I know exactly when I started using food as a crutch. My grandmother, who was my caregiver, died, and I was alone after school. I started eating to fill that empty void in the lonely house. After that, I think it became more of a habit then anything, and food is the first thing I turn to when I feel lonely and bored. I notice that I don't turn to food when I'm happy or upset. Breaking what is now an ingrained habit is the hardest thing I've had to do, and I often fail miserably at it.

Intellectually I know that the health issues are important. However, like people who only quit smoking after a cancer diagnosis, I think it's harder to think about losing weight in response to a potential health problem rather than having an actual health crisis occur. Maybe that's the "bottoming out" in the health-related consequences? I hope not.