For some reason I always eat out of impulse (as if is going to make me feel better), thing is it doesn't. Yet, when i'm stressed out or depressed I can't bring myself to remember that the last time I ate out of impulse it didn't do anything for me. I've never been the skinny type, but after marrying my high school sweetheart of 4 yrs, our marriage only lasted 10 months and that sent me into a big depression reaching a weight of 200lbs. I soon recovered and lost 25..lbs. I remained about 175lbs give or take 5-10..lbs for about a year. Then two years ago I got into another relationship in which I thought this guy would be forever. It was going good for some time but recently our relationship has been going down the drain for several reasons. First- I got hurt at my job and have been on workman's comp for a year, second-he lost his job and was out of work for 4 months, and third-last year in November he found out he had a 2 year old son. I can't get out and do as much as I used to because of my injury (even now after a year i've had surgery and it isn't going all that great either), Him loosing his job sent us into a bad financial situation, and, now he says he doesn't think he wants to have any children. (He already has a 10yoa daughter, I have no kids). This made me go from stressed to depressed and I reached my all time high of 215lbs. I started Atkins on March 8 and i've lost about 29lbs. I'm starting to feel great about myself, but lately with all the problems I can't stop myself from eating. Although, I rarely cheat, I am constantly in the kitchen snacking literally about every 15- 20 minutes I only eat LC food but is like I never stop. Sometimes I finish eating dinner and by the time I do the dishes i'm already eating cheese or ham. I then ask myself why i'm i eating if i'm not hungry? and the only response I can come up with is because i'm bored. I've tried home based projects to keep my mind occupied but that hasn't work, I just get more stressed when they don't turn out. I only have one friend and i'm home all day long alone. I also hit a plateu, could it because of my excessive eating? Is this healthy for me? And what can I do to stop myself? (Sorry is so long)...

I don't want to drop in and preach or anything, but youur situation seems SO similar to how I dealt with my feelings!! I've found a real wealth of information in the Dr Phil book. Although I've had a couple of lapses lately, I'm getting back on track by going over it again. The 7 Keys link in my sig would give you an overview. It's helped me weather some stressful things without letting myself gain the weight back.

Hang on, you can do it!

hi my name is crystal and im an emotional snacker hehe my situation is different than yours, but my reaction to stress, etc is the same. actually, im a snacker even on my good days. LCing has been great to me to combat this obsession actually. i still snack- all the time- atkins has so many great snacks

celery and peanut butter or cream cheeze
nuts & seeds- i prolly have 2-3 servings a day
pepperoni & cheeze
LC yogurt
sf jello
turkey & cheeze rollups
string cheeze
boiled egg whites
berries and melons
sf popsicles

theres tons more- but these are my regulars... the point is to make smart choices... for the price of 2 cookies in carbs, you could have one of everything on my list. i would love to be able to break this obsession entirely and eat like "normal" LCers and have 3 meals & 2-3 snacks a day, but that doesnt fit my warped lifestyle, so, because i feel hopeless to change my behavior, i adjust atkins to fit my behavior. i have like 1 real meal a day & like 7 or 8 "snacks". couple of boiled egg whites and a slice of cheeze are just as good a breakfast as a cheeze omlet.

the impulse eating can really be a problem sometimes when u cant be bothered with exerting any effort and u want gratification NOW, so, i make it simple on myself... on grocery day before the food even hits the cabinets, i cut up some celery sticks and put em in a ziplock, take all my nuts and put em into single serving baggies, cook up a dozen eggs, etc. then i have good impulse snacks on hand all the time.

fitday is a good tool to use. b4 i eat any snack, i take the 2 seconds it takes to fitday it 1st to make myself stop and think about what im going to eat- to see where i stand for carbs for the day- like maybe i wanted yougurt, but when i go to put it in fitday, i realize i'd be better off having a no carb serving of jello versus a 3 carb serving of yogurt- and the jello satisfies my sweet tooth just as well as the yogurt would of.

i still lose weight, but i also exercize- u didnt mention if u do or not...

the point of my rambling is i dont know if its possible to break an obsession like this... were u always like this or is it recent? i do certainly believe its worse out of boredum- like if im busy at work, i have food left over to bring home... if im bored, i wish i had brought more- even tho i bring pretty much the same amount everyday.

anyways, sorry i rambled too, but it got the wheels turnin. sorry. best of luck to you!

Thank you both, Potatofree & Jemman
I think I just needed to let it out. I did so good today. Only had two meals and no snacks for some reason wasn't hungry all day just real thirsty. (i drink plenty of water). About the exercise, I used to but I can't right now my surgery was just 3 weeks ago (back surgery). Hopefully soon I can get back on track. I did however still manage to loose 3 more pounds. yewhe... I will also try to get a copy of the 7 keys. Thank you both...

Glad you're feeling better. Here's an exercise I'm working on, maybe you might find it useful too.

http://www.drphil.com/advice/advice...n=Weight%20Loss

Your Internal Feelings About Food and Weight

This exercise is designed to help you turn back the clock and get to the heart of why you overeat. Get a pen and some paper and write down your answers to the questions below.

1. When did you started using food for non-nutritional reasons? Why was it that you started medicating yourself with food, taking care of yourself with food and comforting yourself with food? Go back to that time and write down what you were feeling and experiencing at the time.

2. Write down all of the insecurities that you're feeling right now.

3. Now look at your answers to question one and question two together. The answers to question two may be more specific because you don't have to remember as far back, but do you see similarities?

4. Now take every comment, fear and anxiety that you wrote down in response to questions one and two and challenge them. In writing. For example, if one of your fears is, "My spouse isn't really attracted to me because of my weight," challenge it by writing down a piece of evidence. Evidence isn't, "Because that's the way I feel." Write down any facts you have that can support your challenge. For example, "My spouse met, fell in love with, and married me while I was at my heaviest weight."

Challenge every fear and negative thought you wrote down in this manner with facts you can support.

You know today I am feeling the same way. I have been eating nonstop for weeks...whatever I want...whenever I want... Just numbing myself to the pain that I am feeling. I think you are right that Dr. Phil has someof the answers. For example, I can remember my food numbing beginning at age 12 when my father died... It was horrific for me and I gained a lot of weight...thus...my diet whoas began when I was put on a medically supervised diet by my doctor later that year.

It's hard, especially at night. I am also currently disabled and having a difficult time dealing with it. I want my life back and seem unable to make it happen. I have an 8 year old daughter who is suffeirng right along with me... We never do anything, except lately I have started to go back to church..albeit extremely difficult. With the self-loathing and paranoia...and anxiety attacks I sometimes wonder whether or not I'm going to every be happy again... Somehow I want to make it happen..soon... I know that part a me feels like everything will fall into place once I lose the weight, but deep down I wonder to I want the weight to go or is it a safety blanket. Well thanks for letting me run on...

TJ

Blah, blah, blah. I'm glad you all like Dr. Phil so much, but the problem is serotonin. You don't have enough of it, that's why you feel like garbage. Eating (anything but especially carbohydrate) creates this nice little blast of serotonin that makes you feel better. Any stimulant will do it, too. It's not addiction, it's normal, healthy brain chemistry.

Schwarzbein's got a pretty good chapter on it, but the queen of all descriptions of this phenomenon is in Lights Out by T.S. Wiley. Great book.

That's the book that excited me into reading nearly the whole of the low-carb literature, by the way.

TheCaveman..ignoring your tone, you have a point. The is a biochemical basis to a lot of cravings and eating patterns, but it's the behavioral aspects that help you tame them. "Normal, healthy brain chemistry just doesn't cause overweight all by itself.

I *TOTALLY* agree with you on that. I think it takes true behavior modification to obtain long-term success.

Yaly: I won't deal with Caveman's rudeness, but I do want to say that what has helped me with the "boredom" factor is starting a journal here. Instead of snacking, I come here to check in with other members. Really, it's great fun, and takes your mind off your own troubles. I think I'm much more likely to eat out of boredom than stress.

Try it, you'll like it! Be sure to visit other folk's journals at first and post something there.....so they know you are here and want to chat with them.

And good for you for sticking to lc snacks.

Kay