Do you ever get hungry but don't feel like eating anything?

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Francl27
Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Not sure if it's the depression or what, but absolutely nothing appeals to me right now. Unfortunately, when that happens, I typically end up just eating junk, even though I don't even really want it, but when nothing appeals to you at all, you don't typically want to have low calorie stuff....

Probably doesn't help that there isn't much food in the fridge right now and I'm sick of eating the same stuff all the time too... and I have no desire whatsoever to cook (or even bake those cookies I've been wanting to try).

Is it just me? How do you deal with it? It happens to me a few times a month...
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Replies

  • sparklyglitterbomb
    sparklyglitterbomb Posts: 458 Member
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    The last week or so. I've been eating Clif Bars for lunch because I was hungry and have not felt like making anything. Dinner was a freezer meal I prepped - I just ate it because my tummy was growling at me.

    I'm mostly riding it through, keeping fed enough to counter my running, and know that one day something will sound good. Not terribly helpful a solution, but wanted you to know you weren't alone. :)

    I do sometimes break this by going out to eat, just to have someone else prep something different for me since my usual love of cooking has fled the scene lately. :/
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    Yes. And I usually make poor choices, hoping the junk will appeal once I start eating it.

    It doesn't happen as often to me as it does you, and I haven't actually tried to address the issue.
  • scarlett_k
    scarlett_k Posts: 812 Member
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    Yeah quite often. This is usually when I make up a "diet" shake. Don't use them as directed or every day but I like the taste and they are nutritious, so they make a good meal for when I don't feel like proper food.
  • mrjarichard
    mrjarichard Posts: 1 Member
    edited August 2017
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    It happens to me sometimes, where I know I'm hungry (physical symptoms), but just have no appetite. I recently started on an SSRI and it has caused me to loose my appetite pretty much all together. I drink Soylent as a part of my diet, essentially it's a nutritionally balanced "meal replacement" - not meant for losing / gaining weight, but more just a quick way to get your nutritional needs in. It helps during the times when I have no appetite and when I don't want to eat junk food but have nothing / don't want anything "healthy."
  • StarvingAuthor
    StarvingAuthor Posts: 67 Member
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    Yes, a lot. I usually chew gum.
  • wilsonunc
    wilsonunc Posts: 45 Member
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    Yeah, I have this right now. I'm eating a lot of protein bars and "things I like" that are within my calorie limit but may not be exactly healthy. I have no motivation to eat though I know I should and my stomach growls at me. I get this weird gagging feeling in my throat (very hard to explain) that makes it very hard to make myself eat anything.
  • Ruatine
    Ruatine Posts: 3,424 Member
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    Yes, I have had that happen on many occasions throughout my life. I'm hungry, and I know I should be hungry based on what I've eaten that day, but I stand in front of the fridge/pantry and just can't bring myself to eat anything that's in there (even things I know that I love). I find it most often happens to me when I'm overly tired.

    Sometimes I just don't eat. Sometimes I stand there until I think of something I'd care to eat. The last time it happened (a couple weeks ago), I went through a mental list of all the foods/meals I love to eat (regardless of whether I had the ingredients for them in-house) and asked myself if I wanted to eat it until I came to one that appealed to me. In that instance, I ended up eating a PB&J. Not a huge calorie-bomb and fit within my calories.
  • everher
    everher Posts: 909 Member
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    I've never thought about this being possible in relation to depression. It's an interesting thought. I suffer from depression myself and this is something I deal with kind of regularly.

    Honestly, I've just found sticking to a plan is best. If I plan to cook and eat xyz I'm going to cook and eat xyz whether I feel like it or not. I realized early on that I would tend to eat junk food when I felt like this and I can't say I got anything out of it. It's not like I enjoyed the junk food more than I would've enjoyed eating something more nutritious. So now I just stick to plan.
  • Penthesilea514
    Penthesilea514 Posts: 1,189 Member
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    Yes, this has happened to me a few times in the past few months, and I also vary in my response. Sometimes I give in, sometimes I don't eat, and sometimes I force myself to stay on track. I don't have a diagnosis of depression though, so my response my differ for that reason. I can only say to make sure you are eating something and log it- even if the food isn't ideal. You can pick things pack up when you are ready.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
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    If I don't feel like eating I don't eat even if I'm hungry. I assume I'm not truly hungry but just have a sensation of hunger because it's when I'm accustomed to eating. By the next meal or the next day my interest in food returns and I eat - and enjoy - my food all the more because I'm really hungry. I also "overeat" when I'm more hungry than usual. I just consider it part of a healthy appetite.

    I don't have any sort of eating disorder and I'm not depressed though which is probably an important caveat.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
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    It is more indecisiveness with me... I get hungry and then cannot decide what to eat as I have so many options available.
  • Madwife2009
    Madwife2009 Posts: 1,369 Member
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    Happens when I get ill - right now I've got a grotty cold and I just cannot be bothered to eat as there's nothing I want. My kids had pizza tonight and I usually have a steak instead but I just could not do with getting the pan out, let alone cooking it.

    So DH made me boiled eggs which I forced down but didn't particularly enjoy. DH also cooked sausage rolls tonight which smelled so good but I couldn't be bothered with chewing/swallowing them.

    I certainly can't be bothered to raid the cupboards for junk food either so I don't think that I'll be wrecking my calorie deficit today :)

    And tomorrow I'm going to feel a whole lot worse . . . . never had man-flu before but that's the joy of immunosuppression :(
  • WanderingRivers
    WanderingRivers Posts: 612 Member
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    Yep. Usually it's when I'm so depressed that I hit suicidal ideation.
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
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    That's me right now. I branched out a little today... As I bought lunch and my roommate cooked.dinner But I eat the same things over and over and over. I don't mind though. I do have depression.
  • cmtigger
    cmtigger Posts: 1,450 Member
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    Yes, it's not from depression- but I can see how it could be- it's usually from being tired. I keep cheese sticks I'll grab and eat in those situations.
  • Susieq_1994
    Susieq_1994 Posts: 5,361 Member
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    everher wrote: »
    I've never thought about this being possible in relation to depression. It's an interesting thought. I suffer from depression myself and this is something I deal with kind of regularly.

    Honestly, I've just found sticking to a plan is best. If I plan to cook and eat xyz I'm going to cook and eat xyz whether I feel like it or not. I realized early on that I would tend to eat junk food when I felt like this and I can't say I got anything out of it. It's not like I enjoyed the junk food more than I would've enjoyed eating something more nutritious. So now I just stick to plan.

    ^ This. I have a bunch of meals saved on MFP and I just log whatever fits in my goals from those and follow the plan when nothing appeals. I also suffer from depression, and this food apathy usually hits when the depression is bad.
  • czmiles926
    czmiles926 Posts: 130 Member
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    Same here, I was 300 calories under my target yesterday and I knew I should eat something but I just didn't feel up to it even though I was starting to feel hungry.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,938 Member
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    Do you ever get hungry but don't feel like eating anything?

    Yep ... so I tell myself that until I decide what I'm hungry for, I don't eat. :)

    Usually within an hour or two, I've decided what I'm hungry for.
  • Cbean08
    Cbean08 Posts: 1,092 Member
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    This usually happens at work, but it's from stress, not from depression. I have a job that frequently conflicts with eating times. By the time I'm able to eat, few things sound appetizing. But, I don't want to miss my small window to eat, so I'll try to grab something just to keep me going. I keep Quests bars, beef jerky and celery/baby carrots around.
  • skymningen
    skymningen Posts: 532 Member
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    For me it is more likely to crave something I don't have around (not chocolate, but salad or a specific fruit).
    If I really think I am hungry but nothing appeals to me then I usually figure it is just me being bored and instead of eating I try drinking a large glass of water.

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