Can’t stop eating

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Such a judgmental group of B’s.

We all know sugar is bad for us, but Tempe all or nothing approach doesn’t work for many of us.

I have high blood sugar and type 2 runs in my family. I take metformin and it comes down. I’ll eat a damn cookie or two if I want.

I do need to exercise more to balance out the fact that I’m not highly restricting my diet.

You have diabetes and you’re eating cookies because you take medicine?? This makes zero sense. Diabetes can be completely controlled through diet. Stop eating sh*t; it’s killing you. It’s also making our medical care expensive. I feel bad for your kids because you don’t love yourself enough to stop killing yourself. Additionally, you will likely have type 3 diabetes, aka Alzheimer’s, which will place an additional burden on your family.

Get your sh*t together.

And exercise in your situation is like a band-aid on a gunshot wound. You cannot exercise away a bad diet.

[Anonymous]

I wrote the long winded post with the link to Dr. Lustig’s video and lots of advice about sugar abstinence.

Because someone called me a judgmental B, I just want to also share this anecdote.

When I was a child I was lucky to be naturally thin like OP even though I ate sweets both in the home and out in the world. Sometimes I would binge eat them - I had a paper route age 12 and would ride my bike all over delivering papers and on the day I collected the fees I would take my cut and go to 7/11 and I would raid the candy aisle buying all my favorite candy and chocolate bars and I would eat and eat until I was sick. Again, my parents are alcoholics and those are my genes.

I used food for comfort and it wasn’t just sweets but also salty and savory and for decades my weight stayed okay but in my mid 30s when I started working high stress long hours desk job and became much less active my weight started climbing. Then early 40s I had surgeries that put me into early menopause I suffered chronic insomnia and a chronic vitamin deficiency and I piled on more weight so now my problems with sugar didn’t just cause hangover but also very bad joint pain.

I’ve been working on these issues for a while now and steadily improving my relationship with food and how I fuel my body instead of feeding addiction. But I still screw up! This past weekend I went to CVS for something legitimate and could not resist the buy one get one for $1 deal on six packs of Reese’s peanut butter eggs. And don’t you know, I ate all 12 of those eggs in two days’ time because I AM AN ADDICT.

So here is the thing, angry poster who called me judgmental: maybe you can have a damn cookie if you want it, but I can’t - because I will eat the whole package if the package is in my house!

Some people can have a glass of wine and stop there, and others will drink the whole bottle and more. Some people can smoke a bowl on Friday night to enjoy a mellow evening and others will wake and bake and lunch and bake and bake before dinner etc.

The only difference between folks who are prone to substance use disorder using drugs or alcohol and those abusing food is that food abusers can’t go fully abstinent from their addictive substance. But they CAN cut out the one form of ‘food’ that is not really food, that doesn’t fuel the body in any healthy way and that drives overconsumption and serious diseases- SUGAR.

I keep it out of my house 98% of the time and it is never a planned part of my diet. But yes as I said in my other post recovery is a lifelong process and I certainly suffer relapses - it is hard when we are surrounded by a toxic food environment and to get to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription I have to walk past aisles of junk that poisons my body (and don’t you think that’s by design?).

You are choosing to embrace the poison and take the medication that keeps you slightly healthier. I am choosing a different path, and while I occasionally succumb to the lure of the poison, I won’t give in. I want to age with my mind intact and without chronic crippling joint pain. I want to keep losing weight and reclaim my wardrobe and fitness. I want to be that person who tastes incredible sweetness when she bites into an apple because her palate isn’t dulled by daily consumption of refined sugar.

I replied to someone who is struggling like me and I offered her advice and compassion. That you took offense and got angry says something, maybe about your own discomfort with your sugar addiction. No worries I grew up with addicts so I know all about the volatility that can be created by someone’s frustrations over their own behavior. Enjoy the cookies and the prediabetes.

[Anonymous]

I have a similar response to / relationship with sugar as you do. Working with a nutritionist was very helpful for me. In particular, she emphasized getting ample protein early in the day, and that has made a huge difference in my afternoon and evening sugar cravings. Using My Fitness Pal, I continue to track my protein (and other macros) daily. I've also been doing IF for the two years since working with her, and that's made a huge difference. I'm not super intense or rigid about it but, in general, I try not to eat after 8:30/9PM, and then have water/tea in the morning. I start the day with a high-protein homemade shake around 11 or 12PM (protein powder, sun butter, almond milk, banana, frozen fruit, plain yogurt) ... that, plus ensuring I get enough water, makes a huge difference in my sugar cravings.

Good luck to you--I truly do empathize.

[Anonymous]

Hey OP, you never mentioned how much sweets you are eating. Is it just 1-2 pieces of candy or do you find yourself bingeing? Personally, I also get a craving for sweets around 2pm and I typically satisfy it with a small handful of chocolate covered almonds. I think my craving relates to a little circadian dip around siesta time so I sometimes have a little coffee or a Diet Coke. I also agree with other posters that if you can cut out sugar for a while then things that didn’t seem sweet before will start to taste much sweeter. Best of luck.

[Anonymous]

Hi, I struggle with the same horrible sugar addiction. It didnt cause issues when I was younger but now that I’m older it makes it hard to lose weight and I also noticed my kids copying my bad habits. 😥 So, I threw it all out. When it sneaks back in the house, I throw it out again. March was my first month of having very little sugar - and then - for Easter, I had some chocolate and it didn’t even taste that good! I was shocked. So, my advice is to not restrict yourself but also just throw out sugar the minute you see it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s ok OP. It truly is not your fault - this stuff is addictive.

For me, what works is having a hard rule. No sugar in any form. That takes out the guesswork and then I don’t have to agonize every time (should I? Shouldn’t I?) because the answer is no, never (at least for now).

Turns out it is her fault if the answer is awareness of an addiction and that she will “eat a damn cookie if she wants to.” At some point you have to start acting like a functioning adult that has freedom of action and choice.

So this patients bring in a bunch of garbage. Don’t eat it.

[Anonymous]

OP I have the same problem. I find it usually means I’m dehydrated, tired, or need protein. Try a glass of water and a 10 min walk/push ups/jumping jacks… any exercise. If I really feel like a need a snack, it’s protein heavy.

Get rid of the Oreos. I love them too and just can’t have them in my house. Find a different treat for your kids that isn’t as tempting for you.

[Anonymous]

I am also addicted to sugar and have been trying to address it for 3 years now with little success (nutritionist/dietician, therapist supposedly focusing on eating disorders, weight loss doctor, etc.). I have addicts in my family and do think it's something about my biology that makes me this way (e.g., sibling is an alcoholic but does not have a sweet tooth). Not sure it really matters why, though.

To all the people saying to throw out the Oreos from the pantry, do you not work? At my office, we have bowls (bowls!) of bite size candy on every floor and by every water filtration, every coffee machine, every microwave. Everywhere. They are unavoidable. We also have bags of every kind of salty snack (chips, Doritos, popcorn, etc.) as well as the two packs of cookies (including, yes, Oreos and golden Oreos). Most people don't eat them or take a pack. I struggle all day every day that I'm in the office (3x/week) not to binge on them. I usually do not succeed. Eating 100 grams of protein, eliminating sugar for weeks at a time, drinking insane amounts of water, nothing has helped. So solidarity, OP. The struggle is real for some of us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wrote the long winded post with the link to Dr. Lustig’s video and lots of advice about sugar abstinence.

Because someone called me a judgmental B, I just want to also share this anecdote.

When I was a child I was lucky to be naturally thin like OP even though I ate sweets both in the home and out in the world. Sometimes I would binge eat them - I had a paper route age 12 and would ride my bike all over delivering papers and on the day I collected the fees I would take my cut and go to 7/11 and I would raid the candy aisle buying all my favorite candy and chocolate bars and I would eat and eat until I was sick. Again, my parents are alcoholics and those are my genes.

I used food for comfort and it wasn’t just sweets but also salty and savory and for decades my weight stayed okay but in my mid 30s when I started working high stress long hours desk job and became much less active my weight started climbing. Then early 40s I had surgeries that put me into early menopause I suffered chronic insomnia and a chronic vitamin deficiency and I piled on more weight so now my problems with sugar didn’t just cause hangover but also very bad joint pain.

I’ve been working on these issues for a while now and steadily improving my relationship with food and how I fuel my body instead of feeding addiction. But I still screw up! This past weekend I went to CVS for something legitimate and could not resist the buy one get one for $1 deal on six packs of Reese’s peanut butter eggs. And don’t you know, I ate all 12 of those eggs in two days’ time because I AM AN ADDICT.

So here is the thing, angry poster who called me judgmental: maybe you can have a damn cookie if you want it, but I can’t - because I will eat the whole package if the package is in my house!

Some people can have a glass of wine and stop there, and others will drink the whole bottle and more. Some people can smoke a bowl on Friday night to enjoy a mellow evening and others will wake and bake and lunch and bake and bake before dinner etc.

The only difference between folks who are prone to substance use disorder using drugs or alcohol and those abusing food is that food abusers can’t go fully abstinent from their addictive substance. But they CAN cut out the one form of ‘food’ that is not really food, that doesn’t fuel the body in any healthy way and that drives overconsumption and serious diseases- SUGAR.

I keep it out of my house 98% of the time and it is never a planned part of my diet. But yes as I said in my other post recovery is a lifelong process and I certainly suffer relapses - it is hard when we are surrounded by a toxic food environment and to get to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription I have to walk past aisles of junk that poisons my body (and don’t you think that’s by design?).

You are choosing to embrace the poison and take the medication that keeps you slightly healthier. I am choosing a different path, and while I occasionally succumb to the lure of the poison, I won’t give in. I want to age with my mind intact and without chronic crippling joint pain. I want to keep losing weight and reclaim my wardrobe and fitness. I want to be that person who tastes incredible sweetness when she bites into an apple because her palate isn’t dulled by daily consumption of refined sugar.

I replied to someone who is struggling like me and I offered her advice and compassion. That you took offense and got angry says something, maybe about your own discomfort with your sugar addiction. No worries I grew up with addicts so I know all about the volatility that can be created by someone’s frustrations over their own behavior. Enjoy the cookies and the prediabetes.

I just want to say that I’m the Op and I did not call you a judgmental B. I appreciate your posts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey OP, you never mentioned how much sweets you are eating. Is it just 1-2 pieces of candy or do you find yourself bingeing? Personally, I also get a craving for sweets around 2pm and I typically satisfy it with a small handful of chocolate covered almonds. I think my craving relates to a little circadian dip around siesta time so I sometimes have a little coffee or a Diet Coke. I also agree with other posters that if you can cut out sugar for a while then things that didn’t seem sweet before will start to taste much sweeter. Best of luck.

Thank you. No, it ends up being more of a binge if it’s available in the house- like half the bag of jellybeans, followed by disgust 10 minutes later so then I go back for more because I’m already disgusted with myself. This week has been particularly bad because of Easter. Hoping to reset starting today, telling myself no refined or added sugar for one week- and lower carb in general- sort of a lower carb whole30. Telling myself forever is daunting but telling myself one week is doable and hopefully after one week, continuing on is easier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s ok OP. It truly is not your fault - this stuff is addictive.

For me, what works is having a hard rule. No sugar in any form. That takes out the guesswork and then I don’t have to agonize every time (should I? Shouldn’t I?) because the answer is no, never (at least for now).

Turns out it is her fault if the answer is awareness of an addiction and that she will “eat a damn cookie if she wants to.” At some point you have to start acting like a functioning adult that has freedom of action and choice.

So this patients bring in a bunch of garbage. Don’t eat it.

That poster wasn’t OP

[Anonymous]

Ozempic really changed my life. It’s not just the weight loss, it’s realizing how much I was beating myself up and how effortless it became to plan and execute a healthy diet without changing my personality or willpower at all, but just from a hormone shift.

The blowback and judgment about it is so extreme compared to the way the same people react to others taking SSRIs or ADHD meds that I really think we’re all pretty messed up about this whole area.

Even if I had to stop taking it forever for some reason, my approach to myself about diet and weight would be totally different and I think a lot more kind. Idk if it would be more effective - perhaps not! But a lot more kind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s ok OP. It truly is not your fault - this stuff is addictive.

For me, what works is having a hard rule. No sugar in any form. That takes out the guesswork and then I don’t have to agonize every time (should I? Shouldn’t I?) because the answer is no, never (at least for now).

Turns out it is her fault if the answer is awareness of an addiction and that she will “eat a damn cookie if she wants to.” At some point you have to start acting like a functioning adult that has freedom of action and choice.

So this patients bring in a bunch of garbage. Don’t eat it.

I am the PP you are replying to. I meant that it is not her fault that she is prone to binging. Sugar is an addictive substance, and we (mostly) were not taught that as kids. And even now, we get very mixed messages, with the mainstream message being "everything in moderation." I was just pointing out that moderation doesn't work for many/most of us. The message that "moderation" is the healthiest approach is wrong and toxic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chiming in to +1 on Oreos not being a thing in lunches. None of that in my house. We do more high quality treats, and less often (not daily). Like something we make ourselves, or each pick a cake slice of favorite flavor from bakery. Not buying the processed stuff or sending it to school with them.

Give it a rest. You women are just horrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ozempic really changed my life. It’s not just the weight loss, it’s realizing how much I was beating myself up and how effortless it became to plan and execute a healthy diet without changing my personality or willpower at all, but just from a hormone shift.

The blowback and judgment about it is so extreme compared to the way the same people react to others taking SSRIs or ADHD meds that I really think we’re all pretty messed up about this whole area.

Even if I had to stop taking it forever for some reason, my approach to myself about diet and weight would be totally different and I think a lot more kind. Idk if it would be more effective - perhaps not! But a lot more kind.

That’s great, but there is now a shortage since everyone “needed” it. Now those who really need it, can’t get it. Every celebrity is on it.