Need help with breaking a food addiction!
- Thread starter Cupcake01
- Start Date
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi cupcake.
Good luck with the test. Please let us know the results.
Cara
Hi cupcake.
Good luck with the test. Please let us know the results.
Cara
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi, im new on this site and am reading everyone's posts and any books ect I can get my hands on. At the min im reading " The First year.. Type 2 Diabetes" ...by Gretchen Becker. 13 years ago when I was first diagnosed as a gestational diabetic :evil: I didn't take much notice of anything but my baby. now ive been started on insulin and want to know everything. lol. This book has told me more in the first 50 pages than all the other literature put together because it is about me. And I believe as you have the same problem as me then this book is also about you......all of you.....DIABETES CAUSES YOU TO BECOME OVERWEIGHT. NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND, and this book explains why....most of us have accepted the news that our diet habits have caused our diabetes and that we should control our eating therefore our weight, BUT YOU NEED THE DIABETES GENE IN THE FIRST PLACE TO BECOME DIABETIC "Gretchen Becker 2004" so isn't it about time we had help with this issue from the so called experts who are supposed to know this... :evil:
Hi, im new on this site and am reading everyone's posts and any books ect I can get my hands on. At the min im reading " The First year.. Type 2 Diabetes" ...by Gretchen Becker. 13 years ago when I was first diagnosed as a gestational diabetic :evil: I didn't take much notice of anything but my baby. now ive been started on insulin and want to know everything. lol. This book has told me more in the first 50 pages than all the other literature put together because it is about me. And I believe as you have the same problem as me then this book is also about you......all of you.....DIABETES CAUSES YOU TO BECOME OVERWEIGHT. NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND, and this book explains why....most of us have accepted the news that our diet habits have caused our diabetes and that we should control our eating therefore our weight, BUT YOU NEED THE DIABETES GENE IN THE FIRST PLACE TO BECOME DIABETIC "Gretchen Becker 2004" so isn't it about time we had help with this issue from the so called experts who are supposed to know this... :evil:
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi. Am new to this site, my first post! Have been reading for a while but your post prompted me to get involved. I too have a good addiction which i have tried for 25 years to overcome. Type 1 20yrs which i have always been in denial of. Hate the way this disease rules my life. The constant exhaustion, highs lows mood swings, skin itching, boils the list goes on. Im not thick, i know that my diet and the need to lose 4 stone will make it all a lot better but i cant control what i eat.i too and very sensitive about the way i look and would also love any advice on how to break this addiction.
Hi. Am new to this site, my first post! Have been reading for a while but your post prompted me to get involved. I too have a good addiction which i have tried for 25 years to overcome. Type 1 20yrs which i have always been in denial of. Hate the way this disease rules my life. The constant exhaustion, highs lows mood swings, skin itching, boils the list goes on. Im not thick, i know that my diet and the need to lose 4 stone will make it all a lot better but i cant control what i eat.i too and very sensitive about the way i look and would also love any advice on how to break this addiction.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I am pre diabetic.
I have found over the years that we have been led to believe that food addiction is based on how we think and feel about food. I now believe it is mostly a physical reaction triggered by carb foodstuffs in people with the diabetes gene. Lower your carbs and your hunger and yearnings will dramatically improve - after the first few days adjustment period of course, which could involve headaches, and general feelings of malaise.
Be aware that eating carbs is what will make you want more and more and more, make you starving, and lead you to embark on food addiction behaviour. Just realising that it is the carbs talking, and not your mind or lack of will power helps heaps when the inevitable lapses happen.
Allen Carr's book on stopping smoking explains addiction well. He makes people realise that they crave a cigarette (in our case bread, pasta, chocolate etc) because the body is below par and wants to get back to 'feeling normal', which it will, as soon as the addiction is present in the bloodstream. He then goes on to explain that the reason your body is below par is actually because of that last cigarette ( or carbs in our case). That is the nature of addiction. If you can withdraw your addictive substance for long enough for the body to feel normal without it, then you don't need it any more. He had terrific success with that book, for thousands of people just this knowledge was enough for them to give up smoking forever.
Giving up cigarettes is probably a lot easier than food - you just don't buy them or smoke them any more. But food is different, we have to eat it several times a day, and eat carbs every day too. I found this knowledge very helpful, realising that non diabetic people don't get starving so easily, don't get carb cravings and don't want eat far too much. I am much more aware that carbs set off cravings, make me starving too soon, make me want more carbs and ignore the good food. Lower carbs makes for a more relaxed lifestyle and I'm convinced it is way to go. Sin small is my mantra!
I am pre diabetic.
I have found over the years that we have been led to believe that food addiction is based on how we think and feel about food. I now believe it is mostly a physical reaction triggered by carb foodstuffs in people with the diabetes gene. Lower your carbs and your hunger and yearnings will dramatically improve - after the first few days adjustment period of course, which could involve headaches, and general feelings of malaise.
Be aware that eating carbs is what will make you want more and more and more, make you starving, and lead you to embark on food addiction behaviour. Just realising that it is the carbs talking, and not your mind or lack of will power helps heaps when the inevitable lapses happen.
Allen Carr's book on stopping smoking explains addiction well. He makes people realise that they crave a cigarette (in our case bread, pasta, chocolate etc) because the body is below par and wants to get back to 'feeling normal', which it will, as soon as the addiction is present in the bloodstream. He then goes on to explain that the reason your body is below par is actually because of that last cigarette ( or carbs in our case). That is the nature of addiction. If you can withdraw your addictive substance for long enough for the body to feel normal without it, then you don't need it any more. He had terrific success with that book, for thousands of people just this knowledge was enough for them to give up smoking forever.
Giving up cigarettes is probably a lot easier than food - you just don't buy them or smoke them any more. But food is different, we have to eat it several times a day, and eat carbs every day too. I found this knowledge very helpful, realising that non diabetic people don't get starving so easily, don't get carb cravings and don't want eat far too much. I am much more aware that carbs set off cravings, make me starving too soon, make me want more carbs and ignore the good food. Lower carbs makes for a more relaxed lifestyle and I'm convinced it is way to go. Sin small is my mantra!
Cazz
Active Member
- Messages
- 35
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Insulin
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I have been a carb addict for as long as I can remember. I would probably have ended up a type 2 if I hadn't become a type 1. I loved anything carby, you name it; cereals, pasta, biscuits, doughnuts, cakes, puddings with custard and my absolute fave was cheesecake. Anyway, I switched to a modified Atkins diet to try and control blood sugar levels but it did nothing to curb the carb cravings and so I was constantly falling off the wagon. While staying at a relative's a few years ago, I picked up a book called 'You can be thin' by Marisa Peer. I couldn't put it down! It uses NLP to try and change your mindset about food. It talks about the different sort of eaters we are e.g. addictive eaters, emotional eaters, angry eaters and offers ways to combat it. Something of what she said must have worked because I started to view chocolate and biscuits in a different way. I know you may be skeptical but I got my mother to read it and she totally changed her diet, lost one and a half stone and is still free from her Pringle addiction! I would really recommend this book (comes with a CD as well). Check out the reviews on amazon. I bought my copy on ebay for £2 something but you can get it from your local library for free. It is a very motivational book and has really helped me to change my eating habits for good. I wouldn't say I am cured but I would say I'm 80% there. I no longer like cakes and even cheesecake and have finally overcome my bread cravings. I don't agree with everything she says in the book regarding what is healthy but her approach to overcoming food addiction has worked for me.
I have been a carb addict for as long as I can remember. I would probably have ended up a type 2 if I hadn't become a type 1. I loved anything carby, you name it; cereals, pasta, biscuits, doughnuts, cakes, puddings with custard and my absolute fave was cheesecake. Anyway, I switched to a modified Atkins diet to try and control blood sugar levels but it did nothing to curb the carb cravings and so I was constantly falling off the wagon. While staying at a relative's a few years ago, I picked up a book called 'You can be thin' by Marisa Peer. I couldn't put it down! It uses NLP to try and change your mindset about food. It talks about the different sort of eaters we are e.g. addictive eaters, emotional eaters, angry eaters and offers ways to combat it. Something of what she said must have worked because I started to view chocolate and biscuits in a different way. I know you may be skeptical but I got my mother to read it and she totally changed her diet, lost one and a half stone and is still free from her Pringle addiction! I would really recommend this book (comes with a CD as well). Check out the reviews on amazon. I bought my copy on ebay for £2 something but you can get it from your local library for free. It is a very motivational book and has really helped me to change my eating habits for good. I wouldn't say I am cured but I would say I'm 80% there. I no longer like cakes and even cheesecake and have finally overcome my bread cravings. I don't agree with everything she says in the book regarding what is healthy but her approach to overcoming food addiction has worked for me.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Some horrid person has opened one of those old fashioned sweetie shops which I will have to pass everyday on the way to he coffeeshop. Oh well, onto Amazon to look for some blinkers to prevent me seeing the place. :lol:
Some horrid person has opened one of those old fashioned sweetie shops which I will have to pass everyday on the way to he coffeeshop. Oh well, onto Amazon to look for some blinkers to prevent me seeing the place. :lol:
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Well that was my problem giving up smoking I hastily say was more than 6years ago!! Then wham food tasted so good so much better than before I couldn't get enough chocolate,biscuits,crisps any food that would take my mind off smoking!!! My god the weight piled on and on.
I went to gp for something else and she said I needed a blood test as well, a day or so later she rang me and told me I had diabetes t2 so that was my wake up call I won't go back I'm too scared and have no lost nearly three stone and I've still got several more to lose. So when my mind goes on food I walk for a good hour most days.
So good luck to you I know what your going through!!!!
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
Well that was my problem giving up smoking I hastily say was more than 6years ago!! Then wham food tasted so good so much better than before I couldn't get enough chocolate,biscuits,crisps any food that would take my mind off smoking!!! My god the weight piled on and on.
I went to gp for something else and she said I needed a blood test as well, a day or so later she rang me and told me I had diabetes t2 so that was my wake up call I won't go back I'm too scared and have no lost nearly three stone and I've still got several more to lose. So when my mind goes on food I walk for a good hour most days.
So good luck to you I know what your going through!!!!
Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
douglas99
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 4,572
- Type of diabetes
- I reversed my Type 2
- Treatment type
- Other
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I found switching to heavily spiced foods was the answer for me.
After sweet food for years I needed flavour to replace it, so I invested in a lot of chili, both powder and fresh, and put those in nearly everything.
I make homemade curries as well, even salads have a lot of rocket, and fresh herbs, (pot ones, so they last well).
But it seems to have worked, so my tastes have changed, and I don't think switching to bland food would have worked so well.
I found switching to heavily spiced foods was the answer for me.
After sweet food for years I needed flavour to replace it, so I invested in a lot of chili, both powder and fresh, and put those in nearly everything.
I make homemade curries as well, even salads have a lot of rocket, and fresh herbs, (pot ones, so they last well).
But it seems to have worked, so my tastes have changed, and I don't think switching to bland food would have worked so well.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I too need to lose weight. I have type 1 diabetes and always crave food. I am currently in a wheelchair as I have fractured feet but don't know how to lose the weight. I tend to overeat after lunch time and the cravings get worse through the afternoon until evening.
I too need to lose weight. I have type 1 diabetes and always crave food. I am currently in a wheelchair as I have fractured feet but don't know how to lose the weight. I tend to overeat after lunch time and the cravings get worse through the afternoon until evening.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hey cupcake!!
I've been a type 1 diabetic for 16 years. I'm also a personal trainer & nutritionist!! Come and chat to me on my Facebook anytime! X
www.facebook.com/charlottedobiept
Hey cupcake!!
I've been a type 1 diabetic for 16 years. I'm also a personal trainer & nutritionist!! Come and chat to me on my Facebook anytime! X
www.facebook.com/charlottedobiept
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Food addiction may not be your fault. Zhao and Fei published a paper in Nature http://www.nature.com/ismej/journal/v7/n4/full/ismej2012153a.html implicating the bacterium Klebsiella mobilis with morbid obesity. The patient was given a diet of whole grains and traditional Chinese medicinal vegetables. He regained normal weight and appetite. K. mobilis was a major component of his gut bacteria but was reduced by the treatment to undetectable. One of the toxins of this bacterium is an O-linked N-actylglucoseamine transferace which interferes with the appetite and satiation hormones such as ghrelin leading to eating disorders. It also interferes with the actin cytoskeleton which deactivates the alpha-1 GABA receptor on the pancreatic alpha-cells leading to runaway serum glucose production. Another bacterium with the same class of toxin is Clostridium novyi type A which I discovered as the cause of my DMT2 and complications which I am now treating with occassional doses of antibiotics. This is a long term treatment because it is spore forming and the spores keep waking up. K. mobilis is not spore forming so is easier to treat. I used to eat a lot, now I eat very little. All the DMT2 symptoms have cleared along with all the complications including the retinal angiopathy.
K. mobilis may be the reason some diabetis respond well to Chinese medicines. Go to your doctor with this informationn and try and get a test. If it is not K mobilis it might be C. novyi type A. Testing for this is more difficult with at least 40% false negatives in the best conditions. Your doctor should contact the Clostridium reference liabry in Cardiff.
Food addiction may not be your fault. Zhao and Fei published a paper in Nature http://www.nature.com/ismej/journal/v7/n4/full/ismej2012153a.html implicating the bacterium Klebsiella mobilis with morbid obesity. The patient was given a diet of whole grains and traditional Chinese medicinal vegetables. He regained normal weight and appetite. K. mobilis was a major component of his gut bacteria but was reduced by the treatment to undetectable. One of the toxins of this bacterium is an O-linked N-actylglucoseamine transferace which interferes with the appetite and satiation hormones such as ghrelin leading to eating disorders. It also interferes with the actin cytoskeleton which deactivates the alpha-1 GABA receptor on the pancreatic alpha-cells leading to runaway serum glucose production. Another bacterium with the same class of toxin is Clostridium novyi type A which I discovered as the cause of my DMT2 and complications which I am now treating with occassional doses of antibiotics. This is a long term treatment because it is spore forming and the spores keep waking up. K. mobilis is not spore forming so is easier to treat. I used to eat a lot, now I eat very little. All the DMT2 symptoms have cleared along with all the complications including the retinal angiopathy.
K. mobilis may be the reason some diabetis respond well to Chinese medicines. Go to your doctor with this informationn and try and get a test. If it is not K mobilis it might be C. novyi type A. Testing for this is more difficult with at least 40% false negatives in the best conditions. Your doctor should contact the Clostridium reference liabry in Cardiff.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I too love my food & am clinically obese. I was called in to my gp's surgery over my cholesterol levels. I saw the nurse who discussed everything with me & she suggested I join weightwatchers or slimming world to try to correct my diet & help me lose weight. I joined slimming world 2 weeks ago am eating loads of food, never hungry, bg levels now brilliant & have lost 8lbs, I was also slimmer of the week for this week. I feel so much better for doing it plus I've got 12 weeks free membership because the practise nurse recommended me.
I too love my food & am clinically obese. I was called in to my gp's surgery over my cholesterol levels. I saw the nurse who discussed everything with me & she suggested I join weightwatchers or slimming world to try to correct my diet & help me lose weight. I joined slimming world 2 weeks ago am eating loads of food, never hungry, bg levels now brilliant & have lost 8lbs, I was also slimmer of the week for this week. I feel so much better for doing it plus I've got 12 weeks free membership because the practise nurse recommended me.
bearMedicine
Active Member
- Messages
- 31
- Type of diabetes
- Treatment type
- Insulin
- Dislikes
- Dieting :)
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi cupcake.
Have you considered Overeaters Anonymous (OA)? They are a donation-only service based around the same method of recovery as used by AA, i.e. a 12 step programme, which has been of benefit to thousands of compulsive eaters worldwide. Cheaper than therapy and well worth a try. They helped me with my binge eating on carbs which has now been SUBSTANTIALLY reduced.
Check out http://www.oagb.org.uk for more information and to locate a meeting near you.
Hi cupcake.
Have you considered Overeaters Anonymous (OA)? They are a donation-only service based around the same method of recovery as used by AA, i.e. a 12 step programme, which has been of benefit to thousands of compulsive eaters worldwide. Cheaper than therapy and well worth a try. They helped me with my binge eating on carbs which has now been SUBSTANTIALLY reduced.
Check out http://www.oagb.org.uk for more information and to locate a meeting near you.
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi Cupcake,
I fully empathise. I was diagnosed Type 2 in 1998, and have mostly been in denial ever since. While I have made some fundamental changes (ie no adding sugar to anything etc) I still eat chocolate and foods high in fat. I am bordering on morbidly obese and over the last year my blood glucose has been increasingly poor. I have a real issue in reducing carbs - I love pasta, rice, potatoes, and feel unsatiated if I can't eat these. When I try to change my eating habits, I usually get to 1 1/2 weeks in and then 'fall off' and get bored. I've tried Weight watchers, Cambridge diet, calorie counting, Paul McKenna hypnotic gastric band. I live on my own and find preparing and cooking meals a challenge. I'll often choose the easy quick options, which can include chocolate and crisps instead of a proper meal. I've comfort eaten since early teenage years, and I have had counselling, yet still struggle to break the bad habits.
HOWEVER, as you mentioned in one of the posts, making small changes really helps. I've started walking to the lake near work most days to feed the ducks (I'm really lazy, and moving more is another of my challenges), I've switched to skimmed milk. I have been making the effort to cook more, and even dusted off the electric steamer! I even baked a cake on Thursday, something I've not done since I was 15! I intend to look up some blood glucose/heart friendlier recipes online today, and continue with making the small changes.
Oh, I am also a qualified nurse, and know what I should/shouldn't be doing!
I am MORE than happy for you to PM me, as I need help too, and we may be able to help each other. If not, good luck!
Hi Cupcake,
I fully empathise. I was diagnosed Type 2 in 1998, and have mostly been in denial ever since. While I have made some fundamental changes (ie no adding sugar to anything etc) I still eat chocolate and foods high in fat. I am bordering on morbidly obese and over the last year my blood glucose has been increasingly poor. I have a real issue in reducing carbs - I love pasta, rice, potatoes, and feel unsatiated if I can't eat these. When I try to change my eating habits, I usually get to 1 1/2 weeks in and then 'fall off' and get bored. I've tried Weight watchers, Cambridge diet, calorie counting, Paul McKenna hypnotic gastric band. I live on my own and find preparing and cooking meals a challenge. I'll often choose the easy quick options, which can include chocolate and crisps instead of a proper meal. I've comfort eaten since early teenage years, and I have had counselling, yet still struggle to break the bad habits.
HOWEVER, as you mentioned in one of the posts, making small changes really helps. I've started walking to the lake near work most days to feed the ducks (I'm really lazy, and moving more is another of my challenges), I've switched to skimmed milk. I have been making the effort to cook more, and even dusted off the electric steamer! I even baked a cake on Thursday, something I've not done since I was 15! I intend to look up some blood glucose/heart friendlier recipes online today, and continue with making the small changes.
Oh, I am also a qualified nurse, and know what I should/shouldn't be doing!
I am MORE than happy for you to PM me, as I need help too, and we may be able to help each other. If not, good luck!
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
For myself, I started 'comfort eating' at the age of 11 (I am now 40) and got up to size 20 by the time I was 30 years old. I had gestational diabetes during my first pregnancy, 10 years ago. This is when I was confronted with the reality about my weight, and while I continue to struggle (after all, it's not like smoking where you just stop), I found OA helped me get on the road to ditching my own judgemental attitudes towards my behaviour, which were stopping me from changing it. The truth is that now, I don't get 'comfort' from comfort eating even whilst doing it and if I start, I can stop (like spitting a half-chewed biscuit into the bin!).
I would also agree that Low GI/GL eating is key to dealing with the physical urges to overeat.
Hi cupcake, I have NEVER posted on this site but would agree that OA is definitely worth going to, find a local meeting (normally held in community venues) and go along a few times and just listen before making your mind up. One thing you will definitely find is that people ARE NOT judgemental. If you already identify your problem as an addiction, then the approach of OA may be one you find helpful.bearMedicine said:
For myself, I started 'comfort eating' at the age of 11 (I am now 40) and got up to size 20 by the time I was 30 years old. I had gestational diabetes during my first pregnancy, 10 years ago. This is when I was confronted with the reality about my weight, and while I continue to struggle (after all, it's not like smoking where you just stop), I found OA helped me get on the road to ditching my own judgemental attitudes towards my behaviour, which were stopping me from changing it. The truth is that now, I don't get 'comfort' from comfort eating even whilst doing it and if I start, I can stop (like spitting a half-chewed biscuit into the bin!).
I would also agree that Low GI/GL eating is key to dealing with the physical urges to overeat.
douglas99
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 4,572
- Type of diabetes
- I reversed my Type 2
- Treatment type
- Other
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I found my diet worked for me after I had tried several others.
But it's the classic of eating less that is my personal winner.
So just calorie counting, modified to reduce foods that spiked me.
I avoid fat as it's got twice the calories of carbs, I avoid a lot of carbs as they're bad for me, and spuds, rice, pasta, bread, are the classic foods to give up on any diet anyway.
So a lot of vegetables, fish, white meat.
http://www.snack-girl.com/
was a good website for all the snacks, and I gave up all the classic non diet foods, all the chocolate biscuits, all the sugar, all the fat.
After I had done that, it was a lot easier to cut down on the snacks, and to be honest, I have got into not wanting the old snacks, and I feel more guilt than pleasure when I do have one. (One bite of one chocolate biscuit was enough for me yesterday, and that does sound unbelievable even to me)
Planning the day helped, incorporating snack time, so I could hang on for a few minutes, rather than a few hours for the next meal.
Little and often.
I also found cooking was a good help to the diet.
I could decide what went in, so no salt, no fat, no sugar, a lot of veg, spices, lean meat, fish, or quorn.
Most of my cooking is done in a wok, or dry (or a spray of 1 cal) roasted, and cooks surprising quickly.
The other advantage is it passes the time thinking about food, so it passes "snack" time, and I do nibble the food I'm cooking, so effectively I eat the same amount over a much longer period.
It's now not a "diet" as such, I have modified the way I eat, I prefer hot spicy food, I prefer sunday lunch with a pile of veg covered in gravy rather than yorkshire pud and roast potatoes, but I could still have a slice of birthday cake yesterday to be sociable, without wanting more after.
It was actually my dietician that got me started on this route, her first advice was to choose one thing I had regularly, and replace it, (it was a cup a soup, replaced with half an oxo, but with a warning over salt content), then to move on and reduce the amount of times I had something else in a week, (bacon), then when I had done this, and realised I could do it, and maintain it, I decided to assess my own diet, and changed it wholesale, but it had to be to one I liked, and one I knew I could maintain.
It may not be the best for others, in fact it not be the best for me, but it's the best I can do, and it's an awful lot better than it was.
(and finally, the classic trick of smaller plates, took two goes, as our original set was huge, you could put two servings on and even then they still looked empty, so we bought smaller ones, and they were so small no matter what you piled on it looked like a portion for a mouse, so third time lucky and I got a decent enough looking size to convince me it was a regular dinner plate)
I found my diet worked for me after I had tried several others.
But it's the classic of eating less that is my personal winner.
So just calorie counting, modified to reduce foods that spiked me.
I avoid fat as it's got twice the calories of carbs, I avoid a lot of carbs as they're bad for me, and spuds, rice, pasta, bread, are the classic foods to give up on any diet anyway.
So a lot of vegetables, fish, white meat.
http://www.snack-girl.com/
was a good website for all the snacks, and I gave up all the classic non diet foods, all the chocolate biscuits, all the sugar, all the fat.
After I had done that, it was a lot easier to cut down on the snacks, and to be honest, I have got into not wanting the old snacks, and I feel more guilt than pleasure when I do have one. (One bite of one chocolate biscuit was enough for me yesterday, and that does sound unbelievable even to me)
Planning the day helped, incorporating snack time, so I could hang on for a few minutes, rather than a few hours for the next meal.
Little and often.
I also found cooking was a good help to the diet.
I could decide what went in, so no salt, no fat, no sugar, a lot of veg, spices, lean meat, fish, or quorn.
Most of my cooking is done in a wok, or dry (or a spray of 1 cal) roasted, and cooks surprising quickly.
The other advantage is it passes the time thinking about food, so it passes "snack" time, and I do nibble the food I'm cooking, so effectively I eat the same amount over a much longer period.
It's now not a "diet" as such, I have modified the way I eat, I prefer hot spicy food, I prefer sunday lunch with a pile of veg covered in gravy rather than yorkshire pud and roast potatoes, but I could still have a slice of birthday cake yesterday to be sociable, without wanting more after.
It was actually my dietician that got me started on this route, her first advice was to choose one thing I had regularly, and replace it, (it was a cup a soup, replaced with half an oxo, but with a warning over salt content), then to move on and reduce the amount of times I had something else in a week, (bacon), then when I had done this, and realised I could do it, and maintain it, I decided to assess my own diet, and changed it wholesale, but it had to be to one I liked, and one I knew I could maintain.
It may not be the best for others, in fact it not be the best for me, but it's the best I can do, and it's an awful lot better than it was.
(and finally, the classic trick of smaller plates, took two goes, as our original set was huge, you could put two servings on and even then they still looked empty, so we bought smaller ones, and they were so small no matter what you piled on it looked like a portion for a mouse, so third time lucky and I got a decent enough looking size to convince me it was a regular dinner plate)
lizdeluz
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 1,306
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Insulin
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
I sympathise because I've experienced this to some degree. Instead of feeling guilty, I try to be KIND to myself by NOT eating the wrong things and I try to think of unhealthy food as not very pleasant food! I know this might sound a bit strange, but, in fact, it helps me to think more positively about how I look after myself.
Next step could be to write a list of healthy foods that you DO like. There might be more than you realise. You might need to do a bit of research on carbohydrate value of these foods and snack ideas.
Yoga might help with gradually coming away from a food addiction. Get yourself a yoga mat and do some relaxation and some stretches to make you feel a bit better. Join a weekly yoga class so that you can keep getting back on track if you relapse into unhelpful eating. Don't beat yourself up, just keep working on improving your diet bit by little bit. Food addictions are common but I understand how it feels not to want to discuss it with anyone. However, you have done something very positive by asking for help on the forum. This shows that you will cope with this. :thumbup:
I sympathise because I've experienced this to some degree. Instead of feeling guilty, I try to be KIND to myself by NOT eating the wrong things and I try to think of unhealthy food as not very pleasant food! I know this might sound a bit strange, but, in fact, it helps me to think more positively about how I look after myself.
Next step could be to write a list of healthy foods that you DO like. There might be more than you realise. You might need to do a bit of research on carbohydrate value of these foods and snack ideas.
Yoga might help with gradually coming away from a food addiction. Get yourself a yoga mat and do some relaxation and some stretches to make you feel a bit better. Join a weekly yoga class so that you can keep getting back on track if you relapse into unhelpful eating. Don't beat yourself up, just keep working on improving your diet bit by little bit. Food addictions are common but I understand how it feels not to want to discuss it with anyone. However, you have done something very positive by asking for help on the forum. This shows that you will cope with this. :thumbup:
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
Hi. have you tried OA ( overeaters anonnymous). i use the online version. there is also a very good OA support group on face book. i to suffer from a food addiction and i also find it so very hard, you are not alone. dont isolate get in touch with others.try not to beat yourself up when you have a slip. keep it in the day. xx Ann
Hi. have you tried OA ( overeaters anonnymous). i use the online version. there is also a very good OA support group on face book. i to suffer from a food addiction and i also find it so very hard, you are not alone. dont isolate get in touch with others.try not to beat yourself up when you have a slip. keep it in the day. xx Ann
Re: Need help with breaking a food addiction!
There are some articles here in Psychology today about food addiction.
There may be something there that resonates with posters here and help you in sorting it out.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/search/q ... on&x=0&y=0
There are some articles here in Psychology today about food addiction.
There may be something there that resonates with posters here and help you in sorting it out.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/search/q ... on&x=0&y=0
