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Binge eating

M

Does anyone else struggle with food? I don't think I do it because I'm hungry, I think I just like the actual sensation of eating. I have very few foods that I won't eat. I have gained a lot of weight during lockdown and for the first time in my life I am truly self-conscious about it. I know people will just say don't buy the unhealthy foods then I can't eat them but I don't have that control. I'm trying to balance it out by being more physically active but I'm not always motivated to do that either. The only thing I consistently do outside of the pandemic is walk everywhere when I'm not at work as I really don't like to drive. I get anxious about parking. Autism assessor actually suggested I apply for a blue badge but can you imagine how that would contribute to my weight gain if I wasn't as anxious about that any more?! 

Interested to hear about everyone's relationship with food and any sort of disordered eating, not just binge eating.

Parents

  • I am with you on this one, I have a complex history with food, I vary from being very restrictive in what I eat when I'm not mentally well to having a reasonable range of foods when I'm fine, however, I struggle with it. My ADHD messes me up when it comes to impulse control if I'm buying my own food but for the last year I haven't been able to buy my own food because I couldn't go out so I'm eating a lot of processed stuff. If food is around me I tend to eat it almost on autopilot too. I also have a thing where I can't tell what I want so if I'm hungry, thirsty, tired, uncomfortable etc I struggle to know what's up so I tend to eat and drink a lot to avoid that. Unfortunately, the pandemic really has messed me up because I work from home, live and home, and never really leave home which actually was good for my mental health but terrible for my physical one.

    However, since I discovered My Autism and ADHD I have managed to make some changes. I keep executive dysfunction foods in the house ready so if I just need a meal something reasonably healthy is super easy. I have found that I must eat almost as a stim if food is close because since I've kept a stim toy with me I haven't found packets of biscuits doing that thing where you eat one and the rest disappear. Also, this one is really difficult for me being ADHD (not sure your diagnosis) but I've managed to get myself in something if an eating routine, the autism loves the structure and the ADHD likes to forget about structure, hyperfocus on whatever I'm up to and ruin it, so I've got my old phone but a really annoying high pitched repetitive tone on it and set an alert to eat and I find it annoying enough to make me get up and once I'm detached from my focus I can usually go find food rather than waiting too long and wanting to eat the world.

    On the subject of eating disorders I thought I had a binge eating disorder (I still might to be fair but its less likely) but when I spoke to the GP about it he said it sounds more like disordered eating from adult ADHD and turned out I had ADHD so it was pretty spot on and once the Autism became clear the restrictive eating made sense too.

    Not sure if any of that helps but I hope you find a way to get to a place with food your comfortable with

Reply

  • I am with you on this one, I have a complex history with food, I vary from being very restrictive in what I eat when I'm not mentally well to having a reasonable range of foods when I'm fine, however, I struggle with it. My ADHD messes me up when it comes to impulse control if I'm buying my own food but for the last year I haven't been able to buy my own food because I couldn't go out so I'm eating a lot of processed stuff. If food is around me I tend to eat it almost on autopilot too. I also have a thing where I can't tell what I want so if I'm hungry, thirsty, tired, uncomfortable etc I struggle to know what's up so I tend to eat and drink a lot to avoid that. Unfortunately, the pandemic really has messed me up because I work from home, live and home, and never really leave home which actually was good for my mental health but terrible for my physical one.

    However, since I discovered My Autism and ADHD I have managed to make some changes. I keep executive dysfunction foods in the house ready so if I just need a meal something reasonably healthy is super easy. I have found that I must eat almost as a stim if food is close because since I've kept a stim toy with me I haven't found packets of biscuits doing that thing where you eat one and the rest disappear. Also, this one is really difficult for me being ADHD (not sure your diagnosis) but I've managed to get myself in something if an eating routine, the autism loves the structure and the ADHD likes to forget about structure, hyperfocus on whatever I'm up to and ruin it, so I've got my old phone but a really annoying high pitched repetitive tone on it and set an alert to eat and I find it annoying enough to make me get up and once I'm detached from my focus I can usually go find food rather than waiting too long and wanting to eat the world.

    On the subject of eating disorders I thought I had a binge eating disorder (I still might to be fair but its less likely) but when I spoke to the GP about it he said it sounds more like disordered eating from adult ADHD and turned out I had ADHD so it was pretty spot on and once the Autism became clear the restrictive eating made sense too.

    Not sure if any of that helps but I hope you find a way to get to a place with food your comfortable with

Children
  • in reply to Pax

    This is very similar to my habits with food. I have a diagnosis of autism but not adhd. I'm not sure if that is something the team I was assessed by looked at as it was an adult autism team and I didnt ask if they consider alternative diagnoses. I also throw my routines out of the window a lot and then I end up feeling unwell with anxiety, but I simultaneously crave routine. I've recently started a new job and I previously liked having my lunch at 12pm every day but the new job keeps interrupting that and I don't end up eating lunch until 1pm. 

    I suppose I could eat at 12pm whilst I work but that doesn't appeal to me. I like to eat away from my desk. Like you I am also working from home, although this past month with changing job I am now in a job that I can go to the office one day a week. Even when I take lunch to work I end up buying extras though. I just can't seem to stop?!