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How can I stop binge eating all the

time? I suffer from a binge eating
disorder. I am always craving food, and
I eat approximately 5000 calories a
day. It is seriously affecting my health,
and I want to learn how to control my
cravings.

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Emraan Ash
Knows Middle English · Author has 604 answers and
8.1M answer views · 4y

All of us eat too much from time to time. But if you

regularly overeat while feeling out of control and
powerless to stop, you may be suffering from binge
eating disorder. You may eat to the point of discomfort,
then be plagued by feelings of guilt, shame, or
depression afterwards, beat yourself up for your lack of
self-control, or worry about what compulsive eating will
do to your body. As powerless as you may feel about
your eating disorder, it’s important to know that binge
eating disorder is treatable. You can learn to break the
binge eating cycle, develop a healthier relationship with
food, and feel good about yourself again.

What is binge eating disorder?

Binge eating disorder is a common eating disorder

where you frequently eat large amounts of food while
feeling powerless to stop and extremely distressed
during or after eating. Binge eating disorder typically
begins in late adolescence or early adulthood, often
after a major diet. During a binge, you may eat even
when you’re not hungry and continue eating long after
you’re full. You may also binge so fast you barely
register what you’re eating or tasting. Unlike bulimia,
however, there are no regular attempts to “make up” for
the binges through vomiting, fasting, or over-
exercising.

You may find that binge eating is comforting for a brief

moment, helping to ease unpleasant emotions or
feelings of stress, depression, or anxiety. But then
reality sets back in and you’re flooded with feelings of
regret and self-loathing. Binge eating often leads to
weight gain and obesity, which only reinforces
compulsive eating. The worse you feel about yourself
and your appearance, the more you use food to cope. It
becomes a vicious cycle: eating to feel better, feeling
even worse, and then turning back to food for relief. As
much as you may feel powerless to break this cycle,
there are plenty of things you can do to better manage
your emotions and regain control over your eating and
your health.

Signs and symptoms

If you have binge eating disorder, you may feel

embarrassed and ashamed about your eating habits,
and try to hide your symptoms by eating in secret.

Behavioral symptoms of binge eating and compulsive

overeating

Inability to stop eating or control what you’re eating

Rapidly eating large amounts of food

Eating even when you're full

Hiding or stockpiling food to eat later in secret

Eating normally around others, but gorging when you’re

alone

Eating continuously throughout the day, with no

planned mealtimes

Emotional symptoms

Feeling stress or tension that is only relieved by eating

Embarrassment over how much you’re eating

Feeling numb while bingeing—like you’re not really

there or you’re on auto-pilot.

Never feeling satisfied, no matter how much you eat

Feeling guilty, disgusted, or depressed after overeating

Desperation to control weight and eating habits

Do you have binge eating disorder?

Do you feel out of control when you're eating?

Do you think about food all the time?

Do you eat in secret?

Do you eat until you feel sick?

Do you eat to escape from worries, relieve stress, or to

comfort yourself?

Do you feel disgusted or ashamed after eating?

Do you feel powerless to stop eating, even though you

want to?

The more "yes" answers, the more likely it is that you

have binge eating disorder.

Causes and effects

Generally, it takes a combination of things to develop

binge eating disorder—including your genes, emotions,
and experience.

Social and cultural risk factors. Social pressure to be

thin can add to the you feel and fuel your emotional
eating. Some parents unwittingly set the stage for
binge eating by using food to comfort, dismiss, or
reward their children. Children who are exposed to
frequent critical comments about their bodies and
weight are also vulnerable, as are those who have been
sexually abused in childhood.

Psychological risk factors. Depression and binge eating

are strongly linked. Many binge eaters are either
depressed or have been before; others may have
trouble with impulse control and managing and
expressing their feelings. Low self-esteem, loneliness,
and body dissatisfaction may also contribute to binge
eating.

Biological risk factors. Biological abnormalities can

contribute to binge eating. For example, the
hypothalamus (the part of your brain that controls
appetite) may not be sending correct messages about
hunger and fullness. Researchers have also found a
genetic mutation that appears to cause food addiction.
Finally, there is evidence that low levels of the brain
chemical serotonin play a role in compulsive eating.

Effects of binge eating disorder

Binge eating leads to a wide variety of physical,

emotional, and social problems. You’re more likely to
suffer health issues, stress, insomnia, and suicidal
thoughts than someone without an eating disorder. You
may also experience depression, anxiety, and
substance abuse as well as substantial weight gain.

As bleak as this sounds, though, many people are able

to recover from binge eating disorder and reverse the
unhealthy effects. You can, too. The first step is to re-
evaluate your relationship with food.

Binge eating recovery tip 1: Develop a healthier

relationship with food

Recovery from any addiction is challenging, but it can

be especially difficult to overcome binge eating and
food addiction. Unlike other addictions, your “drug” is
necessary for survival, so you don’t have the option of
avoiding or replacing it. Instead, you need to develop a
healthier relationship with food—a relationship that’s
based on meeting your nutritional needs, not your
emotional ones. To do this, you have to break the binge
eating cycle by:

Binge eating cycle

Avoiding temptation. You’re much more likely to overeat

if you have junk food, desserts, and unhealthy snacks in
the house. Remove the temptation by clearing your
fridge and cupboards of your favorite binge foods.

Listening to your body. Learn to distinguish between

physical and emotional hunger. If you ate recently and
don't have a rumbling stomach, you're probably not
really hungry. Give the craving time to pass.

Eating regularly. Don’t wait until you’re starving. This

only leads to overeating! Stick to scheduled mealtimes,
as skipping meals often leads to binge eating later in
the day.

Not avoiding fat. Contrary to what you might think,

dietary fat can actually help keep you from overeating
and gaining weight. Try to incorporate healthy fat at
each meal to keep you feeling satisfied and full.

Fighting boredom. Instead of snacking when you're

bored, distract yourself. Take a walk, call a friend, read,
or take up a hobby such as painting or gardening.

young woman on sofa with popcorn

Emotional Eating: How to Recognize and Stop

Emotional Eating

Focusing on what you’re eating. How often have you

binged in an almost trance-like state, not even enjoying
what you’re consuming? Instead of eating mindlessly,
be a mindful eater. Slow down and savor the textures
and flavors. Not only will you eat less, you’ll enjoy it
more.

The importance of deciding not to diet

After a binge, it’s only natural to feel the need to diet to

compensate for overeating and to get back on track
with your health. But dieting usually backfires. The
deprivation and hunger that comes with strict dieting
triggers food cravings and the urge to overeat.

Instead of dieting, focus on eating in moderation. Find

nutritious foods that you enjoy and eat only until you
feel content, not uncomfortably stuffed. Avoid banning
or restricting certain foods, as this can make you crave
them even more. Instead of saying “I can never eat ice
cream,” say “I will eat ice cream as an occasional treat.”

Tip 2: Find better ways to feed your feelings

One of the most common reasons for binge eating is an

attempt to manage unpleasant emotions such as
stress, depression, loneliness, fear, and anxiety. When
you have a bad day, it can seem like food is your only
friend. Binge eating can temporarily make feelings such
as stress, sadness, anxiety, depression, and boredom
evaporate into thin air. But the relief is very fleeting.

Identify your triggers with a food and mood diary

One of the best ways to identify the patterns behind

your binge eating is to keep track with a food and mood
diary. Every time you overeat or feel compelled to reach
for your version of comfort food Kryptonite, take a
moment to figure out what triggered the urge. If you
backtrack, you’ll usually find an upsetting event that
kicked off the binge.

Write it all down in your food and mood diary: what you
ate (or wanted to eat), what happened to upset you,
how you felt before you ate, what you felt as you were
eating, and how you felt afterward. Over time, you’ll see
a pattern emerge.

Learn to tolerate the feelings that trigger your binge

eating

The next time you feel the urge to binge, instead of

giving in, take a moment to stop and investigate what’s
going on inside.

Identify the emotion you’re feeling. Do your best to

name what you’re feeling. Is it anxiety? Shame?
Hopelessness? Anger? Loneliness? Fear? Emptiness?

Accept the experience you’re having. Avoidance and

resistance only make negative emotions stronger.
Instead, try to accept what you’re feeling without
judging it or yourself.

Dig deeper. Explore what’s going on. Where do you feel

the emotion in your body? What kinds of thoughts are
going through your head?

Distance yourself. Realize that you are NOT your

feelings. Emotions are passing events, like clouds
moving across the sky. They don’t define who you are.

Sitting with your feelings may feel extremely

uncomfortable at first. Maybe even impossible. But as
you resist the urge to binge, you’ll start to realize that
you don’t have to give in. There are other ways to cope.
Even emotions that feel intolerable are only temporary.
They’ll quickly pass if you stop fighting them. You’re
still in control. You can choose how to respond.

For a step-by-step guide to learning how to manage

unpleasant and uncomfortable emotions, check out
HelpGuide's free Emotional Intelligence Toolkit.

Tip 3: Take back control of cravings

Sometimes it feels like the urge to binge hits without

warning. But even when you’re in the grip of a
seemingly overpowering and uncontrollable urge, there
are things you can do to help yourself stay in control.

Accept the urge and ride it out, instead of trying to fight

it. This is known as “urge surfing.” Think of the urge to
binge as an ocean wave that will soon crest, break, and
dissipate. When you ride out the urge, without trying to
battle, judge, or ignore it, you’ll see that it passes more
quickly than you’d think.

Distract yourself. Anything that engages your attention

will work: taking a walk, calling a friend, watching
something funny online, etc. Once you get interested in
something else, the urge to binge may go away.

Talk to someone. When you start to notice the urge to

binge, turn to a friend or family member you trust.
Sharing what you’re going through can help you feel
better and discharge the urge to binge.

Delay, delay, delay. Even if you’re unsure if you’ll be

able to fight the urge to binge, make an effort to delay
it. Try to hold off for 1 minute. If you succeed. Try to
stretch it out to 5 minutes. If you delay long enough,
you may be able to avoid the binge.

Tip 4: Support yourself with healthy lifestyle habits

When you’re physically strong, relaxed, and well rested,

you’re better able to handle the curveballs that life
inevitably throws your way. But when you’re already
exhausted and overwhelmed, any little hiccup has the
potential to send you off the rails and straight toward
the refrigerator. Exercise, sleep, and other healthy
lifestyle habits will help you get through difficult times
without binge eating.

Make time for regular exercise. Physical activity does

wonders for your mood and your energy levels, and it’s
also a powerful stress reducer. The natural mood-
boosting effects of exercise can help put a stop to
emotional eating.

Get enough sleep every night. When you don’t get the
sleep you need, your body craves sugary foods that will
give you a quick energy boost. Sleep deprivation may
even trigger food addiction. Getting plenty of rest will
help with appetite control and reduce food cravings,
and support your mood.

Connect with others. Don’t underestimate the

importance of close relationships and social activities.
You're more likely to succumb to binge eating triggers if
you lack a solid support network. Talking helps, even if
it’s not with a professional.

Stress free woman in hammock

Stress Management: Self-Help Techniques

Manage stress. One of the most important aspects of

controlling binge eating is to find alternate ways to
handle stress and other overwhelming feelings without
using food. These may include meditating, using
sensory relaxation strategies, and practicing simple
breathing exercises.
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Anonymous
6y
Originally Answered: How do I stop binge eating all the time?

I struggled with binge eating myself. I knew what

triggered it, but I didn’t know how to make it stop. I was
a student, recently moved to the UK, constantly
thinking whether I made the right choice by going
there, feeling depressed, low motivation, eating huge
amounts of food at the smallest sign of anger or stress
(gained 13 kilos in 2 years). At the same time, I was
working out and trying to go on a diet, but the diet
would last monday-thursday afternoon and then i would
binge for the rest of the week.

After graduating from the UK

Continue I moved to Belgium,
Reading
where ironically, food tastes much better
130 1 3

Vie Jackman
Fellow recovering binge-eater · 2y

This is going to be a no-BS answer: watch mukbang

videos on Youtube.

Especially the gross ones. Watch the ones who eat with
their mouth open, make a lot of weird noises when
eating, etc. Their revolting eating habits plus the
nauseating amount of food they eat will really scare you
straight.

Seriously.

I’ve stopped buying fast foods, instant noodles and

even meatloaf because mukbang videos have really
turned me off from those foods. Now every time I pass
by MacDonalds, I’m reminded of people like Amberlynn
Reid or Nikocado. The possibility of letting myself go as
much as they have, scares me to the bone.

Don’t watch the skinny people with decent table

manners. They wont instill any sort of fear of overeating
in you. They’ll just make you hungry and crave food
more.
3.4K views · View upvotes

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Kiki Lavonne
5y
Originally Answered: How do I stop binge eating all the time?

So, when people are told to control their eating, it is

usually out of fear of being fat. You likely became afraid
of being fat, which led to you being afraid to eat. It soon
became a “guilty pleasure.” Guilt- I just ate food.
Pleasure- food makes me feel good (BIOLOGICAL
response) that eventually turned into a type of “drug
use” you began to abuse this pleasure.

Now, I ALSO binge eat. Why? When I try to control my

eating, everything outide of “health food” becomes a
binge and I feel guilty about it. This leads me to feeling
bad. Then I want to feel good. This leads to my Drug Of
Choice= FOOD. Then I binge eat and feel guilty once
again= cycle.

Challenge= Eat whatever the fuck you want AND pay

attention to bodily response. DO I FEEL FULL? Is my
stomach stretching?!?! Yes. Stomach stretch. SAVE
FOOD FOR LATER. (Caveman voice) WILL NOT FEEL
GUILTY. Eating normally. No guilt!!!

Now, you're probably already fat and have loads of

fucking issues because of it mental and physical. This
is worth a shot though. The moment you say, “I CAN eat
this if I choose. I CAN finish this if I choose. I WILL NOT
feel guilty about it”

It could change that cycle that you're on.

Guilt->pleasure-> guilt-> pleasure

Suggestion 2- Find a way way to channel aggression

through exercise.

Suggestion 3- read Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell

Maltz

Suggestion 4- SELF CARE= paint nails, get hair cut, buy

something nice for self- make face look nice, Dance in
living room, creatively visualize, read body positive
blogs, watch body Positive YouTube videos, look at
Body Positive TUMBLRs, stop hating self, start living
self

Hope this helped even a little

Xo
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Mizzlizzy89
Author has 1.2K answers and 329.3K answer views ·
10mo

Firstly, I totally understand! I too suffer from a binge

eating disorder. I have managed to get my binging
under control over the last year and a half and
completely stopped binging. Here is what I did:

1. I joined a 12 step program for overeating and it

LITERALLY saved my life. Today is my 517th
day in OA and I could not be more grateful for
my recovery.

2. I started looking at the patterns of behavior

and environment that trigger me to binge. I
noticed that I binge mostly at night, only when
I am alone, and often when I am upset, tired, or
have waited too long to eat. I also noticed that
snack foods like chips, crackers, and peanut
butter are very triggering to me as well as fast
food and high carb meals.

3. Once I figured out what the majority of my

triggers are I took steps to help eliminate those
triggers. I stopped going into the kitchen after
dinner, I stopped eating alone, and I created a
meal plan for myself so I could shop ONLY for
the foods I needed for that week and nothing
more, so I literally could not binge without
running out of food. I also stopped purchasing
large bags or boxes of snack foods, stopped
going to fast food places, and limited my carbs
to one per meal.

4. To deal with my emotions I started journalling

every day, meditating, finding healthy activities
without food I could do to bring me joy
(dancing, going out with friends more, taking a
bath, etc. ).

5. In moments of weakness I learned to call

someone in OA, call a friend, or get out of the
kitchen and/or house and go for a walk.

6. I learned to look at myself differently. I learned

how to love myself. I learned to let go of guilt,
forgive myself when I mess up, and treat my
body and mind with respect and care.

I know that life is hard right now, that you are in

the clutches of binging and it is so, so hard to
get away from that. However, I am also willing
to bet that you are worth it, you are worth love,
and you deserve to try and get better. Hang in
there Buddy! Together we get better. Reach
out, ask questions, get support and love.

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Aston Tsui
studied psychology and education at UCLA · Author has
344 answers and 880K answer views · 6y
Originally Answered: How do I stop binge eating all the time?

Alright, I am strangely familiar with this problem and I

think this question will actually help me put some
psychological concepts (along with spirituality) to good
use.

First, what “triggers” you to binge eat? If you really

think about it, every human constantly has a
compulsive desire to do something. It is our instinct as
well as impulse to act upon our environment. The
purpose is to survive and reproduce, as established by
evolution and Darwinism. However, what is the function
of food?

Food, obviously, provides nutrition

Continue Reading and nutrients.
However, it can serve other functions as well. It can se
27 5

Monica Shoshanna
I suffer from it · Author has 190 answers and 491.6K
answer views · 6y

Related How can I stop binge eating every day?

I suffer from the same problem. I’ve been binge eating a
lot this month, almost every single day. I dread to think
how much weight I’ve gained. I’ve been feeling very
depressed and low.

I think the worst thing is to be around an environment

where there’s food. For me the worst thing is being
downstairs, near the kitchen as I know it’s easy to go
back and forth to the kitchen. When I’m in my room
upstairs I’m less likely to binge as I can’t be bothered to
keep on going up and down the stairs for food. Also in
my room I’m more occupied as I don’t have a TV and I
Continue Reading
do more of my hobbies such as pain
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Dr.Kenzo Berg
Psichiatrist at Clinical Psychology (2003–present) ·
Author has 331 answers and 51.9K answer views ·
Updated 7mo

It began when I was 16 years old and was at school. I

was raised in a high-stress environment. My parents
have always put in a lot of effort and had high
standards because they own a business.

They have always put pressure on my sister and me to

be the greatest in all we do, even when we were very
young.1 I felt compelled to be at the top of the class, and
no matter what grades I received, my mother would
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