Middle of the night binge eating.

maddieconnor
maddieconnor Posts: 2 Member
edited November 13 in Health and Weight Loss
Does anyone struggle with binge eating in the middle of the night? Its been getting real bad for me. Sometimes I don't even remember getting up out of bed. How do I stop if I am not aware of what I am doing???

Replies

  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Some people can manage by keeping food put away.

    Are you getting enough sleep? Taking a medication?
  • missh1967
    missh1967 Posts: 661 Member
    In addition to the above, are you possibly restricting too much during the day?
  • maddieconnor
    maddieconnor Posts: 2 Member
    I think its a combo of sleep aids, food restriction, and habit. Just not sure how to break this?
  • RebeccaNaegle
    RebeccaNaegle Posts: 236 Member
    Could you try a lock on the fridge? or are you eating pantry food? it would suck to do this! Youre not even getting to enjoy your cheats! Hope you can figure out how to fix it!
  • Cintirich
    Cintirich Posts: 22 Member
    I used to have what was roughly a 4th meal every night between 12-1am. For me, I really have been working hard to watch my calories and if there's not enough for a snack, I try to refrain. If there is, instead of whipping up a quesadilla, or something terrible for me, I'll try to go for something healthier. I try to keep low-cal options like fruit and nonfat greek yogurt around for cravings, or sometimes a handful (only a handful) of pretzels, if I'm craving carbs.

    I have found that the better I eat during the day (not more, but better, i.e. home cooked foods, salads, etc.) the less cravings I have at night.

    As the poster above suggested, if you are really not remembering getting up to snack, you may want to see a doctor about that. If it's not medical though, just focus on building healthy habits. It looks like you're new, so give it some time. Good luck!
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    edited August 2016
    This content has been removed.
  • Liz6843
    Liz6843 Posts: 29 Member
    Also, are you taking Ambien? If so, that's why you're not remembering eating in the middle of the night and no amount of exercise or calories during the day will help - it's a side effect of Ambien. If you aren't, then yeah, you may want to talk to a doctor because waking up to eat in the middle of the night probably has to do with restriction and is pretty normal, but not remembering it (unless you're taking a sleep aid) isn't really normal and might be a symptom of something else that your doctor can help you with.
  • Moxie42
    Moxie42 Posts: 1,400 Member
    I've heard sleep aids can have effects like that (sleep-walking and doing things while not really awake). I don't know how severe your sleep issues are but if you haven't already, I highly recommend trying melatonin. 10mg of that will knock me out...I actually want to start trying 5mg. It's OTC and basically just supplements the melatonin your body naturally creates. You might want to talk to your doctor about it though. It's safe on its own but I'm sure there are probably medications it shouldn't be combined with, especially sleep aids.
  • cindyangotti
    cindyangotti Posts: 294 Member
    Don't keep any trigger foods in your home. That way you will have nothing to get up to eat and go back to sleep. This is what I do.
  • meikie111
    meikie111 Posts: 1 Member
    I always found I done the same when something was worrying or upsetting me. I would find wrappers by my bed and feel shamed the next day at not remembering. I put sparkling water by my bed and ended up reaching for it at night when I realised I was getting up and slowly but surely the habit was kicked I still keep the water by my bed incase it happens again. I think the gases in the water filled me up and helped. Worth at shot
  • MilesAddie
    MilesAddie Posts: 166 Member
    I do this almost every night as well and it is extremely frustrating - especially when you have done amazing at sticking to your cals/macros all day only to sabotage it by binging while half asleep.

    One thing that I have had a little success with: I divide my main evening meal between two sittings. Usually about 1/3 at 'dinnertime' and the rest about 60-90 minutes before bed. This also help me practice a bit of mindfulness because if I do get hungry, I know its the result of wanting to self-soothe, not because I am actually hungry.

    I'm sure there are a ton of differing opinions on here about eating late etc., but since I lift almost everyday, I'm not worried about the late calories because my body is repairing throughout the night.

    Hope that trick works for you.

    CS
  • meritage4
    meritage4 Posts: 1,441 Member
    Put loud jingle bells or something on your bedroom door so it alerts you if you open it.
  • madpsycho32
    madpsycho32 Posts: 3 Member
    Another thing you can do instead of trying to break the habit instantly is set calories aside for the middle of the night for when you do wake up and that way you don't have to stop yourself but more weem yourself off from that. For you meals during the day keep them light and save most of your calories for night so that you don't have to got to bed hungry. It's a nice trick that has worked for me.
  • calith
    calith Posts: 4 Member
    I try and save 240 calories for a protein shake made with milk for right before bed time. This has been the only thing that has worked for me. Otherwise I am in the kids biscuits at 2AM.
  • leahkathleen13
    leahkathleen13 Posts: 272 Member
    Happens when I'm really tired. Like my body is on autopilot to gather in energy. I eat a big dinner and drink a lot of water at night. Now I have a very small lunch sometimes and it helps.
  • twilmot352
    twilmot352 Posts: 2 Member
    I struggle with the same problem!!!!! I also have problems sleeping and have not found a successful sleep aid so I don't take one anymore, but I still binge eat. I will go to bed and wake up to pee and Make a detour to the kitchen, a lot of times is peanut butter......like not just a spoonful .....spoooonfullllssssss!!! Ugh it's awful because during the day I eat so well. Help
  • jennyc777
    jennyc777 Posts: 10 Member
    This is what is working for me. I struggle with binge eating. I have tried all the diets out there. I just happened to stumble upon people following the LCHF diet and it is working for me. Please google this way of eating. There are many groups on Facebook with lots of information. I have lost 10 pounds in a week effortlessly. ( I just started a couple of weeks ago.) I am still learning all the ins and outs but about binge eating (I haven't woke up in about a couple of weeks now to binge eat) because I believe the secret is eating something of high fat to shut this hunger off. ( avacado, a tablespoon of coconut oil, a piece of cheese) you will have to research this but it works for me and I love it. I woke up about a month ago in the middle of the night to eat and I went over to the coconut oil jar and ate a tablespoon of coconut oil. Sounds gross but it was ok and more importantly it shut my hunger off within 60 seconds. I went back to bed. Good luck!
  • wookiepants
    wookiepants Posts: 40 Member
    There is a way to rig up an airhorn to the places you store your food that will sure wake you up or startle you anyway.
  • Micah_Johnson
    Micah_Johnson Posts: 22 Member
    I'm giving this thread a bump, because I experience the same thing. I try to eat relatively late to stave off hunger, but often I wake up at 2 in the morning, go to the fridge, and eat whatever unhealthy leftovers my wife and kids left from the evening's meal. I can't avoid having less-than-desirable foods in the fridge, because I'm a father of four, and it would be unfair to everyone else in the house to impose my diet on them. I'm not a sleep eater per se; I'm awake when I'm doing it. But my sense of self-control seems to stay in bed as I raid the fridge. This is my single largest hurdle. I pride myself on having complete self-control throughout the days, even when I'm hanging out with friends that are binging on beer and pizza.
  • everher
    everher Posts: 909 Member
    Micah_Johnson wrote: »
    I'm giving this thread a bump, because I experience the same thing. I try to eat relatively late to stave off hunger, but often I wake up at 2 in the morning, go to the fridge, and eat whatever unhealthy leftovers my wife and kids left from the evening's meal. I can't avoid having less-than-desirable foods in the fridge, because I'm a father of four, and it would be unfair to everyone else in the house to impose my diet on them. I'm not a sleep eater per se; I'm awake when I'm doing it. But my sense of self-control seems to stay in bed as I raid the fridge. This is my single largest hurdle. I pride myself on having complete self-control throughout the days, even when I'm hanging out with friends that are binging on beer and pizza.

    I would have a healthy snack already prepared. I'm really bad at eating a snack before bed (a habit I'm trying to kick). I keep healthy snacks on hand so I won't eat something I shouldn't.
  • fmeneely
    fmeneely Posts: 2 Member
    When i took ambien, i would get up and shop, and not remember it at all, very scary. You mentioned you take sleep aids, if its that one that might explain it :o

  • SCoil123
    SCoil123 Posts: 2,111 Member
    I have been there. I actually accused an old roommate of stealing my food then she taped me eating 2 boxes of cereal in my sleep! I'm in recovery for an eating disorder so I ended up needing professional help.

    The roommate and I had a good laugh after I apologized. I was so embarrassed.
  • alittlelife14
    alittlelife14 Posts: 339 Member
    I have been Night Eating for a while and also am a diagnosed BED. I believe my night awakening slash usually eating is due to perhaps caloric restriction during the day, anxiety and just now the habit I have made it too. I wake up abruptly usually at around 2am or so every night and to get relief or occupy myself I get up and eat. I have stopped keeping binge worthy food around really and have mostly yogurt readily available and nothing else but it still adds up and also I am tired of the poor sleep. In the past I have tried Ambien (side effects eh), trazadone and now I am on Gabapentin for sleep and none really have worked unfortunately :(
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    fmeneely wrote: »
    When i took ambien, i would get up and shop, and not remember it at all, very scary. You mentioned you take sleep aids, if its that one that might explain it :o

    Yeah, Ambien. I am not a binge eater at all, but when I was taking Ambien, I would get up and eat random cans of food--usually olives or beans--in the middle of the night. Then there was the time that I sleep drove to the store for a bag of corn chips and back in the middle of the night. I was living in a wild-and-scenic area at the time and could very easily have driven off of a cliff.

    Suffice it to say, I do not take Ambien any more.

    You need to talk to your sleep specialist about this.
  • msalicia116
    msalicia116 Posts: 233 Member
    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I'll post a little snippet from a previous blog post of mine.

    http://blog.pop.fitness/2016/07/09/519/


    "Below are just a few of the things we’ve discovered bring us joy and contentment. As each of us has different preferences our examples may not apply to all of you, but we believe that sharing these acts may inspire some to try them out instead of reach for a chocolate bar in your time of need.
    • Eat a sustainable calorie goal. Whether it be for weight loss, muscle gain, or maintenance of body weight we believe that eating a calorie goal which you can sustain is incredibly important. If you wish to lose weight we recommend cutting calories minimally over a long period of time as opposed to short-term “crash” dieting.
    • Never deprive yourself of your favorite foods. You can easily fit your favorite foods into your calorie goal and if the item is too high-calorie you can easily emulate it to fit your dietary needs.
    • Do not restrict certain food groups, (low fat, low carb, low sugar, etc.). This leads to food phobias and is unsustainable long-term.
    • Do not look at foods are wholly “good” or “bad”. This is particularly common in the “clean eating” mentality. Unfortunately, as calories are the only determining factor when it comes to overall body weight often these mentalities do far more harm than good. The truth is we should be looking at the big picture of our overall diet instead of judging individual food items. Very often you can incorporate foods such as icecream, cookies, chocolate, etc. into an otherwise nutritionally complete diet. And you can still easily over-consume your calorie needs on foods which are generally perceived as “healthy”.
    • Use your choice of beauty products to soothe sore muscles, cleanse/moisturize/care for your skin.
    • Take warm soaking baths or showers. Bonus if you take the time to light candles, dim the lights, listen to some relaxing music, and really connect with your body!
    • Take care of your general hygiene at all times. This can be as simple as developing routines for your teeth, hair, skin, and nails. I personally enjoy taking care of my feet (via pedicures) and getting my nails and eyebrows done professionally. Some may enjoy getting their hair cut/colored, getting faux tans, etc.
    • Keep your environment at work and home organized, decluttered, warm, inviting, and clean at all times. Your external environment reflects your internal environment. By keeping your external environment clean and clear you can focus on more important matters instead of wading through mental and physical junk.
    • Light candles, lay out comfy blankets, keep fresh flowers, and have an area outside of the bedroom in which you can relax and unwind.
    • Take the time out of your day to focus just on your thoughts, feelings, and emotions. A great way to do this would be journaling when you first wake up and before you go to sleep.
    • Listen to audiobooks, read your favorite books, watch netflix, etc. Sometimes it can be great to focus your attention on something external especially when you’re receiving rapid/worrying thoughts.
    • Practice good nighttime habits including: No electronics in the bedroom, no artificial (blue) light from phones/tablets/computers within an hour before bed. No laying around in bed when you’re not actively trying to sleep. And lastly, avoiding caffeine a few hours before sleep.
    • Performing SMR with foam rollers, a stick roller, massage balls, and hands. This along with stretching can help you connect with your body and help in recovery from exercise.
    • Finding and performing regular exercise which distresses you. This can be going for a walk in nature, swimming, yoga, weight lifting, dancing, and more.
    • Creating a vision board or clear plan for your future along with the actions needed to reach your goals. By having a clear idea of where you’re headed and being mindful of the motivations behind your daily actions you can be assured you’re on the right path. We recommend each and every day finding at least one action that brings you closer to your goal.
    • Finding hobbies which bring you joy or interaction with others. By keeping yourself busy and involved in hobbies you are receiving more intellectual stimulation and bonding with others. Oftentimes we can become content in the monotonous ins and outs of our lives which can lead to depression, isolation, and worst of all… boredom.
    • Taking the time of the day to practice mindfulness and gratitude for all of the positive aspects of our life.
    • We encourage you to find ways to self-soothe and practice self-love without using food as a crutch as well. An easy first step is to write a list like ours above. What would make you happier right here, right now? What brings you joy in your life? What brings you the greatest stress and what changes can you make to reduce that stress?

    Feel free to use our list above as a guide."

    Amazing. Really great and informative. Thanks so much!
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