I am a food addict. I believe that I am not alone in this and would love to hear stories from others like myself on how you get by on a daily basis.

What has worked for you?

What makes things harder?

What triggers a relapse for you?

So far, I have not found anything that works permanently or even more than one time.

Boredom, stress, and negative emotions make it harder to stay away from bad foods.

I have not found my triggers (other than my emotional state) because I have had many times where I "catch" myself overeating or grazing or eating the wrong foods.

Please share your story...

I am a food addict. I am waiting for my sleeve surgery( I don't know yet if it's vertical or gastric)

Almost 2 years ago I had a lap band installed. It was removed in Aug. '11 due to complications of me being allergic to the band material. It did not work for me to achieve weight loss. However most of the time my band was empty (without restriction)

I would so like to hear about those who are NOT loosing weight with this surgery.

Thank you for your post. I'm able to have a small success with OA 12 step program, but not their food plan.

Is OA Overeaters Anonymous?

Yes, that is what I'm referring to Overeater's Anonymous.

I don't recommend it, but I have some help from the steps. The 12 steps are addiction recovery steps.

I tried Over Eater's Anonymous myself and don't recommend it..... What didn't you like about it??

I've always loved food. I never thought I was addicted to it until after surgery. I want to eat and crave certain foods when I know I am not hungry. Thank heavens the sleeve prevents me from eating too much. I know what I eat has to be the right things since so little goes in. So far I just fight the food demon, but some days are harder than others. Chocolate is evil and I hate the person who discovered it.

Fighting it works most of the time but not always and it works less and less. I guess I have to find a way to fight it that works. I try to do something with my hands or go for a drive. I recently started putting puzzles together and it is helping a bit. I get angry with anyone who says "Are you really hungry or are you just craving that?".

It's very frustrating when you know that your behavior is destructive but feel helpless to stop it.