Binge Eating NEEDS to stop! Please Help!

Hello, I struggle with mild depression (and have for most of my life) and I don't want to take drugs to treat it. So I've relied on food to help cheer me up.....a very unhealthy choice!

I recently started walking each day and it's amazing at how much it improves my mood and provides a sense of well-being (love those endorphins)! After a slow start of a few blocks, I’m logging in 3 miles daily. I've also realized that I've been fooling myself by buying treats for the family, but I end up eating (inhaling) them instead. I plan to stop bringing sugary/snack foods home, so that the temptation won't be there.

Good luck to you - hopefully you can incorporate some small changes into your daily lifestyle. I've found that trying to implement drastic changes to my diet seldom works in the long run; instead, I end up feeling deprived.

And it helps to have support – someone you can share your goals with.

@MnWild74 Congrats on the first goal. Logging every morsel you chew will help alot. My coach told me that my body is like a car. You don't go on a trip without filling up first , so EAT BREAKFAST. I'm not a big breakfast person so this is huge. Move all your carbs to breakfast and lunch. Then a big carb light dinner. I'm finding an orange or apple for breakfast works for me. I keep frozen fruit handy (pineapple, peaches and grapes ) for the sugary bingy moments. Hope this helps

I'm in counseling and that is helping. But I'm a binge eater with multiple triggers. I definitely binge when I'm angry or sad bc I am "filling the void" with something I enjoy. Binge eating triggers the dopamine in my brain the same way drugs or alcohol do.

However, I will also binge eat for happiness/ joy, meaning I would view eating a good meal as my good time and look forward to it.

It had been so hard, but now that I've finally admitted I may have an actual food addiction/binge eating disorder it has helped my mindset a bit. But I'm just beginning my recover so still a long road.

I just binged last night. I dwelled on a painful memory that made me angry. I then broke open some cookies gifted to my family that day. I ate 3 and then threw the entire pack out to stop the binge. But moments later, truly in the heat of the moment, my inner demons said eff it and I gobbled down whatever I could find in a matter of 10 mins. I ate chips, cheese, baked goods, whatever I could find. I even ate 2 containers of black olives!! I felt so bad and guilty and depressed after I realized I fell off the wagon. The worst is I did it in secret and hid the food wrappers do my family wouldn't see the carnage.

But what was different this time, and new for me, is I decided I that moment I was done and back in track. I didn't let that binge become a food bender. Yes I was mad and disappointed with myself. But I finally had the mental strength to say "ok, you made a mistake. It's over, nobody died and I'm getting right back on the horse". It was weirdly liberating.

If you cannot see a standard counselor, then I suggest utilizing peer counseling. I provide counseling services at 7cups.com and have helped a number of people with recurring issues.

I will say that as a ED recovery patient that has now had WLS to mitigate some of the effects... I always thought that I was eating out of boredom or from "emotional triggers" but it actually wasn't the case. As long as I held onto those mentalities, I found myself eating and purging. However, when I decided to be TRULY honest with myself... It changed.

My "trigger" for binge eating was a sense of hopelessness and inadequacy. I ate excessively out of a self-sabotage and self-harm mentality. I used boredom or emotional triggers to give myself "permission" or a recognizable enemy... Effectively, focusing on outside triggers, rather than the internal ones. You HAVE to be honest with yourself.

Meaning... You're watching Netflix. You're theoretically entertained, it isn't boredom that brings food to your mouth. But you do have a choice. You have to look at WHY you choose food rather than doing exercises, crafting, even gaming on your computer. You have so many options to mitigate boredom that have nothing to do with food. Figuring out why your habits are leaning towards eating other than the options you do have is going to be the key to stopping.

Some could say that the leaning towards food is a laziness tendency. Maybe it is. But even being lazy doesn't give permission to the food. That is, why choose food at all? Frankly, it doesn't make any sense to me, to say "I enjoy binge-watching Netflix" but then also say "I eat while watching Netflix because I'm bored." If you're so bored watching Netflix, then you probably aren't really enjoying it.

I've struggled with binge eating for as long as I can remember. Identifying my triggers has never been a problem...stress, depression, boredom. I just haven't found the ability to deal with the binging. I visited with a specialist today and discussed how to handle my situation. I plan to continue treatment and am hoping for a great start to 2017!

Look up Geneen Roth. Read some of her books.

For me it was a mindset a habit and a routine once I broke that I managed to stop
For me it was biscuits (cookies for the US peeps)
Literally couldn't get through the day without eating them
1 would become 2, then 5 then 10 and so on
I never felt sick or full so it was so easy to do.
People used to say don't buy them but that wasn't an option as there's more than just me in the house, and at the time I'd just go out and buy a packet and sit and eat the lot.
I have been unwell on and off for a couple of months and as horrendous as that's been it's helped me be able to stop and to break the terrible cycle I'd gotten into
My binges happened at night, so now when I go to bed I don't go in the kitchen any more just straight upstairs avoiding temptation.
I also wrote signs on cupboard doors things like
Really Emma what are you doing
Emma do you really need to eat that.
Makes it feel like someone else is telling you
Having an open diary on here has helped massively keeps you accountable for what goes in as you know everyone's going to see it
Take care
You can and you will do this add me
That goes for anyone, always easier with support.
Believe to achieve

MnWild74 wrote: »

Help my binge eating is out of control, i reached out to my Dr. for help and she all but told me there was nothing that can help me. I am 42 years old and have gained almost 40 pounds this year. i feel like i am out of control. All i want is to be in control of my weight and get healthy and energetic again. I start off great in the morning, then the "just start tomorrow" voice kicks in and i ALWAYS throw in the towel. If you are a binge eater, what are some tips that you have to stay motivated and or getting started on getting healthy and away from the binge.

There is help. Your dr was mistaken or uneducated.
I myself suffer from severe binge eating. My dr has started me on Vyvase and it has worked wonders.