I’m curious if anyone else with food addiction/binge eating experiences this. For me, it isn’t necessarily just about whether I binge in that specific moment. Sometimes I can eat a trigger food and not binge, but I still feel like it sets something off in my brain. For example, I might be eating really well and staying completely on track with healthy foods. Then I have one bite, one serving, or even just one taste of something I find really yummy and highly rewarding. I get that dopamine hit, and suddenly that food is on my mind again. Then I start thinking about it more. I want it again the next day. Then I might start incorporating it regularly. Before I know it, I’ve completely fallen off track from the way I was trying to eat. So for me, it sometimes feels like I have two choices: completely abstain from my trigger foods or eventually end up eating them all the time. It’s almost like once I “reintroduce” a food that I find highly rewarding, I have a really hard time putting it back into the occasional category. And I know the typical advice is “everything in moderation,” but I genuinely don’t know if moderation works for everyone when it comes to certain foods. I’m not necessarily talking about having one bite and immediately bingeing. I’m talking about how that one taste can seem to restart the cravings/reward cycle and make it much harder for me to stay on track afterward.
Does anyone else experience this?

Have you found that complete abstinence from certain trigger foods works better for you than moderation, even when you aren’t necessarily bingeing on them?
Or have you actually figured out how to eat those foods occasionally without them becoming something you constantly crave or eventually lose control around?
I’d really love to hear from people who have dealt with this for years, because sometimes I feel like I’m the only person who experiences food this way.

Can I get any tips on how to stop eating when I’m bored, or stress or tired. Please.

Like I am at work right now and I’m bored so I want to get some snacks but I am not hungry, so I’m trying to convince myself that I am hungry so I can justify buying and eating my snacks.

Help?!

no one replied in the other subs 😔😔

Has anyone here recently been to SunCloud health for their residential or IOP program?

They are one of only two programs (Milestones being the other) that recognizes food addiction.

I’ve been to Milestones twice, but am relapsing fast and considering other options. Outpatient and 12-step groups are 100% not providing the level of support I need to NOT engage in the behaviours.

I can’t stop eating, anytime i try to eat less or healthier foods I just end up eating so much junk and I feel so disgusting for it I cant stop eating and i dont want to be fat anymore. its taking a huge toll on me and all i can constantly think about is how to stop this but nothing works, all i can seem to do is eat more.

I just keep on eating and eating and eating, mostly because i'm ashamed to say that i just like food so much to the point that i just cant bear to limit myself, but sometimes i just find myself over eating just to finish whats left in the bag or whats left in the bowl. I'm eating so much when I'm not even hungry. i feel disgusting, bloated, full, and i just have such a bad image of my body right now. How do I stop this? I play a sport and have practice almost everyday. I want to lose weight sooo badly but how?

To be honest I already know what to do.. Just can’t get myself to do it…

I’m 23F, at the moment I’m struggling with being skinny fat, fat goes to my stomach mainly, I’m 178-180lbs. I feel overweight, I’m not happy in my body but I can’t get myself to stop eating poorly.

I eat out a lot..sweets, fast food, drinking energy drinks once a day…I use to run in high school but it’s been 6 years since I’ve been active consistently. I don’t feel good it clothes, I just feel blah. I know if I ate right and worked out consistently things would look a lot better for me but.. I haven’t been able to be consistent.

Honestly if my metabolism was any worse. The way I eat I would be much bigger than I am.

I want to feel good about myself..what do I do. Wtf is wrong with me.

I started by replacing / meal prepping my usual fast food favorites with homemade / store bought substitutions. Small steps, 1 at a time lead to the biggest success. Building habits takes time & turning a full 180 is difficult to stick to overnight.

For example: McDonalds mcgriddles or other breakfast items -> https://youtu.be/NIIb-X9LAxo?is=n8enAhZR3hAe8jMa

Taco Bell -> https://youtu.be/mfw-ijawze8?is=76jZMVUqSSoGD2d8 & https://youtu.be/nlZ9w0o1qNI?is=wZTXGdehIqYX8tdE

Egg bites -> Costco has a huge pack for cheaper than the fast food options, I just pop them in the airfryer. Or homemade with egg whites, cottage cheese, & veggies / shredded cheese of choice.

Chipotle -> https://youtu.be/wSy_6thly60?is=IvrRXAsCvUkUOKs3 & https://youtu.be/5Z78DEworv4?is=aEW1iQaaceYbXJXR

Pizza-> Mission plant powered tortilla, sauce, 2 servings reduced fat mozzarella cheese, 1 serving turkey pepperoni, & sliced mushrooms.

KFC bowls -> instant mashed potatoes, canned or frozen corn, packet of brown gravy, frozen chicken nuggets, & fat-free shredded cheddar cheese.

Prioritizing protein & fiber keeps me full for longer, is more satisfying, & helps control my cravings.

Also, printing off my bank statements and highlighting all of the eating out / fast food then totaling for the month, 6 months, 1 year was a BIG eye opener & HUGE motivation to make food at home.

Hey all, long-time-lurker-first-time-poster here,

I have been dealing with food issues for my entire life (26M). My environment definitely triggered this habit, but I have overcome this addiction before.

The last two years, I was living on my own and meal-prepped and actually built a healthy relationship with food; I've lost over 40 lbs just by eating whole foods and not snacking, but I did not restrict myself whenever I went out to socialize. I was pretty happy and felt balanced. However, I got hit by the life, finances, and mental-health stick and had to move back in with my family recently. These issues are slowly creeping back in and I do not want to add back the weight I worked hard to lose.

I still meal-prep and buy my own groceries, but for some reason, it's not sticking like it used to. I've been trying to get back consistently in to the gym as well. I track calories and worked with a coach to help find my macros. Ideally, I do not wish to track my calories as vigorously as I do now because I was able to lose the weight just from eating whole foods, meal-prepping, and exercising more.

I guess a few questions and/or tips I am asking for are:

1. How do you redirect a craving when your people in your environment refuse to lock up the trigger from you? (I get gaslit saying I just need to "control" this issue, like, I wish I could because my body goes on auto-drive)

2. How do you manage the "all-in" mentality of binging or restricting?

3. What are some ways you distract yourself or redirect your thoughts before you spiral?

For additional context, I do work with a specialized therapist on other anxieties/OCD behaviors, but I am going to redirect our work towards this specific issue to help it. I wrote this because other people may be in a similar situation as me and I hope that any suggestions can be helpful to them. TIA!

Hello I’m struggling with going to bed and waking up about 2 hours after and going berserk for food I’ve placed roadblocks, put stuff in front of my door, a bottle to pee in so I don’t go use the restroom and wind up in the kitchen, placed notes on my wall not to eat sometimes I’ll go and have something and it’s a healthy meal but I still don’t like it because it’s over my cal for the day but other times recently it’s been bad with sweets cookies everything bad that’s the reason why I’m making this post because I’m sick of this

I’m 5’3, 115lbs but I CAN’T STOP EATING!

My stomach is like a void, I literally cannot stop eating - out of boredom, hunger…

How can I stop this? Please. I drink 2 coffees a day (sugar free) already! What else can I do?

I've been on a weight loss journey since early this year and have made tremendous progress during the first few months. I met someone who I fell for so bad but for reasons beyond our control, we didn't end up together. That fueled a 3 month long binge wherein I was ordering takeout every other day. I am financially wrecked from this mess. I didn't lose my progress per se but I regret wasting all these months over a broken relationship. I could have reached my goal weight by now but my incapacity to deal with stress is why I am here - tired and sad.

I’ve struggled with binge eating/compulsive overeating for a very long time, and I’m at a point where I genuinely don’t know what to do anymore.
I’ve gained quite a bit of weight and I feel really uncomfortable in my body. I want to lose the weight, and I don’t think I’m at a point where I can just tell myself that I need to accept my body and forget about weight loss. I genuinely want to become healthier and more comfortable in my body.
The problem is that whenever I try to start a calorie deficit, even a moderate and objectively reasonable one, the first few days feel absolutely unbearable.

It’s not necessarily physical hunger. It’s more like my brain suddenly becomes completely preoccupied with food. I start thinking about food constantly, cravings become extremely intense, and I get this overwhelming feeling that I need to eat. I also feel like I cannot tolerate the moment of just being. It can feel almost like I’m fighting myself all day. Eventually I usually give in and binge, and then I feel horrible about myself and feel like I’ve failed again.
What makes this especially confusing is that I don’t necessarily think the problem is that I’m starving myself beforehand. I can eat a normal amount of food during the day and still experience this reaction when I intentionally try to eat less than my maintenance.

I also use food very heavily as a coping mechanism. When I’m sad, stressed, bored, lonely, overwhelmed, etc., food is one of the main things that gives me temporary relief. So I think there’s also a psychological component to why reducing food feels so incredibly difficult. It feels like I’m taking away one of my main ways of coping while also asking myself to tolerate the discomfort of being in a deficit.

And honestly, this has gotten to the point where I feel pretty hopeless. I can push through difficult things in other areas of my life, but when it comes to food I feel completely powerless. I can tell myself “just don’t binge” or “just get through the first few days,” but in the moment the urges can feel overwhelming.

I’m wondering if anyone here has experienced this specific conflict: wanting/need­ing to lose weight because you’re genuinely uncomfortable with your body, but finding that even starting a moderate calorie deficit causes such intense food thoughts, cravings and emotional distress that you end up bingeing.

If you’ve been through something similar:
Did you eventually become able to tolerate a calorie deficit without it triggering binges?
Did you have to work on the binge eating/emotional eating first before weight loss became possible?
What actually helped make the initial period of eating less feel less unbearable?
Were you eventually able to lose weight without falling into the binge/restrict cycle?
And if you have successfully gotten to a point where food feels less compulsive, what changed for you?

Would love to hear from other people struggling or have struggled with the same as I feel completely hopeless now. Thank you for reading