Hi

I am a binge eater /compulsive overeater. I'm doing fine on my programme BUT every time I have to attend one of those stand up lunches at work where there are picky little things to nibble _ I go overboard and just can't stop ...then the guilt can sometimes lead me onto a full blowout binge - anybody got any suggestions how to stop this - I can't walk out as it would be seen to be anti-social

This really is sabotaging my otherwise binge free existence at present

If you hold a big glass of water or diet soda in one hand and a camera in the other, it will be more difficult to grab a nibble...just an idea. You could make yourself the unofficial party photographer :-)

Barb

Do they have roughly the same things each time? If so then I'd try to make a plan for what you are going to have. I know most people do panic about buffets, but I love them for control purposes. You can see what something is cooked in, you can see if there is any sauce, you control the portion. You don't have to look at a menu and agonise over fries or no fries cos you really, really, really, really want fries but they aren't going to fit today's plan, you go up to the buffet table and you take two fries - craving satisfied, limits not blown.

Assuming there are plates and it's not solely nibbly things, go and dump a massive salad over 3/4 of the plate then see what you can fit in the rest of it in a single layer. Oh, and let everyone else go up first. Some things might be gone by the time you get there anyway so problem solved, and it's astonishing how much less appetising a semi-decimated buffet looks than a full one all beautifully presented. Instead of deciding what you want to pick up by looking at the buffet counter have a glance at other people's plates and make your decision before you even get close to the actual table, then stick with that. Another strategy is to go around twice, go along the entire line looking at everything and see what you'd like, then weigh up in your mind what is most important to you to fit into your allowances. If you go along the line and see chicken and throw some on your plate and then you see mini-sausages too and you want those more than the chicken then before you know it they will both be sitting on your plate. The double go-around means you would not pick up any chicken in favour of the sausage. I think the key is to remove that impulse moment, I see I put on plate, you want to look then think then select.

I have had more difficulties at work buffets than ones I chose to go to. At work, there are many other factors at play and cause me anxiety, such as eating in front of coworkers.

What I would do is look the buffet over so I knew what was available and then head to the restroom or my desk and have a pause. I would think about what would the the best selections for me, my plan and my ultimate goal. Having that firmly in my mind, I would go back and prepare my plate. That little pause is a real life strategy to take away the power of urge and impulse. It takes practice, but one that has made a huge difference for me. I am sure people think I have a bladder control problem, lol, but I use the restroom a lot to rethink my choices.

I try to avoid Buffet's as much as possible.
It is an over eaters paradise. Maybe on a day before that lunch you can eat something small before the lunch and drink a lot of fluids.

At this point I would rather not attend and be antiscocial. ****, the extra weight and lowered self esteem from being fat killed my social life....so not attending something that would perpetuate my overall anti-socialism by attending because it would keep me from my long term goal.

Thanks for all the advice-some very useful tips here, which I will take onboard. I will wait till everyone else has tucked in before getting mine - my therapist also suggested putting what I wanted on a plate and then sitting down -I do tend to hover around the table. Work , stress and tiredness. I really can see why that food is soo tempting with such anxiety around me