anyone gotten over an eating disorder on here still really s

LauriesTrying2BeFit
LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
edited November 10 in Health and Weight Loss
i had bulimia from the age of 8-16 but still stuffered slightly 16-21 im now ok with food but can have bad times where im close to slipping back. i still really strugglie with self control over foods i really like and foods that are bad for me. i feel SO guilty if i eat really bad and i make sure i double my exercise to cover the bad foods.
i hate having no self control i even had to throw away a full jar of nutella the other day cause i just wanted to eat it all in one go.

how did/do you control your eating?

Replies

  • JanieJack
    JanieJack Posts: 3,831 Member
    i hate having no self control i even had to throw away a full jar of nutella the other day cause i just wanted to eat it all in one go.

    Please don't say you have no self control. You at least have enough self control to throw away the jar of nutella. Nutella is my weakness. I love the stuff. It is very hard for me to throw away food. But I have learned I have to, or I will eat it. Usually now I just try to have friends over when I want something I shouldn't eat so they can share it with me and then it's gone.
  • greekygirl
    greekygirl Posts: 448 Member
    I understand your struggle. It helps me to not buy and keep my binge foods in the house. If it is there I will eat it, regardless of whether I really want it. This way i would have to go out and buy it and more times than not I won't leave just to go get it. There is a support group on here for binge eating you could join and that might help too.
  • LauriesTrying2BeFit
    LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
    I understand your struggle. It helps me to not buy and keep my binge foods in the house. If it is there I will eat it, regardless of whether I really want it. This way i would have to go out and buy it and more times than not I won't leave just to go get it. There is a support group on here for binge eating you could join and that might help too.

    that is me if its in house i will eat it even if i dont want it or not even hungry if im alone ill eat it! xmas time was bad has my nan bought kids there weight in sweets and chocolate and we still have tonnes left! :indifferent:
  • trkinsley
    trkinsley Posts: 124 Member
    For me, carb heavy things can be a bit of a trigger for a binge, as can yogurt and overly artificially sweetened stuff. I have found that going lower carb, high fat has virtually eliminated my desire to overdo it. I stay away from bread, grains, cookies, etc, and only use a bit of stevia in my coffee now (that's down from the TWO saccharine packets and one aspartame packet that I used to use per cup!)

    A book that was extremely helpful for me was Brain over Binge by Kathryn Hansen. I felt like I had much more say so over the situation once I read that; everything else I've read or tried to follow seems to be focused on identification of triggers, deep introspection, etc. This one just says, you can STOP now without psychoanalysis.
  • LauriesTrying2BeFit
    LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
    A book that was extremely helpful for me was Brain over Binge by Kathryn Hansen. I felt like I had much more say so over the situation once I read that; everything else I've read or tried to follow seems to be focused on identification of triggers, deep introspection, etc. This one just says, you can STOP now without psychoanalysis.
    thanks ill take a look! its the self control i need to gain!
  • purpleipod
    purpleipod Posts: 1,147 Member
    Is part of it because you believe that there are "bad foods" and "good foods"? I don't consider anything a bad food. I eat what I want in moderation, I don't consider anything off limits.
  • LauriesTrying2BeFit
    LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
    Is part of it because you believe that there are "bad foods" and "good foods"? I don't consider anything a bad food. I eat what I want in moderation, I don't consider anything off limits.

    i see all high cal, high fat, high sugar foods has bad, i cant seem to get out of that mind set!
  • purpleipod
    purpleipod Posts: 1,147 Member
    Is part of it because you believe that there are "bad foods" and "good foods"? I don't consider anything a bad food. I eat what I want in moderation, I don't consider anything off limits.

    i see all high cal, high fat, high sugar foods has bad, i cant seem to get out of that mind set!

    Do you think you'll ever be able to keep weight off if you have that mindset? I know the more I deny myself something the more I want it.
  • LauriesTrying2BeFit
    LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
    i have started to let myself eat 'bad' foods in small amounts and not has often cause i honestly dont have the will power to stop once i start, iv always just eating as much rubbish has i can physically keep down and the i would throw it all back up so im not struggling with potion control and not having too much that i want to be sick or too little etc
  • tashaa1992
    tashaa1992 Posts: 658 Member
    I'm still in recovery, but I would like to know this, will it ever actually go away? I was first diagnosed with anorexia at the age of six but I'm nineteen, twenty next month now. I've had periods where I'm doing well in recovery, but everything goes downhill again. I want a normal life, not one spent in and out of hospital. Has anyone ever fully recovered from an eating disorder?

    Tasha
    xxx
  • lookslikeyoda
    lookslikeyoda Posts: 161 Member
    I used to have anorexia, I wasnt extremely thin or anything it was just the perception of food. I would go weeks without eating anything, I recovered years ago but would occasionally slip back into it but since being on here I've never relapsed.
  • LauriesTrying2BeFit
    LauriesTrying2BeFit Posts: 414 Member
    I'm still in recovery, but I would like to know this, will it ever actually go away? I was first diagnosed with anorexia at the age of six but I'm nineteen, twenty next month now. I've had periods where I'm doing well in recovery, but everything goes downhill again. I want a normal life, not one spent in and out of hospital. Has anyone ever fully recovered from an eating disorder?

    Tasha
    xxx

    i still have relapses now and i first started with my disorder over 15yrs ago i thought having kids would help me but ended up just making me hate my body more so i dont believe ill ever be normal :-s
  • tashaa1992
    tashaa1992 Posts: 658 Member
    I used to have anorexia, I wasnt extremely thin or anything it was just the perception of food. I would go weeks without eating anything, I recovered years ago but would occasionally slip back into it but since being on here I've never relapsed.
    You know before you fully recovered, had you had periods of recovery too?

    Tasha
    xxx
  • kittyninja
    kittyninja Posts: 118
    I thought I had fully recovered from bulimia last summer, but I still relapse sometimes. I've just gotten out of a daily binge/purge cycle that lasted 2 weeks, which is the worse relapse I've had.
    My binges and purges are compulsive/impulsive, so it's really hard to stop myself. I'll walk into the kitchen with the intent of cooking a healthy meal or snack, and before I know it, without even realizing it, I'll have a doughnut in one hand and the other hand full of cookies. At that point, before taking a single bite, I have to force myself to stop and think- What am I doing? Do I really want to do this? Why am I doing this? Usually, taking that split second to stop and think is what keeps me from binging, no matter how close I am to giving in. I just have to take a second, breathe, and make a better decision.
    It's really hard to overcome an eating disorder- trust me, I've had binge eating/compulsive overeating problems since I was 10 and alternating anorexia and bulimia since I was 13. What helps me is keeping a healthy attitude towards weight, food and exercise. I'm not too strict with myself and I try to stay positive. I don't beat myself up when I slip up.
    Stay strong girl. Eating disorders are rough, but you can overcome it. <3
  • tashaa1992
    tashaa1992 Posts: 658 Member
    I'm still in recovery, but I would like to know this, will it ever actually go away? I was first diagnosed with anorexia at the age of six but I'm nineteen, twenty next month now. I've had periods where I'm doing well in recovery, but everything goes downhill again. I want a normal life, not one spent in and out of hospital. Has anyone ever fully recovered from an eating disorder?

    Tasha
    xxx

    i still have relapses now and i first started with my disorder over 15yrs ago i thought having kids would help me but ended up just making me hate my body more so i dont believe ill ever be normal :-s
    I hope you don't think I'm being nosey, but did you get any help for it? Are you getting any help now because I think that yu could really benefit from it.

    Tasha
    xxx
  • aweightymatter
    aweightymatter Posts: 222
    I'm still in recovery, but I would like to know this, will it ever actually go away? I was first diagnosed with anorexia at the age of six but I'm nineteen, twenty next month now. I've had periods where I'm doing well in recovery, but everything goes downhill again. I want a normal life, not one spent in and out of hospital. Has anyone ever fully recovered from an eating disorder?

    Tasha
    xxx

    i still have relapses now and i first started with my disorder over 15yrs ago i thought having kids would help me but ended up just making me hate my body more so i dont believe ill ever be normal :-s

    I had issues similar to the OP and I would say I'm pretty "recovered" more or less... However, the crappy thing is once you learn food-related strategies for coping, it seems like they will always loom in the distance. The only thing is eventually you learn to talk yourself out of seeing them as a viable option... if that makes sense.

    Anyways OP there are a couple things that work for me. One, I try to eat low-calorie but high-volume meals -- salads, soups, egg-white omelets, old-fashioned oatmeal, etc. They make you so full that it becomes harder to think of binging. But at the same time, I also try to just eat what I *really* want, if I *really* want something. If, let's say, I go out to eat, and I get the "healthy" option but it's not what I *really* wanted, I might end up binging out of frustration later and eating more than I would have if I had just gotten the "bad" dish.

    The most important strategy though is to try to figure out, before you binge, what you are hoping to FEEL during the binge. Is it release? Escape? Excitement? etc. Sometimes just taking a minute to recognize what you are feeling/want to feel can be enough to derail the binge before it starts... For a little more on that I recommend Geneen Roth's books. She doesn't believe in dieting or calorie-counting though -- the complete opposite of MFP -- but there is a lot of good stuff on the psychology of binge eating and such.

    Good luck OP... bulimia sucks. :( Congratulations for having come this far! x
  • tackles48
    tackles48 Posts: 1
    Dear Wiggins
    I was very ill for a very long time cycling between to thin and to fat. Eat myself to death or starve myself to death. Traditional wisdom says that if you could just control your eating you would be normal. I don't subscribe to that. These eating disorders have a root cause. They did not evolve out of thin air. I learned to cope with my emotions by starving or gorging. Both sides of the coin allowed me to feel control and have the ability to suppress the anger, the depression, the emotions etc. Don't suffer any longer. Find a really good therapist who specializes in the root causes of your problem and deal with them. Yes it will be painful and yes it will take time but in the end you will be well. Not just surviving but thriving. If you would like to hear my testimony of my story I would be happy to send it to you. I am well now and nearly at my goal weight. Do I have moments of emotional eating? Sure but I eat an apple with peanut butter or an appropriate serving of ice cream with a drizzle of chocolate sauce. I stay within my calories and I don't binge, purge or starve anymore. I am healed from a life time disorder that the world says is to hard to treat. The world lies and I am living proof of the power of the love of God, therapists and friends that eating disorders can be healed.. The national group First Place 4 Health has helped me immensely the last 2 years and you can google them. Maybe there is a group near you. I lead one in East Ford Connecticut.
  • wendyapple
    wendyapple Posts: 323 Member
    i hate having no self control i even had to throw away a full jar of nutella the other day cause i just wanted to eat it all in one go.

    Please don't say you have no self control. You at least have enough self control to throw away the jar of nutella. Nutella is my weakness. I love the stuff. It is very hard for me to throw away food. But I have learned I have to, or I will eat it. Usually now I just try to have friends over when I want something I shouldn't eat so they can share it with me and then it's gone.

    it does take a ton of self control to throw something away. i think the next step from there is to portion it out, and then stick to it. i did this with bags of almond/raisins/soy nuts/pepitas that i would binge on. i put them into individual baggies and aimed for one a day. i really like the justin's nut butter packets because they're already portioned into 2 tbsp servings. they even have a chocolate hazelnut. i know-bigger picture. i binged before i lost but never really cared. now that i've lost weight i care, but it doesn't always stop me. so yeah, i'm struggling sometimes too. i don't know if the struggle ever goes away.
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