At it's most basic, for me, a binge is uncontrolled eating. Eating even though I don't want the food. Eating even while I am telling myself "I shouldn't". Eating even though I'm full or overfull, but I don't quit eating.
I have rarely been a binge eater in the sense of eating until I made myself sick - maybe once in a while and mostly out of emotional eating.
But I have binged on favorite foods in the sense of eating far more than I needed or even actually wanted just becuase it was there.
I do consider binging to be mostly a private thing, although I don't think you have to be private or secret to be binging.
I consider a binge to be something that you have no control over. I'm sure most of us having different binging patterns and ways that we do it. Binging is mindless eating of food with no concept of being full. I personally binge alone and at a time when I know I have quite a bit of time to complete the binge. I think you know that you've binged if you can realize after the binge that it was wrong.
I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has responded to this thread so far. I'm finding everything that is being said extremely interesting, so thank you for sharing your thoughts - it's much appreciated.
It certainly seems like control (or lack of control) is something most people associate with a binge. And also, it seems like a lot of people actually really find it very unpleasant - not just in the sense that you feel guilty or uncomfortably full (which is what I feel), but that you actually really don't even enjoy the eating process. I'd not really considered this before, so thank you for making me aware.
tiny: I have to agree that being out of control, mindless eating and secrecy are all hallmarks of a binge. Any of them can do it, all of them is really tough as you usually have the after affects like nausea, bloat, guilt etc.
I set out to "cheat" today, but couldn't get what I wanted, I wanted a certain type of pastry. It wasn't available, so I settled on something else, but I couldn't binge. I was actually prepared to do it, but seem to have gotten out of the habit. I was about a month binge free recently, and had a nasty "accidental" binge the other night that left me feeling horrible, and tonight, although I did eat 5 cookies over the course of the day, I haven't binged... they were at different times, no secrecy , I mindfully decided to have each one, and enjoyed it a lot. THere are also many cookies left. I'm not currently even tempted.
I put it down to starting my period, and needing a break from the "diet" for a day, after the stress of the last week.
I guess I am getting into good habits, my "day off" still stayed within reasonable limit.
a binge to me is when i "need" to eat. and alot. because once i start eating, i can't stop. i can't stop so much so, that i eat til i'm physically in pain enough to make me stop. bc mentally i can't break away from it. i hate the feelings afterwards, but while i'm eating, i'll definitely say i enjoy it. i'm somewhat strategic too in planning what to eat. it's always a menu of different foods. i'll never eat "a whole box of cookies" for example. my binges are more to the tune of 2 cookies, some popcorn, toast w pb, bowl of lucky charms cereal, etc. and i'll choose each thing one at a time. i'll eat the 2 cookies, then five minutes later make the popcorn, etc.... and the list just goes on. and i usually eat foods that i rarely eat, like cookies or sugar cereal.
Eating whatever it is until I feel ill at how stuffed I am. I know I'm full and will be miserable for a while, but I don't bother to stop. I can also see that it's characterized by eating quickly and I don't really know why.
A binge for me personally is when I feel like I have no control over my eating and because of so choose bad foods to stuff my face with. Handling a binge requires me to exercise control and or substitute healthy foods or water...
for me, it's less about control (although i definitely know that out-of-control feeling) and more about eating to get away from something else. while i'm planning a binge (same as others - when it appears that an oppty is imminent, i'll be alone, i'm upset about something even though i might not be aware of it at the time) i feel GREAT - excited, can't stop thinking about it. while i'm eating, though, i'm barely even aware of what i'm putting in my mouth. i eat really fast and don't really taste it. it's more like checking out of whatever is in my head at the time.
really glad i don't do it much anymore, although i still have the impulse almost as often. it's kind of like a recreational drug that stopped working, and i don't do anymore. it's more like i miss the high (certainly don't miss the hangover of feeling sick and shameful.)
I think there's a definite difference between a binge and overeating, though one often implies the other. As someone who's done her fair share of both, I think I can define the difference:
Binging for me is characterized by a loss of control, by a compulsion to eat, even when your mind is saying "Stop! You don't want anymore!" Yet, you're shoving in food or returning countless times to cereal box to pour yourself more and you just cannot stop. There's something inside of you that feels like it's MAKING you eat, even though you don't want to in your rational mind.
Overeating is eat too much. Sometimes it can go hand-in-hand with mindlessness (i.e. you're watching TV and snacking out of the bag and before you know it, the bag is empty) or you're at dinner with some friends and when you stand up your realize you're stuffed. But I think it lacks the out of control quality that accompanies true binging.
Having four cookies when you only want to have one is overeating, imo, injesting half the box because you feel you HAVE TO, you're drive to do so, is a binge.
A binge for me is the inability to stop once i've started. I cannot have 2 cookies after dinner, and leave it at that. I cannot have 1 piece of cake if the rest is left unattended. I cannot leave the snack table at a party, or walk past without snagging something. Alone at night, I will return to the kitchen again and again until there is nothing left. I will do this all day and night every day and night. I constantly fight the urge to eat. every second of every day i am thinking about eating. while dieting, i'm thinking about my next healthy meal and how i'm not eating anything bad. right now i'm thinking about the hershey kisses in the cupboard-even one will kill me. I won't do it because i know i can't. but, eventually i will have something sometime, and it will break me. I feel like I am fighting myself with every waking moment to stick to my plan. I also feel remorse that I can never enjoy the same foods i used to because they make me lose control. I also know that its better to live healthy than die fat - or because of fat. I wish there was an easier way than feeling guilty or sad, but it is me that needs to overcome these feelings. beat the addiction (because that's what it is) so that i don't want that stuff anymore, and then there is nothing to lament.
for me, eating becomes a binge when I try to stop myself, but i can't. There are times when I eat a lot of food but know that I am in control and that I can stop. But sometimes I just can't. I keep reaching for that next bite...
If I'm planning a big indulgence, like a special restaurant or home prepared meal, it's not a binge even if I eat a lot of calories. But if I don't want to eat a lot and do, then it's bingeing, even if my calories are not off the scale like crazy. Some foods are hard for me to resist so I don't have them here, like homemade low fat brownies or ruffle chips with onion dip. There is no moderation for me with those, I just eat til they are gone. Other foods, like guacamole, I could overindulge in and not feel like I binged. I don't think I have bingeing figured out for me.
