When pushed hard enough we all eventually reach the point where we’ve had it! I’ve hit that mark multiple times over the years because my weight has cycled up and down so much.

It seems like I was either completely “on” or completely “off” a diet at any point in time, and therefore I have always struggled with the equilibrium position.

I think it’s great when you finally reach that breaking point. Once there you need to make a decision. Do you continue binge and overeating, or is this the turning point where you get your life under control once and for all? And this is your life we’re talking about. No matter how “together” we appear and how successful and happy we are with some parts of our life, we all recognize that binge eating represents a huge problem area in our lives. Most times we feel completely out of control and unable to do anything positive when it comes it eating better.

Well, if you’ve reached your breaking point for the first time or the 100th my advice is the same:

• write down how you feel at this exact moment
• write down how you could like to feel if you could truly change your situation
• write down what you’re going to do about it today

The last point is very important, and it doesn’t have to be an enormous first step. Something as simple as “eat a healthy dinner” or “drink a glass of water before each meal” will help your cause and will help you to start down a path of healthier behaviors.

According to Wikipedia.com, Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is a psychiatric disorder with the following symptoms:

• Periodically does not exercise control over consumption of food.
• Eats an unusually large amount of food at one time — more than a normal person would eat in the same amount of time.
• Eats much more quickly during binge episodes than during normal eating episodes.
• Eats until physically uncomfortable and physically feels like they’re on the verge of throwing up due to the outrageous amount of food just consumed.
• Eats when depressed, sad, or bored.
• Eats large amounts of food even when not really hungry.
• Usually eats alone during binge eating episodes, in order to avoid discovery of the disorder.
• Often eats alone during periods of normal eating, owing to feelings of embarrassment about food.
• Feels disgusted, depressed, or guilty after binge eating.

Do any or all of these symptoms describe you? If not, the ideas and techniques I plan to share will still be of value to you if you’re trying to change your habits, lose weight, improve your health, and/or learn to cope with difficult situations.

As for me all of the above bullets used to be accurate. And it is not fun, trust me.

My name is Todd, and I am a recovering binge eater. Some people are just overweight, and some people eat too much at thanksgiving dinner. Neither of these things, by themselves, makes a person a binge eater. I have struggled for years with this problem, but thanks to the grace of God and a lot of hard work I’m learning what it takes to beat my binge eating addiction. I’m not 100% there yet, but I’m getting close. And I can help you too.

If you like what you find here please subscribe to my RSS feed and let’s get started!