What on earth is the answer for binge eating + junk food addiction?

[thas]

I really feel at my wits end. I’m 2 stone overweight so not huge, but extremely unhappy with my body. I’ve just binged on 6 bars of chocolate that I bought whilst doing the Aldi shop. If I enter a shop right now I end up buying food to binge on. Every single time. I don’t buy anything to keep at home, but shops are everywhere and if my brain sees one it takes me in there. I’ve done this for 25 years and it’s really taken its toll on my health, both mental and physical. I’m really worried about my health. I have an autoimmune disease and should be eating sugar hardly at all.

Does anything work? I need answers right now. My BMI is not near enough for weight loss injections and I’m concerned about the side effects of those anyhow.

Any advice?

You need to work out what causes you to over eat and be honest with yourself. Avoid the biscuit/chocolate aisles. Every time I buy biscuits I have to finish a packet even if I feel sick after eating so many. Easier said than done if you have children, partner etc.

If only there was a simple answer to your question, I used to be exactly the same but a few years ago somehow I changed my approach. I can't explain why or when and there was no "light bulb moment" or anything it just happened one day and now I'm 10 stone lighter but I still have days when I just have to have chocolate
It's different for everyone and I wish you all the best, if I can do it anyone can.

I’m the same. I have to finish everything. I have no stop signal at all. It’s like the crazy part of my brain forces me down the chocolate aisle. Absolutely ridiculous, I know.

Thats amazing. I don’t think I will ever crack this. It’s horrible.

Find something to do that can replace the need to eat. Some interest, hobby, activity that you feel passionate about. Accept that it won't be easy and will need commitment. Plus finding healthy and delicious foods to eat instead of UPF, sugar, refined carbs.

Honestly you can, as I said if I can you can.

I had no off switch either, if there was food around I had to have it, if I was eating a meal and I was full I didn't care and had to finish it and what was on everyone else's plates too.

It's not as easy as some people make out to just not do it

I think what you need is to stop being extremely unhappy about your body or anything else. Your extreme unhappiness is leading you to binge to try to feel better.

I've the same issue but my BMI meant I could get WLI. It's really helped my binging and junk food addiction.

Yes, but why? There's always a reason. Mine was eating my feelings, unhappiness and helplessness due to abuse in marriage.

Same - toxic marriage but can’t afford to leave.

Post in Relationships, contact Women's Aid, check out Wikivorce, read Divorce for Dummies...... there may be a way.

For me, honestly, it was therapy. I was HUGE (23st) and tried every diet under the sun and just couldn’t control myself with binge eating. I’ve now more than halved my weight after dealing with the issues at the source and no longer using food as a crutch. I appreciate it’s an expensive option but I utilised free sessions through my works EAP and just told the therapist I wanted to focus on this.

What's your bmi OP?

@thas @Semiramide has good advice. I separated in 2017, divorced by 2022 It took me five years to recover mentally, I was ready to sort the weight out by 2023. I'm over 30 kgs down. There is hope.

I find for me food is a dopamine fix. When I ensure I get exercise in my routine my appetite decreases and I eat better foods as I am getting the dopamine from exercise. Not sure if it will help you but I find it does!

Well isn’t that what the weight loss jab is for? It’s popular for a reason.
As long as your BMI is over 28 you can pay for it. £150 a month ( or £110 with a referral code) and the food noise stops for most people.
It’s not even about weight with me. I just wanted to stop eating and drinking out of boredom and frustration.

This is what I came on to say but not sure what OP's bmi is? I got it from juniper with a bmi of 28.

Absolutely life changing. I don't give a stuff about food anymore and have lost 2 stone in 10 weeks. I plan to get to goal and then titrate off and see how I go - but if I don't feel I can keep the weight off without it Il stay on it for life if needs be. Same as my migraine medication.

The difference between the top end of a healthy BMI and the bottom end of an obese BMI is typically only a couple of stone, so you could qualify for injections. That was my situation. I’ve been on MJ for 6 months now and have just got into the healthy BMI range again. I’ve always been a binge eater. It was emotional eating, but I think overtime my blood sugars had also got completely out of whack and I was probably becoming insulin resistant too. MJ has helped correct that. Plus the absence of food noise and losing the compulsion to binge has enabled me to practice healthy eating - basically minimising carbs and sugar and prioritising protein and fibre. The Glucose Goddess also has really good advice on stabilising your blood sugars.

I’m just too scared to take MJ. I wish I could but I feel I’m the unluckiest person, cursed in fact, so those people ending up in A&E will be me.

OA (overeaters anonymous) i know someone who attends their meetings (online etc and cant praise it highly enough

[apologies if itt's already been suggested - i havent RTFT]

Which people? If you mean the ones who abuse it by not eating enough?
Anyone who uses a drug incorrectly has the danger of making themselves ill. I guess there are some people who don't react well to it but that is very rare.
You also have to take what you read in the media with a pinch of salt - a lot of the scare stories are clickbait and people don't look at the full context (ie. The celeb recently who said she had "osteoporosis from taking WLI's".) Actually the case was that she had a long history of eating disorders and shouldn't have been on the drugs in the first place - the osteoporosis was nothing to do with the drugs and everything to do with her abusing her body for years.

I don't think people who manage to lose weight by willpower alone are in any way "better" or more virtuous than those who use WLI's. They are just using different methods to stick to a calorie deficit.

Have a look on the WLI pages and do some research OP.

I’ve been through it all, looked at every angle for the past several years. Even retrained and aimed fora higher salary, everything Mumsnet tells you to do. It really isn’t possible unless I go alone without the kids.

I’ve had a look at the web site but don’t find it very clear how it works. I’ll take another look. Thanks

I’ve read the WLI threads extensively and there are loads of reports there of nasty side effects. I can’t face adding anything else problematic into my life. Appreciate what you’re saying, but I’ve had certain things beauty related go horribly wrong and do feel I’m a very unlucky person!

I have read that some people use the Sinclair Method for binge eating—it's normally used for alcoholism, but the principle is the same, in theory (especially if your overeating is location and time-specific). Maybe look into that and see if your GP will prescribe you naltrexone?

https://www.sinclairmethoduk.com/what-is-the-sinclair-method/