Compulsive Overeating

don't buy nuts. problem solved.

peace,
pen

"Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi Everyone,
I have been on the low carb (Atkins) WOE now for over one year. I have

lost

Quoted message said:

64 pounds and have maintained the loss for 7 months. I weigh myself every
Monday morning. I can REALLY use some advice.
After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4 pounds.
OK! Fine! I lost my job when the business folded and I'm not as active as

I

Quoted message said:

was. I have been going through extreme emotional stress. Fine! I have been
trying to justify this weight gain when all this time, I KNOW THE REASON.
I am a compulsive overeater and have been eating too much of my "Legal"
foods, especially nuts! I have been consuming too many calories each day.

I

Quoted message said:

need some control now. I really need some advice as to how to start
controlling the amount I eat.
I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at

night,

Quoted message said:

I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.
As an ex- member of Overeaters' Anonymous for years, (lost 123 pounds and
regained over 90) I think I miss the sharing with other who have the same
problem.
I have been looking for another job and I pray I get a call soon from the

5

Quoted message said:

applications I have filled out so far. I am also waiting to see how
Hurricane Ivan is going. I live in North Carolina and want to visit my 85
year old mother in New Jersey. I ahead not seen her in 2 years. I have
begged her to come and live with me but she will not move. I feel so

guilty.

Quoted message said:

I was supposed to have already driven up to N. J. a few weeks ago but
postponed the trip because of Hurricanes Charlie and Frances. Now, there's
another forming. I am afraid to drive in that kind of weather. It's a 12
hour trip from here.
I would love to get some help and suggestions. Thanks so much for your

time

Quoted message said:

and understanding! Take care all!
Jo-Ann
--
Invalid address-Please post request to e-mail me.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Jo-Ann' RiverRun@ mindspring.com said:

Hi Everyone,
I have been on the low carb (Atkins) WOE now for over one year. I have lost
64 pounds and have maintained the loss for 7 months. I weigh myself every
Monday morning. I can REALLY use some advice.
After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4 pounds.
OK! Fine! I lost my job when the business folded and I'm not as active as I
was. I have been going through extreme emotional stress. Fine! I have been
trying to justify this weight gain when all this time, I KNOW THE REASON.
I am a compulsive overeater and have been eating too much of my "Legal"
foods, especially nuts! I have been consuming too many calories each day. I
need some control now. I really need some advice as to how to start
controlling the amount I eat.
I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at night,
I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.
As an ex- member of Overeaters' Anonymous for years, (lost 123 pounds and
regained over 90) I think I miss the sharing with other who have the same
problem.
I have been looking for another job and I pray I get a call soon from the 5
applications I have filled out so far. I am also waiting to see how
Hurricane Ivan is going. I live in North Carolina and want to visit my 85
year old mother in New Jersey. I ahead not seen her in 2 years. I have
begged her to come and live with me but she will not move. I feel so guilty.
I was supposed to have already driven up to N. J. a few weeks ago but
postponed the trip because of Hurricanes Charlie and Frances. Now, there's
another forming. I am afraid to drive in that kind of weather. It's a 12
hour trip from here.
I would love to get some help and suggestions. Thanks so much for your time
and understanding! Take care all!
Jo-Ann

I have this same problem periodically, in times of greater stress. There
are lots of things that you can try, some may work, some may not.

To be able to eat nuts but not overeat them:

Divide the nuts up into portion sized bags and only allow yourself one bag.

Don't eat while watching tv or reading.

Eat in front of a mirror.

Do something to force yourself to eat slowly. Maybe get up and walk to
another room and back between each nut.

To stop eating nuts altogether:

First off, don't buy them. This alone did not work for me, I ended up just
eating other things.

Drink a glass of water. If you have an ice machine that makes crushed ice,
chew it. You can also smash up regular ice cubes so you could chew those.

Brush your teeth, floss, use mouthwash. Enjoy the fresh clean mouth
feeling, don't spoil it by eating again.

Change your routine. At the time you would normally start snacking, do
something else instead, preferably something where you need to use your
mind and your hands. If you pick an activity that relaxes you, this could
help deal with the stress that's causing the overeating.

--
Michelle Levin
http://www.mindspring.com/~lunachick

I have only 3 flaws. My first flaw is thinking that I only have 3 flaws.

One thought is to budget your total calories when you go shopping. Go
once a week, buy 7x2000 = 14000 calories worth of food. If you
splurge early in the week, you end up short of food at the end of the
week, but it will all average out.

Luna said:

I have this same problem periodically, in times of greater stress. There
are lots of things that you can try, some may work, some may not.

To be able to eat nuts but not overeat them:

Divide the nuts up into portion sized bags and only allow yourself one bag.

Don't eat while watching tv or reading.

Eat in front of a mirror.

Do something to force yourself to eat slowly. Maybe get up and walk to
another room and back between each nut.

To stop eating nuts altogether:

First off, don't buy them. This alone did not work for me, I ended up just
eating other things.

Drink a glass of water. If you have an ice machine that makes crushed ice,
chew it. You can also smash up regular ice cubes so you could chew those.

Brush your teeth, floss, use mouthwash. Enjoy the fresh clean mouth
feeling, don't spoil it by eating again.

Change your routine. At the time you would normally start snacking, do
something else instead, preferably something where you need to use your
mind and your hands. If you pick an activity that relaxes you, this could
help deal with the stress that's causing the overeating.

In addition to Luna's good list of rules, I always add the one that I
will not eat after say 7:00 pm at all. Evening is also my time of least
control, so this rule is important for me.

Rebecca

While you told us how much you lost, you might still have 200 pounds to go,
or you may be an 80 pound anorexic with delusions of being fat.

Even free advice needs some info.

"Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi Everyone,
I have been on the low carb (Atkins) WOE now for over one year. I have

lost

Quoted message said:

64 pounds and have maintained the loss for 7 months. I weigh myself every
Monday morning. I can REALLY use some advice.
After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4 pounds.
OK! Fine! I lost my job when the business folded and I'm not as active as

I

Quoted message said:

was. I have been going through extreme emotional stress. Fine! I have been
trying to justify this weight gain when all this time, I KNOW THE REASON.
I am a compulsive overeater and have been eating too much of my "Legal"
foods, especially nuts! I have been consuming too many calories each day.

I

Quoted message said:

need some control now. I really need some advice as to how to start
controlling the amount I eat.
I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at

night,

Quoted message said:

I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.
As an ex- member of Overeaters' Anonymous for years, (lost 123 pounds and
regained over 90) I think I miss the sharing with other who have the same
problem.
I have been looking for another job and I pray I get a call soon from the

5

Quoted message said:

applications I have filled out so far. I am also waiting to see how
Hurricane Ivan is going. I live in North Carolina and want to visit my 85
year old mother in New Jersey. I ahead not seen her in 2 years. I have
begged her to come and live with me but she will not move. I feel so

guilty.

Quoted message said:

I was supposed to have already driven up to N. J. a few weeks ago but
postponed the trip because of Hurricanes Charlie and Frances. Now, there's
another forming. I am afraid to drive in that kind of weather. It's a 12
hour trip from here.
I would love to get some help and suggestions. Thanks so much for your

time

Quoted message said:

and understanding! Take care all!
Jo-Ann
--
Invalid address-Please post request to e-mail me.

Quoted message said:

After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4 pounds.

if 4 pounds is a horror to you ... your right, you do have an eating disorder.
Get into therapy.
~Kat

"help is on the way"
~John Kerry

Rebecca said:

Luna said:

I have this same problem periodically, in times of greater stress.
There are lots of things that you can try, some may work, some may not.

To be able to eat nuts but not overeat them:

Divide the nuts up into portion sized bags and only allow yourself one
bag.

Don't eat while watching tv or reading.

Eat in front of a mirror.

Do something to force yourself to eat slowly. Maybe get up and walk to
another room and back between each nut. To stop eating nuts altogether:

First off, don't buy them. This alone did not work for me, I ended up
just eating other things. Drink a glass of water. If you have an ice
machine that makes crushed ice, chew it. You can also smash up regular
ice cubes so you could chew those.

Brush your teeth, floss, use mouthwash. Enjoy the fresh clean mouth
feeling, don't spoil it by eating again.

Change your routine. At the time you would normally start snacking, do
something else instead, preferably something where you need to use your
mind and your hands. If you pick an activity that relaxes you, this
could help deal with the stress that's causing the overeating.

In addition to Luna's good list of rules, I always add the one that I
will not eat after say 7:00 pm at all. Evening is also my time of least
control, so this rule is important for me.

Rebecca

I used to follow a rule similar to this in college. Unfortunately, now
most days I don't get home until about 7pm, so this has become a
non-rule.

--
Bob in CT
Remove ".x" to reply

That's a ridiculous thing to say. You have no idea what weight the OP was
already at. If she was relatively slim or petite, 4 pounds could make a
huge difference. Even Dr. Atkins says in his book 'never let your weight go
up by more than 5 pounds'.

Peace,
Pen

"Jarkat2002" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4

pounds.

Quoted message said:

if 4 pounds is a horror to you ... your right, you do have an eating

disorder.

Quoted message said:

Get into therapy.
~Kat

"help is on the way"
~John Kerry

Quoted message said:

That's a ridiculous thing to say. You have no idea what weight the OP was
already at.

Eating disorders are not a matter of weight, but a matter of the mind, weight
is just a side effect.
hey ... I'm not the one that put "Compulsive Overeating" in the subject line.
Compulsive Overeating IS an eating disorder.

~Kat

"help is on the way"
~John Kerry

"Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4 pounds.
OK! Fine! I lost my job when the business folded and I'm not as active as

I

Quoted message said:

was. I have been going through extreme emotional stress. Fine! I have been
trying to justify this weight gain when all this time, I KNOW THE REASON.
I am a compulsive overeater and have been eating too much of my "Legal"
foods, especially nuts!

[snip]

Quoted message said:

I have been looking for another job and I pray I get a call soon from the

5

Quoted message said:

applications I have filled out so far.

I can relate to job interview stress 😉

As you pointed, you are a former overeater. Eating seems your standard and
only way of dealing with stress (what psychiatrists call a non-specific
answer - it doesn't solve the problem itself, but generates enough positive
emotions to offset the stress). The problem is that eating also comes
bundled with additionnal negative emotions for you (guilt,
self-depreciation...), so it's not working so well at fixing your mood. You
eat to feel better, but it doesn't make you feel that much better, so you
eat more. There are several ways to deal with the situation, but I'm afraid
none is simple and quicky :

1. You could learn to appreciate the food, without feeling guilty about it.
This means you could get best emotionnal bang for your calorie bucks. This
means doing several of the behavioural stuff that have been posted above
(eating slowly, *paying attention* while you eat...) and also work extra at
enjoying the taste and positive emotions (chewing slowly, trying to feel the
taste...). The idea is to get the full emotionnal well being effect with
just a moderate amount of food.
2. Find other ways to deal with stress. Many people, including
non-overeaters and slim ones, enjoy food as one of the ways to lessen
stress. But few use food as their *only* way to deal with stress. If one out
of twenty stressful events is handled with food, it's not a huge problem. If
twenty out of twenty are, it is a major problem. So, try to find something
you *really* enjoy and that makes you feel good and that is not food
related. And do it. Even if you "don't have the time", "feel silly about it"
or whatever, just do it. If this means driving to a cinema and enjoying a
movie on your own while DH or whoever has to cook dinner himself, so be it.
3. Find a way to lessen the intensity of your stress. Learn how to meditate
or relax yourself. You can check things like Schultz autogen training or PMR
(progressive muscle relaxation) methods for non-religious relaxation
methods. If you have an heart monitor, you can try bio-feedback too (using
the device to learn how to slow down your heartbeat - the body has troubles
maintaining a high stress level when some physical factors, like heartbeat
or breathing, are not acting stressed). Or take Tai Chi or Yoga classes; the
former worked wonder on the stress level of my girlfriend. Or visit a
therapist for massages (shiatsu, californian...) or even sophrology. There
are plenty of ways to lower the stress level. You will also gain benefits
beyond the overeating, keeping your stress manageable also works wonder on
your health (many chronic diseases have a psychosomatic component) and your
professionnal life. If you're having job interviews, learning how to deal
with stress can work wonders. I did some bio-feedback relaxation before an
interview to be selected for professionnal training, and feeling relaxed and
fully in control during the interview was really a huge advantage - no dry
throat, no excessive sweating, no wasted energy to control myself...

Most of these strategies could benefit from being down with the help of a
therapist of some kind, especially #1 which is risky (binges) if you don't
have proper support. There must be some kind of alt.support.stress group or
something around here, which might be helpful if it's not trolled too much.
But you would be dealing with the root of the problem. If you just cut the
overeating with nothing to replace it as a stress management strategy, you
will have issues with extreme stress level, which is just as bad as
overeating...

Bob in CT wrote:
|| On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 17:22:56 GMT, Rebecca <[email hidden]>
|| wrote:
||
||| Luna wrote:
|||
||||
|||| I have this same problem periodically, in times of greater stress.
|||| There are lots of things that you can try, some may work, some may
|||| not.
||||
|||| To be able to eat nuts but not overeat them:
||||
|||| Divide the nuts up into portion sized bags and only allow yourself
|||| one bag.
||||
|||| Don't eat while watching tv or reading.
||||
|||| Eat in front of a mirror.
||||
|||| Do something to force yourself to eat slowly. Maybe get up and
|||| walk to another room and back between each nut. To stop eating
|||| nuts altogether:
||||
|||| First off, don't buy them. This alone did not work for me, I
|||| ended up just eating other things. Drink a glass of water. If you
|||| have an ice machine that makes crushed ice, chew it. You can also
|||| smash up regular ice cubes so you could chew those.
||||
|||| Brush your teeth, floss, use mouthwash. Enjoy the fresh clean
|||| mouth feeling, don't spoil it by eating again.
||||
|||| Change your routine. At the time you would normally start
|||| snacking, do something else instead, preferably something where
|||| you need to use your mind and your hands. If you pick an activity
|||| that relaxes you, this could help deal with the stress that's
|||| causing the overeating.
||||
|||
||| In addition to Luna's good list of rules, I always add the one that
||| I will not eat after say 7:00 pm at all. Evening is also my time
||| of least control, so this rule is important for me.
|||
||| Rebecca
|||
||
|| I used to follow a rule similar to this in college. Unfortunately,
|| now most days I don't get home until about 7pm, so this has become a
|| non-rule.

It's a good rule for some...but I go to the gym at 8:30p, so I have to eat
afterwards. Soon, I'll start riding at night on Tuesdays & Thursdays, so
again I'd have reason to eat late. What I do is count the calories and have
a biggish lunch caloriewise, so that I don't need to eat much later.

||
|| --
|| Bob in CT
|| Remove ".x" to reply

|| I used to follow a rule similar to this in college. Unfortunately,

Quoted message said:

|| now most days I don't get home until about 7pm, so this has become a
|| non-rule.

It's a good rule for some...but I go to the gym at 8:30p, so I have to
eat
afterwards. Soon, I'll start riding at night on Tuesdays & Thursdays, so
again I'd have reason to eat late. What I do is count the calories and
have
a biggish lunch caloriewise, so that I don't need to eat much later.

Yikes! I thought I ate late. Supposedly a big lunch is better than a big
dinner.

--
Bob in CT
Remove ".x" to reply

Jo-Ann said:

I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at night,
I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.

Are you eating them from the bag/can? If I ate from the can, I would
probably eat about half a can before I realized how much I was eating.

By weighing several handfuls of nuts, I found that what I can grab in
a handful is almost exactly an ounce. So I grab a handful and put it
it a custard dish to set my serving.

--
jamie ([email hidden])

"There's a seeker born every minute."

"Cubit" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

While you told us how much you lost, you might still have 200 pounds to

go,

Quoted message said:

or you may be an 80 pound anorexic with delusions of being fat.

Even free advice needs some info.

I am 5 (WAS!!!) 5 pounds under my goal weight. I lost the extra 5 pounds

to "play" with. Now that I have played, I am scared.
I am a compulsive overeater. Not buying nuts doesn't work. I tried that. I
ate other things. I need a source of control at night. That's the BAD time.
Jo-Ann

"Jarkat2002" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

After my weigh in this week, I found, to my horror, I had gained 4

pounds.

Quoted message said:

if 4 pounds is a horror to you ... your right, you do have an eating

disorder.

Quoted message said:

Get into therapy.
~Kat

I have been to therapy. I received the same type of frivolous answer from
the therapist. I have been on diets since I was old enough to lift a fork.
It's not an amusing problem-it HURTS.
Jo-Ann

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 15:25:40 GMT, "Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com>

Quoted message said:

I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at night,
I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.
As an ex- member of Overeaters' Anonymous for years, (lost 123 pounds and
regained over 90) I think I miss the sharing with other who have the same
problem.

I love raw unsalted sunflower seeds in the shell. A custard cup full
takes half-an-hour to eat, which gets me through the
eating-everything-in-the house thing.

Marilyn

"Lictor" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I can relate to job interview stress 😉

Lictor,

Thank you so much for your reply. I am going to try to find an evening OA
Group somewhere nearby. They may have one at the local hospital. I will call
and find out. That will help with the night time eating (at least one night
a week) and hopefully, I will get the "shot in the arm" I need to maintain
control.
This is the first time in my entire life (62 years) that I have be able to
maintain a weight loss for 7 months. That's why I am so scared. I want to
stay healthy, slimmer and be around for my grandson's wedding. He's only 7
yrs old now so I have many years of maintaining left. LOL!!!
Jo-Ann

Great idea Jamie. I eat peanuts in the shell (unsalted) still in the bag.
Almonds in a Tupper ware container and Sunflower seeds in shell (salted but
I wash them off as best as I can) From now on, I will do as you suggest and
take small amounts. When that's finished, so am I.
Jo-Ann
"jamie" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Jo-Ann said:

I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at

night,

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.

Are you eating them from the bag/can? If I ate from the can, I would
probably eat about half a can before I realized how much I was eating.

By weighing several handfuls of nuts, I found that what I can grab in
a handful is almost exactly an ounce. So I grab a handful and put it
it a custard dish to set my serving.

--
jamie ([email hidden])

"There's a seeker born every minute."

Marilyn,
I cannot seem ton find UNSALTED sunflower seeds in the shell. Where do you
get yours? That's what I am after. Salt retains so much water and Lord
Knows, I cannot afford that either.
Jo-Ann
<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 15:25:40 GMT, "Jo-Ann" <RiverRun@ mindspring.com>

Quoted message said:

I have tried to go back on the "Induction phase of the program but at

night,

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I eat those darned nuts again and can't seem to control the amount.
As an ex- member of Overeaters' Anonymous for years, (lost 123 pounds and
regained over 90) I think I miss the sharing with other who have the same
problem.

I love raw unsalted sunflower seeds in the shell. A custard cup full
takes half-an-hour to eat, which gets me through the
eating-everything-in-the house thing.

Marilyn