struggling deeply with addictions...

[raw-siobhan]

Help...my fast food addictions are taking over, which is not to say that I am not accountable for what I put in my mouth...but I really need to find a way to muscle through this, something that works for me. So far I have found nothing that I can say to myself that will keep me from bingeing on fast food. I am out of control. I dont know what to do. Has anyone just "stopped caring" about themselves and just eaten cruddy junk food until they wish they could throw up? That's me. I am out of control. I dont know what else I can do to get myself out of this horrible "rut".

[honeybee joy]

Just keep your head up. I think we all have been where you have been sometime. You have to realize that it is a big change....and not just a diet change...but emotional change and sometimes we all have resistance to it. Don't get down on yourself...if you are going to eat cooked, at least enjoy it, don't feel guilty about it, just try and do raw the next meal. The fact that you are doing raw is awesome. You will get better over time!

[Sunshine9]

What type of diet are you currently eating? How much raw? When you eat raw, what sort of foods do you usually gravitate towards?

There are so many difficult routes to take with an addictive food, and I can say we have ALLLL been there. And fast food- oh my, there are certainly addictive things in that!! Congratulations to you for recognizing it as something you are ready to move out of your life.

My personal suggestion: Focus on what you CAN do today. Put as much good food into your body as you possibly can. Start small. Fast food is the ultimate goal, but if you don't have other wonderful things to replace it with, it's going to hurt. So how about starting here: choose ONE thing you can do every day. Have a large organic salad for one meal? Having an all fruit breakfast? Having a big green smoothie or green juice? Find something that makes you feel sooo good and create a discipline to do that thing everyday.

Love everything you eat. This is a journey, it's not about hating anything, there is no bad food. And I know that you want incredible food, that is made with joy and that makes you feel light and harmonious before, during, and after eating it.

Start small, commit yourself to baby steps, fill yourself up with the best possible food, and give yourself time.

If you wish to talk more via e-mail, I would be happy to support you or elaborate on some of the general suggestions I have provided here.

Vibrantly yours,
Sunshine

[DavidZaneMason]

Sunshine said it exactly right. Awesome!

-David Mason

[luckitri]

Will beating yourself up about eating some fast food make you eat less of it? You have alot on your plate - single working mom of 3 girls - and you have made some great strides lately.....so you had a screwy day- maybe you had a few screwy days......tomorrow is a new day and you can just start over and do it RAW.

[chilove]

Hello there,

I'm so sorry that you are suffering. Dealing with food addiction is a process that takes time and perserverance. The most important thing is to be gentle with yourself on the journey. Changing ones diet in a major way is a huge undertaking and can really shake things up emotionally, often leading to binges. Many of us have associated food with safety, comfort and love. You can't just take those things away without feeling the ramifications. You need to replace them with healthy, real ways to feel safe, comforted and loved. This is the part that can take awhile and requires some work, but it CAN be done.

Most of the time when we turn to food it is to avoid feeling uncomfortable feelings. Although it seems frightening at first, feeling those feelings is actually a much easier and direct way of coping with them. Invite the feelings in and sit with them for awhile, just feel them. If you start to get too uncomfortable, call a supportive friend. Really feeling our feelings is not something that is often encouraged or supported in our society, but I feel it is vital to good emotional health. It is amazing how fleeting most negative emotions are once we give them full expression. Just letting yourself feel sad (or angry, or bored, or whatever) for a few minutes will often be long enough for the feeling to pass.

Everyday, find little ways to nourish yourself that have nothing to do with food. Write down a list of ways that you can feel physical pleasure that doesn't involve food. Some of them might include taking a nap, taking a bubble bath, getting a massage (my favorite), indulging in a fun tickling session with your kids, going for walks, etc... The idea is to get a lot more physical pleasure in your life from things besides food.


Also work on ways to feel comforted and loved. Identify when and why you binge. Look for patterns. Start experimenting with healthier coping behaviours instead, such as journaling, crying, calling a friend, seeing a counselor, etc. It's all about developing a healthier balance. You can overcome disordered eating if you work on it. It's all about replacing the addictive behavior with healthier, positive behavior. I used to be a major junk food junkie and compulsive overeater and now I am very satisfied eating a very simple 100% raw diet so I know that it can be done! :-)


Blessings,

Audrey
www.rawhealing.com

[solarliving]

I remember reading somewhere that fast food does have addictive substances in it. I guess just remember how you feel when you eat it and try to re-connect with that feeling before you find yourself at the drive-thru.
Try not to beat yourself up. Every day is a chance to start new.

God bless you

[raw-siobhan]

I really, really appreciate everything you all have said to me in this thread. The suggestions are really thought provoking. I really do need to examine my reasons for eating the way I eat and replacing eating with other comforting activities. I really enjoyed the detailed ideas on how to cope with the cravings, how to cope with my feelings, how to take things step by step. There is simply no doubt that I feel better when I dont binge on fast food...but it is true that it food (fast food) in particular has become such a close friend to me. Slowly but surely, and certainly with all of your help, I will figure this all out and overcome it...baby steps...baby steps in the right direction. :o

[swingbolder]

I know this is going to sound goofy, but I got myself out of a rut a few weeks back by. . . buzzcutting my hair.

I decided I needed the strength and focus and discipline of a warrior to stay away from the cooked food and that a symbolic, dramatic change in that direction would help set me on my way, so I went to the barber and cut off basically all my hair. The goal was to be streamlined, spartan.

Anyhow, the "re-booting" worked, I have not had any cooked food since.

[jaurequi]

I would start by dividing the issue into two parts in your mind for now (because that's what they are):
Your reasons for bingeing vs. your eating lifestyle (otherwise called, "diet," which is an abused word nowadays).

Before you eat, pause and take a moment to remind yourself that this is strictly an act of love for yourself; an act to nourish and strengthen your miraculous body which functions and gets you through the day, etc. Let your thoughts go on this. Then, do your best to eat slowly and continue on these thoughts.

When you feel the anxiety and need to binge, tell yourself that this is not true hunger, but an emotional or mental issue coming to the surface. It has to be, because true hunger never precedes a binge. Stop. Go to another room; go outside; get in your car; call a friend, cry, scream, whatever. If you can be away from food and start to think about what is bothering you, that's a start, and you've accomplished a heck of a lot. If you can find one thing that works, that would be ideal; so that once that desire to binge comes, you know what to do, where to go, etc. If you can let someone in on this (a friend, family member, etc.) who you can call, that's sometimes a very powerful tool.
But the truth is, sometimes it doesn't come right away and you don't know what the issue is, but if you do this regularly, eventually, it will come. Don't give up on it.

So, basically, you need to think of this as two issues:

- bingeing=emotions
- eating=act of nourishing your body, nothing more.

Keep these separate and deal with them within their individual elements: the desire to binge is an emotional issue; so deal with it emotionally; the act of eating is to nourish; so act on it by eating healthfully.

Do not rule out getting professional assistance with your emotions, if you need it; and stick with eating healthfully for your physical health.

Best,

[raw-siobhan]

thank you for the additional clarity you have offered. I am truly inspired.