and the cafeteria doesn't have snacks like fruit available all day. Anyway, I think it would be very helpful for you to carry some vegetables, cheese (like cottage cheese, string cheese, and so on), and single portions of nuts with you each day, to snack on in the afternoon. I tend to overeat snacks right before dinner time also if I haven't been able to eat anything from noon until 7 pm, so packing snacks has become an essential thing for me.

Also, if there's a way to have a few more veggies for lunch, and maybe some meat and/or soup, that would help you stay full longer. A bagel is a high-calorie and low-satiety item, unfortunately (and for me, things made from white flour make me HUNGRIER than before, so I usually avoid having them be the main item in a meal). I've found that soups combined with a protein (hard-boiled eggs, lunch meat) and a small sweet or chocolate make a satisfying lunch. Buy canned soup on sale and heat it up at lunchtime.

There is no need to lose weight by eating only 1200 calories of food you wouldn't normally eat. Use the tools MFP gives you and honestly log what you eat. It is likely you'll find it easier if you choose to eat less of very high-calorie and non-satisfying foods like chips etc., but it's not necessary to cut anything out entirely unless you have binge trigger foods. Basically, eating balanced food and making sure you have snacks so you don't get ultra-hungry in the afternoon should help you with the desire to overeat/binge, as long as it's mostly a hunger issue and not so much an emotional eating one.

Can you get financial aid? I understand COMPLETELY about intense stress from worrying about school finances. Having a few loans (one semester's costs will not make for dangerously large loans) is way better than fearing you won't be able to get an education because you don't have the money right now.

Help for stress--take a short walk in a quiet place on your lunch break if you can. Take just a few minutes a day just for you (paint your nails, take a slightly longer shower with some nicely scented soap, go outside and look at the stars, for example). Get some chamomile or kava-kava tea and have it when you are feeling particularly stressed (kava-kava is an amazing stress reliever). Complain to/commiserate with your friends!

I feel your pain! I am fulltime single mom, fulltime student, fulltime employment. Stress is a factor in my life as well and I barely have spare time. I have recently carved out some time for me to go to the gym. I go regularly but I need to get my diet under control as well. I am so impatient when it comes to my weight loss. If I diet and exercise all day then I expect to see results at the end of the day. Lol. I also am obsessed with the scales. I step on the scale EVERY time Im in the bathroom. I know that's not realistic nor a good thing but Im obsessed. I don't have much support in my little journey either. I mean I have people tell me they are proud of my trying to change etc, but that's about the extent of it. Everyone I know is already thin or comfortable with their current weight. I want to be thinner, but most importantly, I want to be healthier. Healthier for myself, and healthier for my son. Feel free to add me if u want. I could use all the motivation I can get! Ive got roughly 100 lbs to lose so I will be on here for a while. Lol

I don't have much advise for you, I'm sorry. I just wanted you to know I read all of your post and really sympathize with your situation. Hugs! - from a soon to be mom of a college student.

My only suggestion is to eat protein and healthy fat in the morning instead of carbs. Maybe get up 15 minutes earlier and sit down at the commons to eat instead of trying to carry food in your backpack. Eating protein and fat will help your brain function better. Who couldn't use that?! Keeping nuts and a piece of fruit in your backpack sounds like a good idea, too.

Also, choosing what you say to yourself is so important! It's perfectly OK to rant once in a while, but try to follow that up with some positive self talk. Good luck to you!

If I were you I would try to pack cheap filling snacks and carry them around with me during the day. When I'm on the go, I like to carry a ziplock bag full of almonds with me. I can snack on them throughout the day so I'm not starving by dinner time. Consider that!

Also - it sounds like you're very busy, but try to prioritize yoga, especially if you found it worked for you in the past. It seems strange, but the truth is that the times when we feel that we don't have time to exercise are conversely the times when you need exercise the most. It will help you with your stress levels, your binge eating, your focus in school, and overall feeling of wellbeing. There are TONS of free videos on youtube so all you really need is your mat and a small quiet space in your apartment or room. If you do just ten minutes of yoga a day every morning, I'm sure you'll start feeling better and eating better.

Conclusion: A combination of healthy snacks throughout the day + regular yoga will really help, and everything else will fall into place with patience and perseverance. Good luck!

I hear you, Emmandaline! I have a daughter in college myself, and I myself have struggles with stress-eating and emotional eating. This site has really worked for me, every day that I take a few minutes to log my food and exercise.

My feedback would be it's not about depriving yourself or being more strict (that unrealistic and gross sounding 1200 calorie diet) - it's about making small changes one by one to support a healthier, WORKABLE and sustainable eating plan for yourself. You're already working so hard, and under so much stress - the food has to be easy and appealing, something you can know is fueling the healthy person you choose to be.

If you can get off campus once in a while on public transportation, you can supplement your dining-hall diet with things like soup (someone had a great idea there), vegetarian chili (super good nutrition,) raw almonds (a small handful can satisfy for a long time,) peanut butter and celery or apple slices or whole grain bread, tuna with a little lofat mayo on whole-grain crackers.

I totally agree on the protein thing. Sugar and white carbs just lead to more cravings for me.

If you have access to a fridge, plain greek yogurt is a taste worth acquiring (it's really good with fruit, you won't miss the sugar!)

Good luck to you, and if you would like to add me as a friend please feel free

http://www.niashanks.com/

Nia Shanks (who is awesome) just released a kindle book called "33 Ways to Break Free from Binge Eating". It is also awesome. It does cost 3 bucks but worth it IMO.