Why diets don't work

Welcome Michele. Still trying to find the answer to '' Why I Eat and What is Bugging Me" after many many years. Gosh my counselor asks me that routinely and I am still trying to find the answer. WLS didn't help nor do diets for me that is. If I really thought about when the last time I ate because I was ''REALLY'' hungry I honestly could NOT remember. If I keep busy (really busy ie: md appts, shopping/holiday,traveling) I actually forget to eat and that isnt always good since I am still a Diabetic. If I clock watch, I think I must need food since it is breakfast, lunch and or dinner time. I tend not to wear a watch most of the time. Helps at times I must say. Please stay around here and help us learn Whats Bugging Us Besides Food!!!!!

Thanks - I will definitely stay around. This sounds a bit trite but awareness really is the first step. Just asking yourself whether you are hungry whenever you feel like eating will help you connect with your physical needs vs. your other triggers. Hunger is a physical set of symptoms - not thoughts like, "It's 12:00, I should eat lunch." It may be hard but try to trust your body to let you know when it needs food - and meet your other needs in more effective ways than eating. Like I said, simple but not always easy!

But what about the individual who is chronically messed up in the "am I hungry" department? I can go all day (or even 2) without eating and not have a single hunger pang...  never have a thought that I *should* eat.  Then all of a sudden I am RAVENOUS and anyone between me and the fridge had better watch out. OR I can eat regular small meals and avoid any real hunger feeling and only deal with the head hunger.  This is the hunger that hits me when I walk out of the office and smell the fried chicken from the grocery deli... I know full well that I am not *really* hungry, because I just ate... but the SMELL or THOUGHT of food is so compelling that I actually feel hunger. Just typing about the fried chicken has made me hungry.  There is an empty pang in my stomach and it gave a little growl.  I know I am not really hungry.  I just ate an hour ago.  But like I said my hungry meter is very broken.

Obviously you have to do what works for you. I tend to think long term - how long can you deal with the head hunger without going back to overeating eventually? It helps me to use different words to describe the feeling of wanting to eat and needing to eat. Using your example, I won't say "the fried chicken made me hungry" but I will say, "I felt like eating when I smelled the fried chicken." That seems like a small thing but it really helps me stay clear about the difference. At first, a lot of people I've worked with have a hard time noticing when they are hungry until the feeling is very strong. Instead of eating by the clock every couple of hours, could you practice really checking in with your body every couple of hours? I said really checking in because at first, you need to actually stop whatever else you are doing, close your eyes and focus on your physical sensations, your thoughts and your feelings. Hunger symptoms are essentially caused by an empty stomach (i.e. gnawing, growling, empty feeling) and a falling blood sugar (i.e. difficulty concentrating, irritability, shakey, headache).  The thoughts and feelings will give you clues about what is really going on. By training yourself to notice the symptoms before you are overly hungry decreases that natural devouring impulse. It takes time to get reconnected so be patient with yourself.