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Compulsive Overeating
Applechips
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Some people probably know whose alt this is, but eh.
I was talking to a friend about the struggle I've been having with weight loss. I noted that I seem to occasionally lack self control, especially when the food is sitting there before me. How much self control do I lack? The other day I got sick. After I finished throwing up, at this friends suggestion, I made a list of all the things I had eaten that day. The resulting list was not pretty.
In roughly a six hour timeline, I ate/drank the following (in this exact order): An ice cream sandwich, a reese's crunch bar, a SoBe Lizard Lava drink, a two pack of microwave chili dogs, an entire fucking can of pringles, and, over the course of the remainder of the afternoon, something like nine frozen burritos.
The caloric total is somewhere in the neighborhood of 4500 to 5500.
It might be worth noting that I eat significantly less now than I did before. (I've dropped approximately 100-120 pounds over the last couple of years)
I know how stupid self diagnosis is, especially in the case of psychological disorders, but I (we) think that I'm suffering from compulsion.
I've read several articles and looked up the information, and I can't find a single 'symptom' that I don't match. The information I've read also seems to unanimously tie the disorder to some kind of emotional issues, although it doesn't say much more than that.
This thread's underlying question essentially boils down to "Who do I need to talk to about this?"
I was talking to a friend about the struggle I've been having with weight loss. I noted that I seem to occasionally lack self control, especially when the food is sitting there before me. How much self control do I lack? The other day I got sick. After I finished throwing up, at this friends suggestion, I made a list of all the things I had eaten that day. The resulting list was not pretty.
In roughly a six hour timeline, I ate/drank the following (in this exact order): An ice cream sandwich, a reese's crunch bar, a SoBe Lizard Lava drink, a two pack of microwave chili dogs, an entire fucking can of pringles, and, over the course of the remainder of the afternoon, something like nine frozen burritos.
The caloric total is somewhere in the neighborhood of 4500 to 5500.
It might be worth noting that I eat significantly less now than I did before. (I've dropped approximately 100-120 pounds over the last couple of years)
I know how stupid self diagnosis is, especially in the case of psychological disorders, but I (we) think that I'm suffering from compulsion.
I've read several articles and looked up the information, and I can't find a single 'symptom' that I don't match. The information I've read also seems to unanimously tie the disorder to some kind of emotional issues, although it doesn't say much more than that.
This thread's underlying question essentially boils down to "Who do I need to talk to about this?"
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I've been doing this for a while since my weight is a problem, and it does help.
Because up till now I haven't been trying at all.
Man, what was I thinking.
Replace your bad snacks with healthy ones because you won't eat 4500 calories worth of fruit and veg in a day.
Removing the temptation and making food require effort before you can inhale it will help prevent you from going nuts on it.
You probably are eating because you are bored. If thats true then go outside and entertain yourself elsewhere.
Losing over a hundred pounds in a couple years is admirable, though, and sort of puts the lie to the idea that you have some specific compulsion that you can't overcome.
The biggest thing for me is making little decisions that help put you in a place where you won't be tempted to overeat. When you have pringles in the cupboard it's pretty fucking hard not to eat them, but when you're at the store it isn't that hard to say "fuck buying pringles I'ma get these baby carrots instead."
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
Try removing the food. Only buy the ingredients required to make healthy food and remove all of the frozen meals etc. Can't eat what you don't have. Also, if you only have health foods around, in theory you can eat as much as you want and end up taking in less calories than you currently do.
You could try planing exactly what and when you are going to eat over a week, and sticking to the plan.
I'd try talking to your doctor first, then a shrink. If you want to take it that far.
It sounds weird, but those bags of salad can be a reasonable substitute for chips. You're just crunching on crisp iceberg lettuce instead of a people of potato dripping with grease and salt. Fruit tastes just as good as sweet stuff and it's much more healthy. So, when you're at the grocery store, buy yourself some berries (I like blueberries, strawberries, and especially raspberries) for "candy", and fruits (peaches, oranges, pomegranates if you're lucky enough to find them).
EDIT: Also, regularly exercising can be a big help to eating well, because you can't eat greasy stuff and do well in your workout. So, get on a new diet and exercise program and you'll not only start losing weight, but feeling better as well.
If you are at your own place buy less snack foods/microwave foods and buy foods that take a little time and effort to prepare. It will help a little knowing that in order to get to more food its not as easy as grabbing a bag of chips but having to prepare and cook your meal. Also, don't eat while watching TV. Your mind shuts off and you don't keep track of how much you are eating.
Though if you have made an honest effort it may be time to treat it like a disorder
I know I'm a fucking retard for even buying this kind of crap, and yes, I will be buying carrot sticks and shit to munch on from now on. Honestly, I think raw carrots are awesome. Not sure why I didn't think of it (read: retardation).
I'm not claiming "Oh god I have this compulsion I just cant help myself nom nom nom oh god."
I simply said "Hey. Here's this documented condition, to which I match every single one of the precursors. Maybe there's something to this."
If you have underlying psychological issues that is one thing. If you were molested, in the closet, witnessed some horrific event, whatever, you should seek treatment for that. Overeating can be a coping mechanism. However, if the questions are like:
Do you eat when you're not hungry?
Do you eat when you're bored?
Do you forget things you've eaten?
Have you ever sat down with a giant bag of whateverthefuck and suddenly realized you'd eaten it all?
That's bullshit. Everyone does or has done that. The symptoms of many disorders are so general that almost everyone qualifies.
Exercise. Don't buy shit that you shouldn't eat. Pick a time of day in the evening when you will stop eating and stick to it. Drink lots of water. Replace unhealthy shit with healthy shit. It's difficult, but it's not complicated.
Secondly, don't have that shit in your house. There is no good reason for it. When you go shopping, don't even go down those isles.
Buy smaller plates and cook smaller portions, there is evidence to show during meals especially that the size of the plate in relation to the amount of food actually tricks your brain. A little food on a big plate causes us to go "well I'll still be hungry when this is done!".... so we're still hungry. A smaller plate will help combat this.
The stomach shrinks pretty rapidly, and the longer you are able to control your hunger reasonably, the easier it will get. It will become almost like a point of pride that you've gone xxx since you last felt you ate a little too much, it will be self-encouraging in fact and motivate you to do even better.
You will slip up, you are a human being. Take it as an opportune reminder of why you're trying so hard. Don't take it as some sort of moral failing. A good portion of the population doesn't really know what hunger feels like, they think they do but more often than not it's not hunger they're feeling, it's a lack of fullness. It's important you learn to distinguish between the two.
Also, somewhat unrelated.
Have you been tested for diabetes? Our bodies will try and boost blood sugar levels in the form of an almost impossible to resist craving for quick high sugar/carb food, and in diabetics this can sort of be worse, because you get the shakes and emotional unsteadiness much more easily than someone who produces the right amount of insulin.
edit: The plate thing is especially interesting because over the last 20 years the size of the average plate has gone up a good amount. So while your grandparents in the middle of the great depression had to finish everything on their plate or starve to death, the amount on their plates was 40-50% less than we can fill a plate with now. They sort of did a disservice to their children and grandchildren by promoting the whole "eat everything on your plate!" sense of discipline. If you're not hungry enough to finish your plate... don't. In fact cut your stuff in half and leave it for later before you ever start your meal if you don't buy new dishes.
You need to calm down dude. You came to us for help/advice, and that's what we are all trying to give, so stop being so defensive.
And what exactly are you asking? So you think you have a documented condition? Maybe you should go to a doctor then.
I mean, what do you want us to say? The only real response is stop eating so much. Man up, don't buy so much food, and know when to put the fork down. There's not much more we can offer.
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
Or he's looking for people to second his diagnosis.
I'm totally not as angry as that post sounds. Christ.
However, I regularly give eating disorder assessments and am a part of a large project that's examining links between genetics and binge eating -- I say that as a way of pointing out my belief that compulsive overeating is a "real" problem, and binge eating disorder (whether or not you meet the criteria) is as "legitimate" of a disorder as anorexia or bulimia nervosa.
I am unsure what resources you have available to you (health insurance, etc.) but I would definitely recommend seeing a psychologist about this matter -- possibly someone who practices cognitive/behavioral or similar therapy. I am unsure about the literature regarding the benefits of drug treatments, but your Dr. would know better than I. Most importantly, don't think (or let other people convince you that) your problem is "illegitimate" or otherwise let that keep you from getting the proper treatment if you feel you could benefit from it. Ultimately, of course it will always come down to "man up and don't eat", but a professional can give you tools to help you meet your goal.
In the meantime, some general advice: Consider trying to keep track of the antecedents to your compulsive eating. I know this sounds like trouble, but consider keeping a food diary in which you write down: 1) everything you eat and 2) what led to any overeating episodes (e.g., stress, an argument). This will help you be mindful of your eating and any patters to your overeating. The suggestion to keep unhealthy foods out of your home is a good one as well. Similarly, you may want to consider going on a meal plan (some "diet" plans (e.g., Weight Watchers, meal replacements) can help some people control their binging behavior, particularly if they respond well to, or take comfort in, structure and routine).
Anyway, good luck to you. And congrats on losing so much weight -- that's a huge accomplishment. The %age of the population able to be that successful with weight loss is minuscule at best.
In relation to his advice, I stress overeat sometimes, so I try to do other things when I know i'm stressed - like stay in my room and avoid food and play games for a while, or exercise, or have sex, and avoid consuming food at that moment.
Exercising willpower at the grocery store is the best way to accomplish your goals before you get professional help, and assuming you backslide (which you will, probably), then it limits the damage you can do if all you did was gorge on carrots. One time I tried to switch to fruit, and I picked dried peaches, not knowing their tendency to expand in the stomach. I thought I was going to die. :P
Compulsion is more than just wanting though. In ordinary wanting, people look at the choices and see something they desire. They weigh the pros and cons (maybe consciously, maybe not), and in the case of food for example, the pro of tasty snackage here in the short term may outweigh the con of personal weight loss there in the long term. 'Hey man, just don't put that in your face' is a common example of trying to lower the priority of short term gratification in order to set a higher priority to the long term picture. Those choices- good or bad, healthy or unhealthy, well planned or absent minded, result in whatever action is taken.
In compulsion, that process is being chemically altered, distorting their priorities. There is a kind of recursive loop that forms- 'All roads lead to Rome' - and no matter what process they use to choose, the answer is always the same. They need to do that thing. Even if they know objectively that the decision is bad, on reprocessing, using completely different variables, they still come up with the same answer. Every equation automagically producing the exact same thing. It's like (and not unrelated to) addiction, but where addiction generally refers to a stimulus response to an outside substance or situation, compulsion is self-generated and often leaves the person unsatisfied, even if they indulge.
Compulsion and addiction often go hand in hand- if you're addicted to smoking for example, and try to quit, its likely on withdrawal that you'll meet it. You know you don't want a smoke, you've decided to quit, but for some reasons a few minutes into the fit, for whatever reason it seems like a very good idea. You have a puff, and then, craving satisfied, you look at your hand and say 'WTF am I doing? I don't want this!' But for a moment, enough time to do it, you certainly did. Addiction invited compulsion over for a quick visit to conspire against you and your intentions, and those two happen to work very well together.
It can be hard to draw the line, when looking from the outside, between poor discipline and compulsion. Just like it can be very hard to tell the difference between a guy who likes to drink a lot and an alcoholic. There's a big difference though. The alcoholic might only drink every few months, but he's still an alcoholic. Party guy can drink all the time, but its still his choice, each and every one of those times.
So what's the difference between compulsive overeating and just plain old overeating? Hard to say- from the outside. Especially since lesser forms of compulsion can be temporarily made to exist, like a kind of self-hypnosis. Dive in a little deeper and its not that hard to tell. Any decent therapist can do this, and a few doctors can too. In this case, I can probably save you some trouble (IANAD):
You said occasionally. Typically, if you were really compulsive, all roads would be leading to rome constantly, and you would have to fight not to indulge almost all the time. You wouldn't be talking about 'sometimes I just can't help myself' you'd be saying 'holygodonfire, today was hard, real hard, but a good day because at least I managed not to do that thing'. It would be consuming you, eating you alive from the inside all the time. You'd escape for a few minutes, and slowly be driven back to thinking about it again and again, until you saw no other choice but to indulge.
Call it a hunch, but I don't think you're there yet. Keep making those choices, pay attention to them, and they get easier as you go.
I know it's crap, and that I'll be eating dinner soon, but damn, I want some chips. Not buying the stuff helps, as does keeping busy. For me, it's mostly the action of eating, gives me something to do while watching TV/playing games.
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the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
I suggest reading Geneen Roth's Breaking Free From Compulsive Eating (it's cheap used) and probably also doing some thinking about accepting yourself and listening to your body. Kate Harding's Shapely Prose (kateharding.net) is a good place to start with the former, and the book I mentioned will help with the latter.
If you feel really troubled by your eating, you can look into seeing a therapist about it, but I recommend getting one who has a decent attitude toward size acceptance. You want someone who will help you love and accept yourself and learn to deal with emotions gently instead of with suppression. Hang in there!
When you eat a large quantity of something, or something unhealthy: like, for instance, a two-pack of microwaveable chili dogs, what are you feeling? More specifically, how do you feel immediately before making the decision to eat?
You haven't really been very clear as to why you eat so much. Are you hungry all the time? Or are you feeling stressed/anxious/depressed and eating makes you feel (temporarily) better?
There's a difference between compulsive overeating due to emotional issues, and compulsive overeating due to physical issues.
Either way, I think you should seek professional help. There's no shame in doing so. In this context, you can take "professional help" to mean a therapist or a physician or both. (Preferably both.)
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Calories out > calories in = Weight loss!
The problem is that as people do more activity, they get more hungry .: eat more and never reach the condition.
I don't know. Normal? Normal for me, anyway. Maybe. It depends. If it's something unhealthy, I tend to rationalize it (apparently I'm very good at arguing with myself), although I have managed to keep myself away from soda and candy most of the time (All the time with soda). the reeses in the OP was the first piece of candy I've eaten in probably eight weeks.
And when I say rationalize it I mean garbage like "Oh, I haven't really eaten that much today, it'll be fine." and stuff like that. For instance, the food eaten in the OP was all consumed between probably 4PM and 10PM. Prior to that I had eaten nothing. And I was pretty damn hungry, so as hard as I was fighting to not eat the stuff, my body is screaming "FEED ME GODDAMMIT. THERES FOOD HERE. I DONT CARE IF IT'S UNHEALTHY. FUCK THAT SHIT."
I guess it's the same for eating large quantities. I have a discussion with myself about why I should not do this, how much happier I would be if I were thinner, I'm better than this, etc, but the end-all argument seems to always be "fuck it."
Which is a decision that I consistently regret after the fact. But no amount of regret seems to change the future outcomes.
Also, do I think I have emotional issues? You bet your ass I do, but I can't talk to anyone about it. This subject is one that I've spoken of I think twice here in H/A. Specifically that, short of a licensed therapist, I haven't got a soul in the whole world to actually talk to. I'm not trying to come off all 'Woe is me.", but I am not on good terms with anyone at all. Not even my parents. My real mother is a dope fiend and has her own problems. My dad hates her and has his own problems. My stepmom regards me and everything affiliated with me with monumental disdain.
My extended family is a joke (no. A series of jokes). I have two friends, and they're not even my friends so much as they're my neighbors. They sure as shit aren't going to want to listen to me prattle on about my feelings, because we dont know each other that well. I don't have a social network. Including my neighbors, I've had...four people in my life who I would honestly refer to as friends. And the first two (whom I knew in high school), regarded me as a tagalong. And I was. As desperate as I was for real human contact back then, I'm surprised I wasn't just lighting random things on fire for people to watch. I was that kid who would slave over a drawing for hours, and then offer the finished piece to the first person who even passively complimented it.
As for my emotional issues themselves, maybe you guys can judge.
I have a strong sense of empathy and virtue and I value and respect other people, but near everyone I know says that I am disturbingly nonchalant about some things and off-puttingly passionate about others. They talk about me like I'm a wall. But I'm not a wall. I care about stuff. I hurt just like anyone else. I remember I used to get this pang of heartache sometimes. Did you ever get that? You know what I'm talking about? I don't get that anymore.
I spent months trying to nurse my grandmother back to health by myself. I fed her and looked after her and helped with her physical therapy, but she just degenerated more and more, until I couldn't handle her at all anymore. When it got to the point where I was helping her go to the bathroom and wiping her off, my uncle stepped in and put her in special care. And she died anyway. And I didn't feel the least bit like crying. I should have been able to. She was one of my favorite people. I loved her more than I can express, but when she died? It was like I didn't even care.
I often feel like I have no value. No destiny. No future. No control over what's happening to me. I recognize that I'm talented at some things, but not as talented as other people. There's nothing that I'm actually great at. Just a lot of things that I'm pretty mediocre at. I just never feel like I have anything to offer in the way of competition. There's not one thing I can do that someone in my immediate surroundings couldn't do significantly better.
I've never been involved with anyone romantically. I've always, always been soundly rejected. In many cases, I've been purposely lead on only to be rejected at a later date (so that the rejection has the maximum amount of sting) or, sometimes, I would even be publicly humiliated. So at some point I just stopped trying altogether. I want a relationship. I don't care about sex or any of that. I just feel so fucking desperately alone that having someone around would be the highlight of my life. But I don't feel like I have anything to offer. People say 'get your shit straight and then worry about a relationship.' Get confident. Be confident. Be yourself. But something in my head is just like "I dont have time for that. What the fuck is the point?"
I dunno.
You also described taking care of your grandmother. You sound like the kind of person who puts other people's needs before your own. I would spend some time thinking about whether you might be using food as a proxy for taking care of yourself. In other words, maybe there's a part of you looking at the junk food going "I need this to feel fulfilled" and/or another part of you looking at the junk food going, "I put so much of myself out for other people that I deserve this treat!" I don't know for sure, I'm not a therapist, and I don't know you in real life - but I know that if I were spending so much energy taking care of a sick relative, I'd probably engage in some pretty unhealthy behaviors at the end of the day just to feel like my life is back in my own hands.
You implied that you have a licensed therapist. Is this correct?
I'm going to echo Vision's suggestion of finding a support group. Overeater's Anonymous might help; so might a support group for the adult children of drug-abusing parents.
I have a friend who has dealt with binge eating and food addiction, and has a lot in common with you. I know there was a book that helped her quite a bit, I'll find out what it was within the next few days and pass that info along.
Finally, consider seeking a physician. Getting on some psych medication, and possibly an appetite suppressant as well, might help you jumpstart your recovery.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Even people with heavy OCD... it comes down to THEM making that mental change in life that whatever they are doing at the time is not healthy or normal. So we'll keep saying to "Man up and stop eating so much" until it happens because basically that is what a psychologist or health expert is going to do at the end of the day. Educate yourself on eating, eat smaller portion sizes. Stop being lazy and cook your own food.
And it seems like you have a whole host of baggage outside of eating Applechips. You've done well by recognizing all this. Now you have to mentally change for the next step. Set a goal or goals and work toward it. It never is too late. In life, there are 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc chances on living and doing whatever you want to do.
50% of the advice on this has been worthless, yea, you should stop eating less, like you hadn't thought of that.
You need to see a therapist, and there is no shame in that.
I can tell you right now though, the emotional/social issues are causing your eating problem, and your eating problem is making your emotional/social issues worse. It is a nasty cycle, but you won't be able to fully control your eating until you sort out the root causes. And since you come from a family with substance abuse issues I can tell you right now penny-arcade gives great advice but you need to sit down with a pro twice a month until you get things sorted.
And a good professional therapist will be able to point you to therapy groups for children of substance abusers, overeaters and anything else.
In the meantime, keep posting here because at least you get some social interaction. Lots of us have been through the same issues that you have. Forums like this are a full of fat social awkward people who have made their lives better. Personally, I have gone through much of the same crap as you, and beaten most of it...so it can be done.
I only meant to say that my neighbors/family are not people I could talk to, and that even if I could talk to them, I still couldn't be 100% open about things.
I can't just 'man up and eat less' right now. I mean, I've been trying for a while. Like years. But what I will do is shop better. And I've got about 12 days to think about what I'm going to be buying. Someone mentioned baby carrots. And I like baby carrots. I will buy them. What else can I get?
Lately I've picked up a website called "Fitday" (www.fitday.com) where you basically track all of your calorie intake on the site. At first it's rough because you have to write down all the nutritional facts of everything you eat in the day, but it gets you in the habit of looking at the facts and deciding that you don't want to put that on the site.
I've not updated mine in a few days, but that's mainly because I've been really sick and haven't really kept track of everything I've been eating. But I do keep a mental note of what I eat, so that I can see about how many calories I've eaten throughout the day.
I'm not sure if it'll help you out, but I know it's helped me out. I started at about 240lbs, and I'm currently down to 228lbs, and I haven't changed anything really since the start of the year. Just watched what I've been taking in (saved me a lot of money too!)
I hope this helps even a little bit. It sucks being in your situation. Also things like TV and MMOs (I specifically say MMOs, but it can happen in a lot of games I suppose) reinforce the snacking that you're doing. If I'm not doing anything but watching TV and there's a bag of chips near me... I'll eat them, even if I'm not hungry. I just munch them down without thinking about it.
So basically I stopped playing MMOs (because during downtime I'd snack) and watching TV. Active games, and working out helped steer me away from that compulsive eating.
Don't just switch to baby carrots. It's healthier than chips, but it has the same problem as other processed, ready-to-eat foods. You don't want to go through a whole bag of baby carrots in a sitting. Buy whole carrots, peel them yourself, and cut them into carrot sticks. Work your way up from that. Make your own burritos. Chop vegetables for a salad. Food should take effort. Preparing your own food, and taking pride in what you made, turns eating into a healthy, self-affirming experience. It's really not a big time commitment, and everything you need to know is on the internet.
Switch to water. If you don't like water, then add some lemon or lime juice. Or keep a clear pitcher of water in the fridge with some lemon/lime/orange slices in it, so it's right there in your face when you go in there to get some food.
Find a hobby/join a club. Find a walking club. Take a class.
And eat breakfast. Don't go until 4pm without eating. Buy some oatmeal. Buy some cinnamon and bananas to put in it. Buy fruits and vegetables. I don't really know what else to recommend that you get at the store, because I don't know how much you can/will cook. Do you have the basic pots/pans and other kitchen implements? Do you have any experience cooking?
The behavior is a symptom of the underlying issues. If you don't deal with those, you might be able to stop eating, but you'll be tempted to engage in other compulsive or addictive behaviors.
Edit: Let me clarify. You do have to man up and stop eating. If not immediately, then you have to change your eating habits over time. That will take willpower and discipline. However, while "man up" is a correct answer, it is not a complete answer - you need to simultaneously deal with the underlying emotional issues.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
Cooking is something I've done a lot of during my life, so I have a great deal of experience with it...but most of the recipes I know are what you would call comfort food. My family members are the type of people who can eat and eat and eat fucking total garbage food and still not gain weight. My dad especially. Fucker eats butter off the stick and his cholesterol is 'low'. So a lot of the cooking I did was for these people. I make the best fried chicken you've ever had in your life, for instance. I can bake and barbecue and all of that. I could bake a cake on a grill. Fuck, I could bake a cake on a campfire. But throw some vegetables in front of me and ask me to make something interesting. See what happens. (Nothing interesting, I assure you)
I like oatmeal. But my problem is that I've grown accustomed to instant oatmeal. See, instant oatmeal, when you just pour some hot tap water on it, has this amazing texture. I mean, as far as I'm concerned. But regular oatmeal? It's paste. But the real problem is the flavor. It doesn't have to be sugary or sweet...just flavorful. And I could use fruit (that would help with the texture), but there has to be something underlying. Like cinnamon or something.
Oh wait, yeah. I don't have a stove or anything. I have a hotplate that gets barely hot enough to boil water. I live on the 8th floor of this building, and residents are only allowed to cook on the first floor. You're caught cooking in your room? You're homeless. They just terminate your rental agreement and tell you to get the fuck out right on the spot. You get seven days to pick your shit up, but you cant stay there anymore. There are ~180 people living here, so trying to go down and plug my stuff in so I can cook is a chore at best and a bullshit fucking hassle at worst. Not only that, if I go down there with all my stuff and realize that I forgot something, I have to pick up all my stuff and take it back upstairs to retrieve the one thing I forgot. And it's always something inane. Like garlic powder. Or a fucking fork to stir with. If I dont have a friend watching my stuff, I have to pick it all back up and take it with me, or else something is going to go missing. This isn't a place with normal people. There are crackheads and tweakers everywhere, and if you leave something unattended, it will be stolen. I already lost a laptop to this place. Although I got it back eventually. We also have microwaves. Two of them, for 180 guys. And I have a crockpot. But I don't want to spend six hours downstairs with these assholes.
This is why my meals have been things like chunky soup, chef boyardee, frozen burritos, etc. Because I just eat it cold because I don't want to deal with the shit. The burritos I allow to thaw, and then I eat them cold right out of the fridge. I dont even like this stuff. The burritos, the soup, the pasta. It's fucking nasty: Nasty tasting and nasty overall. I buy it so I can eat it out of the can and be done with it. And I agree 100% that that's fucked up. I take a lot of pride in my cooking ability, and it pisses me off that I'm reduced to this.
1. absolutely do not keep any of that crap in the house... i work from home, and i'd turn into a balloon if i had access to high calorie/low filling snacks all day.... instead, i have veggies, fruit, diet soda, tea, etc. i also have some snacks, but i literally only buy one or two chocolate bars instead of a whole bag of them now
2. all of the stuff you mentioned was small by itself... i.e. you were hungry, so you ate one small thing which didn't fill you but killed that hunger feeling... in essence you were grazing
try eating a large meal instead (make sure it's healthy though, no microwaveable hot pockets, or whatever)... make sure it has a good mix of carbs, protein, fiber, etc.... i find that i graze significantly less if i eat a good filling meal when i'm hungry