Ok, so I started thinking why-o-why I always want the carb-type stuff.
It is tasty, it is sugar, it is starch, it is sauce, it is flavor.
Ok, so rest is not bland, but much the thing intself not the whole meal so-to-say. For example: a piece of salmon, vs poached salmon with various sides, cooked in oil and with herbs, sauces.
Another reason why I might be craving that stuff, because all my childhood there was a deficit of protein, so we did eat bread with every meal, and we did put butter on it, and yes, I was required to eat the side dish, I was not allowed to eat just the meat for example.
But that's not what I just realized.
When I eat a carb, there is sugar high, and what not, but that's not it for me.
In my case, I enjoy the carb, or perhaps the full meal thing (ex. poached salmon with sides above). When I leave the table, I feel that I enjoyed it so much that I want it again. Like a candy, after eating one, you want the second one. My mind remembers the enjoyment, I no longer hungry, I just want that feeling again. (perhaps I am eating with my eyes so-to-say). It is all about the feeling I have at that moment, which I want to repeat. And I always wondered why a carb calls for another carb.....

Perhpas it is no news to anyone, but this is like a breakthrough for me on how and why I feel a certain way.

Years ago my obgyn told me I was a carb addict and wanted me to see another doctor about the problem, but I did not do it and now I am sorry that I did not heed his advice. I am a carb addict and the older I get the harder it is to control. One leads to another, one now- a few minutes the carbs are calling again and so on. I totally understand your problem. I am trying again to get a grip on my carbing--it's a task, to say the least. Good luck in your eating plan and I will check on you later.

Oh yeah, this really struck a chord for me. I have never really considered myself an "emotional eater", unless that emotion is enjoyment and pleasure. I love the way food tastes, feels, smells, the whole works. Even when I'm full, I am thinking about what I may eat next.

For me, carb-y sugary things make me still feel hungry. I just don't feel satisfied. If I eat enough protein and vegetables I do feel full. I may think about what I want to eat next, but I don't actually feel like I need to eat again then.

I was a carb addict, give me a loaf of french bread and a tub of butter and i was set, also pasta...after being bread and pasta free the cravings are all gone...never thought that would ever happen in my lifetime....go cold turkey it works

I had a similar discovery. Empty carbs make me feel bingy - if I eat one cracker, I want another cracker. If I eat one cookie, I want another cookie. Limiting "empty" carbs and substituting more complex carbohydrates (whole grain bread, sweet potatoes, brown rice, whole wheat tortillas, whole wheat pasta - and carefully measuring all servings of carbs) has really helped me.

I second that one cybergypsy. For me it was the sweets, pastries, cookies, etc., but I loved the bread too. I did the two week SBD cold turkey "detox", and I'm not haunted by the cookie cravings anymore. I eat healthy starchy carbs now, but not more than a couple of servings a day. If I eat enough protein and bulky plant fiber, I don't get hungry.