Binge Eating. How do you get past the past?

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  • CTcutie
    CTcutie Posts: 649 Member
    For me, the structure of logging/weighing/MFP everything (being accountable) is what worked for me before, so I have faith that it will once again work for me (even though I'm back bc I stopped doing it!). I didn't binge EVER when I lost 65 lbs a few yrs ago... I stopped logging/weighing when my personal life drastically changed. It's my one regret.
  • midpath
    midpath Posts: 246 Member
    I struggled too and honestly, the only thing that helped me was switching to LCHF. I cut sugar for like 30 days by force (trust me its really freaking hard and I barely left the house) and still to this day if I slip up, I go right back into bingeing.

    That's just been my experience.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I used to self-medicate with booze, food, and other substances and behaviors. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helped change these thought patterns. A regular exercise program is quite helpful as well, as is eating more protein and less carbs.

    This book on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for overeating was available in my library system, so perhaps yours as well.

    The Beck Diet Solution: Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person

    Can thinking and eating like a thin person be learned, similar to learning to drive or use a computer? Beck (Cognitive Therapy for Challenging Problems) contends so, based on decades of work with patients who have lost pounds and maintained weight through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Beck's six-week program adapts CBT, a therapeutic system developed by Beck's father, Aaron, in the 1960s, to specific challenges faced by yo-yo dieters, including negative thinking, bargaining, emotional eating, bingeing, and eating out. Beck counsels readers day-by-day, introducing new elements (creating advantage response cards, choosing a diet, enlisting a diet coach, making a weight-loss graph) progressively and offering tools to help readers stay focused (writing exercises, to-do lists, ways to counter negative thoughts). There are no eating plans, calorie counts, recipes or exercises; according to Beck, any healthy diet will work if readers learn to think differently about eating and food. Beck's book is like an extended therapy session with a diet coach. (Apr.)
  • Emily3907
    Emily3907 Posts: 1,461 Member
    I also second The Beck Diet Solution: Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person. It is a very good book and works well when applied.

    I just recently started acknowledging that I have some disordered eating too and I am seeing a therapist and using the above book to work through the process of how to start having a healthy relationship with food.
  • Mersie1
    Mersie1 Posts: 329 Member
    I find that restriction- or the idea of future restriction- of any sort, will lead me to binge. The thought of restricting food groups, types of food, not just calories. Bingeing tends to be the other side of the coin.

    Brain over binge is a very interesting book.

    Hugs and high fives!
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    edited January 2017
    @Mersie1 your photo is so cool! (Apologizes for derail)
  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
    Sgt_Pepper33 wrote: »
    Thank you so much for all your feedback, everyone. I do really appreciate it. It's nice to know that there are people who have struggled with this but have also overcome it. After reading through these, I seriously am considering looking into a therapist that deals exclusively with disorders such as this. I live in a small town/country area, so it may take some digging, but I feel like it's a good direction to look into. @acarpenter6 the beginning to your story sounds very similar to my own. I believe my first diet was at the age of 8, prompted on by my mom, and looking back at photos, I see that I did not have a big weight problem at that time. It saddens me a bit; I don't think childhood is a time for counting calories and stepping on a scale every single day. It became an obsession, and it just continued to progress with passing years.

    Things from childhood can really screw us up. My mom was morbidly obese. She wound up going to an inpatient treatment facility for a few weeks. When she came home it was like she had had this revelation while in therapy as to why she ate so much. As a child there often wasn't enough food, so as an adult she must have always had this feeling that the abundance of food we had would somehow disappear, so she ate all she could...never seeing the link.... That being said, after all that....she did manage to slay her demons.

  • ShanBanKrup
    ShanBanKrup Posts: 55 Member
    @Sgt_Pepper33 thanks for posting this. Been feeling sort of down and definitely cheered up by you sharing what's going on in your life. Sometimes that can help so much.
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  • Sgt_Pepper33
    Sgt_Pepper33 Posts: 194 Member
    @Look_Its_Kriss I honestly had no idea there was a medication for the disorder! :open_mouth: I'm always hesitant to start any kind of medication after being put on and taken off so many for depression/anxiety issues, but I think it's something to look into and talk to a health professional about. I just never knew that resource was out there.
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  • Eleonora91
    Eleonora91 Posts: 688 Member
    The only thing that works for me is not buying food that I may want to binge on. Being a uni student on a budget is probably the only reason I haven't gotten huge so far. I also try to find other ways to cope with stress and frustration as emotional eating is my major issue.
  • Fit_Prit
    Fit_Prit Posts: 251 Member
    Sgt_Pepper33 wrote: »
    Hi, everyone. I don't know if anyone will see this even, or how the notifications work for people that have commented on here. But, if you are reading this, I just wanted to share that today I did something that has needed done for many years. I sat down with my mom...and we just talked. We put aside the emotions and had a nonconfrontational talk. I told her the issues I've accrued surrounding my weight and my binge eating and how they involve her as well in some aspects. And she shared with me the reasons she has done some of the things that have always bothered me. Some things have been simple miscommunications; some have been out of worry; and some were just mistakes. But, I must say it felt like a very healing talk. I hope that this is the first step for me in finding peace with this and also in being able to defeat my disorder. Thanks for listening! I hope you are all doing well and finding the new year to be fresh and exciting.

    Hi..
    Thank you for sharing
    I also had some issues with my mother.. & We also had "the talk"
    It gives a different perspective on the situation & help us Understand why the person acted in that way .

    Anyhow.. It's really good & we feel Enlighten :)
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    I don't have anything to add but just wanted to give you props, OP. Sending healing thoughts your way...
  • cloverdaisy
    cloverdaisy Posts: 64 Member
    Struggling with BED & Bulimia as well. I've been on & off for almost 7 years now. Initially I had anorexia from dieting to lose weight and it then quickly turned into bulimia. I've never got diagnosed but I know that's what I have. My husband is the only one that's aware of it but he doesn't understand it completely. He just thinks that I tend to eat a bit too much from time to time.

    I don't know when I'm going to be free from this or if that's possible at all but there's always hope! Sorry I didn't give any useful advise but at least you know you're not alone. :smile:
  • Sgt_Pepper33
    Sgt_Pepper33 Posts: 194 Member
    I'm so thankful for the continued positive feedback! <3 It definitely helps knowing that others are fighting this as well and that we are all going through success and struggles. I think that's one of the hardest parts of dealing with anything psychological -- depression, anxiety, eating disorders -- is feeling misunderstood. Like even if we do share how we feel, people may think we are crazy or dismiss us altogether. I feel strength in knowing that these feelings are universal and human and that we can all be in it together.

    After the talk with my mom, I'm trying to continue in a positive trajectory. I started tracking my calories, something I had stopped for quite a while. I'm just trying not to be too harsh on myself. Instead of having my goal be to lose 2 pounds a week, 1 and a half or even 1 is more manageable for me. I even went on a walk the other day with my mom! We took it slow and she told me to choose the pace and the length we walked. We decided to focus on the crisp air and the way my dog prances like a show horse rather than on burning calories. Small steps! :)
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