Missunshine - yep bingeing takes a long time to cure - I fell for another old chestnut yesterday - the animal brain convinced me to buy lots of low cal sugary snacks that are on sale to help lose weight after Christmas - 99 calorie cereal bars - well fine for most but not for me - I ate the lot all at once - just got to make sure that I won't get fooled by that one again

Doingmybest and Danzingirl - stay with it and keep coming back - being here really does help

I have done that too - they're a monetary bargain, but not a bargain for weight loss/maintenance! I have to tell myself that I am no longer at a place in my life where I go out and buy candy/snacks because they're a good monetary deal. That period in my life is over. Now, I need to buy things because they're healthy and/or a caloric deal. It's hard sometimes, but I remind myself that the benefits of being thin and fit are better than the momentary pleasure of shopping for and eating inexpensive junk food!

TOTALLY sympathize on the weather! I feel so great and uplifted when it is warm and sunny, and so blah when it is cold/raining/snowy. It's so hard to get out for exercise when the weather is bad, and I don't even have to deal with air quality issues -- it must be awful! I can't wait for spring!

I'm down 0.7 pounds from yesterday -- I think it's from a combination of a LONG walk and eating at the low end of my range. Down from 134.7 to 134.0...just a few more pounds before I get back to I was, pre-binge. I need to keep this up! Today will be a day of eating near maintenance -- I can't handle long-term deprivation right now. Plus, I'm hoping that a little calorie cycling will get the body burning calories. Staying positive!!

I've done that loads of times too.

I am still going ok. No binges since the Thursday between Christmas and New Year...

Am now 0.4 pounds above my pre Christmas low weight. I've nearly removed Christmas.

Week #9: complete!

Did have some thoughts about food today, after being relatively free from focusing on food most of the time in the past month or so. I practiced some of the exercises I have learned and pressed on. I think I thought about food today because I had more free time on my hands than usual.

On to Week 10...

Jalsa- I'll always stay here- this forum has been a lifesaver for me! I hope you were able to figure out what to do with those snacks!

Doingmybest- congratulations on the drop and a huge snowstorm finally blew the inversion away- so I'll at least have some sunshine for a few days before it comes back!

Omega- I'm still fighting my Christmas weight a little, that's got to e a good feeling!

Kittykatfan-10 weeks is amazing! And congratulations on the broken record!

Starting in day 3 here- it's much harder to get BACK on track vs just staying there... But I'm making it. Determined to conquer this.

jalsa - i've done that many times too and every time i tell myself not to be fooled again but i still give in with things that are really discounted.

omega- i'm trying to reach my pre christmas weight too. but i don't have the scale here so i have to wait till i get home in about 10 days. i really hope it will show some progress.

doingmy best- calorie cycling is a good idea. i think i'll try it too. i think we're all trying to get to our pre- something weight ;D

kittykat- that is some serious achievement!! how do you cope with cravings, if you have any? 10 weeks would be a milestone for me

danzigurl.-that's the spirit! do not ever give up...just know that you'll always be an inspiration to someone !!!

i finished my day 16 in bed all day "studying" for my first exam tomorrow but i was mostly watching makeup tutorialy on youtube lol that thing is so addictive. i finally bought some very pretty new sneakers (that actually fit me) so hopefully there will be no more excuses for ditching my exercise. i need to get rid of my muffin top. i can feel my six pack but it's all covered in fat. :/

I am new to posting, but browse all the time. I am a binger and would like to Join your challenges. I am binge free since Tuesday, although had a few "over-eating" days. Been battling this since I was 16, I'm 48 now. I recently started see a therapist to learn how to better handle stress.

I can totally relate to the "diet foods", do that all the time. For some reason, don't treat like a normal food and end up eating everything.

So nice to have people who understand. Even my friends who are overweight don't understand what a binge is. They look at me with a "deer in the headlights" look when I try to explain.

Hope everyone had a great day.

Missunhine- I LOVE getting new sneakers! That's what I have asked for for Christmas and my birthday for the past 3 years and it always makes running more fun ;-)

Carolina- welcome! I hope you find this place as helpful and supportive as I always have!!

Starting on day 4 today.. My weight is still 3 lbs up from my last binge so that's a little disappointing, but I'm trying to trust the process and start strong! Hope everyone is having a good week so far! We're almost through January!

Like Carolina I've been mostly a browser, but I'd like to start posting in an effort to focus and get a handle on the binging.

This month I've managed to lose 7.4 lbs by making MUCH healthier food choices but I haven't been able to stop binging. Every day has been a terrible inner battle, and most often I lose.

Feeling so out of control is adding a terrible amount of stress and emotional disappointment to my life, which seems to make me want to binge even more even though I *KNOW* how counter-productive it is. I swear sometimes I feel absolutely possessed while I'm binging, I sometimes eat things I don't even like!

Anyway, that's me in a nutshell. Today will be day 1 binge-free for me. I hope.


Hey Carolina -- also like you I've been struggling with this since my teens and I'm 45 now. I can so relate.

Hey MayoLover, welcome- great to see you here -I also feel possessed when I am bingeing or heading that way - I even go to the store in the cold and pouring rain and when I get there I don't know what I want - it's the animal brain and I've got to find a way to gag it and shut it up!

Yesterday was a disaster, I was travelling, it was cold and there was no - where to get healthy food - so I self medicated with all the usual sugar crap
today has been good

Hi Jalsa, hope your day is going better. The first day after is always the hardest, but I always remind myself that I've been through this before and each day after the binge I WILL feel better, even if I don't feel like it now.

MayoLover, glad to have a new poster to start this journey. I find myself looking forward to logging in at the end of the day to share how my day went with people who get it. When I am in the middle of a period of day-after-day binging, I realize how awful it must be for those who are around me. My spouse, my employer, my co-workers, my children. I try to get out of the cloud and focus on being the best I can be for myself and those I care about. You can do it!!! Plus, you must be dong something right, you've lost 7.5 pounds.

Danzingirl77 - Thank you for the welcome! I hate that water weight gain. We all are smart enough to know it's not real weigth, but that darn number.... Keep it up, you're still down 4 from the binge. You are in the right direction! That 3 pounds will be gone sooner than you think.

I use MyFitnessPal to track my cals, and realize I am only bing free since Saturday. I had a middle of the road binge on Friday. So, that makes today day four and the day's almost over!!! Husband is out of town, and being home alone is often a trigger. Boredome and such..... So, here's to staying out of the fridge for the night. I know I will feel so good in the morning.

Have a peaceful evening!

On Day 65 now

It's so strange, but ever since I started my treatment program, my cravings have dropped big-time. I was just hoping to get some skills to help me deal with my intense cravings. Instead, my cravings have significantly reduced. It's like a light bulb on a dimmer - my thoughts and obsessions about food have just been really toned down.

I occasionally have thoughts of binging, but when they come over me, I use my skills. I start asking myself why I am feeling like binging: what triggered the thought and what emotion is behind it? Usually that delay is enough to help me get through the moment, but I have learned other coping mechanisms.

I think the food plan has also helped dramatically. I have to eat three meals a day plus two snacks. Even if I do have a big breakfast, that snack still has to happen. They are teaching me totally different food philosophies. I am to eat foods I crave! I just have to limit portion size, with the belief that if I want more, there is still more available tomorrow. I do not have to stay away from any food. A totally different philosophy from the way I used to think.

I used to think, "I will binge today and go back to being good tomorrow' - which drove me to just eat as much as I could that day because I couldn't enjoy tomorrow. Now I think that I can have more tomorrow if I want it. And I also front-load calories and eat breakfast, when I used to save my calories til the end of the day and starved in the morning.

I simply can't believe how much this program has helped me. I am still working on learning to read my hunger and especially my fullness cues, but the good news is that I have maintained my weight loss. I may have even lost some, although the loss is not intentional since the focus is on breaking the binge cycle and not on weight loss. The program teaches nutrition, a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy, and body image acceptance - which has helped me with my self confidence (a bit...still scared to show my pics )

I have so much more to share, but I don't want to bore anyone so I will stop for now. All I can say is if you have the chance to get treatment for binge eating disorder, I highly recommend it if you can find a good program. It has truly changed my life in a very short time.

Mayolover- welcome! I hope you have found a way to stay on track and that this place helps you! I take advantage of venting here ALL the time, it's nice to have people who understand! Good luck!

Jalsa- travel and cold are both hard to deal with as far as good goes, I hope you were able to have a good day afterward!

Carolina- you are right, I was back to normal this morning- thank heavens!!

Kittykatfan- I am so happy to hear that your program is working for you!! And I for one am not bored by your tips at all- please, keep sharing!

Today will be day 5 and I am feeling pretty confident. My weight is back to normal and hopefully my blood sugar is too! :P looking forward to another LONG binge-free streak ;-)

KittyKatFan - how awesome! You are not rambling, but making sense and providing great information. 64 days, WOW! How encouraging. I am in personal therapy and learning how to deal with anxiety, which is a huge trigger for me. She always says the food will be there, too. Do you do one-on-one therapy or group?

FYI I made it through the night, didn't even go to the kitchen! Day 5, no binges!