Struggle with binge eating

Well, I am sure why you binge, but I will dumb some tips here...

1. First, I needed to admit there was a problem.

For three going on four years, I blamed my drive and my dreams for my actions. Ignoring people in my life hinting at me that I may have a problem, including family, close friends, and my
girlfriend. I lied to myself, rationalizing it with the mask of a cheat meal.

As the punishment for binging increased, so did the amount of times I binged. At first it was once a week, then every couple days. Soon it was every other day, until it consumed my thoughts at all times. There were instances where I would drive to Walmart just to eat all the food I could before coming home. Chances are if you are reading this it is because you are looking for help. Good for you! You are already lightyears ahead of where I was!
2. I learned to love myself for me, and to be honest, I am still learning how to do this. Today, the emulated physique is seen as happiness. It is published on social media, magazines,
and posters as the symbol of happiness. I believed it and I chased and chased it. I had it for some
time and I was still just as miserable. How you look will not make you happy! Now don’t twist those words as an excuse to just let yourself become overweight. We have to learn to accept our imperfections. We all have them and everyone tries to hide them. Here are my flaws (some I can fix, others are what they are):
Relationships: I am awful. I wrecked a 15 year friendship with a high school sweetheart. I was selfish and an *kitten*. I can also be abrasive and brutal with little to no compassion. However since I have shared this personal story, I have gotten better. Although I am by no means finished working on this.
Skin Damage: I never wore sunscreen as a kid. Now I have moles, freckles, and scars. Some I
wish weren’t there. Some girls won’t even talk to me because of them. I am not “sexy” enough. They aren’t “interested”.

Don’t let your imperfections stop you from loving yourself. You are the only you this world will ever see so embrace yourself.

Perhaps the worst thing about this cycle was I hated myself, I hated my life and I didn’t even want to look in the mirror. I thought I was a failure and that I would never make it. I even contemplated suicide. When I would binge, I would punish myself.

Avoid this. Remember life is meant to be enjoyed. Life is much too short to never treat yourself to what you love to eat despite whether it’s ‘good for you’. Look yourself in the mirror and say “I LOVE myself” at least 10 times a day, if not more. P.S. try not to smile when you say this (harder than you think).

3. Thirdly, there is no such thing as good food, bad food.

Placing labels on food, leads us to ban them from our intake. We say, “No, No, No, No, No…” We push for the perfect diet and once we eat this food that does not fall into this neat diet box, we throw our hands up saying we failed so now is the time to eat everything we can.

This leads to punishment, which then leads to more restrictions. This is the vicious cycle we as binge eaters face. I used to believe it myself - that there was clean food and bad food. It simply is this manifested idea. If you ask a vegan, he/she will say animal based foods are not clean. Someone who is a vegetarian will disagree and say it is just animal products that are not clean. Then a paleo guy runs in screaming about how meat is clean, but grains aren’t.

Adopt my grandmother’s wise old adage of “everything in moderation.” This brings me to my next point…

4. Always practice moderation.

You can eat whatever you want, just not all at once. I believe I heard Layne Norton say this – it’s like the 11th commandment. When I first began to escape cycle, I would eat one “treat” at every meal. Nothing crazy, but this allowed me to still get my “fix” so I wouldn’t binge.

Any action in the right direction gave me more motivation and encouragement to keep improving. The small wins kept snowballing into large victories later that slammed the door on binging. Disclaimer, it is wiser to eat this food item from a plate than from the container. Don’t test your will to fight binging if you do not have too. As the old saying goes, “work smarter, not harder.”

5. No more crazy spreadsheets and tracking of nutrients line item by line item like an accountant.

I did not worry about counting calories and the works. I would instead eat three meals - breakfast, lunch and supper, possibly a snack if I was hungry. I would eat slowly, and as I began to feel fuller I would stop eating. You may be like me and scared that you’ll get fat. Well what is your other choice? You can keep binge eating, which is not working because you wouldn’t be reading this right now if it was. Or you can reach out and try something new.

6. Remember that you do not need the scale to help you.

It’s about small wins, and trust me, they add up. Most people overestimate the damage of a binge. You need to eat in excess of 3500 calories over your normal intake to gain a pound of fat. It is not as bad as we create in our minds. Additionally, when we stand on the scale after a binge, our body is bloated, full of food, sodium, and other goodies. This only compounds the guilt feeling.