dealing with emotional/binge eating. affirmation-oriented support group!

Hey!

I noticed that there are lots of people on this forum who deal with the problem of emotional/binge eating (myself included). I also realized that one of the hardest, but most important steps to take is to stop blaming/guilt trapping myself, and to move on.

I started reading a book on emotional eating recently, and so far I've noted the following principles

1. Trust your body, listen to your hunger signals. Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full

2. Enjoy/savor your food.To do this, you need to focus on your food. (Try not to multi-task while eating, and when you're eating at the refrigerator, pull out a chair.)

3. Don't hide the fact that you're binging. (it means that you think of it as something that you need to feel guilty about, and the sense of guilt perpetuates the cycle of binge eating.)

4. Don't have any "forbidden foods" list--unless it's because of a genuine food allergy/intolerance

5. If you've started a binge, be aware that you can choose to stop at any time. When you stop, don't blame yourself, don't try to compensate by over exercising.

6. If you're going to start eating just because you're upset/angry/emotional rather than because you're hungry, seek out alternative outlets. (I'm hoping that this forum thread can be one of the outlets/source of support!)

I know that some of the above things runs contrary to what we're used to doing. Several times after binging, I start thinking of ways and means to restrict and deprive myself to compensate for it, and BAM, I end up with another binge pretty soon after (and so the cycle repeats).

I'm taking really tiny steps myself.

Right now, I'm just letting myself eat whatever I want, provided that I really do think that I want it. I've been eating about 4000 calories a day now, because I'm still not used to listening to my body's cues. I know that it's a ridiculous amount of food, and I'm still eating till i'm stuffed and feel heavy/bloated, but I'm glad for what I'm doing right. (I'm taking baby steps, but at least I'm getting there!)

For one, I'm not blaming myself for eating so much/overloading myself with negative thoughts. Two, I'm enjoying my meals (more so than I have been, in a long time.) I'm tasting more of my food, and being more discerning about what I like/dislike about it.

Here's my proposition.

Could we have a support group that focuses on the positive?

If you've been binge free, post here. Be proud of how good that makes you feel, remember this good feeling so that it'll be a source of motivation.

If you're struggling with binging, post here. Identify the areas that you're making progress. Write about your mile stones, and your mini goals. Identify what, other than food, you can do to feel better about yourself (e.g. have a bubble bath, curl up on the couch and watch a movie, etc.). Look up your list when you're feeling emotional/drained. Do something on the list instead.

If you've just binged, post here. Instead of just limiting yourself to thoughts that 'oh god, i just binged.', say something positive about yourself, or your recovery. Don't brush the binge under the carpet, but don't let it become an obsession that grips your thoughts about how to make up for it either. Tell yourself that tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life. Love yourself.

This is my first post.

I just woke up. I've got quite a lot of assignments that I need to get done, and I know that I'm definitely going to feel really stressed about them. I also know that I tend to eat when I'm feeling stressed, but it doesn't help. I end up sluggish from all the food and I'm not going to be able to do my work. A walk helps. Standing up and stretching/shaking my limbs help. Taking a 5 minute break to listen to some music helps. I might not be able to remember that when I'm caught up with my work and I'm feeling overwhelmed. I might still end up eating and eating, while doing my work, and as I've done several times before, and then suddenly morph into a bottomless pit, an insatiable monster rampaging though the fridge and the pantry for food and more food. (And end up not doing my work because of that.) I hope that writing this down helps me remember that I'm more than a mouth.

Anyone else out there who wants to join me in supporting one another?

I'll post!  I've been binge-free for 3 days now, after a really rough week.  I've been bingeing a lot lately because I've been really stressed over a guy--stupid, I know.  OK, back to being positive, haha.  I've been doing everything I can to combat loneliness and boredom, by hanging out with my best friend and my sister, and by spending a lot of time on cc!  Also I've created a new eating plan for myself which allows me to have 3 relatively high cal days per week, so I won't feel so deprived--so I won't feel the need to binge.  I'm REALLY hoping it all works out.  Tomorrow I'm going out to eat, and I don't know where we're going yet.  Sometimes eating out with friends triggers binges for me, because things happen that I haven't planned for (they order a bottle of wine, or get dessert, and I just HAVE to order some too).  If I eat something I haven't already logged, I tend to go a little nuts.  I really just want to be able to enjoy myself when I eat out, so wish me luck tomorrow!!  

I have never been a part of anything like this but was really touched by your posting. I found it and then went to register and could not find you again - panicked!  I want to focus on new healthy eating practicies like eating when I am hungry, eating what tastes good and stopping when I am full. That sounds so easy but it is far from it. I have a 13 year old son and I want to see him graduate and be able to dance at his wedding. Right now my weight is causing alot of foot pain and I can hardly walk. I went to a wedding on Saturday and gave me motivation to begin seriously working on affirmations and a healthy eating program. Today and for this moment I am eating what I want to eat, checking to make sure that I am hungry and stopping when I have had enough. I will do this with love and forgiveness for myself as I know it can be difficult at times and the holidays are approaching.

Thanks for starting this - hope to connect with many people here.

I used to binge eat a lot , i still do sometimes, so i have got some amazing low cal protien snacks from here www.v-enturprize.biz atleast it has stopped me from gaining extra pounds. would luv to try their slimmertry program to loose wt ...........may be in future.

This is seems like a great idea...I used to have a horrible binging problemn that I got over using a thread like this...then the thread dissapeared...

Stress messes with my eating, cauding me to alternately restrict and binge.  I'm trying to recover form an eating disorder right now, so although the calories from binging aren't an issue at the moment, the fact of the matter is I want to have a normal, healthy relationship with food, and eating till I'm in pain definitely does not fit that description!

But we're supposed to be positive...well, I know I can beat this, I went months at a time without a single binge earlier this year, and if today is good (and I think it will be), this will be my first week binge-free in a very long time.  I've been doing the whole 2500+cals thing, and it's making it easier not to binge knowing that I don't need to restrict, and I've been eating more foods that I had previously told myself were "off limits" to get rid of that feeling of deprivation.

My biggest problem is that I eat out of habit - I am just used to eating all the time. I will sit at my desk and eat all day. I know that eating what I want and not restricting myself works. I just have a hard time with that line between eating what I want when I am hungry and eating what I want anytime I want.

I have an affirmation that I keep close; Just for today, just for this moment, I choose to eat only when I am hungry, love myself and take care of my body. I think we get overwhelmed (at least I do) if I look at the big picture. Looking at each day, each food decision, and deciding that I make the choice what I put into my mouth gives me the power to shape my life. I know that I can make changes to eat healthy today! One day and one food choice at a time. That feels like something I can handle.

Stay in touch, I'd like to know how your week goes. Have a great day!

So after making it a full week, I binged on day 8 :/

But that was two days ago, and I havent binged since :)

AND unlike my recent binges, I didn't eat to the point of discomfort/pain...well, maybe a bit of discomfort, but definitely not pain, meaning I'm getting a handle on it.

I'll join!

Today is my fourth day of being binge-free... which is a BIG milestone for me. I'll go one, maybe two days of being binge-free, and then I will binge every day for a month! My binges take place after dinner until bed time (between 8:00pm and midnight).  I will usually consume about 2,000-3,000 calories during that time.

Butttttttt..... Today is binge-free number four! Yay!

My last binge was so bad that I cried hysterically for two hours. Everytime I go to reach for that jar of cookies (my weakness... my hobby is baking treats), I try to picture how utterly LOW and PATHETIC and SICK I felt at that moment. So far, it's worked. :) Let's see if that motivation takes me to a day five!