compulsive overeating

how do i overcome it? anyone else out there got any tips? im falling off the wagon after three years of doing so well.:wave_cry:

so so easily done hun!

you have to ask yourself what is makin you over eat? are you sad? are you comfort eating?

then try and stop it....try and find something to do instead...walk the dog, hoover the cat, wax the goldfish

or post on here

i know some basic tips, they have never really helped me, but i am stubbon, once i start eating i can't stop and thats stuck in my head so i panic and eat more.

-brush your teeth-(so you may eat less due to the taste)
-try and sabatage the foods your eating
-i always give the food to a friend and they stop me when i start munching non stop
-go and try and excercise before and after, i know its a drag, but it could make you stop as you don't want to make the excercise pointless, and even then it might cut off a few pounds from the munching =D

i'll add on more when i can think of them hope that helps x x

Ah Jan87,
I've been looking for the magic 'cure' for this malady for many years.

I think I am almost at the answer, but you're not going to like it:sigh:.

Crazy Gibbons advice was great:
-brush your teeth-(so you may eat less due to the taste)
-try and sabatage the foods your eating
-i always give the food to a friend and they stop me when i start munching non stop
-go and try and excercise before and after, i know its a drag, but it could make you stop as you don't want to make the excercise pointless, and even then it might cut off a few pounds from the munching =D

However, as someone who also gets into 'the zone' and eats for comfort, I also understand that it is not enough to know the strategies (and there are many), I have to actually act on them at the time, for them to be effective at stopping the binge.

Unfortunately, the last thing we want to do when the urge happens, is stop it! So all the strategies, advice, help in the world cannot actually help us stop unless we are prepared to get out of our comfort zone and STOP.

The next time you feel a binge coming on, take a minute to step back and observe your behaviour and feelings. You will encounter strong resistance and an almost physical 'turning away' from looking.

So, the first step is just to observe, go ahead with the binge and attempt to look at what you are doing, what you are gaining, how you feel during and afterwards. It is the first step to starting to 'own' the behaviour and the first step to taking responsibility, maybe the first step to stopping.

Sadly, there is no 'answer', but to say that it starts and ends with ourselves to manage out eating behaviour.

Good luck and keep posting here, your experiences and insights will be valuable to others.

AJ

Good advice there AJ

AmandaJayne said:

Sadly, there is no 'answer', but to say that it starts and ends with ourselves to manage out eating behaviour.

Click to expand...

Yep. And you are right, there are many strategies. I think I can class myself as an ex-compulsive overeater now, but I can't think of one thing I did to 'cure' it. It was a multitude of techniques, and since I applied them all overlapping, I'm not sure which one worked the best

One thing I did learn though, was that reading about cures and techniques was all very good, but nothing actually worked until I applied them.

Yes, I know that sounds obvious, but it's the bit that most people don't do. They buy the books or read the articles. They nod in agreement. They state how fantastic it is, but then they forget to put it in practice.

Understandable because deep down, I would say 'most' compulsive/binge eaters are scared of being cured.

That sounds mad doesn't it, but it's true. We binge because we get something good out of it. On a conscious level, we might not be totally sure what...but the fear of not being able to is enough to not want to do the head work.

Well...speaking from personal experience that is.

"...deep down, I would say 'most' compulsive/binge eaters are scared of being cured.

That sounds mad doesn't it, but it's true. We binge because we get something good out of it. On a conscious level, we might not be totally sure what...but the fear of not being able to is enough to not want to do the head work..."

Oh good heavens KD ain't that the truth. The anxiety I sometimes feel if I can't get my 'fix' (maybe because I have no time by myself to 'administer the medicine') is terrible and the thought of taking responsibility and questioning what I am doing and actually not doing it! Unthinkable.
AJ

AmandaJayne said:

Oh good heavens KD ain't that the truth. The anxiety I sometimes feel if I can't get my 'fix' (maybe because I have no time by myself to 'administer the medicine') is terrible and the thought of taking responsibility and questioning what I am doing and actually not doing it! Unthinkable.
AJ

Click to expand...

Yep. The thing is we think we are out of control when we overeat, when in fact, we are in perfect control

I remember thinking that having started a binge, there was no way I could stop it. What a fantastic excuse to continue. 'It was out of my control'.

Huh. So not true....but it was perfect for me at the time, because I didn't want to face the alternatives.

I worked hard and fast to stuff my face during a binge. Thing is, every mouthful was a choice and I could stop anytime, but it was much easier for me to believe that I had been 'taken over'.

that way I didn't have to question why I was eat, or find something else to do. After all, it was my fault.

KD,

So pleased you saw this thread. I hope that Jan (and others) can get as much as I did from the wealth of your experience, as someone who has achieved that special thing... to be an ex-compulsive overeater.

Nightynight.
AJ

Im glad i found this, although im doing 'ok' at the moment i worry i will be right back where i started. Ive never tried to stop the binge i always just go with it. Im going to try to do the techniques here if i have another 'turn'

Thanks

getting there.

wow all that advice is great. i will say that these past two weeks have been a bit of a mile stone since i stopped, admitted id a problem. i even told my boyfriend who said he himself had noticed my eating patterns. i joined slimming world firstly because i just feel it focuses on munching on healthy things. like today ive had a bad day. stressful and exhausting and all i could think about was chocolate and sticky toffee pudding ice cream... but instead i made myself a bowl of fat free natural yoghurt and a banana and for dinner instead of pizza, chips and more chocolate im having pasta and veg. i did exactly what you said.
i stopped. asked myself why i wanted the food and turned away.
thanks for all the support! love and kisses. xxx







aim christmas 13 stone!

good for you hun :grouphugg:

keep it up x x

I know you guys were talking about this a couple of weeks ago but I just found it
I'm sitting in bed on the laptop avoiding going downstairs (as there is a fridge and food) as I have to work tonight so need to stay up. I was doing fantastic on CD SS then had a few really tough days and started bingeing. Did this for a couple of days and am starting ss again today. Succumbed to the feelings of tiredness , stress and being generally fed up. Hate myself for it and don't want to be that person but there is just something inside me that seems to want to sabotage any good things that I'm doing. I've done the whole cognitive behavioural therapy stuff at lighterlife and learned a lot about myself but never went near the subject of compulsive overeating or bingeing. Think that was cos I stuck to it for 130 days completely, no deviations and lost about 6 stone. Great , but as the problem never arose and I was too embarrased to raise it even though the group was great, i didn't explore it. Ultimately its still there. I keep it underwraps fairly well most of the time but have triggers which set me off
Just voicing this as it may help me, I've not admitted it really before, even OH doesn't know how bad it can be and I've been married nearly 20 years. Also feel really bad when the kids get the blame for eating stuff that they haven't touched. its really deceitful, totally unfair on them and doesn't make me the kind of person i want to be

Compulsive Eating/Compulsive Dieting

Hello Jan
Excuse my butting in - I'll sneak in quietly and start talking. I moved here from DH more than 2 years ago. I have never posted because from then until now I was so sick of my previous yo yo dieting that I resolved never to do it again. Like many people I wanted to find a way of healthy eating/exercising that meant I would never have to diet.

While I have been searching for the Holy Grail of eternal svelteness,my weight has crept up from 10stone7 to 13stone3 and my former hour-glass shape has turned into a large apple. Predictable.
In the past I appeared to be a very successful dieter. By rigid control of eating, I remained slim in my 20s, 30s and 40s. However I kept to a pattern of comfort eating followed by compulsive dieting and I have to say both stages gave me the same level of satisfaction and I would have been reluctant to give up either activity. Unfortunately as soon as I hit 50 it became more difficult to maintain a weight I considered acceptable .
Last week I decided I had to take some remedial action and started to read a range of posts. Something KD said under Maintenance in 2007 (I have a lot of catching up to do) clicked with me. She said that maintenance was the same as dieting only with a bit more food. If I can accept and remember this I feel I can break my over/under eating compulsion. Of course to hold to this mindset I will have to back it up with positive measures so I am will be re-joining
Weight Watchers for the next few(?) months and adopting a new approach when I reach maintenance.
I don't know if these ramblings are in any way helpful to you but I believe in my case I sometimes indulged in compulsive eating because I felt safe in the knowledge that I could diet off the effects. Anyway I hope we both find a way of dealing with the problem.
Lippy

Have a look on amazon for the book 'get off your arse and lose weight' it is soooooooooooooooo helpful for people who addicted to food, and shows you a whole new way of thinking. it realllllly helped me.

lippy, know exactly what you mean, Lillypop you look fantastic and I don't mean necessarily the weightloss, you look happy, radiant in fact. Hope that I can look like that soon
J

aww jayne, thank you, on your stats, it says you have 30+ lbs to lose, well, I promise you could lose that in a matter of 3 to 4 months maybe less, on cambridge diet, you'll do so well, keep reading stuff to keep your mind off food, I know how you feel I am completely addicted to food and now know that my relationship with the stuff was completely unhealthy. But the weird thing is with CD is I dont feel hungry anymore, it comes off so quickly that it keeps u motivated, ive tried so many diets you wouldnt believe!

thanks lillypop. just need to keep in the zone. I dont' know what happens some days I just would mow down a little old lady to shovel in that food. I love the feeling of being in control and just "well" that SS gives me, and know that I can do it . My first goal was 20lbs on the xmas challenge , have 12lbs to go and am determined to do it , then the rest by march
Thanks for support babe :thankyou:

Write, write, write if you can't stop those cravings. Write about why you are eating and what happened to make you binge on food. Once you have enough in your diary you'll start to see what the actual triggers are. At this point just pat yourself on the back for getting to this point. For me it was the feeling of comfort and how good the food tasted, I remember little things would set me off and away eating I would go. I've been a yo-you dieter for years but am now at the point where I can get down and do the work to loose all the weight I put on, surprisingly enough I don't binge anymore so I'm glad my emotions are in check, the only thing is that I like my alcohol and have noticed that after drinking I get really hungry and eat more than I should so I'm going to have to curb that now so I can get a good start.

Hello there, Jada,

Your advice is great, and I am pleased that it is working for you.
"...I like my alcohol and have noticed that after drinking I get really hungry and eat more than I should..."
You are spot on about alcohol too. There is no doubt that having a couple of drinks seems to make you think 'hey, it doesn't matter if I eat a couple of crisps, or one mince pie'. But we all know that for us, one leads to another...

"...surprisingly enough I don't binge anymore..."

Do you reckon that's because you are writing down your feelings etc BEFORE you take the step of bingeing?

I am finding that, when I am 'in the binge zone' (usually because I am feeling rubbish about myself and can't express it) I deliberately 'switch off' my inner voice which would give me good advice e.g. you just need to sit down and face these feeings, write down a thought record, see how you feel afterwards.

D'you know why I ignore it Jada? Because I am afraid it will stop me from 'comforting' myself with food. How then can I make myself feel 'better'?

However, 2009 will be the year where I finally put these demons to bed (without supper), and find an alternative way to cope.

I was down in Wales just after Christmas and met with Westiegirl in Llandudno. We had a great chat and talked about this very subject. It seems that either we find a different way to 'comfort' ourselves when things get tough, or we face the reasons WHY they get tough in the first place and do something about it.

Yes, 2009 is going to be a good year for facing fears, and kicking them up the bum... permanently.

Tatty bye, Jada!

AJ

Whoa, so glad I found this thread. Shivers went down my spine reading what Jan, KD & Amanda Jayne have said... I have a lot to learn but this has helped me to understand a bit more. And Jayne23, I so identify with you...
KD's point about not WANTING to avoid a binge... I understand this completely. I think I make myself zone out so I can't talk myself out of it. Almost nothing can stop it because I don't WANT anything to... and of course it ends in self-loathing and shame. Lillypops, have ordered some books and am determined to work out why i do this and how I can stop. And KD, I will take action, not just read and think about it, I promise. Scary stuff, but good to know I'm not alone.