If your eating is out of control, how do other things in your life fare?
Many of us have issues with not being able to control our eating habits ---i.e., not being able to avoid junk food, even though we want to eat healthy.
Do you find other areas of your life that are out of control?
Do you find that when your food is under control, so are other things?
I can imagine some people use diet and working out as a control mechanism. When everything is falling apart around you weight control and health are something the bad economy can't ruin for you.
The connection between my eating and exercise habits and all other areas of my life is so obvious. Not to say I’m an angel when I’m being health conscious, but I make better decisions financially and as a parent and in my relationships. I definitely don’t spend as much money…I have this feeling of control. That’s the only way to explain it.
But when I decided to “go crazy” and get “off plan”? I am full of excuses in all areas of my life for all kinds of terrible behavior. I blow money on stupid things, I make poor sexual choices (sorry if TMI), I’m just generally more impulsive. It’s like I have a switch in my head for control and the only settings are ON and OFF, never an in between.
I’m definitely curious to see if others experience this too!
Actually, my weight is one of the only things I am really out of control about. It has been very frustrating for me.
Our finances are in good shape.
Our education levels are high and careers are solid.
We have great kids.
Our marriage is solid.
Now, there are certainly things to work on. We are certainly not perfect. I am not the best housekeeper and watch too much TV, but overall, I feel that weight is the one thing I can't seem to conquer or make any effort towards.
Honestly, I find that when I'm working on controling what I eat, then other aspects of my life seem to fall out of my control. It seems that I have to focus so much attention on eating, what to eat, when to eat, where to eat, how to eat, that eating is a priority. Everything else tends to take a back seat, and I feel that other things that are important to me aren't as much in my control.
I could use this as an excuse to quit--but I'm hoping I'll get used to it and be able to take better control over other aspects of my life once that happens.
I find that I am like many of you----some areas of my life are in far better control when I am eating better, other areas stay out of control, or I use them as a form of escapism (such as shopping, but I am broke, so shopping is very limited, which makes staying on my food plan hard---does that make sense?).
So, while I have lost 7 lbs in almost a month, I probably overspent---most of it on healthier food to be honest. I told myself that I wouldn't be picky about my budget for this month, and just buy things that will help me stay focused on my goals.
Today, I thought I was going to see the ex (it has been a whole month), but we may be meeting on a different day. So, I am having all of these sorts of emotions---sadness, anxiety, etc. Again, the small budget thing is there (I didn't pay a bill I should have this month, so, next month i will deal with being short, which isn't such a good thing, but I will try and make it work.)
I know I should probably just go home and work on a much needed home project, but there is that whole escapism thing, and I am also trying to avoid overspending AND overeating. Sigh.
Do you find that when your food is under control, so are other things?
For me, it's mostly the other way around. Eating is a way of coping with (or not coping with) whatever else I'm messed up about. My eating is kind of a barometer of how I'm doing with everything else. Not that it's entirely a one way street.
Generally, when I eat well, I'm also doing well on other things -- meditation, exercising, maintaining friendships -- all things that matter to me a lot.
I go through stages. I tend to have several days of eating well, meditating, exercising, and being social -- and then I feel exhausted from doing it all, and tend to derail for a couple days. It's pretty all-or-nothing for me -- either I'm doing ALL those things, or I'm doing none of them. I hope to get to a point where I can break that cycle, and do everything a little more in moderation.
When my eating is out control, my husband's eating is also out of control because he'll eat right along with me. This makes our spending out of control because we're spending money on binge food. If I'm eating everything under the sun that I shouldn't be eating, I sure don't have the energy or want to fix meals, so we start eating out. Then the worry sets in, am I going to be able to get this under control, are my clothes going to get so tight that they wont fit, am I going to gain all the weight back. About this time the depression sets in and I start sitting on my butt watching tv, my house starts going to pot, laundry starts piling up, dishes pile up in the sink and I may answer the phone when it rings and I may not. I don't pay the bills, but continue spending money on food and then there isn't enough money to pay all the bills, so we get behind on our bills. I cut myself off from my kids, grandkids, and friends and just sit in the mess that my bingeing creates. So YES, out of control eating effects every part of my life.
I am feeling a bit odd at the moment. I have been keeping myself busy with watching my food intake and doing cleaning projects around the house. It has helped me to not focus on other things that are a bit more emotional.
But, the past day or so I have been feeling like I don't want to spend my freetime cleaning. I want to do something more fun....but, what? I am on a budget, and need to watch both overeating and overspending. Sigh. I think the relationship thing did occupy more of my time, even though we weren't even dating at a certain point. Hmmm. I think that part of me feels uncomfortable just being by myself, even though I have been that way before. I am trying to not let those feelings lead me to overeating. My goal is to get below 310lbs and I am soooo wanting to accomplish that!
When I'm in control of my diet and exercise the rest of my life falls perfectly in line. I stay on a schedule and keep my children on a schedule, I handle our finances responsibly, I don't spend money frivolously, I keep an immaculate house, I do the domestic thing without a hitch (cooking, cleaning, kids, etc.), I even am less tired (although that probably has a lot to do with the type of foods I eat when I'm "in control").
When I am on a binge, be it a one day binge or a three month binge (aka compulsively overeating every day) the rest of my life falls apart. My schedule gets lost and me and my kids sleep in until all hours and stay up late. The house is a disaster zone, toys everywhere, dishes in the sink for three days before they get done, laundry piling up, etc. I spend money on silly things or things we don't have money for, especially binge food, and I am just an all around mess.
I never really thought about why this is, why I'm "All or nothing" in my life. Like if one thing isn't going exactly the way I want it to, the whole thing goes straight down the tubes (thats one of the reasons I've never finished college actually). But it's interesting now that I think about it, and maybe it's something I need to work on. Being able to not let sleeping until 9am make me throw away months of eating right, and not letting a binge night make me throw my schedule out the window... Interesting....
Last edited by Latchkey Princess; 03-19-2010 at 10:27 PM.
When I gained weight, my life was out of control. When I started losing the weight, everything else got better too. For me it seems like an all or nothing deal so I really need to work on that.
I noticed once I started binging, I also became obsessed with house cleaning. I need to have everything spotless and in the right place. Crooked pictures or anything out of place really gets on my nerves. I always kept my house clean, I cleaned regularly once a week. But now I do it everyday, there is not a day that goes by that I don't sanitize the kitchen counters+ cabinet handles, sweep, clean the stove and do the wash. I get so mad at my family if they make messes or drop crumbs on the floor. They think I have a compulsive disorder. I probably do! lol
I have a hard time having long term control over things in my life. I become obsessive at first (like with dieting...) I will be so dedicated & excited that I might even go a little overboard BUT... give it a month or so and my dedication turns into "I wish this was over already"... "I just want to be normal"... and for some reason, normal seems to be the ability to screw up and have no consequences, you know?
It seems like people without my / our issues can eat what they want, buy what they want and do whatever they want without the consequences I experience! GRrrrrrrrr >:-l
There's no real logic behind that but that's the feeling I get when I become a little desperate & bored.
If your eating is out of control, how do other things in your life fare?
