Can't stop bingeing

[Italktomycat]

I have a problem with bingeing. I'm not bulimic.

I am overweight but not massively so. (Size14/16 )

I don't really exercise apart from Yoga once a week. I have a 4 year old and work in an office full time. My job is quite stressful and high profile.

I've binged for as long as I remember. I do it in secret (well when OH is out the house) and I buy stuff in on purpose then bin the rubbish before he gets home.

It's sweets/chocolate. Other than these binges I don't eat badly. My mum always wonders how I carry so much weight as I don't eat a lot (or so she thinks)

A typical binge will probably be 3+chocolate bars or a large bag of sweets. I eat until I feel sick. Even when I feel sick sometimes I keep
Going. Last night I ate half a packet of Jaffa cakes and 5 ( I know...) mini-magnums.

This time my OH saw the wrappers in the bin and asked how many I had, and I admitted it and felt really really shit. I know I need some weight off but can't satisfy my
Urge for sugar/sweets. It's like
I need them!

I don't know what to do..... Please help.

[notagiraffe]

Hi,
It's really good that you are sorting this out before it turns into a big weight/health problem.
It could be that you're really thirsty. I so often crave sugar or salty fatty foods like crisps when what I'm really craving is water. When I remember to drink loads and loads of water the cravings go away. I wonder if it's because dehydration makes you tired so your body thinks it needs sugar for an energy boost, and dehydration means your body has lost salt so it craves salty things like crisps and cheese. Have you tried drinking 2litres of water a day?
Recently I stumbled on an online mood game called Superbetter. It's for people in a rut or depressed or overcoming a crisis. I started doing it and after three days I had the weirdest feeling of not ever feeling hungry. It might sound far fetched, but so much over-eating is emotional eating - craving something that's lacking and food is the easiest version of comfort. I wondered if I was feeling full because the game was fulfilling lots of emotional cravings. I genuinely hadn't felt unhungry for years. It was a very nice feeling. It's come and gone since but I'm not getting sugar cravings as often and that, along with drinking masses more water, is the biggest change I've made.

[lovemycatmorethanmyhusband]

I know this is not a recent thread, but I just wanted to thank the OP as I have exactly the same problem and I feel a bit better knowing it's not just me. I am terrible for binging and always regret it the next day but I feel like I have absolutely no willpower at times. I wish I could feel more in control. The strange thing is, I'm doing the 5:2 diet and am managing fine on the fast days, but on the normal days, I'm so prone to binging. The amounts I have eaten at times really disgusts me.