My eating is out of control. I eat when Im not hungry I eat when board I eat for everything. I cant save any money because I spend it all on food. I wake up in and eat go back to bed. Sometimes I'll do this three or four times. I work 4:30 pm to 3:00 am. during the week. And on the weekends I eat all day and all night. I dont no what to do. I weigh 300+

Have you tried a money jar? Get a "cookie" jar or something you would normally save snacks in, empty it and every time you go to get something to eat out of it put a "donation" in. Doesn't have to be much quarter here, dollar there... then when you have your weight loss you can buy yourself a nice non-food treat. And remember nothing tastes better than a weight loss

Two years ago I was where you are now, but I didn't really realise it. I was eating almost constantly, but didn't even think twice about it. One day I weighed myself and realised that I had put on a LOT of weight in just a few months. I looked across the car at my husband of 3 and a half years and figured that I wouldn't be with this wonderful man for much longer if I didn't do something. I had never had any bad medical results, but I think I was just a time bomb waiting to go off.

The first thing hubby and I decided to do was to not bring any more junk food into the house. NOTHING! I didn't throw out all the rubbish in my pantry, but when it was finished, there was no more. I didn't stop eating rubbish, but I would have to save the treats for outside the house. I would have special morning teas when there was something on at the school where I teach. I would pick up something when we were out shopping. But the temptation was no longer available at home. That was the biggest help for me in kick-starting my new lifestyle. Because, believe me, if it was available, I would crave in until I had demolished it.

You may want to try something like that to start you off. I still had 'treats', but they were dried fruit and nuts, or multigrain bread with a special spread, or diet jello, or diet yoghurt, and LOTS of fresh fruit and vegies. That is mostly what I eat now. I love fruit and vegies now, where as I hardly touched them before. For a REAL treat I have a few marshmallows, or a piece of licorice or two (you can even get raspberry, apple and mango flavoured licorice - YUM!). My dietician friend says that these are fine.

Oh... and I also started exercising regularly. I was really big when I started (350lbs) so I would put some music on and just 'march' in the lounge room, or do minimal aerobics moves. I would also love to go for walks with my husband, but I found lots of excuses to not walk on my own. I now have my own treadmill and exercise bike set up in the lounge/family room. They don't look very good, but I don't care. They are helping to save my life, so what the heck!

If you want any more details of how I have turned my life around, please just let me know. I'll answer any questions you ask to the best of my ability.

I am really proud of where I am at the moment, as I would never have thought I could actually make it to the size I am now. I've NEVER been able to shop in regular adult clothing stores, and I am loving clothes shopping now. I still have a way to go to reach my healthy target weight, but I'm sure I'll do it now.

Good luck and take care.

Please I need all the help I can get.

Have you considered Overeaters Anonymous, or some other support group? Or perhaps a counselor?

Other than that, my suggestion is to get the bad food out of the house and stay busy. Planning out ahead of time what you're going to eat for the day, and when might also be useful. If that seems like an impossible task, I'd really suggest some kind of counseling or support group.

Good Luck!

I second the suggestion of Overeater's Anonymous. There is a board here for people who are compulsive overeaters or recovering from other eating disorders; it's called Chicks in Control. Please take a look, there's a lot of good information there.

Also, I would like to suggest that you are exhibiting some signs of clinical depression. Call your doctor and ask for an evaluation. If you don't have a doctor, call your county mental health facility. If your current lifestyle is due, at least in part, to depression, all the tips and tricks in the world aren't going to help. If that's not an issue, great, but best to know ahead of time.

After a lifetime of obesity I had gotten up to well over 300 pounds. I did not sleep excessively and I wasn't depressed, but I was in a serious rut. I, too, ate for any reason at all, and when I started it was hard to stop. Food -- cooking, restaurants, reading recipes, cruising gourmet shops, talking about food, and eating -- was my primary hobby. I was -- I am -- a compulsive overeater. I did not join OA but I read two books that were invaluable: The Thin Books (about compulsive overeating) and Thin for Life (discussed on the Maintainer's board). I also simply decided that I was not gonig to live that way any more. Changing my habits, abandoning my hobby, my main form of entertainment and comfort, my way of being in the world would be painful and uncomfortable, but I was determined. I've lost more than half my start weight and I'm within abuot 5 pounds of my recommended weight range. It was hard, it was HARD, but I finally found the keys. I realized it was about more than just "motivation" and "willpower" and "dieting" but about reshaping my life and my attitudes from the inside out. I can't change who I am, and the voices that urge me to eat for any reason or no reason at all still yammer at me. I've just taught myself how to ignore them and get on with my life.

It's tough, and you may have boulders in your path you need to remove to get there. But you CAN get there.

Oh, sweetie...I use to weigh over 350 pounds. I am now 184. You need to find help. Coming here is a big step and also admitting you need help. I wish I could reach out and give you a hug...sending hug... ....

I had to lose weight. I couldn't stand to look at myself any longer; I wanted to be there for my kids when they grew up. I don't know what I can say to make you feel motivated except keep coming here, get a hobby when you're bored, do not eat at night..drink some water instead, go for walks, or talk with your doctor or an OEA group.

I wish you well.
If you need to talk, please don't hesitate to PM me or come here and talk. We have plenty of shoulders to cry on.

emerald dragonfly

I thank you for all your advice , this is the first time that I ve told anyone about what i go through. I know this isnt going to be a easy . But to find other people thats going through what im going through is comforting. Thank God that I found all of you.

Thank you for being here. I echo what the woman said who mentioned depression. I was very ill a couple years ago, with autoimmune illnesses, and got very depressed. My weight just piled on. I, like you, ate all the time.
I think it would be helpful to talk to a doctor about this.

I am only now starting WW and sticking with it. This last week I have been exercising, which I had not done in 3 years!

I agree with what the others said about depression, as well. It's very hard to be optimistic about your life when you don't feel in control of it.

However, I'd have to disagree with the suggestion of taking everything 'bad' out of the house. It's good for some people, but for others it backfires into an all-day binge. If you are already having issues with saving money because of the food you buy, doing something that drastic would just cause more problems.

Maybe you should try taking baby steps. Take something that you know you could live without, f.ex chips in front of the TV and replace it with something else that's crunchy, but not so unhealthy (like soynuts, apple slices or pomegranate seeds). Once you can manage that, then you can tackle another problem area (like eating from vending machines). Once you learn to control what foods you eat, you can control when you eat. It will take longer than just revamping your eating habits, but you'll regain control of the situation.

Good luck and welcome.

I also wanted to add I know what you're going thru with the work situation. I too work shift work and for the last 6 months i've been working 1100pm to 700am so it's very hard to get into and stick with a program or at the very least good eating habits. I've gotten with some of the girls on my shift and we have successfully boycotted the vending machine but finding a place with decent food open at 3am is almost impossible so I'm forced to bring food or order a pizza before they stop delivering.
I don't know where you work but my office has a small fitness center with a few treadmills and other equipment, if you dont have one it may be a good thing to suggest to managment. It's free and a great way to spend my 30 min lunch break considering I'm usually way too busy before I go to work and way too tired when I get home to do anything else. It's also an excuse to get out of the room which can be very stressfull at times (I work at a police dispatch center).
I've read thru this forum and it really seems like the best support group I've seen so far. This is truly the first time I've ever been motivated to post anything. As far as the depression goes, working nights can definatly put you in that "midnight mood". Talk to your primary physician too about how your feeling and see if they dont have a suggestion for you. I've found that exercising even for 20 min a day and drinking water and green tea have really made me feel better and tends to keep me motivated.
There are a lot of people on this site that can help you every step of the way to better health and a better you. Keep in touch and good journey.

Big Hugs