How to cope...

I too am a comfort eater. What I find helps is taking a look at the success stories forum. I scroll through looking at pics & reading stories. It is a great distraction & it is a motivator for me. It helps me stay focused: If someone else can loose the weight and look so good then why can't I...



( sorry to hear about your hard time...Just remember, there are better days ahead )

well...first try to sit, relax and think about what your priority goal is,if your wieght is an issue in terms of health then you must push everything and everyone aside and worry about you first. you need to sit and put all your goals on paper and figure out how to reach them instead of thinking "whats the point". i can go on with this but really dont know you to tell you best answer....see if your roomy has diet safe(and tasty)foods that can be kept in the house for those off days,dont let others run your life,you take control...im a beachbody coach so if you need some help with nutrtion or fitness send me a message ide love to help you stay on track.....tim

I've been in a similar situation, trying to loose weight during a hard time is... well, hard.

When I was going through tough times, it felt like my life was out of control. I couldn't change anything that was going on around me... even my emotions were out of my control. BUT... what I COULD control was how much I exercised. In fact, it was about the ONLY thing I could control. Everyday, I watched my life spinning like crazy, and the only thing I could look forward to was my daily run. Keep in mind, It takes just as much mental effort to make the decision to GO as it does NOT to go. Once the decision is made... you're already there! There's no use in fighting your anxiety. It's there, a part of you, that's not going away. You don't have to pressure yourself to "get over it." You will, when your mind is good and ready. Right now it's about controlling what you can, until that time comes.

As far as the pastries go... my coworkers similarly torture me. So, I put a mental "mr. yuck" sticker on them (you know, the green poison control stickers you put on bleach bottles for kids?). I started to think of pastries as poisons rather than treats. Sure, the poison might taste amazing, but it's gonna give you heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. I know, I know, it's a little drastic... but it works for me.

Another thing that works for me is not giving myself the option of turning to junk food. Ask your roommate not to bring treats home, or to give them to her other friends. If she cares about you and supports you in your goals, she'll understand. You have to hold up your end of the deal too though... simply don't bring any chips, ice cream etc. into your house. It's YOUR domain, and you have control over what goes in your fridge. Purge the crap, and treat yourself to some mangoes and skinny cows

I hope this helps, I wish you the best of luck. And try running! It SUCKS for the first week or two, but once you're over that hump... it will be your best stress-relieving friend! Don't give up!

I also understand. When I feel like I am in over my head or depressed about something, I want to eat junk. I crave it badly. But, like others have said, I took control of exercise. When I got mad or frustrated, I took it out on the treadmill or the elliptical. That I can control. I have also swapped the junk for good food. Instead of ice cream, I put whipped yogurt in the freezer and eat it. I also clean. Having a neat, clean environment helps me to focus and feel more calm. Good luck!

I feel your pain completely! The day after I had my heart ripped out I joined MFP and went to buy a gym membership. I did it on the idea that since I didn't have him, I needed a relationship with something else. Why not the gym? With the byproduct of losing weight, getting healthy, and bettering myself?

I don't let go of things very well either. I am still dealing with the back and forth emotions I have about him and that was six months ago! But during that time, I have noticed that when I am running at the gym, or out walking, or doing healthy things for myself, I am thinking about how confident I feel about all the work I've put into this - not him. And that keeps me going.

Comfort eating is a HUGE problem for me, too. The thing that helps me the most is to just indulge, but to do it within my calorie goal. If you're having a terrible day and you just want to eat ice cream, eat three scoops if you need to. Just count the calories and remain under your goal. Be aware of what you're eating. That will help take away the feeling of being out of control.

You CAN be comforted and still in control.

Also, if you have a bad day or week of bingeing, just do your best to put it behind you and move forward with your exercise/eating goals. Realize that you're not perfect, that this happens sometimes, and the best thing to do is keep trucking.

Good luck! I know we can all do it with help and support!

I eat food to comfort myself too, but I've been reaching for gum rather than food and I find it helps me.

How about small steps? That usually works for me. I know that if I try to do too many "good" things at once for myself I get over-loaded and throw-up my hands and say WTH!! I have discovered that I eat for comfort, for boredom, for anxiety or any other thing you can think of. I'm also obsessive and tend to over-think things to death. One day at a time works really well and some days it's one minute, one hour at a time to. Good Luck to you. Be easy on yourself. Incorporate healthy foods into your life a bit at a time. It doing the small incrimental changes that are good for the long haul.

I find that reading through success stories is a pretty good way to get motivated. I'm getting ready to go for my second run of the day because I have been reading over other people's journeys for the last hour or so. Try to be competitive with them- if they can lose 20lbs, you can lose 25. You just gotta force yourself into the mindset!

Like someone else said- use positive self talk. Tell yourself that you are a beautiful person and you deserve good things. Second, also as many others have said, when you start to feel the urge to eat, go for a walk, or start some form of exercise or activity. Try to keep from thinking the bad thoughts. You can't always just "get over it" or "forget about it"- But you can do things to help yourself not think about them :flowerforyou:

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