- Date posted
- 5y
- Date posted
- 5y
I am also struggling with this. I have not started therapy yet but I do tomorrow and I hope I can share what helps! I know they say to imagine the worst case scenario (Perhaps that you gain a lot of weight and feel really uncomfortable or something) and then sit with that very strong distress until it dissipates. I do not think about my weight all the time anymore so there is hope!! I feel so much better. But I do struggle with compulsively counting calories.
- Date posted
- 5y
I'm not an expert, but maybe everytime you get the thought to weigh yourself or excessively count calories, remind yourself that no one else will notice or care as much as you do. We are so quick to overly judge ourselves. We don't talk to other people so negatively as the way we talk to ourselves. I used to care a lot about my weight and image and then found someone who thinks extra weight is cute. It allowed me to reassess how much stock I put into my weight when it didn't really matter. Now, sometimes I think about the food I'm ordering or such and as soon as I do I try to think "who cares!?" If Im hungry and want it, so be it. You can try to have a set day for weighing yourself! And on the days you're not supposed to weigh yourself, you could walk away and refocus on something else. If you still have the urge to weigh yourself just be sure to give yourself positive feedback like, "okay, I let myself step on the scale today when I wasn't supposed to, but that doesn't mean I'm a failure! Next time I'll try harder to refocus and wait until I'm supposed to weigh in!" As for counting calories, maybe find alternate solutions first. Like, allow yourself to eat whatever, but make some healthier substitutions! Still eat what you want for dinner, but substitute the chips you want for a snack with carrots. Instead of focusing on calories - focus on what will bring you better nutriotnal value!
- Date posted
- 5y
also, just remember, in working out and eating, sometimes results are slow! But that's better than any crash diet/dad! And muscle weighs more than fat! You could also throw out the scale and start using a tape measure. Inches mean more than lbs. But don't jump into measurements if you think you'll just start obsessing over the inches!
- Date posted
- 5y
If you don't have advice but have also dealt with this then I'd be grateful to know that too. It would be relieving to feel less alone in this theme
- Date posted
- 5y
It helped me to switch the motivation behind food choices from “How do I want to look?” to “How do I want to feel physically and mentally?” I find that eating a diet full of fruits, veggies, good meat, nuts, legumes, beans, and actually lots of fat lol helps a lot with my moodiness and inflamed joints.
- Date posted
- 5y
My therapist is certified in nutritional psychology. He suggested I read Mark Hyman’s “Food: What the Heck Should I Eat?” It’s helpful! Best of luck.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 12w
I’m trying to get in with therapy right now, but I’m most concerned on having issues with not eating. Intrusive thoughts and anxiety make me nauseous and distracted from eating. It took me an hour last night to eat instant ramen. Does anyone know what I could do about this? I’m only eating around 1 meal a day and I’m afraid of how this could affect me medically.
- Date posted
- 8w
This is gonna be a long one: So a little over a month and a half ago, my OCD started to spiral again. I’ve had ups and downs with it in the past, my main themes often changing. When I was younger it as afraid I’d run away, in middle school it was germs. But as I got older I started having intrusive thoughts of the meaning of life, suicide, and dying, with those fears being my common themes now I’ve gotten a lot better since it started back up, but lately have been panicking because I’ve had intrusive thoughts that my methods of trying to heal are wrong. I’m 21, and for the last 3 years have lacked ambition and haven’t pursued my dreams or things I want to do. I just sleep, work, eat junk food, and play games or watch YouTube on my time off. Things I still love, but after years of living this way, I’ve hit a breaking point and want to start doing more with my life and the people in it Yet, almost EVERY new thing I’ve been trying to do or start, I’ve been having thoughts that they’re wrong or won’t help. Here’s some examples: I’ve started trying to eat a bit healthier, and my brain is telling me it’s not gonna fix me and I’m just avoiding food I like (junk I know makes me tired and sad). Then the moment I indulge in even one unhealthy food item, it tells me I’m failing at taking better care of myself and that junk food just numbs the feelings Same with video games. I tell myself it’s okay to play them as long as it’s not to avoid anything or they don’t take up my life like they have been. The second I do I feel guilty, say it’s cheap dopamine and hindering me from being productive and that I’m numbing my feelings again Same story for everything. Trying to walk and go outside more. Head tells me I’m avoiding being home because it makes me anxious. Then when I stay home it tells me I’m wasting time I could be spending outside or with people I love I’ll wanna spend time with my family or friends because I’ve been a hermit for years and miss spending time with them. When I try to, head tells me I can’t because then I’m avoiding the issues I have and seeking reassurance, and that I need to learn to tolerate this alone. But then when I stay home too long, I get anxious and sad because it does make me happy being around them even if I’m not seeking reassurance, and they genuinely do help me feel better (for example I saw my grandparents last night and talked about my feelings and desire to actually go out and live life, and they helped me understand uncertainty is part of life and I should do things I want anyways and even helped come up with things I may like to try doing. Now my brain tells me it’s bad to get help or open up about my pain) I’ll have racing thoughts in my head and I’ll be arguing with myself over rather it’s better to face them head on, ignore them, or let them run their course. It feels like no matter what I do, I’m feeling guilty and shame for it. As if any attempt at feeling pleasure or doing something that makes me happy is “avoiding the problem”, like I HAVE to focus on my intrusive thoughts, anxiety, and sadness 24/7 otherwise I’m “avoiding/burying it again” I know not to avoid these things and it’s best to confront them (if they’re real problems I have like relationship issues and insecurities and loneliness) and learn to tolerate the anxiety and uncertainty of life and OCD, but my attempts at “helping myself” are quite literally what I feel is currently keeping me so miserable. They’re sucking whatever joy I have in life out, telling me it’s bad, and that I have to feel this way all the time so I can “learn to tolerate it” I’m just so scared of doing all of this wrong, and I think my OCD I knows that and is currently using that to toy with me. I want to be healthier and happier, but then I feel guilt and fear for not being healthy 24/7 and indulging in not healthy things like video games and the occasional junk food. Anybody else ever felt this way?
- Date posted
- 7w
So, I weight 67kg and I am trying to lose weight, but I can't do a diet cuz If I go too long without eating I almost pass out of anxiety, I have a traumatic response due to not eating and then staying in bed and having to do treatments to be able to eat again. I eat a lot of rice and nowdays I am eating much less, cuz before I used to eat ALL the time, and I mean it. I am having problems leaving my house due to my anxiety and I am only able to go out for small walks or a grocery store nearby, months ago I was still in this state, but I was able to really go out, now I can't, cuz at some point I start to automatically have anxious responses and I feel bad. That being said, I am dealing with physical limitations, I can't exercise for more than 10 minutes, and can't go to a gym. I am trying to eat less, and less but I am losing hope that I will never get better and will turn into a fat slob. How can I improve?
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