Stopping Binge eating and also learning to intuitively eat, is it really possible?
Some background about myself, I used to heavily restrict my calorie intake and avoid certain food groups. I was so consistent, the weight was falling off me. I would meal prep everything and only eat at certain times. I did this while i was away in uni, I was in a very controlled in environment.
Then when i went home for the break the sudden change in environment, no longer having access to all my safe foods, being constantly faced with “bad foods”, i honestly just lost control. I tried so hard to control what i was eating but anytime i ate something I deemed “wrong” or went slightly above my cal limit I would spiral and felt the urge to consume EVERYTHING. It didn’t help i had extreme hunger from my restriction, also what fuelled the cycle was the shame and guilt i felt around eating certain foods. I felt like i had built such a good image for myself as the girl that eats clean only, so all my binging happened in secret. I would go on my “walks” and go shop hopping and buying something at every stop. I really tried everything to stop, I started eating regular meals 3x times a day because according to everyone if you spot restricting the binge urges go. But I still binged over and over again. I tried OMAD “what if I eat as much as I want like a binge will my body be satisfied?” but guess what I still binged.
What really set the ball in motion for success was when I started listening to the Brain over Binge podcast. It really cemented the fact that binging is truly just a bad habit I’ve formed. It’s really does not matter where it came from. It’s not above me, just think about all the new habits you’ve formed in your life and bad habits you’ve gotten rid of, change is possible. There will be resistance of course at the beginning but it gets so much easier not acting on them. I’ve accepted the fact that the binge urges might be there forever but me not responding to them can also be there forever.
Once I realised the tips from the podcast were truly working for me, I decided to introduce intuitively eating so I could really become in tune with my body. For the past few years I’ve eaten based on numbers (calories/clock), this would sometimes leave me hungry or overstuffed. Now I’m at a journey where I pay great attention to the cues my body gives me. My body is surprisingly great at this I’ve just been ignoring the signals.
Some stuff I’ve learnt about myself since IE:
- 30-40g Protein in a meal fills me up and makes the food noise disappear. Most of the time I have leftovers. Yes I could just eat only sweets since I’m IE now but the difference between how I feel after eating these foods makes me always want to base my meals around protein.
- when I eat too much I feel less energised than before eating, if I overeat I find it hard to even focus on my studying
- I’ve learnt to equate the binge urges i feel when Im actually physically hungry as not true binge urges. My body just needs fuel once i eat i’m always fine.
- Also when I’m craving sweets (digestives biscuits and snickers are my go to), if I pair it with my high protein meal a small portion goes a long way.
- when I’m finding myself having decision fatigue and overthinking my next meal, I simply let ChatGPT decide for me. This has really helped me change how I view food because I’ve found it doesn’t really matter what I eat as long as there’s enough protein in it. We eat everyday so it doesn’t make sense for every single meal to be a big deal.
By the way once I started this journey whenever I was eating or when Binge Urges came I always had this opened on my phone to guide me. I still use it and update it a times.
I know IE and BED have always been seen as contradicting but if you are truly listening to the signals you’re body is sending you (before,during and after eating), every decision you make regarding food will serve you right.
I would also like to add I have Autism & ADHD so this is what worked for my “neurospicy” brain. Just wanted to share my story in hopes it helps anyone else who is struggling. I feel like I’ve covered pretty much everything but if you guys have any questions please ask away.