need help to control binge eating

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Hungry0hippo
Hungry0hippo Posts: 19
in Introduce Yourself
Hi, I wondered if anyone could help and advise me on controlling my binge eating. It is mainly emotional. I do great on my diet in the daytime. Its just when I get home that i have the problem. No one sees this as I live alone. Afterwards I just feel even worse. I'm desperate to lose weight and need to get this under control

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  • buckobuckobucko
    buckobuckobucko Posts: 65
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    Get rid of all the junk food in the house. That way if you binge you can only binge on healthy food like celery.
  • hschinzing
    hschinzing Posts: 2
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    I am a huge stress eater too. I bought an air pop popcorn maker and am getting used to the flavor of popcorn alone (No butter or salt) There are 0 calories in air popped popcorn so you eat all you want with no guilt!
  • eve7166
    eve7166 Posts: 223 Member
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    -first off try not to think of food as tied to emotions (i know its hard but you need to change that way of thinking)
    - Log EVERYTHING you eat. Make yourself accontable for everything and think about what you eat before you do it. Just because no one SEEs you eat it doesnt mean it doesnt count

    -if you sad try to exercise. I deal with depression on and off alot and it definitly helps to excersize. Its hard I know sometmes I just want to lay in bed and do nothing but try to do it. Maybe find a work out buddy that can help motivate you.

    - try to eat atleast 3 times a day so you are never really hungry. I eat about 4 times.

    -drink lots of water.

    and just think about it once you start to lose weight and look better you will feel better too :) GL!
  • BeesKnees181
    BeesKnees181 Posts: 166 Member
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    Replace this "addiction" or tendency to binge with another healthy activity. For example, take a walk, join a gym and go right after work (that is what I do...I also live alone and have binge eating tendencies), go see a movie, meet some friends out for some shopping, or take a class at the gym. And remind yourself all the time that you are stronger than that urge.

    My control has only become better with plenty of time with a therapist to help me deal with the difficult emotional things I was fighting. Yoga and quiet time is now my "therapy." Have you tried journaling how you feel when you eat? Tracking your emotions when you are eating is a great way to watch for your triggers.

    I hope this helps.
  • beargirl34sr
    beargirl34sr Posts: 11
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    I struggle with this too from time to time...keep yourself busy too in the evenings and chew on gum or snack on celery, green grapes (just about 10 to ease the craving), that kind of thing...start writing a journal when you feel like hungry and write down what your feeling and experiencing to understand why your binge eating or emotional eating...you'll be surprised at how you can become aware of it more before rather than after you have eaten something heavy or junkie...hope that helps!:flowerforyou:
  • rhindon
    rhindon Posts: 35 Member
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    this has been a big issue for me as well. Whenever I do buy any kind of snack or treat, I try to put individual portions into snack bags. I take them to work with me or eat them that way at home rather than grabbing the whole bag or box. Many times I will put the calorie number right on the bag with a Sharpie so I know where I stand before I put it in my mouth. Maybe this will help put some perspective on what you're doing before you do it?
  • lilRicki
    lilRicki Posts: 4,555 Member
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    work out in the evening...that's what stops me. I have supper, sit around for an hour, go to the gym to bust my *kitten* and by the time I get home I'm tired and cranky...I suck back a smoothie and by then it's shower and bed time.
  • Laurelli1
    Laurelli1 Posts: 2
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    I used to binge eat constantly due to depression more than stress (multiple miscarriages, death of a newborn, failed weight-loss, etc.). My top weight was over 320 lbs (stopped weighing myself at that point). I tried walking and such but that didn't really help. I'd still binge about midnight or so. I finally took up some other hobbies that are more theraputic for me. Quilting works wonders. Beginners quilts really aren't that difficult for a newbie and don't take that long. Big sense of accomplishment, especially as your skill level increases (doing landscape quilts now). Painting was another life-saver. It's much more challenging.

    Both things are a HUGE distraction and are easy to pass hours doing without realizing it. Completing something visually appealing helps too. "If I can make something this pretty/intricate, I can do anything" type of mindset. It's just good therapy :wink:
  • robincpreston
    robincpreston Posts: 1
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    Ok there is no food that has zero calories besides water. Air popcorn has about 35 calories per cup.
  • yesthistime
    yesthistime Posts: 2,051 Member
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    There's a group on MFP that deals with binge eating (I believe it's called "Binge Eating Support Group"). Just go to the Groups section and search for it or http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/726-binge-eating-support-group

    Hope this helps :)
  • Audddua
    Audddua Posts: 176 Member
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    brush your teeth, chew gum & eat altoids (pick one... I don't mean do all three). It's impossible to enjoy eating anything after munching on a couple altoids!
  • lstpaul
    lstpaul Posts: 2,013 Member
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    I have the same problem at night, and I know it can be a 'boredom' or 'emotional-eating' thing. But one thing that really helps me is to have a balanced snack mid-afternoon with a protein, healthy fat and healthy carb like fruit or veggie. For example: cottage cheese, almonds and blueberries. Then I have less actual physical cravings when I get home, and I can usually (but not always) control the emotional eating better.
  • gsager
    gsager Posts: 977 Member
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    No one can do it for you....if you want to lose weight you will have to stop it.
  • rmdaly
    rmdaly Posts: 250 Member
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    Nights are my worst time as well. I was going through a period where I would just eat everything I could, not even thinking about it and then go to bed feeling awful and hating myself for it. I had figure out how to try to get away from it. Here are some things that worked for me, although I wouldn't say I am cured of it, but maybe it will help.

    Like yourself. When I would binge, I hated myself. Find ways to feel good about yourself, possibly even writing it down. Compliment yourself for the things that you accomplished this day. Also, take care of yourself. Excercise, get good sleep, eat well, etc. Possibly look into a gratitude journal.

    Treat it like a bad habit and not a moral failing. You got in the bad habit of eating after dinner. Just work on that and try to keep the emotions out of it.

    Get enough sleep. Research has shown that sleep deprivation can lead to poor decision making. Personally, I find that at the end of the day, if I am tired, it is so much easier to just binge.

    Plan a nice dinner and make it yourself. Don't just snack for dinner. Enjoy your dinner and take time to eat it. Have dessert if you can and eat it slowly and enjoy it.

    Stay away from the kitchen and TV in the evening, keeping yourself busy with other things. TV watching has also been associated with overeating. Or, if you do watch TV, take up a hobby like knitting that you can't eat while doing.

    Make sure you eat enough during the day so that you don't come home starving. If I get overly hungry that can lead to really bad evenings.

    Good luck
  • dance_fit
    dance_fit Posts: 53 Member
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    The book "Brain Over Binge" helped me greatly. The only thing is that nothing will work until you are 100% ready to change.

    http://www.amazon.com/Brain-over-Binge-Conventional-Recovered/dp/0984481702/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328129690&sr=8-1

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