I desperately feel like I need to go to "Food Rehab". I mean, I am addicted to food. I weight over 315 and I want to lose weight so badly, but I just can't make myself give up food. I seriously think I am addicted like an alcholic or drug addict, but only with food. I think about it constantly, and keep putting off dieting because I am planning on where I can go for lunch tomorrow and how much I can eat at which place I choose. Or I say, "I'll start next week because this week I want to gorge out of food". But next week never comes, so it is next week, then next week.

Please Help Me get started AGAIN...............I am seriously addicted and need Food Rehab!

Oh I know just how you feel. For a second I thought I might have written your post because it sounds so much like me! I'm sorry I can't offer any advice as I haven't been able to "break free" yet either, but I belive we can do it. Reading the stories of others on this forum has made me see that there are a lot of people that feel like us, and if they can do it, so can we!

Who says you have to give up food? You just need to make better choices in the food you choose.

I could have written this post, too. If you're like me, it's the "bad" food that you gorge on! LOL I don't think I've ever had to stop myself from eating carrots or apples.

The most important thing for me is to NOT have it in my house. Also, I resolved that I will not go out to eat until I have my new way of life under control - I can't call it a diet or else I feel like I'm depriving myself. I think that if I can get a month of exercising and healthy eating under my belt and start seeing that scale moving to smaller numbers, I will be able to stop myself from purging on those "other" things.

Now, that said, if I could only stop my DH from bringing those things into the house!

I was in your position two and a half years ago -- I swore up and down I would start Jan. 1 2005 -- a new year's resolution. I put it off for 6 months -- in that time, I gained 27 pounds having 6 months of "farewell" meals (the "I'm starting tomorrow, this is my last chance to get in all my favorites!"). So I ended up starting at over 300, with only ONE pair of size 26 jeans that fit (and they were TIGHT) and a handful of shirts. Don't put it off any longer. It's a dangerous mentality to have.

I'm also a food addict -- and therefore living proof that one can manage the addiction and lose weight. I haven't completely recovered, but I control it enough to where I've been able lose weight. When I started my journey (completely alone with no support), I didn't have any options to get therapy to deal with my eating issues, but I encourage you to, if you have that option. It would have made it so much easier to not just supress the addiction but to actually begin to heal it.

Good luck on your journeys!!!

You need support: Who's your support network? Who do you trust? What can you do when you want to eat instead of eating?

Do you go to lunch with co-workers, friends, family? Talk to them about the fact that you need different alternatives. Plan something MORE FUN than going to a restaurant. Just focusing on the things you're choosing not to do creates a sense of deprivation. What wonderful things are you going to do for yourself instead of eating?

Oh boy do I understand this cycle. For me what really worked was doing away with the all-or-nothing diet mentality. The thing was, as soon as I restricted myself and said I couldn’t have X or Y, ALL I WANTED was X or Y. By not denying myself, I found that many of the things I thought I wanted I only craved because I wasn’t allowed to have them. This has mostly worked for me, but that doesn’t mean it will work for everyone. A lot of people find they need to bad certain foods entirely. When it doesn’t work is when I let myself get really upset and stressed out and let myself turn to food for comfort. I will almost always make bad choices then. This is when not having it in the house really makes such a difference.

One question I have for you is how you perceive “dieting”? If you are dropping your calories really low, only eating chicken breasts and iceberg lettuce, etc. no wonder you are dreading it and don’t want to start. You don’t need to restrict yourself that far. You do need to eat less, but at your weight you should be able to easily lose on 2000 calories a day. With the right mix of foods, 2000 calories a day can be an awful lot, and still have some room for small treats. I eat lots of foods I love on plan. Sure, some of those foods have really changed. Dieting does not necessarily equal pain. It takes planning and forethought to come up with things you like, but as you said, you are doing that already anyway. Why not divert that energy into planning good healthy things to eat instead?

You mentioned your weight there, but food addiction comes in many shapes and sizes, which is why I felt compelled to add something here.

I still havnt recovered. I just keep my cals under 2,000 a day, preferably under 1,500 for weightloss, and exercise a fair bit. I've come to accept that I'll always be at least somewhat addicted to food, occasionally I still binge.

This book helped me lots - "Eating Less - Say Goodbye To Overeating" by Gillian Riley.

emily
xxx

Dear Sad,

Many of us are addicted to binging, overeating. This is different than being addicted to food because we need food to survive. It is very diificult to recover alone, especially when we live in a culture of "Diets", "Bad Foods", etc.

I agree with the posts above. Counseling is the way to go. You might "Google" Overeaters Anonymous and see if there is a meeting near you. There is an OA support group on this website already, so check that out. Individual counseling would be very helpful too. Most of all, if we truly have an addiction, we can't do it alone. I have been in another recovery group for years and count it as a life saver. Finally, recognizing that I've traded one addiction for another, I am beginning work on myself once again.

So many of us are right here with you. Good luck, try and get connected. I am thinking all good thoughts for you!

Hope

I am definitely addicted to food, and I look at it no differently than I do drug addiction or alcoholism. Food, of course, is the most accessible substance and we cannot go cold turkey.

How I deal with it now:

-After I overeat because of emotions, I always ask myself "Do I feel better? Did it take away the negative feelings at all?" The answer is always always no. So asking myself this reinforces that food is not the answer.

--I do as most addicts do, I sublimate my addiction into some other activity other than eating. For me, this has been knitting and recently, exercising.
So when I feel like eating out of control, I pick up my needles or I climb onto my bike.

--I try to confront why I am feeling the way I am feeling, to acknowledge it. One thing I found with others that are addicted to food ..... there are a lot of anger issues that should be directed toward other people, but instead are internalized due to guilty feelings ... so now I try to direct my anger at the person/people it should be directed at (in my mind only) rather than sabotaging myself.

--When all else fails, I try as much as possible to just say no to myself. That's hard, because food has been my only comfort for so long.

--Also, there are some things that I no longer feel very comfortable eating because I know they will trigger a binge eating contest ... chips, white pasta, a lot of thick breads, etc.

This has been a huge part of it for me too. I used food to anesthetize my feelings because for some reason I didn't feel like I was supposed to have them. Anger is definitely the biggest of these.

I sure can relate to your post 100%, my problem is with sweets, just can't depart that or even have a small piece in moderation. I have this all or nothing mindset that I know hinders my weight loss efforts. Hang in there... You are not alone!