[ivey03]

Hello ladies!,
I am new to the whole posting thing, but I have hit a low, and I feel like I have no one I can really talk to about my problems. I am in my mid-twenties, and although I appear to be healthy and fit and happy, I have been engaged in a long-term struggle with my weight and my issues with "binge" eating. I have read all the books, and articles explaining why I do this and what I should do to stop it. I have tried almost every little exercise or suggestion, but it seems like no matter how hard I try, I always end up reverting back to these bad habits of binge eating. Does anyone else suffer from these uncontrollable, powerful, urges to eat everything in sight? If so, I would really love to hear how you have overcame them, and what worked/didnt work for you.

[srmb60]

Yes, I do.

And all I can do is make suggestions. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't and sometimes I don't want them to ... I just want to eat a bunch o'stuff.

Fiddle with a bottle of water.
Make sure you have a planned weapon ... bags full of chopped veggies.
Chew gum.
Get the junk out of sight ... out of the car ... out of the house.

Sorry. About all you can do is battle and win most of the time. Practice, practice, practice ....

[my3monthchallenge]

The same things happen to me! I am usually a healthy eater, but then every once in a while I get the sudden urge to binge. And when I binge, I only go for the worst (chips, ice cream, chocolate bars, etc.).

I don't know if I'll EVER overcome them once and for all, but there are certain things that help me sometimes (only sometimes, hehe).

1. Treat myself to tiny, tiny portions of what I like, once every few days.
Instead of cutting out chocolate altogether, I have a small piece every 2-3 days and tuck the rest away in my desk drawer at work. It keeps me from feeling 'deprived.'

2. Sleep early.
I tend to snack more when I stay up late (I snack at night) or when I'm not getting enough sleep (I want to eat more the next day cuz I'm tired and need the 'energy' to stay alert). So when my body is well rested this is not so much an issue.

3. Keep busy.
When I do snack on junk, a lot of times it's when my hands (and mouth) are feeling restless and I just kinda want something to do, rather than really, something to eat. When I keep myself busy, especially in the afternoon, I tend to forget about junk

[librakitten]

I totally have this problem too. Stuff my face. Treat myself when sad or happy And definitely when bored, esepcially at work or in the evenings...

I have no solutions yet (apart from keep busy) but I feel for you!

[chickennugget126]

I have this problem, too. Over the years it's gotten to be less of an issue for me, but at one point I binged every night until I got sick. Not fun, especially waking up in the morning full of guilt, bloat, and fear of stepping on the scale.

I can only echo what others have already suggested:

- Sleep early. This one is a lifesaver because the longer I stay up, the more I eat. Sometimes just to get in bed, with a book, is enough to stop from eating. Even if it's 9pm LOL.

- Go out and do something. Cuz anything is better than the couch when you wanna binge.

- Get all junk food and otherwise trigger foods out of the house. You'll hate yourself at first, but then you'll love yourself in the morning.

- Call a friend and vent.

- Take your dog out for a walk if you have one, or just take yourself out on a walk. Grab your iPod and stroll...

- Come onto 3FC... this place is my safe haven when I feel alone.

- drink lots of water. flavored, if you have to. glug glug glug.

- play video or computer games - anything to keep your hands busy.

- see a therapist.

- eat an apple first. you'd be surprised how full you can get.

But I know what's it like and sometimes nothing seems to help. Come post on here whenever you're struggling and let's help each other through this. We all deserve to have happy, healthy relationships with our bodies and with food.