I am addicted to sugar, and this is the substance I abstain from. In extension this also includes all HighlyProcessedFoods as most of them are filled with sugar. As long as I stay away from these I don‘t binge, and my diet is more or less healthy.
Since perimenopause symptoms started my satiety and hunger signals are totally off. I have the worst kind of cravings for calorie dense foods of all kinds without being hungry. I don‘t feel satiety like I used to and overeat at many meals.
I don‘t want to restrict my eating, I don‘t want to lose weight, I don‘t binge on anything else but my trigger foods. I just constantly overeat, and I don‘t like this. I feel stuffed and uncomfortable with this.
I would like to find a compassionate way to deal with my food cravings and my meals.
Do you have any helpful ideas, suggestions, tips or kind words how I might approach this?
Glad you are here and recognize you have a problem that you want to deal with. I don’t have specific advice when it comes to overeating but is there a specific diet you tend to follow? Routine helps a lot with addiction. The framework of having a regiment to follow can help keep you focused. I find it’s easier to monitor what I eat since I am focusing on diet and exercise this year when I have a specific plan in place of what I will and will not eat daily. I have my food prepared and it’s like a checklist for the day when I eat my meals and snacks. I currently follow the zone diet by Doctor Barry Sears. It’s easy to prep the food using the food lists and then I just pack it in my lunchbox and I’m off for the day. At first it can seem like the portions are small but very quickly when you put good foods in your body you realize you fill up and don’t necessarily even feel hungry enough to eat everything you’ve got.
Our bodies are conditioned from a young age with the foods we are exposed to. This is problematic because we become reliant on those foods and it can be tough to flip the script. One crazy thing I’ve learned is most people actually have food allergies to a lot of foods but because we eat them from birth we develop a resistance to those allergies and just go on eating those foods.
I hate snacking but to be honest I overeat as well now and again. I’ve had peppermint chocolates and three mini packs of Haribo just tonight…
When I’m on my game I just make sure my snacks are one of the below when possible:
Apple
Oat cakes
Some cheese, mature, nutty style
Olives
Corn cakes
Fish sticks
Oranges
Peanut butter
Avocado on toast w/ EVOO + SOME SEA SALT
Toast with cholesterol spread and Marmite
A little bowl of pistachios, almonds and walnuts
If I want sweet I really do try and make myself eat a Naked bar- the blueberry muffin one is actually really nice. Or an Easy Natural yoghurt bar, but those have as much sugar as real sweets.
Don’t restrict, just try and make better choices to nourish yourself. Also, try drinking a glass of water. Hunger can be dehydration.
I know pretty well what you are talking about. I suggest to dig deep into literature about peri/menopause and all the funny stuff the female body develops as byproduct of the hormonal rollercoaster. One of it is messing with appetite, feeling hungry, cravings for special food or particular tastes, gaining weight, overeating, using food to comfort the nervous wrecking the hormone shenanigans gift us and looooot more.
It helped me to understand the underlying causes to better cope and try some behavioural changes. Still work in progress but it’s worth staying patient and giving it a long-term try, I can recommend doing it with a therapist who is trained for adressing mental and physical suffering from perimenopausal changes.
You are not alone
If you want have a read around on the hormone rollercoaster thread, we are adressing every kind of female issues there. It’s also a wonderful thread to vent and come over for encouragement.
I have an issue with overeating and binge also. I am currently trying a few things to help me be more aware of when im engaging in these behaviours. Some things i am doing:
Eating on a smaller plate or bowl so I have no choice but to eat less
Drinking more water to help me feel fuller
Counting my calories so that I am aware of exactly how much food i am putting into my body
Mindful eating. I try not to eat with distractions and focus on eat bite instead. Helps me slow down and am more aware of how full I am getting. Prevents overeating.
Schedule my eating times appropriately.
Those are a few things I am currently doing and Im noticing it help. Calorie counting sounds time consuming but there are apps you can use where u scan the bar code and the info pops up! I dont know if any of these ideas will help. Just know that u are not alone in thia struggle
Found this podcast illuninating on menopause and food ,mood etc. Also from research being alcoholic absolutely disrupts our hormones, cortisol and dopamine pathways- high calorie quick dopamine. Some intetesting stuff around healing gut biome so things like fermemted foods and lots of fibre help rebalance.
Ive been having yoghurt and protein shakes to reduce the cravings
@Jwfletcher4792 You are definitely onto something. I tend to do better with routines and a helpful framework/environment too. I will think how I can make a plan with checks and meals.
Thanks for your ideas.
@Tragicfarinelli Better food choices are a good idea. I’m putting having healthy snacks available on my list. Thanks!
@erntedank Yeah, peri is such a drag. Do you have any suggestions where I could educate myself, especially on the topic of cravings/eating? Books, articles, podcasts? And I will definitely come and vent on the rollercoaster thread
@Butterflymoonwoman Mindful eating is definitely an area where I feel like I could start with. Thanks
