ED Struggling with unintentional food restriction, disordered eating. Ideas needed.

[whiteraven]

I struggle with what has recently been diagnosed as IBS-D

Intestinal disorders can really mess with your eating habits. I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance and some days I just don't have the emotional energy to think about what I can and can't eat.

 

[FauxLiz]

Thank you @whiteraven it does, I had thought I was past the years of trying to figure out what foods I could and couldn't have when I was a teenager that had significant food allergies (eggs, strawberries, citrus fruits and any whole grain wheat product/food) in a household with a diabetic brother so many foods were forbidden in the house as he did not have the self-restraint to avoid them. Then in high school I had undiagnosed Grave's Disease (Hyperthyroidism) and participated in four varsity sports so eating was something I pretty much did every available minute as I was always hungry. I had my thyroid out in my twenties and did not receive any education related to how to change to healthier eating habits, the IBS-D started but I was too embarrassed at that age to talk to my doctor about it so instead I developed the very unhealthy binge/restrict habits that I struggle with today.

I want to thank everyone that has responded to this thread for helping me to really kind of look at, recognize and acknowledge where my disordered eating habits may have developed from. Probably the biggest take away from all of this is that I need to work with a good dietitian to find a way to start eating more regularly, better, tasting good and easy to make that won't aggravate my IBS-D or my allergies. I am alone now and I need to find a way not to default to eating out (junk food), processed food (canned or frozen meals) or just not eating as many times even if food sounds good I don't feel worthy of the effort it takes to eat let alone eat healthy.

 

[FauxLiz]

As I have mentioned in a previous thread the inpatient staff at RO diagnosed me with an eating disorder centered around restricting intake. With a move, starting a new job not quite a month ago and the impending departure of my son to college. I am not a breakfast person, am struggling to adapt to a full time work schedule after 7 1/2 months off work and most days I go home for lunch and I am exhausted so I take a nap (not sleeping well at night) and after work I still don't have the energy to make food. I kid myself that what I do eat is partially healthy when I stop at convenience store and pick up a bag of mixed nuts for lunch or when I get home I cut up a bell pepper and just eat that with dip.

You have all given me great ideas of protein water etc. but I really need help coming up with ideas that are quick easy and taste good.

 

[ms spock]

Can you cook one day per week, cook up big batches and then freeze them so all you have to do is actually heat them up when you come home?

 

[Tinyflame]

@FauxLiz , I hope it's ok to be pretty blunt, it's just because I must rush. Recall reading your other thread.

Agree with @Living in the 70s . Pre-do. Love your microwave, even, they are really handy.

As a person who has spent 35+ years eating one (if that) meal a day, and running an 18 hour minimum day, I find this helps:

-Have food on hand: plan, buy, stock, cook. It needn't be French Cuisine, just nutritious (real food)
-Structure the times you eat. Plan times.
-Make yourself eat if not hungry, at those times. Think of it as medicine. Think of not eating for 24 hours as resulting in brain cell death (true)
-Don't obsess. Your body will withstand much abuse (take it from me). In fact, thinking a lot about food, and talking about it, or preparing it for others, can be associated with trying to not eat. I have the opposite problem. I care so little I sometimes don't even remember to.
-Don't reward yourself for it; it's not control (that's an illusion), it won't control pain except through numbness and lack of focus
-Do things to work up an appetite
-Have 'fun foods' if you have any
-Examine if it's part of depression
-examine if it's part of self-hatred. Would you treat your car this way and still expect it to get you to work? Recognize you do deserve it.
-Recognize all it's going to do is make the day harder, your sleep poorer, and your wrinkles and/or sagging skin greater. It will often slow down your metabolism to compensate and you will gain weight
-Be proud of yourself for battling another aspect
-Know it's a sign of good mental health
-Be kind to yourself. You've gone through immense changes lately. :hug:

(Sometimes understanding the why's, can help you to figure out the how's).

 

[Mach123]

Crock pot, make food for a week with an hour or so preparation. : )

 

[Friday]

C’est Moi

Quick easy & taste good =

- someone else made it (whether dine in, take out, or a yogurt)
- microwave (frozen I made, or someone else made, & nuked Voila!)
- no thinking required (for me this is sandwiches, for you this sounds like peppers and dip? Anything else you can make beat up from the street up, half asleep, and with one arm tied behind your back? If so... USE it! :D I know the impulse is to replace the old with the new, but truly, add other things to what you currently do, rather than trying to replace them.)

***

Not a breakfast person... have you tried lunch/dinner for breakfast? The horribly sweet sugar laden &/or swimming in grease (read cereal/toast/pancakes, eggs/bacon/sausage) make a lot of people even without ED horribly nauseous, tired, or grossed out. :wtf: Carbs + fats are just icky & regrettable to a lot of us in the morning. But dinner leftovers, or a sandwich? Are perfect.

Clearly, I’m talking about “style” of food, when I say breakfast... I only ever eat breakfast for dinner... but one of my BEST ED tricks is numbering meals rather than naming them. I decide on a basic diet, and then divide them into the course of a day. My best personal diet = eating 5 or 6 times a day. “Normal” sized meals make me feel sick, trigger the hell out of me (internal pressure is no bueno for me), and I will skip them rather than eat them. But it doesn’t have to be all or nothing.

((Knowing I have a strong tendency for all or nothing gives me an edge, too. Because I can have the restaurant portion my meals for me (the hoagie shop will cut 2 halves, 3 thirds, 4 quarters to go; most restaurants will put half in a ToGo box before plating so you never even have to see it until you leave > a weight loss thing for most people, for me it’s an Eat-MORE-Friday-Dammit thing) when I’m out, and portion my own when I’m in. I don’t have to eat it all now. Knowing your own hang-ups? To my way of thinking is a reeeeally good thing!))

So, for me, knowing I’m not a breakfast person isn’t a reason to skip breakfast. It’s a reason to find ways around that.

Numbering is one way I do it. Content is another. Without those workarounds, and yours may be completely different, “breakfast” is never quick and easy.

 

[FauxLiz]

Thank you everyone. I am really good at eating leftovers from when I go out and making one meal last 2-3. And crockpot meals are great but feel like a waste of food when there is only one person eating and the same meal day after day gets old. When I microwave it is usually prepackaged foods which are not really healthy. As for dine-in or carryout restaurant foods not only does that get expensive but in a town of 2,000 people the options are pretty slim and repetitive. As for breakfast for lunch or dinner or vise versa well I would love to eat breakfast foods. I love eggs over easy with a piece of toast or hashbrowns. Unfortunately, allergies prevent me from eating eggs. I love citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruit but again allergies. With intestinal issues eating anything slight flavorful for breakfast will have me living in the bathroom all morning. I know I probably sound like I am making excuses but what ever they are I just am trying to be honest because I really struggle with this and I recognize it has gotten worse since being on my own since my move this summer.

 

[Friday]

I know I probably sound like I am making excuses but what ever they are I just am trying to be honest because I really struggle with this and I recognize it has gotten worse since being on my own since my move this summer.

They’re not excuses, they’re challenges you have to work around. Acknowledging them let’s you actually build a diet that can become a lifestyle. :tup: :D That’s a good thing!

 

[FauxLiz]

so today I went to the opposite extreme and feel like all I have done was eat. I think I know why partly because of sending my son to college yesterday partly because I am still upset with new T after our session yesterday. I never really thought of these issues in the past and really didn't pay attention now that I am trying to remember to track my food my challenges with food are becoming more evident.

 

[Abstract]

Awareness is the first very important step so well done. Have you tried journalling your emotions every day? Finding another outlet?

 

[Kintsugi]

Hey, so, I’m in a bit of the same boat as you. I used to be pretty critically anorexic as a teen, and I’ve struggled with food ever since. Weirdly what helped me the most for the longest time was crushing poverty, and now I’m not that poor, so I need a new solution. Unfortunately, I have no advice beyond what’s been given except that homemade parfaits, constructed the night before, are awesome and IME good for IBS woes.

But the IBS-D is what I really want to address. I developed IBS about 1.5 years ago because of stress. I had the amazing luck of being told, one week before my symptoms developed, that peppermint capsules had been a godsend for my coworker. I order Heather’s Tummy Tamers off of Amazon (peppermint, ginger, and fennel)—$10/90. I used to take 3/day when it was really bad. I still take one a day now. I also try to take a probiotic daily when I can afford them.

My food triggers were spicy foods, cheese, and meat. Eating tons of fiber (really, an unrealistic amount) or adding quite a lot of Benefiber to my drinks helps a lot, too. I tried to add more pickled foods, whole grains, and raw vegetables to my diet. I realize you might not be there yet.

Something that helped me in the mornings (and afternoons... and evenings... whenever I wasn’t/I’m not eating) were granola bars, protein bars, and peanut butter crackers. Sooooo many peanut butter crackers. It became a running joke in my classes that I was some sort of squirrel, constantly eating crackers, cashews, and assorted food bars. What they didn’t know was that I wasn’t eating anything else but liquor. Those things really kept me going in a time where I would either not eat because of stress or eat and cry because my stomach was killing me and my bowels were controlling my life.