Eating problems :(

[strosbuff88]

I often find a run, jog or walk to be an escape from the mind. Usually I'll find myself stressing, having something always going through my mind so I'll lace up my shoes and head out.

I'm no physician but I wouldn't recommend any medication. Medications that describe the ability to curve the appetite are usually misleading and may come with some dastardly side-effects.

Go out and get yourself some nice shoes. Then research local parks, tracks or trails around you.

There are times when I get just the same way. But knowing it's an opportunity to better my health is just as great as being my stress-reliever! :]

 

[we32psu]

I have the same issues... It really is a bit of an eating disorder. Stress sends me to the food, carbs specifically and then I stuff myself. The only thing that has worked for me is to get to the gym at least 3 days a week for an hour.
I dont know if there is anything that OTC, but I was on meds before and they f u up worse than the extra 10 pounds.
Good luck, it is a struggle.

 

[navidzurender]

train yourself in eating less but healthy foods, our stomach has sensitivity to stretch, the more it stretches the more you need to fill it up. I know it's hard at first, but through time you'll get use to it.

But if you really can't help it, try compensating by exercising more

 

[strosbuff88]

Lucky, you feeling any better?

 

[chrisw87]

do you have a bath? load it up with lavender and chamomile and soak away with some music. Also there are some herbal remedies that will help with anxiety or stress, but I can relate, sometimes nothing will help.

 

[seven2go]

Now with finals, and depression, and stress...and money issues, and really struggling to pass this semester, and stressing about breaking out into hives recently, I'm eating too often and too much and I don't know what to do.

Is there some kind of over the counter meds I can take? Or any strategies? Even though I know I'm eating too much and too often, I can't help myself. And knowing that I'm going to gain weight is stressing me out even more.

Babe.......unless you never had Chicken Pox you are a prime candidate for a round of Shingles.......I hate to add more stress to your life but the above is a classic recipe for that.
I went through that malady and it's no fun. I found the $200 for the cost of the vaccine to prevent Shingles. A reoccurrence would have cost well over $500 in meds and possibly much more depending on the duration.
Sorry toots......but better forewarned than after it's too late.......

 

[bankside]

Strategies: Yep.

Eat! Enjoy the pleasure of it. You're wondering about a medication to change your behaviour? It's actually food. And i mean that in the pharmacological sense. It changes the way your brain responds to things, and helps your body regulate mood.

You can mess up that biological self-help system by a)feeling guilty or shameful about the pleasure of eating and what it can do for you (produces stress hormones that throw off the system) or b) by starving yourself to force your body down to a certain size. So enjoy the food you eat!

How do you do that in a balanced way without losing control?

1) buy whole healthy foods when you go grocery shopping so that if you reach for a snack it will be some fruit or nuts instead of a package of oreos.
2) listen to your body before you eat. If you're hunting down some left-overs because you are stressed, ask yourself if something else like a walk around the block would help you unwind instead. If you get back from the walk and you still want the leftovers, have them. Listen to your body after you eat. It's not an endurance event.
3) plan beautiful meals to look forward to. It is easier to avoid junk food on Thursday when you know you're going to have a nice roast or your favourite casserole on Saturday, or even some junk food. Plan it ahead so it's not a binge, but a full and beautiful meal.
4) take control of your fridge. Set out food for a certain day.
5) stay active.


But most of all, enjoy the food you choose to eat, and realize that you don't just have to eat for nutrition. It should be pleasurable, it should be comforting, it should be sensual. And enjoying those aspects of it does not mean you have to lose control of your diet. Indeed it can even help you maintain control of it.

BTW, I should explain listening to your body:
I can feel four stages in my appetite:

1. Hungry
2. Not hungry any more but not full
3. More than enough
4. At my maximum limit

 

[1o1dcoD]

i'm the same. living in big cities in the north, it's hard to escape eating because biologically, animals are designed to eat more when it's colder.

its all about willpower.

 

[Seasoned]

This is something I've struggled with my entire life but only became noticeable after my metabolism changed when I turned 26. One of the keys is to never go grocery shopping when you are hungry and to load up on fruit. Once I get high sugar foods out of my life I start tasting sweetness in fruit I never knew was there.

If I get a craving for something over the top I order it at a restaurant and either share it or don't finish it. Food is neither good nor bad although it has consequences for us. Like any other addiction, it's a day at a time. Food can be spit out. Food can be thrown or given away.

It's possible to have a food buddy with whom you share a daily food plan.

Want a candy bar? Buy the smallest regular size, not the Halloween size bag. Taste for ice cream? Buy your favorite flavor in the single size. Need a BLT? Use high fiber toast, low fat mayo, a sprinkling of baco's, and as much lettuce and tomato the bread will hold.

Don't totally deprive or you run the risk of driving through every drive through and eating still frozen cheesecakes.

Moderation and distraction are the keys. It's doable. And getting back to the fruit idea- juice is not a good option, but already cut up fruit us good especially if you typically throw out stuff you didn't get around too.

Good luck.

 

[MindBlast]

It sounds kinda like a symptom of a greater problem. Do you feel that you don't have much control over your life, and that food is the only thing you can control?

Just speculating. I could be totally wrong.