Night binges

I'm really sorry for the traumatic life events you have had. Truly.

I used food as a friend and as a comfort, too.

I had to do a lot of work to find alternate, mindful ways of coping with my emotions.

Have you considered talking to someone for a few sessions? Cognitive Behavior Therapy is really helpful, or there are a lot of websites and books about CBT.

I'm really glad you're swimming - that's going to help you a lot! You're safe and on the mend now.

Good advice has been given so far, especially about changing habits. Habits CAN be changed. Yes, it's difficult at first, but well worth it.

Also, you may want to keep reminding yourself that your newly repaired spine will recover better and will be better in the long run if your body has less weight to carry.

Super that you can now start to be active again! Generally, the more active you are the less likely you'll want to over-do nighttime eating if the calories aren't actually needed.

Some people go to bed early. The later they stay up, the more tempted they are. The other thought, don't keep tempting food in the house.

I don't binge eat.. but I am a nibbler. ha. My husband calls me that. How I tackle that is I never have sweets, ice cream or cookies and junk food in my home. I just nibbled two crumbles of low fat feta cheese. That's the worst I/ve got in my fridge and I can't pack on the pounds doing that.
So.. perhaps purge your home of the food you binge on.

Good advice above, so this is additional, not disagreement.

Habits: It's usually easier to break an undesired habit by replacing it with a new one, vs. trying to willpower through stopping. In the case of an eating habit, some options would be some mild exercise (walk around the block, yoga . . . ) or some hobby (ideally one that requires clean hands, such as needlework, sketching, playing a musical instrument, etc.; or that creates dirty hands, like painting, carpentry, gardening, etc.).

Night eating specifically: Others have given good advice about the psychological side of this. I want to point out a physical side: As the day goes on, fatigue increases. As fatigue increases, it would be normal for the body to seek energy. Food is energy, and cravings are a form of seeking. Consider whether you can improve your sleep quality/quantity, or improve non-food stress management (because stress increases fatigue).

Eating habits, specifically: Over-restricting was mentioned as a possible pitfall. In addition, for me, timing of eating was important. I need a solid breakfast with adequate protein, then protein through the day, and some volume (usually veggies/fruit) in the day someplace, or all be more crave-y in the evening. That exact formula might not be the right one for you, but experimenting with when you eat, the relative size of meals, or the nutrient mix, may help reduce your night cravings. Getting overall good nutrition can also help, because sometimes if we're short on something(s) nutritionally, cravings result . . . and the cravings aren't always for the needed nutrient.

For me, it took a couple of weeks or so - even once on a good routine - for my body to stop complaining that it wanted to return to old patterns. That part, I had to willpower through. It's kind of like dog training, y'know? Don't reward the undesired behavior, hold strong for a reasonable time, things can fall into place. (You may've already done that - your specific timeline on this point isn't obvious to me.)

I buy these little bite size dark chocolate dove ice creams. They are 70 calories each. What if you planned ahead to have something like that, maybe even a few of them, before bed? Go ahead and log it as a part of your caloric allowances?

breannbear wrote: »

SO, not a lot of people know this, but MOST of the time binges stem from restriction. I am not saying that counting calories and tracking is bad, but I mean that dieting can be harmful for many. It leads to food scarcity, biological hunger, etc.

It is actually not your fault- it is how your brain is wired. There is so much to binge eating.

If you have great info from your success that will help others, why not share it right out in public here in a post, where it can help lots of people? The "email me" approach can make people suspicious that you're selling something or the like, and I'm sure you wouldn't want that.

Add me to the list of people wondering if "I could eat healthy all day" means you are actually undereating.



That said, I do have an issue with eating at night which is triggered by stress. (I only had an overly aggressive weight loss goal for half a day in 2012, lol.)

I'd gotten my night time eating under control with the help of a therapist and CBT and ACT. Now I'm in a toxic family situation, the night time eating is back, and I lost my therapist last month I'm starting with a new one Monday, but don't have high hopes until I move out.

With the health challenges and job loss you've endured, I highly recommend therapy. I love that remote access has been expanded thanks to COVID. It makes therapy so much more convenient.

This is my biggest issue as well, as I am often up late at night working I am finally getting it under control. Number one is simple: stop the impulse to buy your favorite binge foods so they are not in the house. Second thing is change your sleep pattern so you go to bed earlier and stay asleep.