Compulsive overeating vs. W30: Epic fail or ??

[EvB]

Hi,

I have been attempting W30 many times now with no success. I manage a week or two successfuly and then I end up compulsively overeating, which I have an issue with. I have seen all the posts about "Think this is hard? Cancer is hard, birthing babies is hard, W30 isn't hard!" And I get it both personally and from a marketing perspective! But I am wondering if having an eating disorder/mild OCD is sabotaging my efforts or if I'm using it as an excuse for my epic failing over and over with this. For the record, I'm healthy, work out 6-7 days/week (running, crossfit, cardio weight stuff), generally paleo. Yet I feel horrible and disgusted with myself everytime I attempt this and fail. Am I fighting a losing battle with the eating disorder front and center?

I'd love to hear from anyone who has successfully done W30 with an ED and how you managed it. Thank you!

[KristenNicole]

This is my first time on the Whole 30, and I've suffered with a lot of eating disorder-like habits over the last four years including binge eating and orthorexia. I have slipped up a little with too much fruit recently (considering it a "dessert" to my meals) and have decided to kind of give that up, along with lara bars, for the rest of my whole 30 (I'm on day 9). I also think I'm going to keep a stricter routine of where/how I eat my meals. Normally I sit down every time at my table and make sure I have zero distractions (like "It Starts with Food" suggests), but this weekend I was visiting home and ended up eating my meals with my family which is normally in front of the TV. This kind of shifted me back into my old routines of getting up for dessert after a meal. I think by sticking to a better routine every day, I will have a better chance of kicking my old habits and really start listening to my body.

 

Believe me, I know how difficult it is to live with binge eating disorder and I've never successfully overcome it, but I think that this program is really designed to help people like us. I have even written myself a list of reasons why this 30 days will be so great to remind myself. Things like being comfortable with eating when I'm hungry and stopping when I'm not, learning to love the taste of real, unprocessed foods, getting rid of crazy sugar cravings, to stop constantly thinking about food and my next meal, separating my emotions from hunger, not feeling the urge to eat because I am upset/stressed/tired/overworked etc...

 

Writing things down especially helps me AND keeps me accountable. At the end of every day I write down my meals, what I liked and what I didn't and then also how I am feeling. Its a great motivation to keep going when you know you have to come back and not only write down your day, but also see the other days that have gone by. The days you already worked hard for.

 

Sorry that was kind of long, but like I said, writing keeps me accountable! Hope that helps, and good luck!

[Physibeth]

First of all you don't fail until you stop trying.

 

Second, when you say you failed from compulsive overeating...are you eating non-compliant foods or are you just eating a lot of compliant foods? If it is the later than you don't need to restart.

 

Third, are you eating enough at your meals? Do you know what your triggers are?

 

I come from a long history of mindless binge eating but have found a lot more control and peace knowing that I can eat when I'm hungry and without the foods with no brakes in my life. I've never had a diagnosed eating disorder but I know that my eating was pretty disordered with food sneaking, guilt eating, and binge behaviors.

[Lemony]

This could really be my post in some ways. I have just sabotaged a perfectly good first whole 30 by binging on chocolate. I was on day 21 and felt tired , hungry, fat , spotty. Hormonal issues to top

It all off means I have had pms for two weeks . It was the first time in 2 yrs that I didn't think about food all the time or binge . Start again tomorrow but very disappointed with myself :-(

[ShannonM816]

work out 6-7 days/week (running, crossfit, cardio weight stuff),

 

So, don't take this personally, just consider it, because it may or may not apply to your situation, and only you can know. I've hung out on these boards a lot the last few months, and I see lots of people eating what looks to me like very little food, so I'm just going to ask: Given the high amount of activity you do, are you eating enough? At the high end of the meal template, and with pre and post-workout meals/snacks? Because if you're not eating enough, and then you're overeating periodically and feel like it's a compulsion (something you must do and can't necessarily stop/control), I'm wondering if maybe your body is really just saying GIVE ME SOME FUEL NOW!

 

(I'm definitely not an expert, on either working out or on eating disorders, but as I said, I see lots of other people on the boards who appear to me to not be eating much. They're all like, OMG, I'm so hungry, I don't understand why, I had an egg and a half a sausage patty and a cup of salad, and then I was starving within an hour, and frankly, I don't understand how they're still up walking around . Maybe this isn't you. I hope it's not you. It sounds like torture to me, but if anything, I do the opposite. So if it isn't you, disregard this completely.)

 

Also, as far as the not hard quote, there was this article that addressed that, and admitted that sometimes it is hard, especially for people with a history of eating disorders: http://whole30.com/2012/04/sometimes-it-is-hard/

[Tina R]

Hi,

I have been attempting W30 many times now with no success. I manage a week or two successfuly and then I end up compulsively overeating, which I have an issue with. I have seen all the posts about "Think this is hard? Cancer is hard, birthing babies is hard, W30 isn't hard!" And I get it both personally and from a marketing perspective! But I am wondering if having an eating disorder/mild OCD is sabotaging my efforts or if I'm using it as an excuse for my epic failing over and over with this. For the record, I'm healthy, work out 6-7 days/week (running, crossfit, cardio weight stuff), generally paleo. Yet I feel horrible and disgusted with myself everytime I attempt this and fail. Am I fighting a losing battle with the eating disorder front and center?

I'd love to hear from anyone who has successfully done W30 with an ED and how you managed it. Thank you!

I don't know if you have checked out the timeline or the latest post about wanting to quit. http://whole30.com/2014/01/do-you-really-want-to-quit/. Most people want to quit around day 10 -12. Maybe this is the 10 day block that happens to a lot of people. Also some of the other people mentioned that you may not be eating enough. I would definitely try increasing my meals. If you can hold 4 eggs in your hand then eat 4 eggs. If lunch time rolls around and you can't even think of eating then your first meal was too big. If you are starving for lunch then eat 5 eggs for breakfast. It is a guessing game until your body figures out what it needs some days you may not be hungry and some days you may be starving. I wouldn't beat yourself up about it. You are learning about yourself and now you can get some strategies to deal with it. For my whole30 some days I was so hungry I had to have a snack, other days I didn't even what to eat lunch.

[EvB]

Tnk you everyone. To address some of the points raised: I do believe I eat enough because my binge eating has absolutely nothing to do with being hungry! I just binge. Period. I have always had unhealthy relationships w food and when I'm on a W30, I find that my OCD (which is usually fairly dormant) flairs up big time and all the tics and obsessions take over as a way (I guess) to distract me from obsessing about eating. Then when my brain is tired of that it seems, it flips and I binge eat. Someone suggested cognitive behavioral therapy so I am trying to find a practitioner here but mostly I am so angry w myself for not being able to do the W30.

I think trying for more/better routines and being stricter is a great suggestion. Thank you! I blew it today so I'm starting over yet again tomorrow... Another day!

[peace_positive]

I have the same thing, and I think many others do. You're doing great by paying attention to your body and by not giving up. One thing that helped me last time I felt a binge coming on is something I heard in a podcast by Dr Pamela Peeke. She said there's a brief moment right before a binge where u can stop, put your index finger on your forehead (pointing to the part of your brain that makes the "executive decisions") and breathe, take that moment to ask yourself what you really want, think about your answer by letting your brain do its decision making job. It's so easy to remember. Try it! You can do this! U have to be ultra-super-strong with yourself. Btdubs i'm on Day 11, and it's looking good.

[praxisproject]

You could also try flipping it around and look at it from the OCD side. 

Why does W30 make the OCD more intense?

Is there anything that reduces the OCD during W30?

 

Will you binge on anything? 

If it doesn't make the OCD worse, you could try setting a specific food/s for if you do binge, see if you have any ability to exert control over it that way, this may give you the ability to break the cycle, but it really depends on the causes and the triggers.

 

I don't have an ED or OCD, but I can get into a spiral when my blood sugar gets unstable, I'm crazy-hungry because I don't have enough energy to function (it usually occurs during some level of fatigue too - not enough sleep is a factor), but eating normally makes it worse as my blood sugar abnormally spikes and dips and gets more and more unstable, getting hungrier (not in an appetite sense, but lack of fuel, I suspect it's some kind of failure to convert food properly into appropriate fuel) and feeling sicker (up and down like a rollercoaster).

 

My circuit breaker is as much plain tuna as I can eat (no mayo, no nothing), it doesn't hit my blood sugar but eventually stops the crazy-hungry. It's taken awhile, but eventually I've found avoiding high/med GI fruits and vegetables as much as possible, prevents this spiral from occurring in the first place. There is something very wrong with my ability to regulate my blood sugar, but it's taken a long time to confirm this with daily testing. I am not diabetic (don't meet the criteria), but my blood sugar is far from normal and my blood sugar regulation is completely abnormal, worse than some diabetics. 

Don't rule out any underlying medical issues which might not be identified yet.

[AllyB]

A long time ago, I read a book called 'When food is love' by Geneen Roth (I think that's how to spell her first name.)  It's probably out of print now, but you might be able to find it on the net somewhere.  That book really helped me get control of my binge eating and feelings of self loathing.  It's not a long book but it has some good insight and ideas on how to think your way to healthier habits and a positive self image.

[EvB]

Hi again. Wow these are all wonderful ideas and things to consider. Thank you! A few really resonate: first I eat raisins with my meals. A lot. I never thought about how intensely they spike my blood sugar (or, rather, I am aware that they do but didn't think about how that impacts my diet) I also heard from a colleague about the Geneen Roth book so I'll check that out. And, lastly, your suggestions for viewing this from an OCD perspective is something I never considered. Thank you!

As for pre-post WO meals, I usually do the pre (just a piece of turkey or some egg. My post WO is breakfast itself as I work out at 5am and come back right to breakfast. Part of my challenge (although I'm only now questioning it) might be that while I work out a lot, it isn't nearly at the intensity I used to, in fact I feel like a slacker! So my meals might actually be smaller than they should be because in my mind, the only time I'd need to eat more is if I'm at the workout level I used to be. Hm- maybe need to revisit. I'm going to feel so accomplished if I ever manage to pull this off!

[AmyS]

There's a big difference between dealing with an eating disorder and OCD, and failing at Whole30 because you just decided to eat that cake.  I have a thyroid disorder, and no one ever tells me that I just need to change my thinking about it and it will poof out of existence.  It affects everything about my life, from my eating habits to my sleep to my energy to my blood pressure.  I take medicine, supplements, and eat as well as I can.  But it's still there.

 

Let's say, for the sake of discussion, that an eating disorder and OCD is actually like that.  It's not a moral failing or a psychological state of weakness.  It's as real and as physical as any other condition.  In that case, discovering that eating Whole30 triggers acute episodes of OCD symptoms and binge eating, provides useful information.  It's not a failure, it's just information.  This food or experience triggers this or that symptom of the condition.

 

Then your strategy is very different.  Instead of treating yourself as if you must be doing something wrong (or as if you yourself are something wrong) morally, emotionally, or psychologically, you reach out for assistance with your triggers.

 

Whole30 is hard.  The Whole30 founders may say it's not hard, but they are not in your life and your experience.  They don't know the conditions you have and the triggers you have.  You have a condition in which certain (currently unknown) triggers kick off the acute phase of your condition.  If you were lying on the floor having a heart attack, you wouldn't be thinking you were a moral and psychological failure, right?  I know it's the fashion in some health and wellness circles to treat illness as a state of mind or attitude.  But some of us just have something that follows us.  It's not an excuse for not living as well as we can with it; but it's just how it is.

 

I think you're doing amazing for getting to ten days over and over with a serious health condition being triggered.  I applaud your courage in going back over and over after being so severely triggered over and over.  You deserve huge props for this.  Looking for ways to recognize, manage, and respond to your triggers and to deal with the overall condition sounds like a great way to go.  And please recognize your incredible strength of will, to come back over and over again in the face of incredible, overwhelming pressure.  You're doing about 1000% better than you are giving yourself credit for. 

[praxisproject]

I have a thyroid disorder, and no one ever tells me that I just need to change my thinking about it and it will poof out of existence.

 

 

+1000!

[Bloodshotbetty]

My eating habits have always been contingent on my mental health.  I have bipolar disorder (I hate the word disorder! I'm bipolar different and my mood fluctuations always impacted my food and exercise habits.  When I was depressed, I would binge eat to no end.  When I was manic, I was in the gym 3 hours a day and hardly eating anything.  As the above poster said, our willpower has nothing to do with it.  I have a chemical imbalance in my brain that has me act one way when in reality I want to act another.  

 

Fortunately my weight loss surgery makes it so I can't binge- my stomach only holds 3oz! However, I still needed to deal with the underlying cause- my emotional response to food.  I started making regular appointments with my therapist and worked closely with my med doctor to manage my bipolar and anxiety.  It's a work in progress.  I view the Whole30 as my next step in the process.  I quit on day 12 on my first one- my anxiety was out of control and I craved junk food and wine.  And I caved.  This time I am more in tune to my anxiety and how it results in poor decisions.  I am on Day 6, so I am hopeful!

[Noelle]

As someone working through an eating disorder or three, I empathize. It IS hard.

I've been saying this all over the forums lately, but it's taken me a little over a year to start to bring myself back into balance. That seems like a long time, but my ED started 20 (!) years ago. But after three Whole30s and dabbling in paleo eating in between, I feel like I can see ED recovery from here.

That year? Was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. I binged, I restricted, I over-exercised, I obsessed. But I kept trying, and I think that's the most important part.

I second (third?) the recommendation of Geneen Roth's books. I especially like 'Women, Food, and God,' and 'Breaking Free From Emotional Eating.'

You can do it.

[Lemony]

A long time ago, I read a book called 'When food is love' by Geneen Roth (I think that's how to spell her first name.) It's probably out of print now, but you might be able to find it on the net somewhere. That book really helped me get control of my binge eating and feelings of self loathing. It's not a long book but it has some good insight and ideas on how to think your way to healthier habits and a positive self image.

[Lemony]

I have ordered the book thank you