How to Stop BED Disorder — Tips on How to Find Food Freedom

Binge eating disorder, or BED, is a type of eating disorder that is characterised by episodes of bingeing followed by a feeling of guilt or shame. People with BED often eat large amounts of food in a short period of time and feel out of control during these episodes. Bingeing may be triggered by stress, anxiety, or boredom, and it can lead to feelings of shame, embarrassment, and low self-esteem.

Are you tired of feeling guilty and ashamed about the way you eat?

People with BED often feel that they are out of control and unable to stop binge eating. If you are struggling with BED, there are things you can do to stop binge eating and start feeling better about yourself.

In this blog post, we will discuss some tips on how to find food freedom and stop BED disorder.

Prevent Any Physical Restrictions

First and foremost, it is important to make sure that you do not have any physical restrictions that are preventing you from eating the foods you want.

Physical restrictions can look like skipping meals, not eating until you are full, or eating a meal that is not filling.

Physical restriction can encourage people to stay into the binge eating restriction cycle.

How to Stop Physical Restrictions to Escape the Binge-restrict Cycle

Stopping physical restriction can be difficult for most people struggling with BED because in order to fully stop physical restriction, that will mean fully letting go of any goals of dieting to lose weight – as dieting to lose weight is a form of restriction.

Most people who struggle with BED, initially had goals of trying to lose weight by dieting so you can see why it may be difficult to let go of dieting – especially when people are struggling with their body image and weight.

Stopping goals of dieting and eating, by building a regular pattern of eating with breakfast, mid morning snack, lunch, mid afternoon snack, evening meal, and evening snack is key to put an end to the binge-restrict cycle by cutting off the ‘over-restrict’ section.

Once you have improved by having a massive reduction in binge episodes (you will know when your binge eating has improved if your binges start to reduce and have a weaker effect on your mental health and quality of life) by implementing regular, unrestricted meals and snacks to reduce binges, then you may start focusing on what you want to do with your weight.

Identify Your Triggers

Binge eating disorder (BED) is a serious eating disorder where people regularly eat large amounts of food in a short period of time, often feeling out of control during the binge. People with BED bunker down on every type of trigger food they can find. From a pint of ice cream to an entire pizza, no food is safe. The urge to binge can be triggered by anything from stress and anxiety to boredom or feeling lonely.

Once you have ruled out any physical restrictions, it is important to start identifying your triggers. What are the things that cause you to overeat or binge eat? Is it certain foods, situations, emotions, or something else?

Once you know what your triggers are, you can start to work on avoiding them. It may be helpful to keep a food diary to track your eating patterns and triggers. If you find that certain foods trigger binges, it may be helpful to eliminate those foods from your diet or limit how often you eat them.

How to Eliminate Foods From Being ‘Trigger Foods’

To do this, you may have to make a list of highly triggering foods, medium trigger foods, and low trigger foods. Eliminate highly triggering foods for now, and focus on adding low trigger foods or medium trigger foods into your diet. So if muffins are a medium trigger food, try to have a muffin for dessert after your lunch for example. Eating these trigger foods in conjunction with regular eating can reduce the ‘reward mechanism’ and take these foods down the pedestal of being a ‘trigger food’.

If we include these trigger foods into our daily diet without restriction them, they become less special, weakening the urge to binge on them. Once you have conquered medium and low trigger foods, you can start to incorporate high trigger foods into your diet.

You can also try to avoid situations or triggers that lead to overeating. If emotional eating is a problem for you, it may be helpful to talk to a therapist or counselor who can help you manage your emotions in a healthy way. With time and effort, it is possible to overcome BED.

Start With Baby Steps

If you are trying to stop binge eating, it is important to start with small changes. Making big changes all at once is often too overwhelming and can lead to setbacks.

Instead of completely eliminating all trigger foods from your diet, try limiting yourself to a certain amount or number of times you can eat them. For example, if you know that you always overeat when you have ice cream in the house, try only buying it for special occasions or limiting yourself to one small bowl per week.

If emotional eating is a problem for you, start by identifying your triggers and trying to come up with healthy coping mechanisms. This may involve journaling, talking to a friend or therapist, or finding a hobby that helps you manage your emotions in a healthy way.

Making small changes like these can be helpful in stopping binge eating and starting to find food freedom.

Create a Support System

One way to help recover from BED disorder is to create a support system. This may include family, friends, or a therapist. Having someone to talk to can be very helpful when you are struggling with difficult emotions.

When it comes to recovering from BED, it’s important to have a supportive network in place. Family and friends can offer emotional support and practical help, and therapists can provide professional guidance. Recovery is possible with the right support system in place. Therapists can teach coping skills and help people develop a plan for recovery. Having a supportive network of family and friends is essential for recovery from BED disorder. With their help, you can develop the skills you need to cope with your disorder and live a healthy, happy life.

Work on Improving Your Relationship With Food

For some people, the relationship they have with food can be just as important as the nutritional value of the food itself. If you have a healthy relationship with food, you are more likely to make healthy choices and to eat when you are actually hungry. Conversely, if you have a bad relationship with food, you may be more likely to make poor choices and to overeat or binge. This is why it is so important to work on improving your relationship with food.

One way to do this is to avoid physical restrictions as I mentioned above by putting goals of dieting and weight loss aside for now. The key to healing your relationship with food is to eat regularly without restrictions as dieting can put most people at risk of worsening their relationship with food.

Prevent Any Mental Restrictions

In addition to physical restrictions, it is important to make sure that you do not have any mental restrictions that are preventing you from eating the foods you want. This may include things like disordered eating thoughts or diet culture messages. If you think you may have a mental restriction, it is important to speak with a dietitian.

I know how it feels to be consumed by diet culture and to meaningless restrict what I ate. It took me a long time to unlearn those habits and to relearn how to listen to my body. If you’re struggling with something similar, here are three tips that helped me break free from my eating disorder: 

1. When you are craving a food eat it – If you crave a chocolate piece, eat that and get on with the day. Don’t replace the craving with a piece of fruit, or skip the craving, as this is still mental restriction. Incorporating regular meal patterns without physical restrictions will prevent you from overeating foods you crave.

2. Find hobby that has nothing to do with food or your body when you get the urge to binge– Binge urges often come for 30-minutes then fade away or weaken enough to be easy to break free from so using a hobby such as reading, gaming, going for a walk will keep you distracted enough to surf through the urge. This is called ‘Urge Surfing’.

3. Seek a dietitian’s help if you feel like you can’t do it on your own. 

If you think you may have an eating disorder, the most important thing you can do is reach out for help. Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses that can have a profound effect on your physical health, so don’t hesitate to seek for a dietitian if you think you may be struggling with one.

Work on Your Self-Esteem

One of the most important things you can do for your overall health is to work on your self-esteem. This means learning to love and accept yourself just the way you are. When you have a positive view of yourself, it can help to improve your physical health, mental health, and emotional well-being. It can also help you to cope with stress and adversity. One of the best ways to improve your self-esteem is to stop comparing yourself to others. You are unique and special, and there is no one else quite like you. Accepting this can help you to appreciate all that you have to offer. Another way to boost your self-esteem is to set realistic goals for yourself and celebrate your accomplishments. By taking care of yourself and treating yourself with kindness and respect, you can start to feel good about who you are. Improving your self-esteem is an important step in recovery from BED.

Seek Professional Help From a Dietitian

If you’re struggling with binge eating disorder (BED), know that you’re not alone — and that recovery is possible. BED is the most common eating disorder in the United States, affecting about 3.5% of adults, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. And while it’s often viewed as a “women’s issue,” men can suffer from BED, too. If you have BED, you might feel ashamed or embarrassed, and may not want to tell anyone about your struggle. But it’s important to remember that help is available — and seeking professional treatment from a dietitian is a vital step on the road to recovery. therapy, medication, or both. Recovery is possible and you deserve to live a happy and healthy life.

There are many different types of treatment available for BED, so it’s important to work with a health professional, such as a dietitian, to find the right approach for you. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is one commonly used treatment for BED. This type of therapy can help you identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviours that contribute to your disorder.

Avoid the All-or-Nothing Mindset

One of the biggest traps in recovery is the all-or-nothing mindset. This means that you either have to be perfect or you have failed. This is not true! Recovery is a journey and there will be ups and downs. The important thing is to keep moving forward. If you have a slip-up, don’t beat yourself up. Just get back on track and continue working towards your goals. Remember, progress not perfection!

Take it one day at a time:

Recovery is a process that takes time. Be patient with yourself and take it one day at a time.

BED is a disorder that’s all too common, and it can be tough to know how to stop it. The first step is acknowledging that you have a problem with binge eating. Once you’ve done that, you can start to take steps to change your behaviour. One way to do this is to set realistic goals for yourself. For example, if you’re used to eating an entire pizza in one sitting, start by setting a goal of eating only half a pizza. Then, gradually increase the amount you’re willing to eat until you’re able to control your portions. It’s also important to make sure that you’re getting enough exercise and eating a healthy diet. These lifestyle changes can be difficult, but they’re essential for recovery. Take it one day at a time, and don’t be afraid to ask for help from friends or family members. With time and effort, you can overcome BED and develop healthy eating habits.

Letting Go of Perfectionism

It can be difficult to let go of perfectionism, especially when it comes to our weight loss goals. We want to be perfect in our eating, perfect in our exercise, and perfect in our self-care. But the truth is, there is no such thing as perfect. And when we try to strive for perfection, we often end up feeling burned out and discouraged. So how do we let go of this need for perfection?

The first step is to accept that you are not perfect and that you never will be. This doesn’t mean that you are a failure, it just means that you are human. Second, focus on your progress, not your perfection. Celebrate the fact that you are making changes and moving in the right direction. Finally, be gentle with yourself. Cut yourself some slack and don’t beat yourself up if you have a bad day or make a mistake. Remember that progress, not perfection, is what matters.

Conclusion

So, if you’re like me and you’ve been struggling with BED for a while now, know that you are not alone. This disorder is more common than you may think. But there is hope!

With time and effort, you can overcome BED and develop healthy eating habits. Remember to be patient with yourself, take it one day at a time, and focus on your progress, not your perfection. And if you need help, don’t hesitate to ask for it from friends or family members. With support and dedication, you can achieve your goals.

If this blog post has resonated with you and you want to learn more about how to overcome BED, I’d highly recommend checking out our binge eating recovery course.