[DechanDawa]

I was on the ketogenic diet from August to December. Then I decided to take a little break until the new year. That was over two months ago. .

Now I can't seem to stop this behavior. I don't binge but I consistently overeat carbs. If I buy healthy multigrain crackers they are gone in a few days.

I am starting to wonder if my behavior could be called a eating disorder because I definitely eat past being hungry.

I don't think I can go back to the ketogenic diet because it is too darn strict. I just want to reduce the amount I eat.

I think the only thing that will save me is to start up the dreaded food log or eating journal.

I think with eating disorders they would all be definitely treated with a food journal. I guess I also have to address the emotional stuff. I definitely have had an increase in stress lately combined with boredom which of itself is a stresser.

Hi, this is a great question.

A lot of medications cause weight gain. Some even increase our appetite; some again for specific foods. Seroquel is one such example that causes a craving for carbs. Depression will exacerbate this problem.

I have had some weight gain owing to my medication (yep seroquel appears to be the guilty party). I have been prescribed Metformin to try to counteract this. My biggest problem however is that I eat out of boredom. Some may eat when they are anxious; food is often the coping mechanism turned to.

Would you say this relationship you have with food is a 'control mechanism'? Eating disorders are often an expression of this. It's long the lines of I can't control the things going on in my life but eating is something that I can do so. Your description doesn't seem to fit this.

You are definitely not alone. This is common across the Mood Disorder spectrum.

[*Laurie*]

Are you on medication that stimulates your appetite, DD?

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by justafriend306

Hi, this is a great question.

A lot of medications cause weight gain. Some even increase our appetite; some again for specific foods. Seroquel is one such example that causes a craving for carbs. Depression will exacerbate this problem.

I have had some weight gain owing to my medication (yep seroquel appears to be the guilty party). I have been prescribed Metformin to try to counteract this. My biggest problem however is that I eat out of boredom. Some may eat when they are anxious; food is often the coping mechanism turned to.

Would you say this relationship you have with food is a 'control mechanism'? Eating disorders are often an expression of this. It's long the lines of I can't control the things going on in my life but eating is something that I can do so. Your description doesn't seem to fit this.

You are definitely not alone. This is common across the Mood Disorder spectrum.

I'm not on medication.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by *Laurie*

Are you on medication that stimulates your appetite, DD?

I'm not on any medication.

[DechanDawa]

I have a lot of stress and am emotional eating.

[reb569]

Emotional eating and stress. They tend to go together and can be hard to overcome. Something that works for me is when I have a desire to eat when I'm not really hungry, I try to walk instead, or doing something around the house that needs to be done. Another thing I did was stop buying the stuff that I tended to reach for when I was struck by the urge to eat something I shouldn't. I no longer buy chips, or soda. It was hard the first couple months, but now it is easy for me to not eat those things. I do allow myself a soda once in a while, and chips occasionally, but I no longer have an issue with the cravings for them anymore.

Personally, I would avoid strict diets that don't allow you to eat certain things. They can be dangerous and can lead to cravings over time.

Hang in there.

Originally Posted by reb569

Emotional eating and stress. They tend to go together and can be hard to overcome... Personally, I would avoid strict diets that don't allow you to eat certain things. They can be dangerous and can lead to cravings over time.

Hang in there.

I agree. Finding activity (I paint when I am unable to get outside) is a great answer. Avoiding boredom is so very helpful for me.

Something that has been helpful to me is that I avoid doing my groceries weekly. I do so on a near daily basis. This means I avoid getting things I don't require, getting only those I actually need. By shopping in this manner. I just don't have that food to munch on to begin with.

In my own experience I have been gradually losing weight. Oh I still need to do so but I am now below that of where I was prior to diagnosis ( and the intro of meds in my case).

Combat boredom. Change shopping habits.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by justafriend306

I agree. Finding activity (I paint when I am unable to get outside) is a great answer. Avoiding boredom is so very helpful for me.

Something that has been helpful to me is that I avoid doing my groceries weekly. I do so on a near daily basis. This means I avoid getting things I don't require, getting only those I actually need. By shopping in this manner. I just don't have that food to munch on to begin with.

In my own experience I have been gradually losing weight. Oh I still need to do so but I am now below that of where I was prior to diagnosis ( and the intro of meds in my case).

Combat boredom. Change shopping habits.

Thanks. When I was on the ketogenic diet I bought a week's worth of food and did food prep, so had 7 frozen containers of a protein and vegetable meal for dinner. The other meals were a green smoothie for breakfast and something like a salad and some protein like hard boiled egg or cottage cheese for lunch. It was boring. No real snacks. If I felt hungry I drank tea. I kept a food journal. It worked, I lost weight, and physically felt great. But it was strict and hard to maintain.

When I started to introduce more variety that's when things got out of hand.

Sigh. I am pretty sure I have an eating disorder. It gets out of hand when I am stressed. I lose discipline. I don't think I eat from boredom. It is more about stress.

Yeah, I have been known to shop for food daily. It's called fast food. When the guys at Burger King and Subway start knowing your order before you speak then you have a problem!

Yes, it may very well be but I see a link between the eating and your depression. I've been reading and following some of your other posts and depression is of concern to me. I can empathize. I have always had a bad relationship with food. In hindsight this has been at its worst during periods of my own depression.

I DO have my own problem though. I buy my food daily but it may be 11am and I have already eaten my food allotted for the day. I spend a lot of time going hungry.

[DechanDawa]

Originally Posted by justafriend306

Yes, it may very well be but I see a link between the eating and your depression. I've been reading and following some of your other posts and depression is of concern to me. I can empathize. I have always had a bad relationship with food. In hindsight this has been at its worst during periods of my own depression.

I DO have my own problem though. I buy my food daily but it may be 11am and I have already eaten my food allotted for the day. I spend a lot of time going hungry.

Hahaha. Oh dear me, I can relate to eating up one's food allotment! I usually eat all the refined carbs first, then dairy. I'm then left with oatmeal, vegetables, eggs and....coffee with almond milk.

I have never said aloud that I have an eating disorder so this was my coming out thread. It is usually in times of stress.

It is mostly about portion size and cheating. I mean oatmeal is a good food but it actually has a lot of calories. So if I eat a huge bowl of oatmeal with fruit and almond milk that ends up not being so healthy...because it contains a ton of calories.

I also cheat eat. I read about this one. It can be about consistently eating too big portions or doing as I do....breaking down on the weekend and eating fast food. One day of bad eating can ruin a week's worth of restriction. It isn't exactly binging but doing cheat days really ruins a diet. I know diet is a dirty word but if you need to lose weight...what else can you call it?

Losing and maintaining weight is difficult...but not rocket science. However, since here in the US we have a major obesity epidemic I don't really want to be a statistic.