I am a severe emotional eater, always have been, even when I was little. I know what I am doing, why can't I stop?boredom eater also. tonight I gave in to a pb granola bar. I feel so bad now, I feel like all I do is struggle with everything. I try real hard, but never seem to get anywhere. I know it doesn't sound like it but I AM a happy person. weight just stinks, and I am sick of being fat and not getting anywhere. any advice would be helpful.

I had a lot of trouble with emotional eating as well as boredom eating, too. When I get really upset about something or I've had a bad day, I remind myself that you need to put yourself first sometimes. I get on the treadmill and just walk/run the feelings out. You'd be surprised how many calories you can burn when you're mad at something/someone.

I go for a walk! you can try to drink a glass of water. And I keep sugar free hard candy with me,
for the times when I feel like being naughty
You sound just like me! I know what you are going through! Stay strong-You can do It.

Hi,

I'm an emotional overeater also. I eat when I'm happy, sad, bored, angry....

One thing I have done the past year or two, was go to buy Haagen Daz for my lunch break at work from a near by pharmacy. I would buy the 3 pack and eat them all at the same time. Last week I needed to take my lunch break but didn't have anything to do. Instead I washed my car instead of the H D. It is so easy for me to think about buying H D, there are pharmacies all over with HD for sale. I tell myself that "that is not an option." I also remind myself how I will feel after I eat what I should not.

I try to substitute. Coffee, tea, gum, a hard candy, distraction. Coffee has been a good substitute when I need something sweet. I use instant decaf, a 10 calorie per tbsp liquid creamer, two nutrasweet and drink.

I wish I had an easy trick. There is none that I found, but that breaking a habit is a decision I make many times daily. I stopped biting nails about 5 years ago. Cold turkey. Biting is not an option anymore. That was a 30+ year old habit. For me food is more difficult than nail biting. I could fast my whole life, if I make my mind up to do it. Eating moderately is HARD. Overeating is easy. Moderation is not my strong point.

One meal, or one snack at a time.....

Hi all,

I struggle with boredom and emotional eating too. I wish I had this figured out, but I don't well enough. I've lost some weight, but have struggled with the last bit, and with maintenance. I was in a weight loss program, and we were given suggestions along the lines of 'late at night, when you have the urge to overeat, do the dishes or pay the bills instead!' Hmm. I need to figure out more things to do instead of eating, that will serve as some sort of pleasant reward-type activity, but aren't expensive, and can be done late evenings alone- or during short breaks during the day at work.

I've tried puzzles, which helped some at home. Anything to keep hands busy!

Please, I'd love to hear any suggestions you might have!

I'm an emotional eater too.

I know how you all feel.... I feel the same way too latley with the emotional eating......When I sit down at night is the worst....always feel I "need" to eat....
I lost a bunch of weight not to long but now I feel im sliding backwards and cant get in control.......I gotta nip this in the bud before it comes back to haunt me....I used to brush my teeth after meals and chew gum instead of excessive snacking... gona try diff types of gum this time instead of mint...like chocolate and kona coffee...then when kids have halloween stuff.... maybe wont be so hard to stay away from.......................

If you always do what you always did ....You'll always get what you always got.....

Me too guys! I think most people who are overweight or who gain weight really quickly are probably the same. I read that you have to fill the void with something else or get psychological help to stop the emotional eating. I don't know how to stop it but I go through phases for years when I feel that I have finally overcome it and then I go back. I wish I could fix it permanently as well!

I was an emotional eater, and sometimes still struggle with it. I had to come to realize that there is another problem the is creating the symptom of overeating. Overeating is an addiction, just like alcoholism, gambling, sex, computer abuse, adrenaline junky, etc. There is a deeper issue there, and throwing food at it, like booze, is like putting a can of STP oil treatment for a knocking rod in an engine. Sure, it will not sound as bad for a while, but the rod is still malfunctioning.

I have mentioned in other post that I am a recovering alcoholic. But I have a problem with anything that alters my mood, at least in the short term. But just like anything that is not done in moderation, there are consequences. Bad behavior does not end without consequences. If it was attractive, healthy, socially acceptable, and felt good to be fat, (call it was it is), then I would be eating a wedding cake right now. But I had to change the way I looked at, and felt, about food.

Humans are always moving in one of two directions: towards pleasure, or towards pain. These ultimately become our motivators. No one would ever diet if their weight wasn't causing some sort of displeasure in their lives. We have to focus on the pleasure that comes with being health and fit. This is not always easy to imagine. I first wrote out a pleasure-pain list when it came to my eating. I listed the pleasures on one side: Feel better, more attractive, more confidence, live longer, sleep less, more energy, etc. Then I listed the pains: No energy, unattractive, chest pains, no respect, hard to breathe, no confidence, early death, unhappy, etc. I then looked at this list whenever I had a Whopper w/cheese craving. I asked myself, "is this burger going to ultimately give me pleasure or pain?" When I was able to get honest with myself, it became easier to not give in. I did things like Kdel stated, like take a walk, read a book, etc, and they also helped.

Now the hard part. I had to get help. Now, I would rather saw off my big toe with a steak knife than ask for help from anyone, but the truth is that my way wasn't working. Not only that, there was no accountability. If I downed a gallon of Ben & Jerry’s, who would know? I went to AA meetings to quit drinking, so I went to Weight Watcher meetings early on. I learned a lot about food and ways to keep from binging, with people who were just like me. But this just treated the symptom. I needed a therapist for the deeper problem. There is no shame at all in getting help. I did it, and it is working.

Hope this helps. Hang in there!

I like you fishman!! You have a lot of good stuff to say and it is always useful to hear that you really know what is going on with us and toward motivators!! I used to see a therapist but I no longer have insurance so I can't.

The idea of accountability is a very good one. - If therapy is not an option, go to FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal and set up a free account - it has a very good setup for keeping up with daily food intake. I have seen people put the link to their personal FitDay daily food journal in their sigs to others can see it (it has a "make public" option for that). Sure, you can lie about what you ate, but if get truly honest with yourself, you won't. Sometimes knowing anyone can see what you've been eating can make a big difference.

(I'm thinking that shouldn't break any spam rules since it would be referencing your food intake journal, not a link to a site you are trying to make money on - but mods correct me if I'm wrong).

I've never been a heavy emotional eater, but my sister has been a huge boredome-eater. She said that she got in the habit of using crushed ice as the substitute for the hand-to-mouth part of the habit until she started losing weight. Once the weight began coming off she found a surge of confidence to fuel her through the rest of the battle because she knew that every time she resisted the tempation to eat needlessly she was losing a little bit of weight. I think that's pretty good thinking. She recommends the crushed ice because apparently cubes can be hard on your teeth and are too big and cold to keep in your mouth for very long.

good tip, crushed ice, I think I'll try that one!