Eating like a kid?

evolve33
evolve33 Posts: 61 Member
edited September 19 in Health and Weight Loss
i'm new here and was thinking last night about why i eat when i'm not hungry... sometimes don't even enjoy it but keep eating anyway.
when i was young my step-father would hide food or keep it locked away to keep me and my 5 bros and sis from sneaking treats. that only made me want it more and i got good at outsmarting him. i would bring cookies and candy to my bed late at night and devour it joyfully.
that must leave an emotional mark right? im trying to stop being that little girl anyone else have food issues in their childhood?

Replies

  • evolve33
    evolve33 Posts: 61 Member
    i'm new here and was thinking last night about why i eat when i'm not hungry... sometimes don't even enjoy it but keep eating anyway.
    when i was young my step-father would hide food or keep it locked away to keep me and my 5 bros and sis from sneaking treats. that only made me want it more and i got good at outsmarting him. i would bring cookies and candy to my bed late at night and devour it joyfully.
    that must leave an emotional mark right? im trying to stop being that little girl anyone else have food issues in their childhood?
  • jackeh
    jackeh Posts: 1,515 Member
    ugh i so have the same sort of issue....

    When i was a kid my mom would always comment on what i was eating ... you shouldnt eat that youll get fat... look that cookie makes your rolls bigger... and so on...i was between the ages of like 6 till i was a teen....
    So i would steal food and hide it and eat when no one was watching.... I remember once i was probably like 7 i went in the cookie jar and took all the middles out of the oreos made a big ball of icing and put the oreo tops back hoping no one would notice.. then i took my icing ball to my room and hid it in my dresser:blushing: Its funny because my mom always thought i did those things because i was a pig or greedy or what ever but infact i was embarassed to eat in front of her and scared...
  • joonieB
    joonieB Posts: 101
    This sounds familiar.....although my mom's efforts to keep food she bought for our lunches "in an undisclosed location" wasn't quite so draconian. But I got good at sniffing them out anyway :wink:

    There was a saying I grew up with:

    There are two kinds of people in life; the quick and the dead.

    With 5 other siblings we all learned to get while the getting was good. So I understand what you mean. Until recently, I would rarely keep a box of cookies or other treats in the house because I would feel compelled to eat the whole thing myself. When I started on this "eating like a grown-up" journey in January, it took me a few weeks before I could trust myself to eat only 1 cookie a day. Now I know that the cookies aren't going anywhere, and I can eventually eat the whole package if I want to...one cookie at a time, of course!

    It helps to identify where our eating issues are. For me I am not an emotional eater or a stress eater, but I definitely eat to celebrate!
  • Iceprincessk25
    Iceprincessk25 Posts: 1,888 Member
    I never understood the whole hiding food from your kids thing or having them ask their parent if they're allowed to eat something.

    We were allowed free range in the kitchen for whatever we wanted and we NEVER had any problems with being over-weight or binging or whatever when we were younger.
  • iftcheiaf
    iftcheiaf Posts: 960 Member
    For me I couldn't eat wheat, so I craved sweet. :blushing: Embarassing to admit, I used to eat bowls (multiple) of confectioner's sugar. No wonder I had cavities. And sometimes I would sneak the wheat until it literally made me sick, have a migraine, and pass out. And my mom was dangerously weight conscious (diet pills/starvation/the works) and I always felt fat, even though I look at pictures now and realize I was just a kid.

    For my kids, I buy their snacks and put them in a huge tub on top of the refrigerator. They're still short enough that they have to use a chair. The idea is, if they really want it, they'll go through the effort, but most of the time it is just easier for them to go into the refrigerator and grab a piece of fruit or milk. Out of immediate site, out of mind. I also think I stick them way up there for me because I will eat them all up (bring back my childhood).

    It's amazing what stays with us in childhood all through the years. Then we have to work twice as hard to break bad cycles because we've been doing them so long.
  • evolve33
    evolve33 Posts: 61 Member
    i was actually an underweight child so i could have used some extra calories. i noticed none of my siblings obsessed about food like i did... i dreamed about it often and sometimes stole from my mom to buy candy:huh:
    im not sure why or why it has stayed with me so long but its nice to hear other stories i've never really talked to anyone about it
    being a thin child and teen no one ever told me my binge eating was unhealthy, or that it would put me into a destructive relationship with food.
    or that my hyper metabolism would eventually abandon me!
  • Falcon
    Falcon Posts: 853 Member
    My mom was like that, look at all that fat

    my sister replied you're one to talk

    but its left an emotional scare on me, and my Aunt (my moms sister) isn't any better, I nearly lost 80 pounds one year and her only response to that was when I took a link out of my watch was, you're probably going to put it back on so why are you removing the link.

    Thanks for the confidence boost, now I have trouble going to see her once I realized what part of the problem was. Negative feedback every time I try to do something about it :(
  • joonieB
    joonieB Posts: 101
    Iceprincessk25, in theory you are absolutely right. Hiding food, making a big deal out of what and when it can be eaten can really do a number on a kid's perception of food. HOWEVER, now that I am a mom of lots of kids (5), I can totally see the reasons. Teens eat like truckers and can easily consume $10 worth of snack foods in one sitting (a budgetary and general nutrition problem) and some little kids ONLY crave junk and you have to really work on getting them to eat healthily. Free range really doesn't work for the kid who would choose junk for every meal and in between meal snack. Every body is different, and I'm not saying my way is right. But for my kids.....
  • jackeh
    jackeh Posts: 1,515 Member
    My mom was like that, look at all that fat

    my sister replied you're one to talk

    but its left an emotional scare on me, and my Aunt (my moms sister) isn't any better, I nearly lost 80 pounds one year and her only response to that was when I took a link out of my watch was, you're probably going to put it back on so why are you removing the link.

    Thanks for the confidence boost, now I have trouble going to see her once I realized what part of the problem was. Negative feedback every time I try to do something about it :(

    when i started losing weight i called my mom up and i was like "mom i lost 15 pounds" she said ... dont worry jackie youll find it again:grumble:

    nope still havent found it:wink:
  • Falcon
    Falcon Posts: 853 Member
    and looks like you lost more then 15 pounds :) That's great you're keeping it off :)
  • specialsong77
    specialsong77 Posts: 78 Member
    My mom was like that, look at all that fat

    my sister replied you're one to talk

    but its left an emotional scare on me, and my Aunt (my moms sister) isn't any better, I nearly lost 80 pounds one year and her only response to that was when I took a link out of my watch was, you're probably going to put it back on so why are you removing the link.

    Thanks for the confidence boost, now I have trouble going to see her once I realized what part of the problem was. Negative feedback every time I try to do something about it :(

    when i started losing weight i called my mom up and i was like "mom i lost 15 pounds" she said ... dont worry jackie youll find it again:grumble:

    nope still havent found it:wink:

    That is an awful thing to say! :angry:

    No worries hun, you will lose the extra pounds for good... just block that comment from your brain. :bigsmile:
  • evolve33
    evolve33 Posts: 61 Member
    joonieb you are right about the cost thing. i'm only 26 and i just had my first baby so i don't have that much experience being a parent yet but i know my step-dads intentions were good. i never did dream about broccali and carrots after all
    i'm just trying to let go of that hoarding instinct i developed and choose healthy foods for myself. no one is going to lock up the sweets the grocery store is full of them and when i go shopping with my own money now i still feel like a kid in a candy store
  • nwfamilygal
    nwfamilygal Posts: 635
    It does hurt when someone you love talks to you like that. :frown: But we all know we are taking this weight off and it will stay off.:drinker: We have the support of each other.:drinker: We know that it is the healthy thing to do.:bigsmile: :flowerforyou: So we can feel great about ourselves.:drinker: :drinker: We will keep it off also. :drinker: :drinker:
  • molsongirl
    molsongirl Posts: 1,373 Member
    I have 14 kids at home, and to make a long story short, I NEVER have junk available, so it's not an issue, there's only healthy options available, if I do buy the very odd bag of oreos, I make smoothies with them, then they're gone, done. This way i'm keeping track of their eating and they get a treat. The funny thing is, when we take the kids out to the store, very seldom do they go for the junk, they usually want the frozen yogurt, or the odd time they want a bag of popcorn, I believe in "the if it's not there you can't want it."...I bake quite often, so the kids get their fair share of "altered" brownies, and cakes lol. My oldest daughters went to visit a friend for the weekend, they called me in the morning wanting to come home, because their only choice for breakfast was count chocula and pop tarts, my daughter thught it was "disgusting"...eating healthy is something a child needs to be taught, the options need to be provided, and most importantly you need to set the example.
  • ladyofivy
    ladyofivy Posts: 648
    i'm new here and was thinking last night about why i eat when i'm not hungry... sometimes don't even enjoy it but keep eating anyway.
    when i was young my step-father would hide food or keep it locked away to keep me and my 5 bros and sis from sneaking treats. that only made me want it more and i got good at outsmarting him. i would bring cookies and candy to my bed late at night and devour it joyfully.
    that must leave an emotional mark right? im trying to stop being that little girl anyone else have food issues in their childhood?

    (((HUGS)))

    I actually only *just* wrote a blog somewhat about this... the desire to eat even when you're not hungry. I wrote out what I actually do when this happens, if you're interested:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ladyofivy
  • Carl01
    Carl01 Posts: 9,307 Member
    Several years ago a friend and co-worker of mine who was severely over weight (he was 5' and well over 300 lbs) said that once he was told..."some people eat to live and you live to eat".
    A common saying but he took that as the gospel for his life and assumed it meant that he had no choice.

    He was wrong,dead wrong...it wasn`t how it had to be.

    Please everyone,don`t take some mean statement or what was intended as a quip to be what controls your lives.
    Be the person YOU want to be!
  • Venusjems
    Venusjems Posts: 88 Member
    Iceprincessk25, in theory you are absolutely right. Hiding food, making a big deal out of what and when it can be eaten can really do a number on a kid's perception of food. HOWEVER, now that I am a mom of lots of kids (5), I can totally see the reasons. Teens eat like truckers and can easily consume $10 worth of snack foods in one sitting (a budgetary and general nutrition problem) and some little kids ONLY crave junk and you have to really work on getting them to eat healthily. Free range really doesn't work for the kid who would choose junk for every meal and in between meal snack. Every body is different, and I'm not saying my way is right. But for my kids.....

    Ditto!!! i have three step children and my 6 month baby that live with me. They ask me before they even open the refrigerator... The oldest (14) would eat me out of house and home in one sitting, and the 12 and 10 year old didnt even get a chance to eat anything. I absouletly can not do free range. I make sure they have enough to eat something everyday after school and an after dinner snack. I tell them this is yours for the week, eat it all now and have nothing for the next 5 days and you CANT take your brothers or sisters either...
    But i dont ridicule them, and if they are truly "starving" i can make them something, or give up another apple or two....
  • Cindysunshine
    Cindysunshine Posts: 1,188 Member
    I was a chubby kid from the ages of 8-13. I ate to make myself feel better after an emotional scarring experiance. I thank goodness that my parents didn't make a big deal about my weight. I knew I was big. They knew I was big. I never felt less loved becouse of it. I lost 75 ponds on my own by the time I was 14. I kept it off until I was 23. I gained it back slowly because I took it off the wrong way. I had my first chils at 25 . I lost 110 pounds in 03. I gained it all back because I took it off the wrong way. I lost 65 pounds in 06 doing South Beach and guess what? I gained it all back. I am now losing weight the right way. It took me lots of years and weight to figure this out. I can not imagine where I'd be if my parents would have been food hiders or on my case. My kids know what healthy food is and know what treats are. I emphasize healthy eating but don't deny them anything within reason. My 10 year old dd is 4ft 10" and weighs 89 pounds. This same dd was 9 pounds 14.5 oz at birth. :O) I thank God she's a healthy weight. I would not want her to go down the same path I have.
  • mutkin
    mutkin Posts: 109
    ugh i so have the same sort of issue....

    When i was a kid my mom would always comment on what i was eating ... you shouldnt eat that youll get fat... look that cookie makes your rolls bigger... and so on...i was between the ages of like 6 till i was a teen....
    So i would steal food and hide it and eat when no one was watching.... I remember once i was probably like 7 i went in the cookie jar and took all the middles out of the oreos made a big ball of icing and put the oreo tops back hoping no one would notice.. then i took my icing ball to my room and hid it in my dresser:blushing: Its funny because my mom always thought i did those things because i was a pig or greedy or what ever but infact i was embarassed to eat in front of her and scared...

    Wow....this is exactly how things were in my house growing up. Except my mother FOUND the cookies hidden in my nightstand and sent me to a child psychologist for hoarding. To this day, she thinks her own obsessions with food and her body had no effect on her children. ha!
  • Iceprincessk25
    Iceprincessk25 Posts: 1,888 Member
    I dunno how we knew not to eat all the food in the house but we didn't so that's why I think it's weird when kids have to ask. I guess I just don't understand it. It's not like we had the best role models as far as parents & their food choices went either.

    Mom's idea of cooking dinner was picking something up on the way home from work. :bigsmile:

    We also played outside every day until the street lights came on and weren't crazy couch potatoes.

    I just look at it like if you are restrictive while the kid is growing up then once that kid goes to college or is away from your rules they go hog wild.

    My high school BF for instance had RIDICULOUSLY strict parents. As soon as he got to UCSB after graduating he went NUTS when he was free. Went from being a really nerdy good kid, straight-laced, 4.0+ student to a 1.2 GPA in a semester, got a DUI, etc. Kinda scary.
  • sassiebritches
    sassiebritches Posts: 1,861 Member
    I have 14 kids at home, and to make a long story short, I NEVER have junk available, so it's not an issue, there's only healthy options available, if I do buy the very odd bag of oreos, I make smoothies with them, then they're gone, done. This way i'm keeping track of their eating and they get a treat. The funny thing is, when we take the kids out to the store, very seldom do they go for the junk, they usually want the frozen yogurt, or the odd time they want a bag of popcorn, I believe in "the if it's not there you can't want it."...I bake quite often, so the kids get their fair share of "altered" brownies, and cakes lol. My oldest daughters went to visit a friend for the weekend, they called me in the morning wanting to come home, because their only choice for breakfast was count chocula and pop tarts, my daughter thught it was "disgusting"...eating healthy is something a child needs to be taught, the options need to be provided, and most importantly you need to set the example.

    HOLY SHEETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :ohwell: You have 14 kids.........smoly hokes....my fiancee would use your example as a guide book to our family to be.....he wants as many as he possibly can convince me to agree to.....I am thinkin 2 max.....14 kids.......................how in the heck do ya feed all of them mouths?

    Sorry....but 14 KIDS................wow, there must be alot of love in your house :ohwell:
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