Compulsive overeating

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Keep up the good work!

I did! Thanks.

(I'll keep posting here until I'm entirely rid of it. Unless a mod calls it spamming )

I like it. I find it encouraging.

Today I was a bit bad. However, I cut if off pretty well and little damage is done. A good lesson in a sense.

They can be a bit expensive (I'm low income) and I don't always like carrots. However, summer is coming up and it's often when most of the produce comes in season around here and becomes cheaper.

One thing I noticed that you mentioned is that you'll buy produce and then eat it only for a day, and then won't touch it thereafter. I was thinking, maybe you could buy only just enough produce to last for one day, and then decide the next day if you want more? That way you don't feel bad about wasting produce, and you don't have this negative and aversive pressure to finish something that you might not like.

I learned that lesson myself, as I had to wean myself from a lot of the junk food I'd become accustomed to after moving from my parents. It wasn't that I hated fruits and vegetables, it's that often junk food ends up intentionally being created to be more tasty and preferable then real food, even as it's nutritionally void. That's even to be known to be true for animals, at least in the rat studies that were done.

Doing well.

I did marvellous today.

Mind if I join you? I have been on near identical new diet for about 3 weeks. Two planned meals and then snack on fruit & veggies. But I do allow my self a desert after dinner. So far so good today.

Just as added thought, I thought that eating, as a pleasurable activity had its own attraction (with which to draw you).

How many days has it been for you ?

I'm no expert and really not in a position to hand out advice, but I'd like to share my story. Perhaps some of you will; at least, be able to identify with some of what I have to say. I'm not trying to be a threadjacker. Please forgive me, this is going to be quite long winded!!

I've also struggled with compulsive overeating, over the years. It's not something that I'm normally open about, very few of even my closest friends know it, or would have guessed it. When I'd lose my sense of direction, it would always hit me and I'd find myself stuffing my face with junk, until feeling like I was going to EXPLODE! Normally, it would start with a small urge. At first, I'd quell the urge with "that's crazy, there's no good reason to eat a mountain of donuts!". No problem, right? Wrong!! All of the sudden; the racing thoughts start, a war between "You know better than that, don't do it man!!" and "What have you got to lose? What does it even matter? JUST DO IT!!". Then next thing I know, I'm sick to my stomach on my bed with an empty donut box. This habit has caused my weight to yo-yo like mad and I'm afraid to think of the kind of long term damage I must have done.

I'm doing good, at the moment. Of course, that doesn't mean I can let my guard down. I've uncovered the root causes and at this point; feel that I won't ever let this habit take over my life again. People who haven't experienced this don't understand how much it really does take over your life! Anyways, I still have occasional slip ups, but not as severe as they once were. Back to the causes, depression is number one on the list, loneliness and boredom, as well. It's been about using the dopamine rush to escape, for me. I used to do a lot of drugs and have been clean for several years. I had somewhat of a problem with overeating before the drugs, but they drove me to take it farther. When I quit drugs; Overeating became almost a replacement. I'm certain that the drugs damaged my dopamine receptors. That; I believe, was probably the biggest factor of the escalation. I needed more and more stimulus to get that same dopamine hit.

As far as taking control of this problem, it got easier to manage as I got more serious about my fitness and nutrition (except for a few "dark periods"). I'm now less than two weeks away from my first Powerlifting meet and have never felt more driven in any endeavor, in my life. Powerlifting is a sport with weight classes. Having a target weight and a powerful motivator to achieve it, has helped me stay on track. More important than that number on the scale is how I'd feel, if I failed to make my weight class. Another tool that has helped me keep control is Intermittent Fasting. I've fasted daily, for a full year now. The reason that IF has made a difference is that I have a specific "feeding window", in which I measure out and eat all my food. This makes it easier to keep track of everything that I eat. When I'm in my fasting window (which lasts anywhere between 16 and 30 hours), it's easier to say no to temptation. My lifestyle is a pretty extreme example and I realize that these methods are not suitable for most people.

I know it's not easy to open up about this, but it's nice to see open discussion of the subject - and it really does feel good to open up. To me, the most important thing is always how you feel. Nobody deserves to feel that horrible and we all deserve better.

Heya I'm too tired to respond properly now.

I did okay-ish today, waaaaaay better than before, could've been better though.

So far only so-so. Depends on how I do tonight. Night time is the most dangerous. That is when the Salty Snacks come out.

Glad to hear that you guys are doing well. I know what you mean about night time. After about 9 or 10 PM, my mind suddenly starts to race like mad and that's when disaster is most likely to strike! My last major episode was two weeks ago, with a minor one a few days ago. The nice weather definitely helps, love that vitamin D!

Sorry, didn't mean to crash the thread. Will advance to the rear. Good luck!

Why would you be crashing the thread?

I should've been doing better, but I still did way better than weeks ago.

Still really haven't found the energy to reply properly.... bit stuck in my own mind ^_^

Um... I don't know. I just thought it may have been rude to barge in.

But I made it thru yesterday. Now comes the night. Gum has helped me, though my jaw is sore.

No reply really necessary. I just needed to know if it was ok to post here too.

But I do expect daily progress reports!

Of course it's okay! I'm not a dictator(-ess?) here anyway, but you're all very welcome to post. My monologues about how well or bad I did today are pointless to outsiders anyhow If this topic helps or encourages anyone at all I feel very much honoured.