night eating page

[patchooli]

i was wondering if anyone has issues with eating at night. after dinner i seem to get an almost unendurable impulse to eat despite not being hungry. i've tried to get around it by eating sunflower seeds, since they require a lot of work to eat and they keep my hands and mouth busy. but, i'd like to just be satisfied after dinner the way i am after breakfast and lunch.

any thoughts?

[ELCO14]

I find when I'm rummaging thru the fridge and cabinets that I'm actually bored... Then I go do some reading, meditation, small set of push ups, squats or pull-ups.

[yodiewan]

I like ELCO14's viewpoint. Try going for a walk if you feel that you've eaten enough. I'll bet your appetite is diminshed soon.

[otzi]

Once I made a conscious decision to not eat anything between supper at 5pm and breakfast at 11am, it made evening snacking more bearable. The desire to eat is still there, down deep, but I can keep it at bay now. I gained 50lbs in 5 years by eating non-stop from the time I got home from work until I went to bed:
ie, snack...supper...dessert...leftovers...something salty...something sweet...more salt...more sweet...something healthy (hmmm nuts!)...peanut butter!...now something salty...OK, time for bed.

[Primal Toad]

I find when I'm rummaging thru the fridge and cabinets that I'm actually bored... Then I go do some reading, meditation, small set of push ups, squats or pull-ups.

I agree with this 100%. If you are busy doing something productive such as reading a book, taking a walk outside, meditating or anything of that nature, then you are much less likely to eat when you are not hungry.

[lucyh]

Yep, that sounds like boredom more than anything. I never just sit and watch TV, I usually knit or fold laundry or something so I won't want to munch on something.

[JKC]

It may be emotional eating - perhaps try tuning into your feelings and seeing if there is something behind the feeling to eat. Sometimes for me wanting to eat all the time can mean I am anxious about something.

[secretlobster]

I have a problem with this too. It's a habit to eat out of boredom, or as a way to feel like you're unwinding from the day. Better to distract yourself with something else, though I find that the rare times I'm home at night and feel like watching TV or reading, I want to be snacking while I do it

[patchooli]

it doesn't seem to matter what i'm doing. even if i'm out and engaged in something, i can't stop thinking about eating something. it's the most bizarre thing. the best i can do is to try to keep myself busy, or choose things that have low calories/carbs and take a lot of effort to eat.

i have so many hormonal issues that i can't help but wonder if it has something to do with that. imbalanced cortisol or melatonin? i don't know.

[camel]

Or it could be a digestive issue or a food sensitivity. Sometimes those can feel like hunger. You could try taking digestive enzymes. Or make a food diary and track it to see if certain foods are triggering it.