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Uncontrollable Night Eating
I have a problem with waking in the middle of the night to eat. I used to weigh 250 pounds, over the past year and a half I got down to 132 through diet and exercise. I had to force myself to stop counting calories because it had become such an obsession. I now just try to make healthier choices and stop eating when I'm satisfied. I have developed a problem where I wake up several times throughout the night and eat large amounts of food. It used to be every once in a while but it has now become every single night. I will go to the sleep and beg myself to not get up to eat, but after only an hour asleep I find myself in the kitchen eating handfuls of whatever I can get my hands on. It is not eating out of hunger, because I am not hungry. I seem to wake up unsettled and need to eat to comfort myself, but I don't know why I am unsettled. I often find myself pleading with myself to stop eating while I'm doing it, but I just can't stop. It happens no matter how much I eat during the day. Eating healthy during the day is a priority for me, because I want to be healthy, but when I get up in the night eating healthy doesn't seem to matter at all. I just don't know what to do. I don't want to gain weight, but more than that, I wake up so ashamed every single morning.
Best Answer
hi there coleen, i can relate to the misery of eating and pacing all night back and forth from the bedroom to the fridge. i dont know if you have tried cognitive behavioural therapy? (cbt). It looks at the underlying causes and examines behavioral patterns, works well for some people. problem is the underlying causes of self abuse (overeating or not eating) are usually very painful, and overeating can push the painful feelings down, this becomes a habit overtime and is addictive. I trained as a counsellor and im armed with lots of info, however, we are all human and vunerable in our own unique way. Trouble is life is short and i feel at times i live to eat which creates so many health problems. your not alone, angela.
Thank you so much for your reply. I haven't tried therapy. I have always been like this. I am obsessed with SOMETHING all the time. If it isn't food, its alcohol, or drugs, or dieting, or exercise, or shopping. I seem to go from one obsession to another. It makes me feel like less of a freak to know someone else understands.
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