Binge Eating Forum

Support to stop binge eating, stop emotional eating, and stop overeating.

Binge Eating Forum » Binge Eating Support - General Comments, Questions, and Posts

1. 

   pipe
   Member

   they say you cannot hope for change by doing the same thing over and over again. i have been at a constant battle with myself now for over a year. i don't know what else to do. i binge, emotional eat, eat out of boredom, loneliness, because i'm stressed. you name it. i have developed a terrible habit that i want so badly to break. but that is so much easier said than done. this is it. i have reached my breaking point. i always say tomorrow, i will start fresh tomorrow. but it never ends up lasting. i used to think i was a strong person but now i feel so weak. why can't i do this? why is this so hard now? i need someone to talk to. i need help.

   Posted 3 months ago #
2. 

   StopNow
   Member

   You can do this - you just need some support.
   I think the problem is that it's such a stigmatized illness (yes, it's an illness!) - I know I will never tell people I love about it.
   So if we cant turn to our loved ones for support, we have to rely on each other.
   So you are not alone!
   And if other people can do it, so can we.
   If we slip up now and then, it's OK - as long as we don't stop trying
   Good luck
   xxx

   Posted 3 months ago #
3. 

   tobebingefree
   Moderator

   pipe, this is not an illness (sorry stopnow but i disagree!). this is as you quite correctly say, a habit. it's a very STRONG habit, which it why it is so difficult to break out of, but it can be done. many of us on this forum including myself have found success by reading a book called 'brain over binge' by kathryn hansen. i strongly suggest you buy & read it; it explains all about how & why the binge habit is formed in the brain, and what to do about it. it will explain to you that the binges are NOT caused by all these emotional issues, and why you feel like you are wrestling with yourself day in and day out (because in fact, you are!). once you understand what is going on in your brain, you will be able to conquer it much more easily. i read the book in the last week of september last year. in mid october i had my last binge. i consider myself cured now. there is hope xxx

   Posted 3 months ago #
4. 

   pipe
   Member

   thanks guys, i am new to writing in forums but you all seem so helpful and it makes it a little easier that i know i am not the only one dealing with this... i have tried journaling in a notebook but i am thinking that journaling on here might be more helpful. that way it is not only for me, but for everyone. my road to recovery. i need to do this i hope it helps.

   Posted 3 months ago #
5. 

   tobebingefree
   Moderator

   journalling is a great way to get support, i found it incredibly useful! try not to get bogged down in the emotional side of it, though. one thing that helped me a huge amount was realising that even though i *thought* i was eating to plug emotional holes, or cope with stress, or whatever, this was not the case at all. it was just my body thinking of cunning ways to get me to eat! once you understand this it is much easier, and you will stop going round and round in circles trying to fix every emotional problem you ever had in order to stop eating!

   can you tell us a bit more about yourself?

   Posted 3 months ago #
6. 

   Capricorn
   Member

   IA with tobeingfree. Examining emotions in the context of eating is an utter waste of time, and you will still binge whether you do it or not (just look at the people on this board!). It's because bulimia and binge eating are not about emotions. They are about your brain, and it's bad-ass survival mechanisms - one of these unfortunately, happens to be that humans are creatures of habit. Before your first binge, did you ever have urges to binge? I doubt it. And why did you have urges? Dieting, most likely; that's how most of us ended up here. The body does not like food restriction so it reacts in the form of the brain sending out strong S.O.S. messages to get you to eat and rebuild tissues so the body doesn't have to eat it itself.

   Even if it wasn't a diet that got you here (it might have just been a routine of overeating you got locked into) you can quit your habit the same way. Just stop doing it. Sounds too simple, too easy, too fast, too belittling of your 'condition?' Yeah, I used to feel that way; that I was sick and had a disease and needed to fox myself so the binge eating would stop (in the meantime though I was bingeing several times a week and getting worse every day). Then one day, I told myself "no more!" and I quit, for good, right then and there. I have not binged once since - almost three months ago. Urges? Yeah, but I look at them differently now. Like an annoying pestering child who's throwing a tantrum, and not to be taken seriously. There is no fight. I just let the urges pass, and so far they [urges] have declined.

   I don't eat balanced meals or count calories, I eat when I'm hungry;stop when satisfied. My life is not perfect, I didn't fix my personality either, and I still have mountains of stress, but hey, I DO NOT BINGE EAT, EVER!

   Read Brain over Binge. Really, read it. Iv'e seen people say that they have read it, and still completely miss the point. Oi!

   Posted 3 months ago #
7. 

   pipe
   Member

   you are both so right, this is a terrible terrible habit that needs to be broken and i hate the fact that that is so much easier said than done. it all started with me about two summers ago it began slowly and to be honest i don't know how it so bad. it got to the point where i would look forward to eating. i would plan what i wanted to get and pretty much get excited about it. after work i would go to the store get cakes, cookies, ice cream, chinese, you name it. then i would eat it all, alone, always alone. and of course afterwards i would feel horrible and guilty and swear to myself that it would never happen again. for awhile it got to the point where i pretty much isolated myself because i didn't want to go out and see anybody. i have always been a confident person i have never worried about food before and then it all changed. i know that i have to break the habit. i know what i need to do, it's just a matter of doing it and not giving in.

   this past week was not the greatest. i have been doing okay.. until last tuesday i don't know what got into me i was tired, mad, bored but i know there is no excuse. i debated a little and then finally gave in. that excitement came back. i couldn't wait to get home and eat it all. i even ate some cookies on the way back i couldn't wait. i got bread, cheesy popcorn, cookies, cheesecake and ice cream and ate everything. until then i was doing a lot better too.. instead of binging on sweets and chips i ate generous portions of like brown rice, whole grain bread and stuff like that... baby steps i guess... but now i have hit rock bottom. i can't keep having this constant battle with myself. i just want to find that healthy relationship with food i used to have.

   so today i ate: coffee with non-dairy creamer, half cup oatmeal with apple, cinnamon, some chia seeds and flax seeds. lunch was large salad with fruit, and turkey, snack- some mango and pear, dinner was salmon, lots of steamed veggies, snack apple, green tea.

   Posted 3 months ago #
8. 

   tobebingefree
   Moderator

   it almost doesn't matter how you came to binging, the point of kathryn's book is that your brain has been trained to want the binge - this is why you get so excited - but what you need to understand is that your brain is WRONG. it's actually not easier said than done, it's the same! once you understand the subtleties in the brain and how to 'argue' against it, it is very easy.

   i completely understand where you are coming from, i was like that too. for my entire life there was no issue with food - then (after dieting down) the binging started and it started controlling my life! i couldn't believe how weak i was, i didn't recognise that person at all, she was totally not like me. but now i understand that it all stemmed from my brain going into survival mode and then developing this really stupid and unnecessary habit of binging. once i understood that properly, it was easy to stop.

   i honestly can't recommend the book highly enough xxx

   Posted 3 months ago #
9. 

   pipe
   Member

   you are completely right that is exactly how i feel... i am buying that book no questions haha... how about you though, do you still get urges?

   sorry for rambling about what i eat on here too but i am thinking it might help..
   so yesterday.. coffee with non dairy creamer, half cup oatmeal with apple, cinnamon and some flax seeds, banana, 'turkey thin' sandwich [250 calories it said] a little cole slaw and pickle, talapia with a little salsa sauce, roasted butternut squash and roasted vegetables, salad with beets and some apple and a little dressing, steamed broccoli, green tea with honey, two glasses of red wine

   Posted 3 months ago #
10. 

    tobebingefree
    Moderator

    nope i never get urges now. i had them for maybe a month after i stopped binging, and in fact while i was learning the technique, i actually tried to MAKE myself have urges, so i could practise saying no to them! hah. but no, i don't get urges now.

    don't worry about putting your food up here, a lot of people do it! so if it helps you then go for it

    Posted 3 months ago #
Please consider supporting this forum by purchasing my eBook which is packed with tips on how to instantly stop overeating and quickly lose weight

RSS feed for this topic

Reply »

You must log in to post.