Compulsive Eating:a choice or not?
 

Hello.
so i have been battling depression since i was 11 and over eating becuz of it since i was 20.

there are times when the demon will make me overeat and i have absolutely no control and i cant stop.(im like a puppet with strings)
BUT there are times when i realize that i can make a choice 2 not over eat and do something else.that "SOMETHING ELSE" would be 2 exercise twice a day!

and i think im going 2 have 2 start doing that.ill probably have 2 do it 3 times a day so the urge wont hit me!:strong::woops:

my question is 2 the people who do compulsively eat:are there times when u feel u can choose another way 2 cope w/your problems but u choose 2 over eat?
or is your over eating problem one where u cant take another route,even if u tried?

When I find myself on a compulsive eating binge; it is like I am out of my body and I can't control myself. I find I do this when I am exhausted after work but have to stay up (like I am eating to stay awake). I am aware I am doing it but I am helpless to stop it. It is weird, I know, but I am getting better at being able to stop myself. Gorgeous picture by the way :).

You do have a choice, but the choice can be an easier one to be made if you make other good decisions earlier - before the compulsive demons hit. I regained ALL my first weight loss plus 40 more (90 pounds) in two years - all to compulsive eating. I felt like I had lost complete control.

Well, since then I've learned some things about my body and figured out its main triggers.

1. Lack of sleep. If I don't sleep well, I don't make good food decisions and then for quick boost energy, I eat high carb foods.

2. I've since learned that eating high carb foods (with or without a lot of fat) make me want to eat more high carb foods. I feel hungry when I'm not and I swear the carby thing is screaming to me from across the room. If I can just stay away from them for a couple days, I usually can bust the sugar craving. I will even allow myself to have high calorie days on those days, but to be lower carb foods - a steak, peanut butter, nuts, etc.

Do I eat low carb? Not really or maybe yes. I don't eat rice, pasta, sweet potatoes, bread and I try to stay away from sugar sweets. I still eat fruit and any veggies I want. Most starches are just fillers anyway. I'll have a chicken breast with a huge plate of green beans instead. Or a humongous salad with hard boiled eggs.

If I get good sleep and stay away from sugar (and the sleep one is the MUCH BIGGER TRIGGER), I will most like have control over my eating.

Last thing that helps me with better food decisions is:

3. Exercise. It's a natural antidepressant. If I exercise, especially if I exercise hard, I get a natural mood boost and then I'm not drawn to junk either. I think if more people exercised, we would have far fewer anti-depressant prescriptions being filled out.

i so know what youre talking about feeling like youre out of your body.
at times its like im eating so much and im so in the zone,i can see myself eating but im on the other side of the room looking at myself.thats when it gets scary.:eek:
i do realize that i overeat when im stressed or anxious and just sad.
its good that youre getting better becuz having no control over your body or food is a LIVING :devil:

thanks 4 the compliment on the pic.:)
its actually a picture of the singer RIHANNA.
lately shes lost some weight and has gotten skinnier and she been a "THINSPO" 2 me which is weird becuz im more into wanting a muscular body type like JANET JACKSONS.

thanks 4 the advice :)
i think when i quickly choose 2 binge i guess its becuz its what im used 2 and its the "EASY' way 4 me 2 cope.
i do think about all of the times i could have chosen 2 workout and i kind of get upset with myself.
i do battle depression which is the main culprit of my overeating so i have 2 get that in check.
but i def have 2 get my body back 2 exercising,i know thats the most important thing. 2 keep my emotions in check.

I did actually replace compulsive eating with compulsive exercise for awhile, and I got all the way down to 150. It was great! But I couldn't keep up the intensity, and after some work stress and a heartbreak I slowly went back to compulsive eating and regained most (but not all) of my weight.

This time around I am trying to find the balance, because I know I can't spend the rest of my life engaging in compulsive behaviors and expect to be healthy and happy. Obviously I haven't figured it out yet, but I'm working on it.

Choose the right food to eat. Usually natural foods are low in calories. Drink plenty of water and exercise! You can eat what you like (Be wise in choosing food) and life healthy, happily!

There are times (like today) that I get frustrated with things and go straight for the junk. I swear Little Debbie is my worst enemy :( I always say I won't buy it so it's not here but there are times that I'll "need" it so bad I make a trip to the store and then binge on it. Afterwards I feel guilty so I eat more :/ The bad thing is I have plenty of healthy stuff here but my mind refuses to acknowledge any of it. I am trying to find a different outlet but rarely have any free time to do anything outside the house.

I do this exactly!! When I have to stay up late to study which is almost every night I compulsively eat. When really I should just go to bed.

Everything in life is a choice.

I spent a lot of time thinking I didn't have control over certain aspects of my life. My weight. My happiness....

I was sure giving a lot of power to negative thinking!!! it's your life. You have every right to take control of it and control behaviors that aren't getting you anywhere!

I have to be really strict with myself. There is NO off limits food in my house. No garbage food. I know myself well enough to know that if it's here, it will cause me problems. There is no reason for it to be here. I have control over my choices and part of that is making sure I only bring health into my home.

I think there are some things we are pretty powerless over and compulsive behaviour IN THE MOMENT is one of them. We are sick. Whether it's drugs, food, alcohol, inappropriate relationships,etc. But we do have control over whether or not we do something about and get back in control. So for people who are compulsive eaters/ dieters - a conventional diet approach may not work. Maybe you need to change your whole way of thinking and behaving around food.

Everyone has a choice not to over eat not everyone has a choice when it comes to depression but the food is just a way of coping which can be changed but its takes a long time, but for people who are very deep into a food issue they may not be ready to make the choice not to over eat, the choices at the early stages of recovery may be choosing to talk to a professional, start a plan, identity triggers or pattern, choose to change something but you've already chosen to question the over eating which is one of the first steps to overcoming it is as if we do not want to admit the issue then we are powerless but once we know its happening we can work to change it.

That being said once you cross the line into the over eating mindset its very easy to feel powerless so the work must be done outside of those zones and the goal right now is not to stop but to reduce at first.

I have traded compulsive eating for other compulsive behaviors before also. Exercise was the most helpful for my weight...but not necessarily for my wellness. I can get compulsive about cleaning, organizing, crafting and even counting calories. Like thistoo...I am trying to find balance without turning my food addiction into any other addiction.

I have had binges where I experienced that out of body feeling some of you mentioned. It is a scary, out of control experience. It can be (for me) like being in a trance. While I understand some people thinking you are always in control of you...well, there have been times when I certainly felt powerless.

In time you can begin to find your triggers and find some control by making changes. You have to identify the things that set you off and the things you can to minimize their effect. It has been a long time since I have had the type of binge described above because I have really worked to limit or eliminate white rice, mashed potatoes, flour, sugar and sodas. Exercise and a lower carb diet help me. Your best chance for recovery is learning what situations and foods set you off and send you to that place where you lose control.

By telling myself "I have no choice" I am taking away my power, which is the worst thing I can possibly do. Yes, I have a choice. I will not DIE if I do not binge. The world will not crumble. No one has a gun pointed at my head. Of course, it is a difficult choice - probably the hardest thing I do on a daily basis - but it's still a choice. Even when I'm feeling totally out of control (especially in the middle of a binge) - I still have a choice to stop. It doesn't matter what the addiction is; it is always a choice to continue or to stop. I do not believe that addiction is a "disease" - I believe it is a neurosis and all neurosis can be healed, some just take longer and more work.

I believe there are very few things in life totally without choice. My binges are not one of them. The binging is my fault, my problem and ultimately, as painful and as much as I hate to "own" it - my choice.

I totally agree.

F.

(really long post!!!!!! i got a little carried away... )

This is a really interesting topic. And I think everyone has different reasons they have turned to compulsive behaviors for food. Probably for me, food was a link to happy times with my family. Grandma (dad's mom) was always cooking and always in the kitchen. Grandma (mom's mom) was always cooking or sewing. Grandpa (dad's dad) was always playing the piano and singing. Grandpa (mom's dad) was always working or telling jokes or eating! Might be why I love cooking, singing, playing the piano, and telling jokes ;-) As I got older, I 'drew' that link in my brain that food = happy, and I think that's how overeating started for me. I was not too athletic, and a little on the shorter side, so puberty hit me like a mac truck. I was a chubby before and then HOLY CRAP LOOK AT HER. I defaulted to food and music when things got bad. I used joking (about myself mostly) as a defense mechanism. Overeating started to happen a LOT for me when dad's mom died. She was like a best friend/loving confidant/cool wise person and a lot of people talked (and still talk) about how I am so much like her. When she died I got depressed and just went straight to food. I guess you could say I used food as a coping mechanism, but I think I just used it because I could cook and cook and cook and eat and eat and eat... just to be using my hands without thinking.

When I graduated high school (before she died) I was about 220 lbs. After my first year of college I was about 200-205 (exercising regularly with a cute boy in my calculus class and with another good friend from high school!) After my second year of college (the year she died), I was about 250. When I graduated school, I loathed the desks because I weighed about 330 lbs and could barely squeeze into the desks. I would get pressure marks on my belly and on my legs if the class was longer than 50 minutes.

Last year I joined this forum and decided that I was sick and tired of being fat. Changed my diet to include more fruits and veggies and less sugar and flour. Exercised at least twice per week. Lost 30 lbs in about 4 months. It was awesome. Now I'm pregnant (and happy!) but I have to keep myself in check. I was steadily losing weight at the beginning of the pregnancy (exercise!) but I have slowed down (long story and by golly I think this post is long enough!). I have been slowly gaining weight the past few weeks, but recognizing it's okay if I gain a little weight HEALTHILY because it's for the baby. I know that I can down the whole buffet without blinking but I have to recognize that pregnancy is not a free pass for "any food I want to have when I want to have it!!!" I know that obese women are at a higher risk for pregnancy complications. I know I don't want to be the 'fat mom' who can't even play with her kids at the park. Mostly, I know that I want to live a long and healthy life so I can see my children's children's children (at least!) :-)

I don't think compulsive eating is a conscious "choice" ... I don't know that anyone tells themselves "I'm going to eat this whole box of fried chicken and then feel crazily guilty afterward" before they do it. I think it's the result of NOT making a choice. It's because you don't tell yourself "I will have one piece of chicken so my tummy stops grumbling. If I'm still hungry after that, I will have something to drink. If I'm still hungry after that, I will eat some veggies." It's because you don't recognize those situations when you go on food autopilot and eat everything. It's because you don't replace your bad habits with good ones. It's because you aren't keeping yourself accountable or in a group where everyone keeps each other accountable.

Sorry for the extra long post!!!!!

thank u guys soooo much 4 your responses :)
i guess i have 2 be an adult and make a choice at how i handle those 'binge feelings"

but i think the hardest is when im at the point that i cant even look at a picture of food without it being a trigger.(thats when im off my meds)

now im on effexor and its been helping :)

I used to think I was a compuslive overeater, food-addict, and that because most people (even fat people in my family) didn't have my food-eating compulsion, that it meant there was something seriously wrong with me emotionally/mentally.

My eating often did seem outside my own control, sometimes almost as if the real me were being gagged, restrained and pulled along, kicking and screaming while the "invader" had control of my body, eating all the foods I "didn't want to."

It took a long time to realize that I am not so much a compulsive overeater as a carbohydrate addict, especially of the sweet/salty/fatty combination that David Kessler talks about in his book, The End of Overeating. For me it wasn't traditional sweets, it was savory/sweet treats that ideally also included the flavor elements tangy and spicy - barbecue sauces, general tso's chicken, chili mac....

After my doctor recommended that I try low-carb dieting (but warned me not to go too low), I started experimenting with low-carb. I had never given low-carb diets much of a chance because I had always believed that they were unhealthy (reinforced by my own experience with "induction flu" that DID NOT go away in two weeks as Dr. Atkins predicted. Instead the headaches, irritability, dizziness and even fainting would get worse until I would give up in frustration and vow never to use low-carb diets again (and I wouldn't until I got desperate and then I'd try them again).

What I didn't try until my doctor suggested it, was experimenting with different carb levels. I learned that by raising my carbohydrates (the "good" whole food ones like sweet potatoes, wild rice, quinoa...) slightly, I could elimintate the unpleasant symptoms and still control hunger.

The hunger control was so astonishing that I was flabergasted. It felt like the "invader" who sometimes took control of my body had lost every bit of power. The monkey was off my back. I had full control of my eating.... as long as I kept my blood sugar in check.

I also learned that eating for blood sugar control MADE me sane. The carbs had been driving me crazy.

Not only was I more in control of my hunger, I was also more in control of my emotions when I avoided the high-carb, quickly digested foods. Carbs were actually causing the emotional instability.

When I read "The End of Overeating," I realized that my addiction to concentrated carbs and the carb/sugar/salt flavor combination was common to not only humans but also to lab rats and other omnivorous animals (and we can be pretty sure that lab rats aren't eating carbs to salve the hurt of emotional issues with their mothers).

Not all "addictions" (and perhaps very few) are caused by severe emotional issues. There are genetic, physiological, and environmental issues. And I strongly believe that carb-addiction especially to the salt/sugar/fat combination isn't rooted in emotional problems... eating that way causes the emotional problems and makes "not eating" a difficult challenge.

That's a very long way of saying that I think the question (is it a choice or not) has a very complicated answer. I think we always have a choice, but certain choices make other choices easier or more difficult.

I used to always diet on very high-carb diets (you know, the ones nearly everyone says are so healthy) and I could lose weight. I could choose not to eat... but it was always a constant, gnawing, white knuckle, skin-of-the-teeth, 24/7 rabid-ravenous hunger and food obsession, and "wish I could just die so I'd stop feeling so hungry" kind of choice. And what kind of choice is that?

Of course I gave up, because dieting was more miserable than just being fat. Dieting was more miserable than weighing 394 lbs, being nearly bed-bound, finding it painful to even wash my hair in the shower while having to sit, being unable to sleep more than 15 minutes because of pain from pressure on my joints in bed...

Yep, believe it or not, dieting was more painful than all of that.

Then I discovered that moderate low-carb, and avoiding intense sweet/salty/fatty food combos, made diet changeing tolerable and gave me my choices back (I of course had them all along, but they became easy choices not intensely difficult ones).

Old habits are hard to break, and I still sometimes want foods that can trigger the out-of-control feeling, but as already mentioned by other posters, I can make choices that make other choices easier (or irrelevant).

If I eat moderately low-carb, I don't have to fight a monkey on my back. The metaphorical monkey is always with me, ready to leap on, but if I keep good dietary choices, the nasty critter doesn't get that opportunity.

there are times I am well aware, and times I am in a trance.

Yes there are definitely times when I feel like I cant NOT over eat.. I try so very hard to stop but I just cant. But with that said I do think that with time I can over come those urges.. I have began to do just that.. Instead of eating say chips and dip (lots of calories that are not needed) I eat a banana and some low fat whipped cream. The banana and whipped cream totaled 135 calories instead of 3-5 hundred with the chips/dip and whatever else I would of been eating. The whipped cream makes it sweet so I want to eat it. Sooner or later ( I hope sooner!) I will go without anything at all.