Help me please...(sugar)

I am a 23 year old Pastry Chef with a Sweet Treat business taking off like wild fire. Now here is where I need help...I am addicted to sugar!! I can not get enough. How did everyone else cut this out or fill the void??? I need help so bad. When I was at Culinary School I lost so much weight cause I guess I did not really want it. Now that I am married I feel like I am stressing eating with sugar. I am so confused.

Sorry if this does not make a lot of sense. I am just so lost that it is hard to describe. 

Being a pastry chef could either work in your favour or against you.   Being surrounded by sugary things could either be too much of a temptation or a form of 'aversion therapy'.   Sadly you seem to have opted for the former...

I quit sugar a long time ago and did it pretty gradually but never replacing it with artificial sweetners.  First to go were the sweet drinks e.g. sugar in tea and coffee.  That was a case of cold-turkey.  They tasted horrible for a while but then I got used to it.  That led on to cutting other sugary things out.  The less you eat very, very sweet foods the less appealing sugary flavours become. These days I even find fruit is too sweet and much prefer savoury foods instead.

Conjoined with reducing your sugar intake also has to be reduction in foods that turn to sugar quickly in the bloodstream i.e refined carbohydrates.   Reason being that these foods cause spikes and lows in blood-sugars and one of the features of low blood-sugar is that it can lead to sugar cravings.

Next.... don't 'diet' when you're getting used to eating no sugar.  Low calories, low energy, low blood-sugars.... these will all have you heading for sugary foods to top up.   Make sure you eat healthily but eat plenty in the early days until your tastebuds get used to less sweet foods.

Finally you mention 'stressing'... If you're eating sugary foods in a response to stress and you're surrounded by them then you're on a pretty sticky wicket. 

For me, I have to start the day with a good hearty breakfast that includes plenty of protein,   then keep eating healthy all day.   It seems once I go "off the wagon" for the day, I'm out of control for the rest of the day.  If you do feel like you MUST satisfy the sweet tooth, do it with fresh fruit, not sugar.

Also, perhaps you could start a line of whole grain and/or no-sugar-added fruit pastries?  Not saying you should stop making the stuff that is making you money, but maybe include some products for yourself and others who want to enjoy pastry in a healthier form. 

I had to double check your post to make sure I didn't write it. I'm also a 23 year old pastry chef, formerly addicted to sugar. I gained 90 pounds after marrying my husband. I haven't fully broken the habit yet, becasue it really is one of the hardest things I've ever done. My weightloss has been really slow because of my job. Somehow I managed to cut out most sugar, and now when I eat it, I get pretty sick. I'm down 36 pounds, so it can be done! I eat a lot of fruit because it's pretty sweet. I also cut out soda, even diet, because when i drink it it makes me crave sweet stuff. I was also really guitly of mindless snacking, so my rule is, i don't eat unless I'm siting down. It's really easy to just grab a cookie or peice of cake and eat it while you're working. You're more likely to think about what you're about to eat if you sit down and focus on it. Good luck!

The problem with sugar is that once you have it, it spikes your blood sugar, then as soon as your first burst of energy is over, you want more so that you can get your energy burst going again.

The last time I cut out all sugar completely, I did it cold turkey. All sugar, all white carbs - out the door. Lots and lots of veggies, protein, and whole grains.