What is Compulsive Overeating? Signs and Treatment Options

Compulsive overeating is not about hunger. It’s about food becoming much more a part of your life than just fuel for your body. Sometimes referred to as food addiction, it is a disordered behavior that stems from emotional issues and involves a compulsive relationship with food that results in excessive overeating that feels out of control.

The compulsive overeater turns to food for comfort, to fill a void, as a pick me up or as a reward to help deal with intense emotional experiences or celebrate the positive ones. They also use food to cope with everyday triggers such as stress, depression, negative body image, or low self esteem.

The overeater eats to feel better, but his or her pleasure is fleeting, and instead of feeling better, he or she often experiences quite the opposite when the waves of guilt, shame, and/or self-loathing over his or her behavior hit, making him or her feel much worse.

Is compulsive overeating the same as food addiction?

Compulsive overeating and food addiction appear to be similar on the surface, and the behaviors associated with them often overlap, but there are some subtle differences between them.

Compulsive overeating is a psychological behavior rooted in underlying emotional issues. People who struggle with compulsive overeating tend to eat to suppress or soothe negative emotions. Typically, they recognize that their eating behavior is abnormal, and they struggle to break out of the cycle of their overeating, but keep their pain and fear to themselves out of shame.

Treatment focuses on identifying and resolving the underlying emotional issues that trigger the overeating so that the overeater can learn how to have a healthy relationship with food.

Food addiction, on the other hand, is more biochemical in nature, the issue being the food itself. The person dealing with food addiction experiences an actual chemical change in his or her body from eating specific highly palatable sugar laden, salty, or high fat foods that create a physical high.

These foods trigger the release of dopamine in the brain, activating its taste reward and pleasurable regions, and creating a psychological and emotional link between the food and the feeling of wellbeing.

The person becomes addicted to the highs, and will eat more and more of the addictive food to create the sensation of euphoria. His or her cravings demand to be satisfied whether he or she is hungry or not, and once he or she starts eating, he or she feels out of control and unable to stop.

Treatment focuses on identifying the foods that create the addictive response, and encouraging the food addict to abstain from them.

How does compulsive overeating start?

Compulsive overeating usually starts gradually. A child, for instance, may turn to food when they’re upset and over time learn that food helps soothe upset feelings. It might begin as a mindless habit such as eating a bag of chips every night while watching TV.

It can also be triggered by food deprivation, such as an overly restrictive diet that involves counting calories, fasting, and/or eliminating foods. When the body has been deprived of calories or certain foods for too long, it tends to shift into survival mode, triggering an overpowering urge to binge that takes over your brain and actions, and demands satiation at all costs.

Symptoms of compulsive overeating.

• Gorging on more food than your body can physically tolerate.
• Eating even when you’re not hungry.
• Continuing to eat even when you feel full, and eating much more than you intended.
• Eating to the point of feeling sick to your stomach.
• Feeling out of control while eating.
• Going out of your way to obtain certain foods.
• Engaging in grazing behavior where you constantly nibble on food throughout the day even when you are not hungry.
• Looking to food for comfort to help you feel better.
• Spending excessive amounts of time thinking about food and planning or fantasizing about what you are going to eat.
• Feeling uncomfortable eating in front of others and preferring to eat alone.
• Having negative feelings about yourself after overeating, but doing it again and again.
• Feeling ashamed or remorseful about the way you eat and/or look.
• Trying many diets without lasting success.
• Having feelings of low self-worth.
• Frequently eating alone or secretly hiding how much food you are consuming.
• Hiding and/or hoarding food.

Tips to help you limit overeating.

Identify your triggers.

Making a precise list of the foods that trigger your cravings can help you prepare for those moments before they happen by coming up with ways to address them when they do. If you know you automatically reach for the chips when you’re feeling stressed, for instance, plan to take a walk first, or do a chore, or call a friend. Chances are the craving will have passed by then, and you’ll be on the way to creating healthier ways of responding to your trigger.

Make a list of non-food rewards.

Explore new ways you can reward yourself that aren’t food related. Make a list of things from which you can choose and keep whatever you need to do them on hand.

Remove temptation.

Don’t keep tempting food in the house. Try replacing processed, addictive, junk foods you normally gravitate to with more natural, nourishing alternatives, such as substituting fruit for sugary treats, or popcorn for potato chips.

Stay hydrated.

Staying hydrated has been found to be an effective way of preventing overeating. Possibly because we sometimes confuse hunger and thirst, and eat when we’re actually thirsty.

Find someone to whom you can be accountable.

Having a positive, supportive friend to encourage you and hold you accountable can help you stay on track.

Seek help.

Working with a trained mental health professional experienced in dealing with eating disorders can help you uncover and deal with the psychological or emotional triggers that may be driving your behavior.

Keep a food diary. Keeping a food diary is a good way to prevent mindless eating, get a better awareness of what you’re actually eating and when, and enable you to identify poor eating habits or patterns.

Join an overeaters support group.

Support groups can help reduce your sense of isolation, and provide encouragement, hope, accountability, and real world tips on how to keep food cravings under control.

Treatment options.

Successful treatment needs to address the emotional and psychological needs behind your overeating and focus on replacing your dysfunctional eating habits with healthy ones. Diets are not the answer.

Some treatments that have been found to be effective include:

Cognitive behavioral therapy.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is a form of talk therapy that focuses on resolving the emotional issues behind your compulsive overeating by identifying and replacing the negative thoughts that precede a binge, and then working on developing skills you can use to help you cope with your triggers in a healthy way rather than look to food for comfort.

Nutritional counseling.

Nutritional counseling and dietary planning can help you develop a healthy approach to food choices and meal planning.

Twelve–step programs.

Twelve-step programs such as Overeaters Anonymous, Food Addicts Anonymous, or Celebrate Recovery are peer support groups that provide a safe, supportive space in which members can share their feelings and experiences and encourage one another as they work through the guiding steps that lead to healing from addiction. Groups are usually led by a member who has been in recovery for some time.

Christian counseling for compulsive overeating.

Christian counseling involves a combination of biblical principles and clinical intervention. If you struggle with compulsive overeating and/or have a food addiction, you don’t have to walk this path alone. Please give us a call today. We would be happy to answer your questions and/or set up an appointment to discuss how we can help you manage the challenges you are facing and walk you through the healing process.