The Secret to Managing Food Cravings: Part 1
Doesn't that look yummy? Can you resist?
Do you experience food cravings?
Food is often the 'drug of choice' as Dr. Phil would say. It sure can sooth depression for the few moments that it is in your mouth! But does it satisfy?
I find, the more I eat ice cream, the more I want ice cream.
The more I eat bread, the more bread I want.
Eating those things doesn't satisfy my craving for those kinds of foods. It just makes me want to eat more and more.
Ice cream is only one of my weaknesses. Here is another one:
Oh how I love jujubes! But eating them only makes me want more. And I can't eat one! Not me. I have to have a bunch until they stop tasting good or I stop feeling good.
Bipolar depression can really do a number on your cravings. Every time your mood rises or falls you lose control of healthy eating.
And if your moods don't drive you to eat, you may be on a medication that makes you hungry all the time. Or maybe your medication slows down your metabolism to the point that you aren't able to burn off calories like you did before.
My psychiatrist said to me once that I was one of her few bipolar patients who was NOT overweight. There are probably a few reasons for that. First, I am quite vain when it comes to my weight and so I put a lot of effort into keeping it reasonable. Secondly, I am a walker, have been all my life and now that I deal with depression it has become even more important. But ultimately, there are so few medications that I can take, and many of those meds cause weight gain. So I guess it is bittersweet that I can't take those meds.
But still I fail more often than not. However, I have a secret.
If I stop eating refined sugar, and stop eating wheat, the cravings stop too!
I can't do this all the time. But when I am feeling good I grab the opportunity and I just stop, cold turkey. In two days the cravings stop and I am not obsessing over food all the time. I am able to eat reasonable amounts and not want to binge eat. I even have to ask myself 'am I hungry?'
Do I always succeed with this? NO!
But sometimes I do. And when I do, I feel great. I am not hungry all the time. I am not bloated. I am not totally exhausted from sugar. I just feel better. And I am not a slave to my cravings. It works when I do it. It doesn't work when I don't do it.
So as soon as I hit a decent mood I think 'hey, I just might be well enough to stop this stupid eating for awhile' and I go for it while the mood lasts.
Do I have more self-discipline than some people? Maybe.
But success breeds success and each time I conquer my cravings reminds me that it is possible and helps me to get my weight back down to something reasonable.
Depression is awful enough. Feeling fat and being fat can only add to the depression. The neat thing about this method is that even if you don't succeed at losing weight right away you will feel better. And you will be proud of yourself for exercising a little self-control.
You don't have to look very far to find some research to validate my secret. Just google 'sugar is bad for you' or 'bread is bad for you' and you will find all sorts of stuff. I would recommend a book called 'Potatoes Not Prozac' for further information.
What have you got to lose? (that is not a trick question!?)
WHAT ABOUT YOU? How are yo feeling today? Do you struggle with food cravings? Are you overweight? Are you in control of your food or is it in control of you? Would you like to do something about it?
Next time I would like to give you a few tips on things you could eat to substitute for those things you are giving up if you are trying to control your cravings.
Don't give up! There is hope for depression.
