Binge Eating & Compulsive Overeating
JaenaM
Posts: 251 Member
Have you suffered from it?
Have you mastered it?
What did you do?
I've had BED/CO for most of my life. I'm not a purger as that one episode with laxatives taught me (TMI?). Just when I think I'm getting it under control I slip and when I slip, it's for days not just one session. It's like some part of my brain says, "Well, in for a penny, in for a pound" and I just chuck my whole program because of one slip up. How do you manage the self-judgment, self-criticism, blame, and general difficulties of being a current or former binger?
(Sorry for multiple posts on the topic, just feeling a pressing need for some fresh perspectives)
Have you mastered it?
What did you do?
I've had BED/CO for most of my life. I'm not a purger as that one episode with laxatives taught me (TMI?). Just when I think I'm getting it under control I slip and when I slip, it's for days not just one session. It's like some part of my brain says, "Well, in for a penny, in for a pound" and I just chuck my whole program because of one slip up. How do you manage the self-judgment, self-criticism, blame, and general difficulties of being a current or former binger?
(Sorry for multiple posts on the topic, just feeling a pressing need for some fresh perspectives)
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Replies
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I have bulimia, but can't offer any advice because I don't know any
but I can sympathize. 0 -
I honestly do. but I am an athelte, and i have been my whole life, so it really boosts my hunger, and if I skip a meal or something, I just go crazy, and I cannot stop eating. I have not mastered it, but this site helps i guess.0
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I'm such a nerd. This almost brings tears to my eyes. I over eat like CRAZY. I remember a few times I ate so much and I was so constipated(tmi) but I had these raunchy burps almost like sulfur. I got huge belly aches and I would constantly beat myself over it, personally I don't know how to feel about it. Inside I'm just like what the heck am I doing?! I don't even eat when I'm hungry anymore... So when I would over eat all I could do was puke my brains out. Tmi, I know.0
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Yes I have and do suffer from it. Not sure I have any answers, but wanted you to know you are certainly not alone.
I eat great during the day and absolutely work my butt off at the gym. They after 8 at night, someone else takes over my brain and I start eating and cannot stop. My purge is in the form of exercise. I feel a huge amount of guilt and self loathing. It is such a hard thing to deal with. I will get it under control for months at a time and think I am done with it,,,,,,and then its back.
Anyone with advice on this is welcome to help.
I have been to counseling for this, and it never seems to get to the root of things.
thanks, and good luck!!
suse0 -
I have learned that if I have one of my Binge Eating episodes If I work out and stay under the next day it doesnt affect my weight loss just dont chuck it out the window, I know it says I just started here but I delete my first account because of being Preggers for the last 9 months,, Just hang in there when your having one of those days just make sure you work twice as hard to stay on track in the days to follow!0
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I binge quite allot to ,, i realised it was were most of my calories were coming from ive by no means beaten it but i have stoped it latley is it permanent i dont no but i hope so anyways here is what ive done
Went through the cupboards and worked out what my binge foods are i have a family so i cant just get rid of all the stuff like bread and cheese that i need around for them so what i did was make it annoying and a bit more time consuming to get to like for example when i am in one of my binge zombie like states i tend to go for little yummy things like kit kat choc mini bars so i put them way up the top of the cupboard way up the back behind a bunch of things, generally before ive decided wether i can be bothered to get them or not iive calmed down a little and had a better think about wether i really want it
next thing ive done is prepare for them weekend nights i know im more likley to have a binge sesh so i make myself some healthy foodsearlier in the night and set them aside and if i absoloutley cant stop myself haveing something to eat , i make myself eat my prepared food , if after that i still desperatly want my packet of chips or choc i have it because i figure the more stressesd i get the more likley i am to go even more overboard but more often than not my healthy snack takes away the urge and i dont need it alos i make myself drink atleast one glass of water when i feel the binge urge coming on
another thing i have done is tell my husband about it ive told him if he notices that im out there stuffing my face to gently come remind me when i feel like im the only person who knows its less embarassing i feel less responsibility but if i know he knows what im doing i feel way more guilty and tend to not do it as much
hope some of these things helped0 -
I'm a binge eater (usually over 10k in a session in the times I've tried to calculate it). I don't stop until I'm in so much pain and have given myself really bad digestive problems and the whole night I say over and over in my head "I hate myself." When I was a teenager I had seen a nutritionist and was getting therapy, but the binge eating was treated more as a side effect from the anxiety and depression so it wasn't really addressed. I had been good for several years, then I became unemployed in spring and it all came back. Up to a couple times a week. I had recently made it 3 weeks without an episode but I had one last night, and again tonight. I'm like you and I just want to say f it and continue on because I like the taste of food and that makes me happy. I'm planning a pizza buffet trip Sunday... I know that probably sounds weird, but I just want to gorge and stuff my face and think it is ok because of the last couple days. After that, I say, Monday I'll try again. Mind if I friend you? I'd really like to be able to communicate to somebody in the same boat
As for getting rid of "binge foods," I can't get that to work, I'll eat anything. Baking supplies like unsweetend cocoa powder or brown sugar, frozen veggies, condensed milk... if it is edible and I'm in the "mood" I'll put it in my mouth! It is so shameful Sorry for the ramble, I'm tipsy, I'll probably delete this later! 0 -
Yes I have and do suffer from it. Not sure I have any answers, but wanted you to know you are certainly not alone.
I eat great during the day and absolutely work my butt off at the gym. They after 8 at night, someone else takes over my brain and I start eating and cannot stop. My purge is in the form of exercise. I feel a huge amount of guilt and self loathing. It is such a hard thing to deal with. I will get it under control for months at a time and think I am done with it,,,,,,and then its back.
Anyone with advice on this is welcome to help.
I have been to counseling for this, and it never seems to get to the root of things.
thanks, and good luck!!
suse
thank u so much for your honesty and vulnerability; so many of us suffer from this and i relate to everything you said. it's exactly like someone else takes over my brain.... it makes me feel like something is inherently and fundamentally wrong or broken with me. it's hell and it has to stop.0 -
I binge quite allot to ,, i realised it was were most of my calories were coming from ive by no means beaten it but i have stoped it latley is it permanent i dont no but i hope so anyways here is what ive done
Went through the cupboards and worked out what my binge foods are i have a family so i cant just get rid of all the stuff like bread and cheese that i need around for them so what i did was make it annoying and a bit more time consuming to get to like for example when i am in one of my binge zombie like states i tend to go for little yummy things like kit kat choc mini bars so i put them way up the top of the cupboard way up the back behind a bunch of things, generally before ive decided wether i can be bothered to get them or not iive calmed down a little and had a better think about wether i really want it
next thing ive done is prepare for them weekend nights i know im more likley to have a binge sesh so i make myself some healthy foodsearlier in the night and set them aside and if i absoloutley cant stop myself haveing something to eat , i make myself eat my prepared food , if after that i still desperatly want my packet of chips or choc i have it because i figure the more stressesd i get the more likley i am to go even more overboard but more often than not my healthy snack takes away the urge and i dont need it alos i make myself drink atleast one glass of water when i feel the binge urge coming on
another thing i have done is tell my husband about it ive told him if he notices that im out there stuffing my face to gently come remind me when i feel like im the only person who knows its less embarassing i feel less responsibility but if i know he knows what im doing i feel way more guilty and tend to not do it as much
hope some of these things helped
great suggestions; helped a lot 0 -
OK let me preface this subject with this thought.. I was diagnosed in my 20's ... I am now 44 yrs old.
I was married in 1987 to my high school sweetheart and i was 130 pounds.. and felt absolutely fat but anyways..
In my 20's, I was diagnosed with Bulemia.. and I admit I would binge eat for days and weeks at a time. Sometimes secretly and sometimes at buffets or at gatherings where everyone is so busy talking they dont notice its not your 1st plate but your 5th. I did NOT purge because i was afraid of the damage to my inside organs and tooth enamel.
MY doctor first found out when I gained 20 pounds in a month!.. YES ONE MONTH! He didnt believe it either and personally weighed me.. So i was sent to a nutritionist and a psychologist to deal with my issue.. I hope you NEVER EVER have to face a loved one (dad) dieing a slow agonizing death but that had set me off and I was in charge of his medical care so the stress induced my binging!
The "doctors" i saw were all very well intentioned but didnt know a damn thing about losing weight or having bulemia. One told me to "buy good walking shoes and try to walk" .. LOL! .. The nutritioinist said to "try to eat half my plate" ... PFT! .. what a joke!
I never realized what I was doing to my own body and I love myself and my family too much, not fight the urge and to get healthy. I tried to stop when I had my daughter .. Afterall I was nursing her and didn't want her to be affected. But shortly after I would still binge. NOT as often but it still happened. Recently Dec 2010 I had my work reduced to 15 hours a week. I thought I would start binging again.. I SOOOOO WANTED TO! .. like a FOOD ADDICT.... But after 2 days I pulled myself together.. AGAIN stress induced!
Well.. NOW I have it under control. Not because of medical treatment.. but because of this site. I can happily say this site has given me the knowledge of the damage I was causing my body with the excess fat, calories and sugar. I'm not perfect and I won't say I"ll never relapse.. BUT this knowledge is powerful and Everyday I fight, and the fight gets a lil easier.. if I binge its by eating healthy foods low in cals and I never allow myself more than over 200 calories over my daily calorie goal. Since Dec 2010 I haven't had a binge day ..
DONT GIVE UP!!! YOU TOO CAN DO THIS!!! I'M PROOF OF IT!!!
*******hugs to all*********
Monica
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OK let me preface this subject with this thought.. I was diagnosed in my 20's ... I am now 44 yrs old.
I was married in 1987 to my high school sweetheart and i was 130 pounds.. and felt absolutely fat but anyways..
In my 20's, I was diagnosed with Bulemia.. and I admit I would binge eat for days and weeks at a time. Sometimes secretly and sometimes at buffets or at gatherings where everyone is so busy talking they dont notice its not your 1st plate but your 5th. I did NOT purge because i was afraid of the damage to my inside organs and tooth enamel.
MY doctor first found out when I gained 20 pounds in a month!.. YES ONE MONTH! He didnt believe it either and personally weighed me.. So i was sent to a nutritionist and a psychologist to deal with my issue.. I hope you NEVER EVER have to face a loved one (dad) dieing a slow agonizing death but that had set me off and I was in charge of his medical care so the stress induced my binging!
The "doctors" i saw were all very well intentioned but didnt know a damn thing about losing weight or having bulemia. One told me to "buy good walking shoes and try to walk" .. LOL! .. The nutritioinist said to "try to eat half my plate" ... PFT! .. what a joke!
I never realized what I was doing to my own body and I love myself and my family too much, not fight the urge and to get healthy. I tried to stop when I had my daughter .. Afterall I was nursing her and didn't want her to be affected. But shortly after I would still binge. NOT as often but it still happened. Recently Dec 2010 I had my work reduced to 15 hours a week. I thought I would start binging again.. I SOOOOO WANTED TO! .. like a FOOD ADDICT.... But after 2 days I pulled myself together.. AGAIN stress induced!
Well.. NOW I have it under control. Not because of medical treatment.. but because of this site. I can happily say this site has given me the knowledge of the damage I was causing my body with the excess fat, calories and sugar. I'm not perfect and I won't say I"ll never relapse.. BUT this knowledge is powerful and Everyday I fight, and the fight gets a lil easier.. if I binge its by eating healthy foods low in cals and I never allow myself more than over 200 calories over my daily calorie goal. Since Dec 2010 I haven't had a binge day ..
DONT GIVE UP!!! YOU TOO CAN DO THIS!!! I'M PROOF OF IT!!!
*******hugs to all*********
Monica
thank u so much for sharing! all of these posts are helping a lot! its just nice to have others to relate to. BED/CO carries a definite element of shame with it...i know I'm a "secret eater"...so having others to share it with is so refreshing and liberating. THANK U ALL!0 -
Binge eating is something I seriously struggle with. If I stay strong I can be fine for weeks, however once I give in its like I lose all self control. And then the feelings of guilt begin! I also only do it in secret and the thought of anyone close to me finding out is shameful. I know I need to learn that if I slip up its not the end of the world, I just need to get back on track again instead of giving up and eating unhealthily for the rest of the week. Before I would not log any of my calories from a binge, however Ive now started to log everything. I think this is going to really help as just looking at the sheer number of calories I have consumed helps me to think Im not going to do it again. Just need to increase my willpower.....0
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In the past couple of weeks or so I have been thinking hard about whether or not I actually suffer from this. And after some serious though I realized that I do. To combat it I have been trying to dissect the emotional triggers (because when everything is normal I USUALLY don't have a problem). The two weeks leading up to my MCAT I would eat everything in site. I couldn't focus on studying because I was focused on food. Those M&M's... yeah I finished those. Animal crackers? Man those were good. I have always been a good student, can focus, and get good grades. But in senior year of high school and the rest of college I found that stuffing myself would act like an anchor. I would fill up and I could sit and focus (although it was super uncomfortable). I felt like there was no way I was going to get up and do anything else because I physically couldn't. So I would sit and study/do work! Now I am trying to make running a good coping factor for stress.
I did have a huge non-scale victory the other day. I got my MCAT scores back... and I am going to have to take them again. I didn't bomb, but I hadn't taken biochem or some anatomy classes yet and tried to teach myself. But besides that, instead of eating like crazy after I heard the scores, I ran.... my longest distance.... in my fastest time. So happy! I ended up feeling a lot better than if I had binged.
For me, it is finding the emotional triggers. It is also finding the food triggers. No... I can't have a fry. If I have one, I feel justified to eat the whole plate. Sadly, I think in a lot of cases it will be all or nothing with me. So I might have to give up some things. I feel lie due to the emotional aspect, this problem affects so many people differently. But as long as you take those initial first steps towards figuring it out, that's the hardest part, you can keep going!
"It's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think your not."0 -
Just 2 very brief suggestions:
1. Google Overeaters Anonymous and give the website a quick read. This may or may not address your problems but it is definitely worth a look. Please don't dismiss this out of hand but keep an open mind.
2. Not sure what your trigger foods are or how you are eating now, but for me, going to a lower-carb, Paleo or Primal-type eating style has done a LOT to keep me from losing control. I used to think binging was all psychological/emotional but I have learned that it has both mind and body components for me.
Best wishes in identifying your problem and finding a solution.0
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