I think the thing that holds back my success in weight loss is all the habitual eating and thinking that I do. I'm so used to just throwing something in my mouth without ever thinking if it's good for me or not, or how many calories it is or is it planned or not.
I really hate, love & completely don't understand that my husband or other "normal" individuals don't think about food the same way I do. They can stop eating when they are full, they don't have to constantly think about their next meal, they don't think about eating between meals, when they have a treat like ice cream or chips they can eat a regular sized portion and don't obsess that it's sitting in the freezer calling their name at any given moment. The way I think and feel about food is completely different than how others think and feel about it. I know many of you know what I mean.

I really do know how to lose weight and keep it off,I know what kinds of foods to eat, I know the exercises I must do. I know how many calories I need to lose weight successfully. But this is not the problem at all.

I think that food is just a symptom of what my issue really is. I have a thinking problem. My thoughts about food are really screwed up. This is the problem that I don't know how to fix. How can I change or unlearn the behavior that causes me to reach out for food as comfort? How can I stop trying to fill that empty hole with food and just heal up that emptiness for good? How can I truly be successful at weight loss & being healthy being the way I am now?

You are reaching in the right direction. I urge you to find support such as a counseling or look up the local Overeaters Anonymous in your area.

By the phrasing of your last question, I sense that you feel a wee bit hopeless/helpless. I'm no professional, but we are hear to listen. And let you know that some of us have felt similarly. (in reference to the awesome ladies of 3FC)

I can not say I know exactly how you feel, as only you know that, but I have indeed thought my problem with food was insurmountable. I found no magic cure. The truth is that I reached out for help with depression and obesity through my health plan at work and found out that these topics are not covered. I do not make enough to see a doctor on my own time and dime, and the OA meetings in my area rarely fit into my schedule. Coming to realize that I would not be able to receive assistance the way I had first wanted snapped me out of my woe is me mentality. I push myself now.

I'm not saying that just pushing yourself is the way, it just felt right to share. I believe you can do this. Posting here, and reaching out makes me think you have what it takes, to either find help, or do this another way. No doubt.

I think this might sound too simplistic, but this is what I think is the key:

Practice.

You have to just keep practicing those healthy habits, day after day, week after week, even year after year until they become your default way to being. Keep trying and working towards what you want. I bet you can get there

This isn't true for every thin person: a lot of them DO think about what they eat all the time. It's just that they never "ate mindlessly", so they didn't gain. But if you pay attention to "naturally thin" people, they often say things like "I'll just have a salad, I am having a big dinner tonight" or "I've had so much chocolate lately, I better not have a piece of that pie". I used to think that meant they were freaks who didn't want to eat, but I've learned as I've aged that they may well want to eat, they just know not to.