Binge Eating: Self-Loathing or Self-Love?

Almost everyone overeats on occasion, such as having seconds or thirds of a holiday meal. But for some people, excessive overeating that feels out of control and becomes a regular occurrence crosses the line to binge-eating disorder.

In my practice I would say that about 65% of people I come across has some unhealthy relationship with food. Most of them aware of it, and possibly the reason why they seek my help in the first place.

Most people who regularly binge are embarrassed about overeating and vow to stop. But then they feel such a compulsion they can't resist and continue binging.

Binge eating is common especially after a period of restrictive eating such as a cleanse or detox, finding Balance seems the hardest part.

Binge-eating disorder is more common in women than in men. Although people of any age can experience it.

“Most doctors and therapists will say that Binge-Eating is a form of self-loathing due to poor self-image, but this is where I disagree, I actually believe that is a (dysfunctional) form of self-love!"

Root Cause

Binge-eating, in the sense of not being able to control cravings, staying away from certain foods or control portions, is not the issue per se, is the messenger of deeper issues.

When we experience extensive period of stress, physical, emotional, or both, when we spread ourselves so thin, our body is constantly finding ways to support us and survive. We are literally in Survival Mode, the goal is: Not to die.

Reaching out to that glass of wine or bucket of ice-cream gives us the chance to relax and let go, in other words the chance to decrease that stress and live to see another day.

In this way I see it as an act of self-love. Dysfunctional. But so are the plan B, C D etc. that the body has to put in place to keep a certain level of balance.

When you hate your job, are plagued by financial stress, can't seem to find time for slowing down, or maybe social integration and emotional connections are vastly lacking in your life, reaching out to that chocolate helps balancing things out.

With this in mind, trying to limit your food intake, especially through restrictive measures, is only going to exacerbate the problem.

Your body is talking to you telling you that you must pay attention. Any unbalance is the desperate cry of your body to pay attention.

For this reason I don't recommend to just everybody to get into a detox, it's important to judge effectively how much more "you can take" before that thin string (that is your sanity) breaks.

Addressing the underlying issues first, is key.