Binge eaters out there needing support

This is me all over, but i don't get the guilt always 99% Of the time i do but every now and then I'm like stuff it.

i don't have a single thing that i can say is a trigger as its completely random most of the time i don't even realise what I've done till after I've done it but most of my binges are 1000 calorie+ binges.

feel free to add me if you want.

Meg x

I have eliminated some foods, just because I thought they were so unhealthy (hot dogs, mac n cheese, sugary cold cereals). but I have plenty of other foods I restrict, and then I cave and binge. Currently, I am 'avoiding' potato chips - all of them. There are very little in the house right now. I am watching my sodium intake, and I think sometimes I restrict that too much. I have been eating less sugar since Feb 1st, and I can definitely tell. Less bloat, clearer mind, and more energy. Being fully aware that eating healthy is worth it VS. eating unhealthy/too much and feeling bad is my daily struggle.

I think it's really about moderation, and "planning" to eat them -- one serving. Creating that habit I'm afraid will be a lifelong goal for me.

Please add me too. I'm a cracker monster. Or Sunchips - just open the bag or box of carby "goodness" and into my yap it goes. I've gone low carb before and lost lots of weight but once the carbs cross my lips again I go into a pig fest and binge like mad. Bagels, crackers, chips, pizza... even just toast with butter or bowl after bowl of cereal after dinner.... it's like a tap that keeps running. My husband is this way too - he never was until we did Atkins together before our wedding in 2003. Once we fell off the wagon (thanks to my Dad for bringing over a cake!!! when he knew we were dieting) we fell hard. It took a decade and 2 kids being born before we tried low carb again and lost weight - until we fell off the wagon and binged like mad. Over and over. I keep trying to lose weight, but then I end up binging. Usually at night. So annoying. I can be so on track during the day then it all hits the fan after dinner. The trigger foods (crackers and cereal) are in the house for the kids and my husband.

I feel ya. I have been able to drop most of my fat (from 230 to 185 lbs) and have kept it off for 3 years. However, I still struggle with binges. It is better but still a thing. Feel ffree to add me.

All binge struggles feel free to add me.

ab6046 wrote: »

newmeadow wrote: »

ab6046 wrote: »

So I guess the answer to your question would technically be no...since I NEVER stop after the fruit or vegetable binge.

So as I understand it, the binge doesn't end until the carby/sugary/high fat stuff gets delved into? Would that be what triggers the ultimate post-binge satiety, these types of foods?

I think that's what you meant. I did know one girl in high school who would start a binge with sliced tomatoes, pickles, that sort of thing, but it wouldn't end until all the pasta and all the sweets got eaten.

I'm curious because the long time forum users who scoff at the notion of "addiction" as it pertains to food and eating always say a calorie is a calorie. As they see it, a raw carrot is as fattening as a slice of pizza if someone overeats raw carrots. When that's challenged, they say YES! I'm SURE there's SOMEONE out there that got overweight from eating TOO MANY carrots. Sigh. Chocolate cake calories don't have magical properties as opposed to raw orange slice calories. And the sugar in each is exactly the same, and the body responds to it identically. (and I'm thinking, WHAT?)

Thing is, I never see folks saying they have a problem moderating green salad or raw apples or plain boiled eggs. Even in a binge thread, the binge isn't over until the cakes and pies and loaves of bread get eaten. 3 pounds of asparagus would never do.

I agree with that. And ultimately, if a craving is something that triggers the binge (i.e. brownies) then the binge won't end until that thing has been consumed in excessive quantities and in my case a lot more other items in the process.

Actually guys, I might be the odd one out here. I'm not saying it's the only thing I Bing on, but I will sometimes eat cups and cups and cups of food until I am so beyond full. Food being Steamed vegetables or grilled or baked chicken. And white rice, but that seems kind of reasonable. My guess is similar to yours- I am actually eating to reach some satiety level that fat or savory foods bring, except I'm not finding it so I just keep eating more. And more.

Some people call it an addiction to food - but as we have seen from the discussion, its really not about the food, its about the emotion toward the food, or the endorphins we create when we eat the food. That feeling of pleasure is a self reinforcing behaviour, much like Pavlovs dogs would salivate at the sound of the dinner bell, our surging feeligs can anticipate a free for all feeding frenzy - and a release of tension or anxiety. I liken it to an obsessive compulsive disorder - when I briefly interned at a psychiatric hospital back when dinosaurs ruled the earth, we had a patient diagnosed with OCD who would go back and forth from his room to the laundry room, just touching the windows. It was his way of coping with the stress of doing ANYTHING - going for meals, going for therapy, meeting new people etc. It could go on for HOURS. The trigger was always some sort of anxiety. I equate binging (and I have done it myself) to being unable to deal with some emotional stressor that I am feeling. A lot of time its anger, and I have to admit that I eat my anger to deal with it. And if you could see me, you would think wow - she's pretty angry!!! In a binge state, I have found that I am completely on auto pilot - I cannot seem to control what I am doing - its like I am in a fugue state. Fortunately, this has only happened a few times and I recognize now that it was in situations of extreme stress and anxiety. Feeling out of control, or feeling that I am BEING controlled makes me very angry!!

The sad fact though is that the bingeing doesnt, in fact relieve the tension and anxiety (perhaps briefly, while we are actually eating) but after that, we then feeling guilt, self loathing, sadness, and additional anxiety.

So......to deal with this I have to have a Plan B - I have been able to identify most of my triggers over the years, and know that when my spidey senses tingle, I have to follow through with certain behaviours. I have to have other outlets to deal with the stress or the anger. I know I can never have certain trigger foods in the house - I can have them when out for dinner, or at someone elses place, but if I have unrestricted access to them, I cant deal. I leave the house and go for a walk. I take a shower or a bath. I clean something, or rearrange my drawers or closets (my house is so neat!!) But really its all behaviours designed to help me understand and reinforce that I am in fact, in control of my choices.

I had a friend who was morbidly obese, and we talked about food addiction as related to alcoholism, drugs etc, and he too said that you can live without ever touching booze or heroin, but everyday, with a food issue, you have to let the tiger out of the cage at least once. The challenge is to control the tiger.

How can people consistently binge and not gain weight? It surprises me to see binge eaters at a healthy weight. In order for that to happen it seems one would have to restrict food on other days or exercise a lot to make up for it. Is it possible the restricting of food is leading to the binge? I binge from time to time but gain every ounce of it. The weight gain is what helps to control the binges but if there is no weight gain I can understand how difficult it would be to stop.