Everyday Systems

Ah, I need help on this. One of the biggest reasons that I binge is because I convince myself that I'll go on a diet tomorrow, therefore it's "ok to binge", when afterward I know that I won't diet...does anyone know how to control this? Today, I wasn't feeling too great (because I binged last night) so I ended up having a cup of soy milk for breakfast, a Yohoo and chips for lunch, and now for dinner...an early dinner, I'm having a PB&J, vanilla soy milk, and a granola bar. I wish I could change the way things are!

hi there,

binges are probably the hardest thing to get under control. At least they were for me.

Here are some ideas:

1. Remember that binges are NEVER healthy, under any circumstances. Eating a lot is one thing, but binging is just not OK. The only possible benefit is short term pleasure in tasting food, and that passes all too quickly, and it's just not worth the damage, both physically and psychologically (aftermath of guilt).

2. I notice that you said you binged "last night." I too used to do that. My binges were always late at night. So I imposed a very strict "no eating after 9pm, never ever, no matter what" rule. That helped tremendously.

3. Try to see if there is a pattern to your binges. Under what conditions do you binge? Are you happy? Are you sad? What time of day? What foods do you eat on a binge?

4. Try to turn the guilt cycle around and use it to your advantage. If you are thinking of bingeing, and want that short term rush of flavor, remember that it will only provide a small amount of temporary pleasure. Tell yourself how much pleasure you will have -- and how much longer it will last -- if you wake up tomorrow and are able to look into the mirror and say "kudos to me because I didn't binge last night!" That feeling is far more pleasurable that binge eating.

5. Remember that binge eating is a habit, and also a psychological coping mechanism. When we remove unhealthy coping mechanisms, it is important to replace them with some other, presumably healthier, coping mechanism. Find something you enjoy doing, that is pleasurable, and when you get the urge to binge, indulge yourself in this other activity instead. If you stay on top of this, you will over time (a few weeks) undo the habit of binge eating.

Good luck! This is hard work, but good work!

I agree with Freakwitch here.

When I put a strict "no eating past 8pm" rule on myself it helped a lot. It was really tough at first but then it was a habit, and thus the default position, so to speak.

Also, it may seem silly, but at night I spend some good time and effort flossing and brushing after dinner on N-days and around 8pm on S-days. After I put in that work cleaning my teeth there is no way I'm going to ruin it by downing a bag of Oreos!

At this point I feel much better without the late night carbo-fests I used as medicine, pallative, tranquilizer, etc...

Partnering up with good habits was key--I'm sure you can do the same!

thanks,
David

Thanks guys, these tips really helped me and made me think about my habits, especially the one about looking in the mirror in the morning and feeling good about yourself. There have been times where I've resisted the urge to binge, and I've done that - the feeling is long lasting and amazing.