Gaining weight *trigger warning - eating and weight*

littlearcher wrote:

noreally_imfine wrote:i guess because I'm feeling major stress in different areas of my life, i turn to yummy foods to give me some kind of pleasure in life.

hi noreallyimfine,
i can see why this gain would be distressing. i have gained a little recently and it's been difficult for me as it's bringing out some of my ed type thinking.

it sounds like you might be emotional eating, which, in this case, is a maladaptive coping strategy.

i wonder, would you be open to looking into other ways of soothing yourself when you are stressed? i imagine if you worked on that, your weight would start to stabilize naturally.

what do you think?

Sorry Little Archer! I didn't know this thread needed a trigger warning in the subject, oops! Yes, I would most certainly say I am eating poorly due to my emotions. Id say about 90% of the time, my emotions are negative and eating is one of the best pleasures in life and one of the very few things i now enjoy in my life. If I'm having a bad day, it is hard to stay away from sugary things. Last night, i wasn't doing so well at work and came real close to getting a candy bar from the vending machine. I used to be VERY strict about candy bars like 8 months ago. now, if i want it, i get it - sometimes without a second thought. it used to take DAYS of thinking whether i want a candy bar - not minutes!!!!!!

You do remind me of the user Empathy with your suggestions. He would also recommend finding other ways to soothe myself. Im not sure what else to do anymore. Maybe there are solutions that are right in front of my face that I am either ignoring or completely unaware of? Breathing exercises i struggle with and we all know exercise is out of the question for me now unless its light walking which i get zero enjoyment out of. And sometimes, these bad eating habits happen at work and on my break, ill go to the vending machine. being at work, I'm more restricted to ways i can soothe myself and because i work overnight shift, most people are asleep and i cannot talk to them for a distraction.

I'm probably making up excuses as to why i can't find a healthier method to cope with my emotions.

-- Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:29 pm --

Gurl that is awesome you bought healthy stuff. I didn't do so good last night but now I am eating healthy till Christmas. Maybe will lose some water weight.. I am going to Marshall's tomorrow too actually to buy at least 1 new outfit... don't wanna freak out about it later while traveling.

You can do it. Hope you start feeling better! [/quote]

Haha I bought healthy stuff but I haven't touched ANY of it yet! so typical of me these days!! Thanks for your encouragement! Im glad to hear you're eating healthy as well, good luck to you and i hope you feel better too!!! keep me posted!

-- Sat Dec 21, 2013 12:31 pm --

Im-pure wrote:here with you sister
im 5'8'' 110 lbs and i eat at night lately cuz im just not hungry during the day...i gain 2 lbs im freaking out. good for you you bought healthy stuff. make sure you eat that and dont just leave it in the fridge
you''get through this somehow just take it easy.

Haha so far, its being left in the fridge. it made me laugh when i read that because i ALWAYS TEND TO DO THAT. I buy healthy stuff and guess what? i NEVER touch it, it rots/expires and i throw it out. not only is money wasted but so is food. its disgusting.

by the way, i know everyone has different opinions and i know you may feel one way and i may feel another but i think you're weight is great! so wish i weighed at least 128ish at my height!

carlsaganfan,

I'm have never been athletic, but I never weighed more than 120 until I was in my late 20's.

Even now I'm not what anyone would consider "heavy", but I'm in the same situation as far as none of my pants fit, and I don't want to buy bigger pants.

I broke down last week and bought myself 3 pairs of spanx jeans. I had to cuz the only things I have to leave the house in are sweats!

When my spanx arrived in the mail, I immediately tried them on, and I was nearly in tears. The zipper wouldn't zip on one of them, not because they were too small, it was just a sticky zipper, you know how sometimes a new zipper just doesn't glide right away... but still I was soooo upset and angry and had a huge lump in my throat.

Then I feel so dumb for being upset.

*TW*
I constantly swing from one extreme to another. In the mornings, until early afternoon, I tell myself I will change my eating habits and start exercising. Then in the afternoon, another person takes control and says "oh ###$ it. you'll never change. it's not such a big deal." (this is the same self-sabotaging voice that takes over and causes binge shopping, avoiding necessary chores, paperwork, etc.)

Today I cleaned out the fridge with the intention of buying healthy groceries. I still love salads and I have had success in the past with low carb diets, they are easier for me to stick with once I make the initial adjustment. But I don't know where the willpower will come from. I have only once before let myself go this far, and it took a year of strict diet and exercising 5 days a week to get back to where I want to be. :-\

Are you a reader? I really like Jillian Michaels. She has a couple of books that really helped me before. She really explains the science behind a healthy diet, in a way that's easy to understand, IMO.

Good luck! [/quote]

Hello Carlsaganfan,

Wow, i really can relate to your post. Trying on things that dont fit suddenly make my eyes water - its so painful! I am in the same boat - all I can wear right now are sweats! NO JEANS! ugh!!!!!!! I try on a few different yoga style pants that were a size LARGE and they fit... sadly. But you could see my thighs bulging out and now i can see rolls developing on my stomach, ROLLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

aah I have that voice too! It says to me "today you ARE going to the gym." in an hour.. the hour comes ... and the hour goes..... not only did i NOT go to the gym but i also didn't leave the house. and i buy healthy stuff at the grocery store and it... it pretty much ends up becoming decoration on the kitchen table! i just stare at it. i whine and complain that I'm hungry and stare at apples and bananas and grapefruit but my mind is like "theres nothing to eat!".

unfortunately I dont read much. hard for me to concentrate. i forget a lot. BUT I'm really interested in diet and exercise and have picked up books involving food (never could finish the book) and love Womens Health magazine. So, maybe ill look at the Jillian Michaels books. Im always VERY interested in reading but once i buy it, i struggle finishing it.

noreally_imfine wrote:You do remind me of the user Empathy with your suggestions. He would also recommend finding other ways to soothe myself. Im not sure what else to do anymore. Maybe there are solutions that are right in front of my face that I am either ignoring or completely unaware of?

Do you have an android phone? I use an app (it's free!) called DBT911. I find it helpful as especially when i'm struggling emotionally, I can just open it up and it will come up with a skill that I can do. Oftentimes for me, it's a matter of thinking of what skill to use that is the hard part. Now that you mention this in regards to this thread, perhaps I will try to use it to curb emotional eating as well.

Thanks for helping me make that connection! This is a huge help and I bet you didn't even think this comment could help someone!

noreally_imfine wrote:
Haha so far, its being left in the fridge. it made me laugh when i read that because i ALWAYS TEND TO DO THAT. I buy healthy stuff and guess what? i NEVER touch it, it rots/expires and i throw it out. not only is money wasted but so is food. its disgusting.

by the way, i know everyone has different opinions and i know you may feel one way and i may feel another but i think you're weight is great! so wish i weighed at least 128ish at my height!

been there done that got the tshirt! lol. thats why i even mentioned it! you see what i do when i notice this is just buy less food. i dont wanna feel guilty for having to throw all the healthy stuff away cuz it got bad in the fridge! you could also try buying healthier options of what you usually eat ex you like fast food chicken, get some frozen chicken breast from a store you like and bake it yourself with no oil. little stuff that helps. you'll feel better about yourself and lose weight steadily and not get hungry. thats the only way to break the vicious cycle lol

Cheze2 wrote:

noreally_imfine wrote:You do remind me of the user Empathy with your suggestions. He would also recommend finding other ways to soothe myself. Im not sure what else to do anymore. Maybe there are solutions that are right in front of my face that I am either ignoring or completely unaware of?

Do you have an android phone? I use an app (it's free!) called DBT911. I find it helpful as especially when i'm struggling emotionally, I can just open it up and it will come up with a skill that I can do. Oftentimes for me, it's a matter of thinking of what skill to use that is the hard part. Now that you mention this in regards to this thread, perhaps I will try to use it to curb emotional eating as well.

Thanks for helping me make that connection! This is a huge help and I bet you didn't even think this comment could help someone!

Lol nope! didn't know my thread would help someone like that but I'm so glad it did!!!!!! Unfortunately, i may be the only individual on the planet without a smartphone.