gabito

I was really hoping that this was something I would not have to deal with once I had the surgery but unfortunately over the past few weeks I have been binge eating and could really use some advice. I am 3.5 months post-op and have lost around 70 pounds (including the weight I lost with the 2 week pre-op diet). I have always been an anxious eater and was diagnosed with binge eating disorder many years ago, which for the past few years mainly involved overeating as opposed to the violent binging episodes I used to have. This was very encouraging so after therapy for BED I decided to have the surgery. Now, I notice that although I keep to my eating plan most of the time, I often cheat. Today though, I was very anxious and got an urge to binge, just like the old ones. I stopped the first one but the one that came a few hours later I gave in to and ate 2 donuts. Is this something that other sleevers experience? How often does it happen to you and how do you control it? Are there any 'success stories' out there that have experienced binging (as in eating bad food in an uncontrolled manner, not necessarily large portions) yet still managed to lose the weight. I don't often see this being written about and it feels quite scary. Many thanks for reading!

@livvsmum@stacymc_23 Thank you for your advice. I have already had therapy for BED in the past so I don't think that any more would really help that much. I'd rather try to sort this out by myself.

1100 is great! Keeping in mind what everyone else has been saying about focusing on what that number would've been like before the surgery is really good. I found that I'm working with my binges now. I keep low calorie ice lollies like Mini milks and Soleros in the fridge which helps to slow the binge (as you can't eat them, but have to suck them) and still satisfy the sweet/ high carb food that a binge craves. I've been doing this for a week now and its working pretty well as it gives me a greater sense of control and it also keeps my total caloric intake low.

That all sounds really good! That's very proactive!

Those are all really good tips. I will try to write down my feelings before I have an urge to binge. Thanks! I had a binge period of eating potato chips and fried foods. I had an follow up appointment with my surgeon. He recommended I speak with dietian and that was a help. She recommended I attend monthly support group. I'm having difficulty getting to meeting. But I found this site where we can talk about our journey. I refuse to fry food and find different things to snack on. I carry a small like lunch bag around with me filled with snacks. I try not to shop when hungry. I brought a indoor grill to help keep me from frying food it cooks pretty fast. I fry food because it's my comfort. Atkins has protein snacks that are really good when I want something sweet. I journal for myself to keep track of my emotions when I want to binge. I know that I generally binge when I'm upset frustrated or pissed off about something. For me writing it down is accountability . By that time it has passed/ trigger is gone. I hope this has been helpful for you. Don't be discouraged , I sometimes have to go meal by meal. Old habits are difficult to break but can be broken with consistency.

I hope you do manage to overcome it. Its difficult to find alternative ways of coping but its possible! Thanks for posting this. I have just checked it an it looks interesting. I'll have to speak to my GP. Have you tried it? Thank you for your kind words.

@@KarenLoh That's amazing! Getting yourself out of that state is a big, big achievement! I've managed to do it a few times and its incredibly hard.

@@Sara51692 'I think the hardest part of the surgery was coming to terms with the fact that my problems with food still exist and still have to be dealt with. ' That is exactly how I feel. I felt heartbroken when I made this post. I read some very troubling posts in which a few sleevers mention gaining back most of their weight loss due to stress and hardships in life. That is why I binge. I've started to do my CBT exercises in which I write every good thing that happened in my day. I also write down any anxious thoughts and predictions in a worksheet and then calmly try to resolve my problems and at least gain some perspective. That gives me a greater sense of control so that anxiety doesn't build up to the point where I compulsively eat.

Hiya, I'm in South-West London. In Lambeth

I'm in London and 3 months post-op! Would really love to have a support group!

That sounds so controlled. Wow, well done.

Hi Santiago, I already to this. I eat very healthily throughout the day but sometimes I get urges to have bad food and sometimes I give in. I didn't know they did low-card tortillas. I will have a look for those, thanks!

It is like an out of body experience! That's what everyone with BED says. So far I've been quite lucky in I'm very careful to not stretch the sleeve, so after I'm slightly full I stop. I'm really happy to hear that you have only dealt with it a few times in the past 9 months! That's very encouraging! Could I ask, when you mention that you were binging a few times a week, was that prior to surgery or after?

Thank you. I'm hopeful that I can do this with the support that I am getting from friends and family. I have already had therapy to deal with BED and I don't feel like what is happening now is enough of an issue to warrant further therapy, mainly because it doesn't happen that often. Do you ever cheat? And how often do you do it? So far everyone that has replied seems to be hardly ever have problems controlling what they eat.

I'm tracking stuff too. Its really good as it gives you a greater feeling of control even when you eat stuff that you aren't supposed to.

That's a really touching message, thank you so much Folly. When my bingeing was bad, back when I was a teenager I would have felt incredibly bad about myself and just continued to binge. But I'm in my twenties now and the problem has gotten better. After I binged today I went to the gym and continued with my meal plan for the day.

I think that this is a good idea. I would really like someone who is also struggling with bingeing or out of control eating to read this and not feel so lonely. Looking through these boards can be very difficult. The only time in which you read about people going off track they talk about how they gained 100lb+ after years of doing very well. The other side tends to be people who appear to no longer have any emotional attachment to food after the surgery.

No, it isn't. I think that you are right. I need to learn to deal with anxiety without reaching for food.

You look incredible! What a great job!

You look incredible! I've been looking at all of the transformation pictures and yours is one the most drastic I've seen!