TLDR; Any suggestions, tips etc you have on losing weight are most welcome

Longer story; 3 years ago I got to the highest I had ever been, 300lb (136kg). I was miserable and depressed. I slowly have lost some weight with the off and on help of perscription medication and the app myfittnesspal. I am currently down to ~240. This past January things got real for me after having a constant headache for a week I went to the Dr and my blood pressure was high. I'm currently on medication for that and I have 1 more pill of my weight loss medication before I am out and my doctor only allows 2 months per year. In January I was in the 260s. I know I can do better, but all I think about is food. It literally is an addiction. And just to get it all out in the open, I have binged and purged a few times. Most recent being yesterday because all I could think about was Chinese food and then I felt so guilty afterwards I had to get rid of it. (I don't do that every week and I know how bad it is, but I feel like it's better to get rid of it than to eat it and just let it sit)

I know how to lose weight, I work in the healthcare field and I don't want to end up so obese I can no longer take care of myself, nor do I want to have issues with my blood pressure and wind up having congestive heart failure or kidney failure. I just don't know how to stop thinking about food every so much! I know normal people can't sit there eating breakfast and be planning out mentally what they are going to have for lunch and dinner.

Contrary to what Ambition said, I do not think that you have an eating disorder at all. The information you've given in your post isn't consistent with either bulimia or binge-eating.

What I do think you have, like you called it yourself, in an addiction, and an addiction to food is a lot more similar to other addictions (alcohol, drugs, etc) than to an eating disorder. The fact that you recognize and understand that you might have an addiction is already a positive step. When someone is addicted to food they might actually develop a sort of tolerance to food? So they eat more because of the addiction, but they're less satisfied so they eat more to compensate for that and it's just a cycle.

I will also suggest another therapy group: Food Addicts Anonymous. And I would also suggest a psychologist, if you can find one with experience treating addictions.

As far as tips for losing weight, I think you should first focus on the root of the problem: taking care of your mental health. Because it doesn't matter how much you exercise or how well you eat. If you're addicted to food, you won't be healthy anyway. So fix that first and then with a proper diet and exercise, the weight will come off.

I hope you find the help you need and that your health improves.

Oh God girl, what to do? First of all, pay closer attention to Ambition rather than Sayuri. To even mention Bulimia... You say all you can think about is food. Food is comfort, it eases the soul. You must think about what you need comfort from. Ambition mentions over-eaters anonymous which sounds like a 12 step program. I have many close friends in AA and they celebrate sobriety birthdays which 'outsiders' are invited to. I go celebrate each friends birthday as I so admire their strength. The meeting is first and the party is after so I attend those meetings. I sit in awe listening to people tell their story and receive wonderful feedback from the others. There's a wonderful fellowship there. Everyone gets a sponsor who literally will becomes their new best friend. It's advised that both are the same gender in AA so I imagine OE will be the same (Ambition can probably find out). Your sponsor will help guide you through the 12 steps which lead to recovery. You don't need to register, all meetings have an open door policy. You just have to go. Good luck, and keep us posted on how you're doing! Search OA, find a meeting close to you and get over there. That is where you'll find recovery and get your life back while you still have your health. Go now.

Food is never the enemy. Always remember that. It's all about learning how much to eat and when to eat. I used to work at Curves, which is a woman's workout facility. The things that are accomplished at that place are amazing. They really teach you how to live a healthy lifestyle. It's not about counting calories or not eating. Tbh, you will eat SO MUCH on their program you will be shocked, but the weight just falls off. It's rigorous, but they are there to support you. It's a great community with other women who have gone through similar things and know how you're feeling.

What I learned from Weight Watchers:

• Guilt over eating doesn't help you. It makes you more likely to mess up because you feel sad, so you want comfort, and hey, "I already messed up, so why not".

• You don't need to clean your plate, waist or waste.

I have a degree in Psychology :) It's also rather distasteful for you to use Mel's thread to try and throw me under the bus. If you have a problem with me and/or my advice you should have sent me a private message or comment, not use Mel's topic to call me out on something which I happen to know plenty about.

I never claimed to be a specialist or expert? Just that I knew what I was saying at the time of posting, and I stand by it. The root of the problem, which is an addiction, needs to be addressed first and foremost. Are eating disorder signs also present? Yes, a few. Although the information given in her post is not enough for an eating disorder diagnostic over the Internet, hence the need to see a psychologist for a proper evaluation (which I mentioned in my reply). And while some cases of eating disorders benefit from a 12-step program treatment, it's not the traditional approach (unlike addictions, where a 12-step program treatment IS the traditional approach).

I stated my opinion based on the information given in the post. It's up to the specialist that Mel is hopefully able to consult with to give her a proper diagnosis and treatment course.

I posted here to try and help Mel. I have no interest in a public altercation, nor do I have to defend my opinion, so I will say it again: any problem that you have with me and/or what I said, please leave a comment on my profile or send me a private message. Whatever your beef is with me, it's off-topic.

EDIT: I noticed you deleted your previous post. I will maintain my reply just so that there any no misunderstandings about this situation.

I used a female pronoun to refer to you. If you don't identify with female pronouns, I apologize for my mistake.

I deleted because I did not wish to take over Mels thread, it seemed rather pointless.

Counting calories has been proven to work the best by far. If you continue to eat what you love, but only under a certain number of calories per meal, you can continue to enjoy comfort food, plan out your day's meals, etc, all you like, while also losing weight.

I think that would be the best since, if you see something you really want, you can work it into your meal schedule instead of trying to summon the willpower to just not eat it (which is where most diets fail).

I say this cause on your current diet plan, you're so consumed with guilt about eating what you want that you're making yourself vomit. You can't live like that. You have to take care of your mental/emotional health. Life's not all about the body. You're gonna get real sick real fast.

So, im not really sure what to say to the deleted posts and all of that :/

Thats what ive been trying to do, i def want to make a lifestyle change and not just go on a strict diet then end up gaining it all back, i def have good days and then bad days but i went grocery shopping the other day and decided i wasnt going to buy anything bad, that if i didnt have it in my house then i couldnt eat it so that has helped for sure.

Yeah don't buy junk from the store for home, that's a really good idea.

Actually that's a great idea. Eat healthy, then on the cravings days when you haaaave to have a pair of doughnuts (my poison), write down the calorie count of the food items you were planning on having for dinner, walk over to the bakery, subtract item(s) of your choice from dinner to fit the lowest-calorie doughnuts in, and enjoy yourself guilt-free cause it didn't ruin your diet.

Aw missy, I feel for you. I know it's hard but you've already made so much progress and don't forget that! I know it's not probably what you want to hear, but I've been there with the binging and purging and realizing it's a problem is half the struggle. Really. When I started doing it I was in complete denial it was wrong (although I was sneaking around so I knew it wasn't normal or good in the back of my mind), but I felt so guilty it made me feel so wonderful in comparison I told myself it was great for me! And that's how I would loose weight! I also knew it was so much easier than making a change to what I ate.

But I'm older now and there are a few things I've realised, for me it had to come from a lifestyle change. I moved out of my parents house, started buying my own food, made a really concious effort to love cooking and love cooking healthy things. It was a gradual process but even little things like buying healthy snacks (I KNOW it's the obvious answer) but counting calories never worked for me. When I want to eat I eat but having healthy things available to me made a huge difference. Counting meals and all that, it just made things worse. I had to learn to eat better things when I was hungry. End of story. But I got really into finding out what was actually in food, all foods, especially processed. I watched Fed Up (it's an awesome documentary, highly recommend) and found myself wanting to do better.

Now, my favourite I-want-to-eat-everything-all-the-time snack is now a pomegranate, because they take freaking forever to take apart, taste amazing and in the mean time you're not eating/thinking about other foods. Making healthy complicated dishes is the same for me, like Lasagne, it takes to long but it's sooooo good and you're busy like the whole time! Making cheap, healthy foods became such a big part f my adult life, I can't even imagine the way I used to be with food. Really, try out new recipes, treat yourself sometimes, get really into fruit, vegetables, and speaking from the other side you can do it, I can tell you want it, but don't be too hard on yourself and don't be discouraged. It takes time, I still have slip ups. But taking control and making your own food that tastes amazing really has 100x the high of purging and you feel like a boss!

I hope this helped in really any tiny way, you can ask me any questions if you need to! PM me about anything, anytime. I'd love to hear from you~~

I have never heard of Fed Up, ill def have to check it out, hopefully its on netflix or youtube.

I wish i could eat pomegranate, i really do like it but im allergic to it as well as many other raw fruits. I love veggies though, i made a board on pinterest for recipes and such so i pin healthier options on that. I have realized that i have to pre plan and make food for when i go to work or what not because if i dont then our cafeteria is open 24/7 and they dont have the healthiest things, burgers fried food etc... I love cooking it just takes time and if im off then its no problem, its just when i work i get so tired i dont want to get up any earlier than i have to to meal prep even though i need to.

Thank you so much for taking the time to give me some suggestions, i really do appreciate it!

Yeah it's definitely on netflix! :)

Aww, that's poo. But veggies are a good option too. That is a good idea as far as planning your food, and I know what you mean about time, I work all day and I can be so tired when I get home. Again what works for me is having a lot of fall backs, I wish I could say I cooked every night but honestly I don't. But, I have over a long period of time found somethings that are healthy that I can make quickly! I'll give you one of my favourite recepies if you want it, it's so fast so even if you feel dead tired it's ready in 20 minutes. You can also make a lot of it at once and keep it in the fridge or take it to work! just let me know if you want it? :)

I HATE getting up early and I never do, even with the best intentions, what I do is take things I can make at work. Honestly it's better to be honest with yourself and work around that rather than be disappointed when it doesn't work. I had the intention of getting up and making something early but it never happened so I made no progress because I said "So tomorrow then...", but work around it. I decided to start taking porridge, yoghurt, tea, bananas, sometimes other fruit or even vegetables would be good. Make a quick salad at work, nibble, whatever. Porridge really does work a treat, but be sure to keep up variety, because getting fed up with something can really be a way to fall back into old habits. But if you have any amenities at work, use them. :) I just stay clear of the cafeteria all together, the food anyways. It's designed to be stored, kept and sold, not to be good for you.

Also cooking maybe twice a week for a couple of days in advance can help too, or even just on a sunday. You probably have more time than you realise, I used to think cooking took soooo long but the better you get the faster you do it and habits are really the key.

Sorry for the long post, let me know if you want the recipes to glance over, even if you decide not to use them it might be nice to have :)

oh awesome, ill def look that up here in a few

I work nights so i just crash during the day with the intention of getting up to cook dinner, but then i wont if i didnt sleep good or whatever the reasoning.

And im always up for new recipes! Esp healthier options! And forgive me but what is porridge? Ive heard of it but i dont know exactly what it is, where i live we have grits and oatmeal? And i try to cook and then pack meals, i see people cooking a bunch on sunday and then making meals for the week, but i dont feel like by thurs-fri things would still be as good as they were earlier in the week when they have been just sitting there lol

Haha it's no bother. I THINK porridge is oatmeal, I'll check though.

"Oatmeal is a type of porridge, and the two terms are often used interchangeably, but not all porridge is made from oats."

Okay, I see. So I think it's pretty much the same but porridge can come in really fine ground oats I suppose, or thicker ones. But same principle. You add milk or water to it, stick it in the microwave and voila. You can have it really wet or less wet, just cook it more or less time. It's great because it's versatile, I like to add honey or fruit or even eat it plain. Actually with grapes is really good, but only add them after if you're not allergic. :P It can come in flavoured packets but they tend to have added junk so it's better to buy plain and flavour yourself.

Yeah I was put off by the "old" idea too, but that's why cooking maybe two days (say sunday then wednesday) and doing whatever you do on the weekend. Or make big things of sauce (sauces from jars are FULL of sugar, you'd be so surprised) and freeze them, same with other foods, take them out of the freezer when you need them! Easy and still good! Thaw sauce, cook pasta, chuck in veggies, boom.

Okay my favorite healthy fast recipe is a rice dish, I'm not sure how to describe it so I'll just tell you how to make it.

-rice (I'd say 1/2 cup per person but you might have some left over) -twice as much water -garlic (I usually do one or two cloves depending how much I'm making) -chicken stock cube -vegetables of your choice

So dice your garlic and then fry it in a small amount of oil (olive, sunflower, sesame, whatever you like) when it starts to turn golden take off the heat. Add your rice to the pan and water (remember twice as much rice as water), throw in your stock cube and return to the highest heat possible. Watch carefully and when it boils stir it then put the lid on and put down to the lowest heat. In about 10 minutes (longer if you're making more) lift the lid and stir, if all the water is gone it's ready, it doesn't have to be bone dry just all the water has been absorbed. Now add whatever vegetables you want, I like peas and broccoli but I'm sure anything would work really, diced courgette, carrots, whatever. :) I add frozen veg because it keeps longer or you just need to thaw it in the rice and stir. If it's uncooked you can cook it separately and throw it in, maybe grill or steam it. :)

Lasagne takes ages but it's great to make at the weekend and freeze! Stirfrys keep well and I really like them cold. Easy toasties are good, my favourite is turkey, mozzarella and avocado (sweet chilli sauce optional) which is just a case of bread + cheese, grill, turkey, avocado boom, done. I eat it open-faced usually.

Edit opps forgot to ping!

Ah yes, okay then oatmeal, i do it that sometimes with some frozen blueberries or a banana in it and some honey or brown sugar.

And that rice recipe is totally easy i have all of that stuff on hand already. Ill have to remember that, i stopped getting so much bread and instead opted for wraps since that was almost half the calories but i havent grilled it yet, that would probably be really yummy

Yeah, I rarely eat porridge at home, but at work it's really convenient.

Really you'll find some ingredients you like and it'll snowball from there. I just find stuff around my flat, chuck it in food I'm making and am like "well that's good, i'll do that again". ^_^ And yeah, wraps are wonderful. I'm not sure what pita bread is like in nutrition but it adds a nice bit of variety, especially if you get the whole grain kind.

I havent checked the pita bread, we have flat out wraps and there is a spinach one i like that i think is like ~90cal (i think yall measure it dif in europe?) and then bread is like 100+ a slice, nutrtion wise i have no idea. I havent really been looking at anything other than calorie counting. The app i use measures other stuff but i dont really pay it much attention, i just try to stay within my calorie limits.

They use calories here :D but I don't tend to, I mean it's good if it works for you, but I find that for me if I have x amount to use, I might want to use them all but it's not really necessary or eating x amount of the wrong thing does something entirely different to your body. I find planning meals and snacks better for me, I know what's good and what I should limit and I think that documentary explains it well with the Almonds if you're there yet, but summarized:

"160 calories worth of almonds come with a healthy dose of fiber, which slows digestion and keeps blood sugar levels from spiking. 160 calories worth of soda, however, are absorbed straight into the liver, causing a “sugar rush” and the immediate conversion of sugar to fat. Both options are 160 calories, but they create drastically different reactions within the body."

I think it's good to treat yourself just try and stay in control :D