Everyone overeats on occasion. But if eating large amounts of food becomes a regular means of coping with life's stress, or interferes with your normal life, you may have binge eating disorder. Binge eating disorder is a form of eating disorder, and it is considered a mental health problem. The good news is that will support and effort, you can find healthier ways to manage stress.
Instructions
1. Break the cycle well before you have the urge to eat. By the time you're reaching for the cookies, it's already too late. Binge eating is a problem that can be due to the strong rebound hunger from skipping meals, or can be emotional eating-a short term means of coping with strong emotions. It can be a difficult cycle to break, but with patience and persistence, you can change for the healthier.
2. Begin with having a healthy breakfast. Many people who say they don't eat breakfast are night-time eaters. If you lighten or eliminate any after-dinner eating, you'll probably find that you are ready for breakfast. Here are some examples of a healthy balanced breakfast: 1. 1 scrambled egg with 1 piece wheat toast and 1 banana2. 4 oz. non-fat vanilla yogurt topped with fresh fruit and wheat germ3. 1/4 cup almonds and cashews and 6 oz orange juice
3. Don't skip meals. Have something every four hours. This can take a little practice if you're used to blowing off eating through the day. It doesn't need to be much - you can carry a couple apples or other fruit to work, nuts are a great snack (in modest quantities). Imagine just eating a half-sandwich six times each day, rather than eating a full sandwich three times each day. That's even out your intake and prevent bottoming out, which can trigger overeating.
4. Make a list of non-food rewards. These are things that you can give yourself when you've reached a goal, large or small. They can be buying yourself little things, or taking time to do things you love to do. Call a friend, get a massage, give yourself a manicure, or indulge in your favorite non-food related activity.
5. Every day (or smaller time increment if a day seems too much) that you make a healthier choice, manage to give yourself a non-food reward. This is what people who take great care of themselves do . Those people make healthy choices, and they reward themselves with healthy pampering.
6. Begin to recognize and address the emotional issues that cause you to binge. Keeping a journal to record your observations and feelings, particularly around a binge episode, can help you to learn about your triggers.
7. Be gentle and kind to yourself. Often this cycle is perpetuated by negative feelings toward oneself. By noticing negative thoughts and shifting them to more compassionate ones, you may find it easier to be good to yourself and to break the binge habit.
8. Know that you are not alone. There strong cultural and media messages to overeat, and to use food as a salve. So, many people struggle with this issue. There are support groups such as overeaters anonymous that may give you the support you need to begin to change this behavior.
