Binge

katieguckian0113
katieguckian0113 Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I suffered from anorexia for about a year from 2014-2015 and have made a recovery from that; however, I find myself binge eating almost every night. It started out one or two nights a week I would just go crazy and couldn't do anything to stop myself until I became so full I almost got sick. I literally will be watching tv and all of a sudden, around 7-8 pm, just start to eat anything and everything in the kitchen sometimes even go to the store and buy anything that sounds good. I've gained almost 60 lbs in about 5 months because of this( 40 of which I needed to get back to a healthy weight)-at my lowest I was 130 lbs standing at 6ft tall, now I'm just over 200- but if this continues I will become bigger than I was before my weight loss journey at 260lbs. I'm just looking for some advice as to stop this late night binge. Please don't say go to bed earlier, drink more water(already drink over 2000 ml a day) or get a little snack before bed(triggers a binge episode). Thanks for any help!

Replies

  • seska422
    seska422 Posts: 3,217 Member
    edited November 2015
    You need to talk to an eating disorder professional about this.
  • MariliaPa
    MariliaPa Posts: 42 Member
    seska422 wrote: »
    You need to talk to an eating disorder professional about this.
    I would agree with this.
    If this is something that happens everyday then it sounds pretty serious.

    I've had issues with binge eating - where I would binge once a week or every 10 days and I'm still struggling with that.
    In fact, I ended up binging just last night.

    What I found that really helped me though- and has allowed me to start losing weight again- was being a bit more mindful of why these episodes occur.
    For me, it is usually because of stress and fatigue and feeling of deprivation/restriction.
    So I try to stick to a regular sleep pattern and exercise often to deal with stress.
    I've also increased my calorie allowance for the day and resorted to the fact that I won't be able to lose weight fast by depriving myself.
    Sometimes life just happens though, like last night, and there is nothing to do than go to bed and get back on track the next morning.

    So maybe ask yourself: Why am I bingeing? Is there something that is causing you stress or makes you unhappy?
    You talked about watching TV so is it maybe boredom?

    Hope this helps.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    Outside of the binge, how many calories are you eating each day?

    I second the advice to seek help with ED specialists.
  • katieguckian0113
    katieguckian0113 Posts: 4 Member
    Yes that does help. I do get bored aside from work and I keep a regular workout schedule(lifting and cardio 6 days a week) it's just my down time when it become a problem. I can't constantly keep doing something or I would go crazy(obviously). I keep about a 1400-1500 calorie diet which I follow well during the day. I feel happy and confident that I'm eating better choices but then nighttime rolls around and it's all out the window. Thanks for the input though, it's greatly appreciated
  • Raynne413
    Raynne413 Posts: 1,527 Member
    Unfortunately I have a lot of experience with binging, and people that haven't ever had the issue don't understand how HARD it is to stop or redirect when the urge starts. It's not just a matter of self control.

    I started out losing weight by only counting calories when I was 300 lbs, and I was eating 1500 calories a day. Then I moved to only counting calories and eating 1200 calories a day. Then I plateaued and added exercise. Eventually I moved to eating around 1000 calories and working out for around 3 hours a day when I could manage it. I thought, well, if a little exercise is good, more must be better. And if 1200 calories was good, less must be better. On top of that, I was eating very little fat. I was good for about a year, and ended up losing down to around 110. Then, out of nowhere, uncontrollable binges would start. I would go crazy with anything that contained carbs and fat. And then after my binges, I would go crazy again with over restricting and over exercising to "make up" for those binges. I got desperate because I was gaining weight back, and I just couldn't get out of the cycle, so I decided to get help (with the strong urging of several friends).

    I ended up seeing a nutritionist that specialized in eating disorders. She taught me several things that were a BIG help. The first thing was that I was sleep deprived because I was getting up at 4 am to work out, but going to bed around midnight (I had just started dating my boyfriend). Being sleep deprived can make you crave carbs. The second was that my body was going crazy craving carbs and fat because I was expending energy like crazy, but never replenishing. I needed to start eating more, and working out less.

    It's still hard to find a balance, but as long as I listened to her AND listen to my body, I have very little issues now. The below is what I try to keep in mind, and what I suggest for anyone else having problems:

    1) Make sure you get enough sleep
    2) Make sure you are eating enough (especially enough fat)
    3) Don't over exercise, and make sure you eat enough for you level of activity
    4) DON'T try to "make up" for binges.
  • darcus_kirby
    darcus_kirby Posts: 21 Member
    I have a similar problem. Mine started when I was a teen. I learned to purge... I started doing it and I thought it was great! I can eat what I want but it didn't matter. I thought I was in control of it.
    Then slowly I started gaining weight. I lost control of my eating to the point that I only ate if I had the opportunity to "take care of it" after.
    For years I've struggled and I'm ashamed to admit that I still do it from time to time.
    Bulimia turned me into a food addict. Nights are worse for me as well. I do well all day only to crash and burn at night. Add me maybe we can talk each other down from the kitchen!
  • katieguckian0113
    katieguckian0113 Posts: 4 Member
    Yea I used to only eat "clean" foods one of which was peanut butter. My mind now associates it as a crutch so to speak and I almost crave it the bad part, it's a trigger food do i start with the high caloric peanut butter and move toward other bad foods. It's a cycle that I just can't seem to break. I do good for one day( including night) but then get those cravings and just sit in the kitchen four hours eating without really being aware of what I'm doing. I know it's bad when I'm doing it but I just keep doing it. Then after I feel terrible which causes me to want to fast making me overly hungry the next mid day only to start this same cycle. It's frustrating

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