Online CBT or Counselling for Obesity

[SandAndFog]

Can anyone recommend some sort of online CBT or counselling service for obesity?

I'm at rock bottom. I'm 41 years old and have been overweight my entire life. I have 3 amazing children and a successful career but I can chart my entire life in the size of clothes I was or the diet I was on and I'm getting increasingly worried about my health and not being around to see my kids (I'm morbidly obese).

I've tried every single diet since the age of 12 and have had some success with many but I cannot stick to them. Last year I promised myself I'd never diet again (to try and get out of the yo-yo cycle) but my weight has just gone up and up.

As a family we eat healthily but I binge eat and eat for comfort and stress. I try to walk every day but my joints are getting more sore.

I've come to the conclusion that I need to address the psychology behind why I overeat, why I turn to food for everything. Why I can't break the habits I've built over a lifetime. Why I put food over so much.

I have often wondered if counselling would help me but I have no idea where to start in finding a counsellor and it would need to be online due to covid and also my work demands.

Thank you for any advice or recommendations.

I found a counsellor (not for obesity) through this website www.counselling-directory.org.uk

I think CBT is a waste of time and is often sold as a quick fix. You need something more in-depth.

The Counselling Directory has hundreds of listings and I think I spent about two hours reading through it all and narrowing it down. I contacted four of them by email, had a ten minute phone conversation with two of them, then chose the one.

I think practically all are working online at the moment, but do check if they can do this normally long-term, just in case they were thinking of putting everything back to real life. The chances are that some of them might stay online or offer a choice in the future.

I disagree that CBT is a waste of time but agree you would also benefit from some counselling with someone who specialises in eating disorders.

Have you read much on the topic? I have found the Brain Over Binge books (especially the workbook) and Judith Beck’s books. They could be a good starting point before spending a lot on counselling.

My personal view....you might need more than one approach or psychologist for example if something like a trauma triggered your use of food to suppress or deal with something then that needs to be unpacked.
You say you dieted from 12, something must have made you turn to food for comfort or control in your childhood. If you know exactly what eg loss of sibling, parents addiction, then the counsellor needs to be experienced at that. Your eating is a symptom of something else. Get the counselling for the cause not the symptom is my 2 pence. Good luck xx