Need Suggestions

[amazingpillywiggin]

Well, here I am--I'm not really sure if this is a place for me or not. I haven't actively cut in over a year, but am having some issues with my bulimia. I'm not actively purging, but at my age (41) my doctor is urging me to take preventive measures and lose weight before I develop diabetes or other weight-related health problems that run in my family.

The issue is that I know that trying to "diet" or "eat nutritiously" is the first step on that path back to bulimia and cutting. Once I start saying "I have to limit this" or "I can't eat that" the bad feelings start. You all know how the cycles run in one's head...the stress, then the guilt if you succumb to the urge to binge or cut...Does anyone have any suggestions for not getting obsessive about eating when one is overweight. My doctor said my goal should be 2 1/2 pounds lost per month...I'm already thinking, "I should be able to lose at least twelve per month" and it is scaring me.

Thanks for the insight and help!

[Ice_crystal]

Hi amazingpillywiggin - welcome to bus!

If I got it right, you're having problems with everything that makes you feel "I have to.." - it's sort of enforcement, isn't it?

What about starting with very small steps - like "one piece of fruit/vegetables per day", or "10 minutes of walk every day" - but always with the alternative in mind that you don't have to do this daily. If you do it - great. If you don't - well, never mind, there are other days. Maybe that eases the enforcement.

If you feel like you don't have any problems with that, you can try to eat 2 pieces daily (for instance), to go out for a longer walk..etc.

And if you don't lose 2.5 pounds/month...well, pity, but better to lose weight slowly but in a safe way.

don't know if this helped...just an idea.

[faegirl]

amazingpillywiggin - just remember to take it slow and don't put too much pressure on yourself. I agree with Ice_crystal that you should start small. A great way to start is trying to get in 8 glasses of water per day. It helps fill you up, keeps you hydrated, and if you're drinking ice water, it burns calories while you drink it because your body has to warm it up!

[onlypurples]

Throw away your scale or give it to someone you trust, who lets you "borrow it". You will know when you are gaining or losing too fast based on how you feel and how your clothes fit. The more I obsess over the scale, the more I gain.