What made you stop binge eating FOR GOOD?

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  • sunshine_gem
    sunshine_gem Posts: 390 Member
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    Binge eating and over eating have nothing to do with will power or control. It has to do with Choice.

    I have spoken at length about binge eating and over eating in this thread: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/656765-bingers

    Give it a quick read :-)

    I have to say I disagree with that. Choice isn't everything. Binge eating can come from a place that you don't even know about. Choice, control and willpower are not the same thing. They're all psychological and as such are all complicated but it's not as simple as just choosing not to do something when you don't know why you're choosing to do it.
  • amuchison
    amuchison Posts: 274 Member
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    Therapy def helps try EMDR you can Google it;)
  • xarge
    xarge Posts: 484 Member
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    Don't buy it.

    If it's in the house, I'll eat it. If they aren't here, well... I can't eat them.

    Best defense IMO.

    ^ Exactly works for me. If I have chocolate in house, I eat it and pretty much all of it. If I don't have it, I only eat some fruit.

    So I try not to buy anything processed in bulk. At least until I get rid of this sweet tooth.
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
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    I stopped binge eating when I learned to eat enough! And I don't deny myself the foods I want either. I just keep to my calorie goal and exercise harder and longer on the days I am craving something, then I have it!
  • JuneBPrice
    JuneBPrice Posts: 294
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    I'll let you know when I do...when (if) I ever move out, I can stop keeping those foods in the house =/
  • redmamacita
    redmamacita Posts: 43 Member
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    ABC... antecedent, behavior, consequence.

    Antecedent: what happens before you binge eat? what are you doing? how are you feeling? what are you thinking about? what has happened within the previous 12-24 hours that might trigger your binge?

    Behavior: actually binging.

    Consequence: you feel awful, you fee shameful. you can't look at yourself in the mirror. not only do you feel terrible emotionally and mentally, but you probably feel physically terrible and painful from the excess food in your stomach, eventually leading to some digestive pains as the food makes its way through you.

    you know what you're doing. you know what happens after you do it. you need to figure out WHY you're doing it. it will take a lot of "come to jesus" talks with yourself, you will really have to figure out what your trigger is. if you can pinpoint the triggers that cause you to want to binge eat, you can develop specific actions to take to keep yourself from allowing the trigger to play out. if you recognize something is triggering you, you can be proactive in preventing it from leading to your binging.
  • 9jenn9
    9jenn9 Posts: 309 Member
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    Binge eating is a very complex problem. I disagree with those who say it's simply a matter of choice or self control. If that were so, a lot of us would just choose to quit it because of all the negative (extra weight, feeling sick, etc) that goes along with binging. For many of us, binging is a coping behavior and each of does it for our own reasons. A book that has helped me begin to change my thinking about food is "Intuitive Eating". It was written by two nutritionists who work with eating disordered people. The case studies they describe helped me feel less alone and gave me some tools to begin changing some of my messed up food related behaviors. It's a good place to start!
  • jcraig1980
    jcraig1980 Posts: 34
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    I don't think I could be getting through my binging difficulties if it wasn't for counseling. For me, my binging was anxiety driven, along with low self-esteem. If I would get upset or pushed around, I would just have a binge. Then I would feel even more upset and think I could make up for it the next day or two. It is a viscious cycle to get out of. My counselor recommended Myo-Inositol to help me with my issues and it helps a lot, along with regular exercise. As long as I take it every day I manage to stay relatively anxiety free. Plus I have been replacing my bad habits with good habits - for instance, if I get upset about something instead of binging, I run. I don't know if I will be ever completely over binging, but I just take one step at a time. I probably haven't had a binging episode for a month, when I used to have them almost daily.
  • ShaunaLaNee
    ShaunaLaNee Posts: 188 Member
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    FEAR!!! I've always gained and lost a large amount of weight. This time I work out for hours and eat healthy and the scale doesn't move. I have fear that with everything I put into my mouth I will gain... When I feel like eating something crazy I list out the calories and what it will take to work it off, like how many minutes do I have to get on the elliptical to eat that? THEN I go to the gym and burn that amount BEFORE I eat the extra treat. Most of the time....after I've worked that hard I don't want to wreck it:) I also allow myself one eat out meal once a week and try to pick one things I've been craving..
  • RainaWalks
    RainaWalks Posts: 72
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    with all the choices and the pressure out there...i doubt that i will ever give up binge eating for good...all i can hope for it to keep it below 5% of the time....
  • jennifer_a00
    jennifer_a00 Posts: 186 Member
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    Something I noticed was that when I eat foods with a lot of carbs like pastas or have some junk food even if it is in moderation, that the next day or later in the day I am REALLY hungry and it is hard to resist. So I have started avoiding those foods because I hate feeling like that. I'm not on a low carb diet or anything so I do still eat some of those things sometimes but I try really hard to fill up on veggies and things like that on the days that I add these things to my diet. Because if I feel hungry and I start raiding the cupboards, it's already over...
  • carolynmittens
    carolynmittens Posts: 344
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    god. true story.
  • kellicruz1978
    kellicruz1978 Posts: 170 Member
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    I haven't binged in over a month, which doesn't sound like much, but it's a big deal for someone who has always either not eaten enough or chowed down on thousands more calories than I needed in a day.

    I went low carb, but that is no cure all. Yesterday I had binge cravings like mad. I tried to reason myself into giving in because my appetite didn't exist for foods that aren't binge friendly like eggs or steak. Then logic kicked in. If I was really hungry, I'd eat the eggs or steak or whatever, woudn't I? Which means those cravings were at least mostly mental. I know I take my vitamins, I know I don't feel lightheaded or sick even now that I'm too low on calories for two days. I know if it was hunger, real hunger, I wouldn't have a specific food craving.

    So that's what I'm trying to teach myself. A test to see if I'm really hungry. I ask myself, yeah, you want a burger? Would a steak do as well? Or eggs? If the answer is no, then it's not real hunger. I'm sick of my body's demands for specific foods and I'm going to keep right on denying those demands. If food is for fuel, then any reasonably healthy food should do the trick.

    Wow, that is like a lightbulb for me!
  • Csitri
    Csitri Posts: 132 Member
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    I try and not buy the items I know I am going to binge on.
  • sukaera
    sukaera Posts: 53 Member
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    Binge eating and over eating have nothing to do with will power or control. It has to do with Choice.

    I have spoken at length about binge eating and over eating in this thread: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/656765-bingers

    Give it a quick read :-)

    I have to say I disagree with that. Choice isn't everything. Binge eating can come from a place that you don't even know about. Choice, control and willpower are not the same thing. They're all psychological and as such are all complicated but it's not as simple as just choosing not to do something when you don't know why you're choosing to do it.

    Well it's your right to disagree, but I must ask, did not read the post I linked to, or my replies to it? Choice and control are what I talk about in them at length, you might have a different opinion. :-)

    I'm just sayin'.
  • Sarahwillow
    Sarahwillow Posts: 56 Member
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    I feel the same way! If I post it, I see it; it's right there for me to see every time I post what I have eaten...it either helps or it hurts but either way it's right there for me to see what I have just eaten!
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
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    I haven't binged in over a month, which doesn't sound like much, but it's a big deal for someone who has always either not eaten enough or chowed down on thousands more calories than I needed in a day.

    I went low carb, but that is no cure all. Yesterday I had binge cravings like mad. I tried to reason myself into giving in because my appetite didn't exist for foods that aren't binge friendly like eggs or steak. Then logic kicked in. If I was really hungry, I'd eat the eggs or steak or whatever, woudn't I? Which means those cravings were at least mostly mental. I know I take my vitamins, I know I don't feel lightheaded or sick even now that I'm too low on calories for two days. I know if it was hunger, real hunger, I wouldn't have a specific food craving.

    So that's what I'm trying to teach myself. A test to see if I'm really hungry. I ask myself, yeah, you want a burger? Would a steak do as well? Or eggs? If the answer is no, then it's not real hunger. I'm sick of my body's demands for specific foods and I'm going to keep right on denying those demands. If food is for fuel, then any reasonably healthy food should do the trick.

    Wow, that is like a lightbulb for me!

    It makes me really happy if what I'm struggling with can help someone else. I'm new at this, and it's tough, but I know if I can resign myself to eating 'boring' foods when I'm hungry instead of 'entertaining' foods, I'll have this weight thing beat for life.

    Edit: Here is a study that might back up my new philosophy of food:

    http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20110722/food-boredom-may-lead-to-weight-loss

    July 21, 2011 -- A new study suggests that one path to successful weight loss might be culinary boredom.

    Researchers found that when people were offered the same food over and over again, they tended to eat less overall.

    The study expands on a growing body of research suggesting that the unprecedented level of variety in the American diet may be a major contributor to the obesity epidemic.
  • keyboardwench
    keyboardwench Posts: 121 Member
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    Variety of reasons for me.

    1. Reframed my mind, my perspective on food and my body. I learned to love myself more, to not worry as much as I have in the past, became less restrictive, more tolerant of mistakes and junk food, stopped obsessing over what the scale said, etc.
    2. Upped my calories, a lot. I now eat my TDEE (calories needed to maintain my weight) minus 15% and never net below my BMR (calories needed to sustain your body daily if you just laid in bed all day) as calculated by scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator and per the Eat More to Weight Less group. And I lose about a 1lb a week at this rate of 2100 calories.
    3. Stopped buying my trigger foods as much. Still have them occasionally and in moderation.
    4. And when the urge comes (rarely does now, three months since my last binge), I remind myself of why I'm doing this: I want to be healthy and there was nothing healthy about that period in my life.
  • hannahchipmunk
    hannahchipmunk Posts: 50
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    Therapy is the only thing that has truly helped me... and that's not to say that I don't slip up once in a while. Once you find coping skills that do not involve food, binge eating becomes less inviting.
  • obryanh
    obryanh Posts: 10 Member
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    WOW! You are all amazing. Thank you so much for the responses!

    I think I'm going to bite the bullet and see a therapist. To answer someone's previous question, I do live alone. I buy only healthy and mostly whole foods, but the minute I am out at a restaurant or at a friend's house I immediately lose it if there is an option to eat something sugary and unhealthy. I would love to be able to eat these things moderately but I can't. I'm very black or white when it comes to food and if I eat one cookie then dammit, I need 12 more, plus some chocolate cake and ice cream on the side. I'm determined to change that, though.

    In addition to the therapy, I will try eating more throughout the week and maybe taking some of that Inositol stuff. Again, I don't know if I'm ready to moderately insert "treats" into my diet, but I'll get there.

    Thank you again, sooooo much. :-)

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