So, I have been thinking about my food addiction a lot lately. I have had this problem since a very young age, and although i have been able to kick some pretty nasty addictions (drugs and alchohol) i have been completely unable to quit binge eating until recently, and it is painfully hard.
while i know that i do this to myself, i think i figured out why it has been the hardest thing ive ever had to 'quit'
we MUST eat to live. we dont have to drink/do drugs to live.
when a person quits drugs or alcohol, or gambling, or whatever their vice may be, they QUIT. period.
when overcoming an addiction to food, we must learn moderation. this is nearly impossible in any other situation, do you tell a meth addict or an alcoholic that they must learn moderation? no, you tell them that they have to quit doing it altogether.
i know that this is an extreme example, but it makes sense to me. i am able to stay away from alcohol and drugs because i can separate myself from them. i dont have to go on a weekly booze shopping trip, but i do have to buy groceries to survive.
i hope i dont sound like a moron, maybe i am just overthinking things, just thought i would put it out there
You're absolutely right! I'd like to add though that you could try to stop certain foods. So, if sugar is an issue, then you could quit refined sugar (as an example). Just like you didn't quit drinking water....you quit alcohol. So, I do think it's possible to eliminate certain foods that are triggers, but I get what you're saying because I have the exact same issue. Gosh, now I'm wondering if I'm sounding crazy! It's all so simple and complex at once, which is why it's hard to write about it in a way that truly sums up how we're feeling.
I've been in groups for drugs, alcohol, and food addiction. Food addiction is one of the hardest to overcome. With alcohol and drugs you can put the tiger in the cage and keep it there. With food you've gotta walk your tiger on a leash three times a day. You can do it.
It is hard - because you can't quit period and also food can start filling in for the other addictions. I too have had other addictions but believe that for me, food is the root addiction that all others stemmed from - so that in itself makes it double hard to kick.
I have 2 types of food and for different reasons - there is the healthy food and then there is the other - the healthy food i use to keep my body and mind healthy and the other stuff is used mainly to stop stress, anxiety and tiredness, so I've worked out if I try and cut the causes - I'm gonna have a different ending ie a binge free life - to date it's not by any means perfect - but it's working
...I have 2 types of food and for different reasons - there is the healthy food and then there is the other - the healthy food i use to keep my body and mind healthy and the other stuff is used mainly to stop stress, anxiety and tiredness ...)
Yup! Dealing with stress, anxiety, tiredness, being sad, mad,,,sometimes too happy If only I could switch over from junk food to spinach smoothies...that is, until I could find non-food ways to deal with being uneasy.
i agree with using one type of food to feed yourself, and one type to de-stress yourself. however, i am and have always been a healthy food nut. and i often would binge on not only sugar and carb filled foods, but on healthy food as well. it makes it easier to eat healthy though, i would have a harder time giving up spinach and tomatoes and fish then i would giving up little debbies
I hear your pain too. I also quit Alcohol and it's so tough because we already have that sway towards addicition and it crosses to everything. That "fix" from food is just so hard to let go of. It also doesn't feel so bad because you don't put others in danger or act like a dope. It's easy to hide for the most part besides the weight. I have been hiding it for awhile now, just like AA - Admitting you have a problem was the first step for me.
Food addiction is definitely a serious matter, though some experts suggest is not nearly as strong as alcohol and drug addictions. Try this: whenever you feel like eating, rate your hunger on a scale of zero to ten, where zero is starving and ten is full. Try your best to stay somewhere in the middle of the scale.
my little 'epiphany'
It's all so simple and complex at once, which is why it's hard to write about it in a way that truly sums up how we're feeling.
If only I could switch over from junk food to spinach smoothies...that is, until I could find non-food ways to deal with being uneasy.
