head hunger vs over eating

amc581 · February 29, 2008

So I wanted to put this out there because I am curious about differant types of eaters, and there individual progress. So I am an overeater along with loving greasy fatty foods, when I do eat them I eat and eat and eat even when i phisically feel like i might be sick just because I love the taste of the food and I want to finish it. keep in mind I am not banded yet. So with that said I do not eat all day long at most I'll eat my three meals a day and a snack or something maybe even another meal( just being honest) My point is that there are people like me and then there are the people that say there hungry all the time and so they eat all day picking at this grazing on that they eat ice cream and chocolate and they consume from waking to sleeping. For those who have been banded what type of eater were you? Always hungry or over eater? And which has better results with the band if they differ at all.

What brought this question to mind is in my paperwork for my surgery one of the questions was what will you do with all the extra time you'll have now that it won't be spent eating? And my responce was I will actually be spending more time eating then ever before becasue I won't be able to inhale my food anymore. Just curious if anyone thinks there is any kind of a differance.

luluc · February 29, 2008

Hi - I was an overeater who ate predominantly healthy meals, however quantity was the issue. I needed control over my volume and the band has helped - it also cut a lot of my salty / carb cravings, which helped me get "fluffy" over the years.

Might sound weird but I fill my time being a 100 times more active - and shopping/cooking in a more healthy way.

I suggest you continue to read on this site - there are some amazing stories and ideas that can help you w/your success, should you choose the band.

Good Luck!

katrose · February 29, 2008

Well, I am soooo a head hunger type person. I still fight it. I'm sure I will for the rest of my life. I have found that as long as you avoid the carbs, I don't get hungry. Many days I'm very content with my 3 meals. But, like the other night I made round steaks in the pressure cooker, had to put in the taters for the DH and carrots and onions. Well, I just had to have a potato. I being stupid told myself one little piece won't hurt! Well, I was nutso the rest of the night. I had to eat! My bbrain just would not stop. I ended up snacking and munching for a good hour till I made myself go to bed. If I had just said no, I would have eaten my meat and veggies and been fine. I totally have to stay away from carbs and sugar!

minpinmom · February 29, 2008

I was everything you mentioned! I never ate healthy - I love to cook and butter makes everything better! I ate all the time, lots of sweets, ate way too much of everything and grazed constantly. I have been banded less than 2 weeks - and I can't believe that I am not hungry after eating 3/4 cup of food. The other night - I had eaten and felt full and still went in and took a bite of lowfat, low sugar icecream and it almost made me sick. I was over-full.

I love my band! Had it not been for the band, I would have eaten 1/2 the container.

Daisalana · February 29, 2008

I think I'm all of the above, really. I like to graze. I eat when I'm emotional. I've always liked to binge when I knew I'd be home alone. Sometimes out of emotions, sometimes out of boredom, and sometimes just cause I like food.

I still graze more than I should, but I've made an effort to make them healthier/low calorie Snacks instead of.. Cookies & chips.

I still have the binge moments, but when I go to my ritual, the band restricts me. I can tell myself STOP!! But I don't listen. Then I eat a couple small bites and I'm stuffed and nothing else is going down, so that's that. Hooray for my band.

That's not to say I haven't had my bad moments. I've eaten a whole pint of ice cream in an hour, and ate 3 pieces of cake at once.. But it's very rare. The trick to that (in my case) is don't have it in the house. When I feel the need to gorge, if I don't have the junk that goes down easy, I settle for something like some sausage or eggs, etc.. and they go down sloooow and fill me up quick, so the binge passes. If I have access to things like ice cream, I'll mess up a lot!

And one last thing to add, my pre-band binges weren't just junk food. I liked getting take out from restaurants.. a couple appetizers, 1-2 meals, etc. So when I feel the urge to binge, I don't necessarily want ice cream.. the couple of bites of sausage & eggs do it for me.

I think I should see a shrink, but they couldn't get me in for months, by time my appt. was coming up, they cancelled. I have no patience for offices like that, so I just forgot about it for a while. I'm doing alright now, so we'll see!

bandster_1007 · February 29, 2008

i never really ate what i thought were really large portions, but i did eat really unhealthy stuff. anything fast food, i loved, anything covered in grease and cheese, i loved...add some sour cream, and i had the perfect dish. chips were my favorite snack. i also liked healthy meals, that i cooked, but i opted for fast food more often than not. so, bad choices was a major part of my problem, but i didn't have control over it, that is all i wanted. i also loved little debbie cakes and ice cream and things like that...AND..i drank regular cokes and sweet tea every day.

i also ate when i was bored..like at night before bed while watching tv. we had all eaten and we would have some popcorn or dh would have his fourth meal (he is thin but he eats SOOOOO much).

so, after i was banded, immediately, i had no restriction and it was the most horrible emotional process i had ever been through. i thought about food all the time, i was starving, and so i ate.

then restriction came, now i cannot believe that i thought i did not overeat. i look at my 7 year old son sometimes and i think..does he really need any more to eat, that seems like an awful lot... i can't remember the last time that i had a little debbie snack, the last time that i tried one, i do remember that it was gross. i do not like fast food anymore, it just takes nasty and makes my stomach feel gross. i don't like chip (except tortilla w/cheese dip) anymore, because they are too greasy. i don't like to snack, and i crave healthier foods now. i crave carrots, green Beans, and meat. if i'm hungry i will get up and fix something healthy like a can of Beans, that was unheard of before my surgery.

i have lost 15 lbs in a little under a month. (i just got restriction). and believe it or not, if i find myself hungry in the evenings like i used to, i try to find an alternate way to satisfy it..like..am i thirsty..do i need to move around some to get my mind occupied.

i just simply really do not care about food anymore...except that it is good Protein and as low cal as i want to be. i don't eat diet foods because i think they are bad, and i do not black list foods. i have food freedom, and it is awesome!!!! (it took 4 months to get here though).

caligal · February 29, 2008

I am an overeater. Now that I have the band, when I get full that's it! I can't eat another thing or the food gets stuck, I PB or I slime really bad. So.... I am still learning when enough is enough.

Marimaru · February 29, 2008

I was an overeater/grazer. Grazing is what gets me now, but I can't eat much at once, which helps. Mostly I just love the taste of food. Something sounds good, so I'll have some, has nothing whatsoever to do with whether I'm hungry.

I've started keeping iced tea in the fridge, and I at least make myself drink a glass of that if I know I'm not really hungry but I am looking for food. that usually distracts my attention for a while at least. I've been making egg salad a lot lately, 3 egg whites, one whole egg, lite mayo, and mustard... it's quite filling, and pretty low cal. Alternately I'll just snack on boiled egg whites too. Good Protein, way low cal, filling (not to mention work, because I don't keep them boiled ready to go).

abby1 · February 29, 2008

I was banded right before Thanksgiving; I've had one fill with another visit to the doctor on Monday. I am still dealing with head hunger and habit issues and expect I will have to deal with them for some time to retrain myself. Most of the time I am not hungry; I can eat many foods and am satisfied with what I am eatting. As I watch what I eat, I try to make some room calorie wise for a little snack so that I do not feel deprived.