Cannot stop eatting

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I'm off track big time....only put on 4 pounds and feel terrible about it but im comfort eatting, I'm tired and feeling very emotional laterly about my sons progress. I finnaly recived my sons second specialised Buggy after four years of struggling with a very heavy duty buggy....I should be happy but i'm not instead im forgetting my sons progress and thinking for what he hasn't developed :O(
How can I stop comfort eatting and get back on track ??

Replies

  • drisner
    drisner Posts: 13 Member
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    First thing is to put what has happened in the past behind you. Just because you gained pounds in the past few weeks doesn't mean that you can't lose today. It's always a good day to lose weight. :-)

    For me, so far, I've been trying to do something else when I'm craving that comfort food. I really try to exercise; especially a walk or something that takes me away from where the food is. Another thing I try is to prepare a small amount of comfort food and have that. I've also tried some substitutes. For example, I have found that a chicken sausage with some spaghetti sauce staves off pizza cravings (pizza being one of my greatest weaknesses).

    Sometimes, when you're really craving something, the only way to deal with it is to have that thing because otherwise you'll eat a whole bunch of other things before finally eating that thing. At least then you will have minimized the damage and can move on.

    I am not at all saying you're crazy or inferior by saying the following, but you might want to look into therapy to help you with coping skills for the stressful and depressing times. We all need help sometimes especially when having to provide so much support for one we love.

    Best wishes.
  • louisebear
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    drisner Thankyou for ur reply :O)
  • sandy2006
    sandy2006 Posts: 483 Member
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    I know how ya feel. But the good thing is you can choose to get yourself back up and do the right thing. Just remember how good you feel when you are eating healthy. The one thing that I do it for besides myself, is my son. He is a SN child and I am not sure he will be able to care for himself as an adult. So I know I have to and want to be as healthy as possible for him. Take it one day at a time. Get one good day of eating in and then another and so on. You can do this.
  • qkidney
    qkidney Posts: 258
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    Sometimes, when you're really craving something, the only way to deal with it is to have that thing because otherwise you'll eat a whole bunch of other things before finally eating that thing. At least then you will have minimized the damage and can move on.

    This!
  • louisebear
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    thankyou....and this is soo true :O)
  • mdclr
    mdclr Posts: 3
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    My weakness is sugar, which is helping me with my cravings is dried fruit with almonds, it fills me and stop the craving
  • msliu7911
    msliu7911 Posts: 639 Member
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    Sadly, I'm all to familiar with the emotional eating trap. (gained 20 lbs in 6 months, which I'm now trying to work off) I'm not completely over this emotional eating phase, however I did end up seeing a counselor for it and am about 95% confident that what I eat now is no longer fueled by my emotions.

    The biggest step I took was to try and step back and think of what was bothering me (whether it be something making me sad, angry, stressed, etc.) when I started to mindlessly eat. One of my biggest realizations came when I was doing great eating healthy all day, then suddenly a bad experience with an evil employee at WalMart made me upset and bitter... then all of a sudden I wanted to stop for an ice cream cone on the way home- when I had just eaten a big lunch! I was able to realize that I've been conditioned to turn to food at any instance of discomfort.

    One other thing I recommend is to check out a book (if you can)- Breaking Free From Emotional Eating, by Geneen Roth. Very inspiring and helpful.

    Best wishes, you can get through this!
  • grinch031
    grinch031 Posts: 1,679
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    I used to binge uncontrollably when I combined heavy exercise with over-consumption of sugars and refined carbs. I cut those out except for special occasions, added more fat and protein, and also limited to just whole grain and fruits, but still in proportion to how much I exercise. This has killed my binging habits. So my diet really revolves around my exercise routine now more than anything. Tired of doing the exercise and not seeing improvements because my diet was out of control.
  • Ramalaz
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    I have super super sugar cravings (chocolate, cake, ice cream) and I find that I don't have them when I stay away from them. It is when I give in and have a piece of chocolate something comes over me and before I know it I had 10 pieces. It's almost like I transform into a monster when I consume the stuff. I stick to the avoidance technique otherwise I can't stop eating.
  • louisebear
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    Thankyou for all the advice xxx
  • norwichjules
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    lots of you have familiar comments!!

    at supermarket to avoid buying a chocolate treat to make me feel better, I buy myself a small bunch of flowers
  • morganadk2_deleted
    morganadk2_deleted Posts: 1,696 Member
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    i find if i'm fuller i don't crave, or if i do i can resist the temptation better :flowerforyou:

    how many calorie are you eating ? are you eating your exercise calories? are you drinking enough water?


    Generally someone with a BMI over 32 can do a 1000 calorie a day (2 lbs a week) deficit
    With a BMI of 30 to 32 a deficit of 750 calories is generally correct (about 1.5 lbs a week)
    With a BMI of 28 to 30 a deficit of 500 calories is about right (about 1 lb a week)
    With a BMI of 26 to 28 a deficit of about 300 calories is perfect (about 1/2 lb a week)
    and below 26... well this is where we get fuzzy. See now you're no longer talking about being overweight, so while it's still ok to have a small deficit, you really should shift your focus more towards muscle building, and reducing fat. This means it is EXTRA important to eat your exercise calories as your body needs to KNOW it's ok to burn fat stores, and the only way it will know is if you keep giving it the calories it needs to not enter the famine response (starvation mode).

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits
  • paulslimjonesbryant
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    go for a walk if you feel hungry and instead off going for a meal go clothes shopping add me any if you like
  • Grace619
    Grace619 Posts: 28 Member
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    Thank you for writing about this here. When I've messed up & gained again, I have been avoiding this website, when I truly needed to be here. Lesson learned. :) apparently, we are all human and fall off the wagon here & there. Working through this together! :)