The psychology of needing to eat until stuffed - a discussion

jjpptt2 · September 2018

I knew a few people here have struggled with this
I also know it's probably not an easy/simply/clean discussion... not if X then do Y.

But I also know there are some smart, thoughtful, experienced people here.
I also know that there is a HUGE wealth of experiences on the board. So I put this out there...

Does anyone have any insight on the psychology of "needing" to eat until stuffed? Not just until you are full or no longer hungry... but stuffed, maybe uncomfortably so. I've struggled with emotional eating in the past (and probably will continue to), but I've made significant progress on identifying the whys and creating new habits/responses. However, I continue to struggle with the need to eat until I'm stuffed. From what I've read here, many would suggest there are signs of an ED.

I do think it's a mental/psychological thing, rather than something physical, as it seems to be rooted more in something like instant gratification or satisfaction rather than anything bigger picture like calorie or nutrient needs. But aside from that, I'm not sure where to start looking/thinking about things.

So...
- thoughts?
- questions?

TIA.

kommodevaran · September 2018

I have only this - if it's ED, eating beyond uncomfortably stuffed can be used as self-harm/punishment. But an ED diagnosis must be set on more solid grounds than just one or two "signs". So it can also be a reaction to deprivation over time (like extreme dieting or too strict rules growing up). Or my "favorite", learned from hundreds or thousands of meals with a mom so anxious to get her little kommodevaran to eat enough, that no kind or degree of pressure and emotional manipulation could be left untried.

jjpptt2 · September 2018

kommodevaran wrote: »

I have only this - if it's ED, eating beyond uncomfortably stuffed can be used as self-harm/punishment. But an ED diagnosis must be set on more solid grounds than just one or two "signs". So it can also be a reaction to deprivation over time (like extreme dieting or too strict rules growing up). Or my "favorite", learned from hundreds or thousands of meals with a mom so anxious to get her little kommodevaran to eat enough, that no kind or degree of pressure and emotional manipulation could be left untried.

Let's see...

Self harm/punishment -- I don't think that's it. That's some of the emotional eating problems I've dealt with in the past (which will probably creep up again at some point), but this seems different.
Reaction to deprivation -- hmmm. My initial reaction was no, that's not it as it's just as likely to happen during days/weeks of calorie surplus than it is deficit. However, thinking more finely... it could be related to shorter term deprivation/restriction (think IF eating patterns... long periods of fasting could be a trigger rather than weeks of low calorie intake triggering something).
Conditioning or learned behavior -- I think there is some connection here to habitual behavior, but I think there is more to it than simply habit. I'll have ot think on that a bit more, though.

quiksylver296 · September 2018

Is it a control issue? Almost like "Nyah, nyah, nyah. I'll do what I want when I want. Screw you, diet/healthy lifestyle."?

Running_and_Coffee · September 2018

I'm going to admit that I'm fascinated by this concept because I don't understand it, and always worry (fear) that there's a slippery slope for me/for us all when it comes to eating for pleasure. Honestly, I have watched TV shows like My 600 Lb. Life to try to understand eating not only beyond satiety but beyond even feeling full.

Is there an adrenaline rush from eating larger quantities?

Is it comforting? When a kid skins his knee, sometimes you give him a lollipop to make him feel better...when a baby cries, sometimes your instinct is to feed the baby even if the baby is crying because he/she needs a nap or something else. Is that related?

cheryldumais · September 2018

I think it's sometimes a chemical thing. The release of happy hormones when we eat. We are emotional beings and when hurt or tired or whatever... We eat to get a lift. So it is a case of chasing that high. I have learned that I ate long past enjoyment for a very long time hoping to recapture that good feeling the first few bites gave me. Now if I overeat I feel sick so I've smartened up a bit but it is always waiting in the wings if I let my guard down.

Since I tend to be high stress most of the time I've learned to take a walk to destress and that helps.

sardelsa · September 2018

Maybe it's a biological built in feeling to stuff oneself to prepare for a future famine? Or maybe for pleasure comfort? Otherwise I am not sure.

alicebhsia1 · September 2018

well, i think it's about comfort (not over-over-stuffed mind you) what's better than a full tummy and a nice nap?? when i get the urge to feel stuffed full i eat like two whole sauteed zuchinnis or summer squashes with some garlic and sometimes parmesan cheese. it's a nice way to feel stuffed without eating too many calories. big difference between being stuffed full of veggies and say like pizza..

jjpptt2 · September 2018

quiksylver296 wrote: »

Is it a control issue? Almost like "Nyah, nyah, nyah. I'll do what I want when I want. Screw you, diet/healthy lifestyle."?

I do have some of that in me, yes... but I don't think it's part of this conversation/scenario.

jjpptt2 · September 2018

cheryldumais wrote: »

I think it's sometimes a chemical thing. The release of happy hormones when we eat. We are emotional beings and when hurt or tired or whatever... We eat to get a lift. So it is a case of chasing that high. I have learned that I ate long past enjoyment for a very long time hoping to recapture that good feeling the first few bites gave me. Now if I overeat I feel sick so I've smartened up a bit but it is always waiting in the wings if I let my guard down.

Since I tend to be high stress most of the time I've learned to take a walk to destress and that helps.

This is ringing loudly for me... let me mull this over a bit, but I think you might be on to something...

I've struggled to understand this largely because it happens both when I'm feeling a bit down AND when I'm riding a high. Your comment would potentially address both situations - looking for a high and riding an existing high.

Crafty_camper123 · September 2018

I'm guessing it has a lot to do with learned behaviors. A lot of kids are taught to clear their plates of the food they were served, or served themselves. Otherwise, it is considered wasteful and rude. Regardless if they aren't hungry, or had enough to eat. The other part of it (I'm assuming) has a lot to do with the reward control centers of the brain. That dopamine release when we eat something tasty. I know for me personally, that is where I struggle the most with overeating. If the food is really good, my brain gets stuck in a "YUM. MORE!" cycle. That is sometimes hard to break out of. Even though I know the consequences of overeating. (That heavy, bloated, blah feeling.)

kimny72 · September 2018

I know someone like that - will continue to eat if there is more food on the table, uses ALL the condiments, etc until he is uncomfortable. Doesn't overeat if there isn't food sitting in front of him, like he won't go into the fridge or pantry and stuff himself. Will finish other peoples plates at a restaurant "so it doesn't go to waste". Says it's because he grew up poor and hungry in a large family. Always had to fight for his share and be prepared for the days when there wasn't anything to eat.

I would think the answer in his situation would be mindfulness techniques and if that doesn't work, therapy. He is barely overweight though, as he is rarely now in situations where there are tables full of too much food.

Not sure if anything like that applies to your situation, or it's another angle to cross off the list!

jjpptt2 · September 2018

Crafty_camper123 wrote: »

I'm guessing it has a lot to do with learned behaviors. A lot of kids are taught to clear their plates of the food they were served, or served themselves. Otherwise, it is considered wasteful and rude. Regardless if they aren't hungry, or had enough to eat. The other part of it (I'm assuming) has a lot to do with the reward control centers of the brain. That dopamine release when we eat something tasty. I know for me personally, that is where I struggle the most with overeating. If the food is really good, my brain gets stuck in a "YUM. MORE!" cycle. That is sometimes hard to break out of. Even though I know the consequences of overeating. (That heavy, bloated, blah feeling.)

This is absolutely part of it. I know that, but seeing it spelled out this way is helpful.

Cassandraw3 · September 2018

Could it be perhaps a nutrient deficiency? I noticed on a few occasions that days where I ate low protein, I had that feeling. I had a protein bar and the feeling faded away. Your body/mind may be telling you to eat more to make up for something you are missing. Just a thought.

kds10 · September 2018

jjpptt2 wrote: »

Crafty_camper123 wrote: »

I'm guessing it has a lot to do with learned behaviors. A lot of kids are taught to clear their plates of the food they were served, or served themselves. Otherwise, it is considered wasteful and rude. Regardless if they aren't hungry, or had enough to eat. The other part of it (I'm assuming) has a lot to do with the reward control centers of the brain. That dopamine release when we eat something tasty. I know for me personally, that is where I struggle the most with overeating. If the food is really good, my brain gets stuck in a "YUM. MORE!" cycle. That is sometimes hard to break out of. Even though I know the consequences of overeating. (That heavy, bloated, blah feeling.)

This is absolutely part of it. I know that, but seeing it spelled out this way is helpful.

Yeah that happens to me....if I am loving what I am eating very hard to stop. I am trying to train myself to stop eating even if I still feel somewhat hungry...very hard to do and still does not feel right in some ways! I think for me I still have those all or nothing tendancies where food is concerned because for so long "tomorrow" was going to be a fresh start thus I would try and eat whatever stuff was in the house that I considered "bad", i.e. white bread, chips, etc. etc., so I would find myself eating non stop in order to purge the kitchen of "bad/tempting/triggering" food even though I was not hungry.

kds10 · September 2018

What scares me too is how easy it is to resort to bad eating habits such as eating too much even after months of supposedly eating in control:(

mhetzel1983 · September 2018

Intuitive Eating is a good book that details the many reasons why people overeat. It's very interesting. They mention many of the reasons stated in this thread. For me, it was emotional eating and response to deprivation. But there are lots of reasons people eat to that level of fullness.

annaskiski · September 2018

I think its a happy/comfort feeling.
"I'm stuffed. All is right with the world"

That's part of the reason I like IF. Two big meals make me happy.

elelja945 · September 2018

I think it may be a way to both mentally and physically feel numb or escape. When I eat to uncomfortable fullness, everything stops. My brain is on cruise control. I am eating but have gone way past tasting the food. Brain numb. Next my body is so full I can not comfortably move. Body immobile. There are no past regrets, no future consequences, and presently I am incapacitated.

sytchequeen · September 2018

because Dopamine?

some studies have looked at the possibility of dopamine release through eating creating a "reward" effect on eating, leading to over eating.

I'm sure there will be other studies saying that is rubbish, but that is the nature of studies.

Gamliela · September 2018

I'll share my experience with this. Last spring I ate over three quarters of a lemon pie. It was in the evening after a normal, well no, a day of eating over maintenance calories. It wasn't deprivation that drove the pie eating, because I hadn't been restricting calories for a couple of months. That day I had had many of my favorite foods too, nut butter, tarelli ( italian crackers shaped into loops made from flour and olive oil) and three regular meals. I remember that I was feeling lonely and disapointed. A house we had been negotiating to buy didn't work out and after three months of difficulties and hassels concerning this we were leaving the country of my dreams to go back to a place I really dont like living. I could accept that ok I thought. Our landlords were a lovely couple and she was especially good at baking, she dropped by to say goodbye and very thoughtfully gifted us with a beautiful lemon pie that evening. So of course we each had a slice and three quarters of it was left over.

Since then nothing like that has happened again. I did feel full before I started eating the leftover pie. So eating it was making me very much fuller. I didn't feel stuffed, but my full and hungry signals aren't reliable any time.

I find that I am less tempted to overeat when I am cutting back on calories than when I am in maintenance or over, thats when I am more likely to eat just for comfort, or to stop emotions and feelings of anxiety or stress.

Excersize also helps. For me, keeping a lot of activity in my life keeps overeating to a minimum.

Dealing with my emotions, anxiety, stress by talking it out or just letting myself feel them has been very beneficial as well.

This is a very interesting topic for discussion and I look forward to watching it.

The psychology of needing to eat until stuffed - a discussion

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