Are you addicted to food, always feel like you’re on the verge of falling off the wagon, and are sick of feeling trapped by your addiction? This is the story for you. A guy who was once just like you shares his struggles and how he finally overcame his food addiction.
Let’s call him Steve, a guy I knew a lot about.
How Steve became seriously obese
Steve was born in a family where the grandparents were wealthy, but his parents were not so. As an only child, he was the pride and joy of his grandparents. It was a good relationship between him and his grandparents and mother, but he never felt loved by his father.
For his father, the only important thing was the alcohol. There was a severe problem with alcoholism in his life. Although his father worked hard, he was almost always drunk at the end of the day. It’s no wonder his mother and his father quarreled a lot. Steve had to listen to it day by day. His only option was to lock himself in his room, playing computer games to distract himself from the situation.
Steve’s whole family suffered from obesity, and he did as well. It was a typical family who could only find happiness through food. What they were going to eat was always a conversation between them. For me, it seemed like their whole life was about what to eat and when.
This mentality was unfortunately passed down to Steve. Sometimes when we were together, I couldn’t believe how much he could put into his stomach. And when he finished, he was already thinking about what he would eat the next time. It was crazy for me.
Credit: mind.help
Having an alcoholic father made his food addiction worse. He was attacked from all sides. When his father was at home, he ate to ease the stress. Whenever he felt depressed because of his father, he ate. His grandmother and mother also stuffed him to compensate for the pain his father had caused him. Every day he drank 4-5 big bottles of cola, and no matter how much or what was on the table, it disappeared in his stomach.
It is no wonder that by his fifteen, he was close to 300 pounds; by his twenties, he was 400 pounds.
By the time Steve was in his 20s, his obesity had already caused him many health problems. He suffered from high blood pressure, high cholesterol, insomnia, and joint pain and was always exhausted. The conditions made him very uncomfortable and made things difficult for him. In fact, his weight was so out of control that it was difficult for him to get around for longer.
The teasing he received from his classmates and the difficulty he had finding clothes that fit contributed to his depression, leading him to eat more.
Obviously, we cautioned him to change because he was too young to live such a life, and he would suffer many health problems in the long run. But he didn’t really care about that. I believe his father should have motivated him to change, but he didn’t.
He kept destroying himself.
The change
Finally, his parents divorced, and his father moved to another city. They should have done it much sooner, I believe. So, one of the factors that forced him to eat ceased. We could see some changes. He lost a few pounds, and his mood was much better. But, the breakthrough didn’t come for a few years.
He was about 25 when he found a nice girl on a dating site who suffered from a problem like Steve. She was also addicted to food. It was love at first sight. We were a bit afraid that they would get even deeper into eating together. However, just the opposite happened.
Both of them had wanted to lose weight before, but they hadn’t found the proper support who understood them. They now had it. This led them to decide to make a permanent change in their lives. They set a goal that soon they were going to have a baby. What a powerful motivation!
Firstly, they asked for help from a nutritionist who put together a gradual diet. They threw away junk food and cooked their meals with healthy ingredients. They also controlled their daily calorie intake. They lost tens of pounds thanks to their diet, so the next step was to start some exercise. They began by walking. They took long walks during the evening, which helped them mentally and physically. That led to even more weight loss.
We were amazed at their transformation, and Steve and his girlfriend were feeling better than ever. They were finally able to fit into clothes that they had long ago given up on and had more energy than ever before. Thanks to their hard work, they have lost significant weight and are now in the best shape. And, thanks to their better health, they are on the road to being parents since Steve’s spouse is pregnant now.
What a success story, isn’t it?
What is the moral of the story?
I want to share this story to make you understand that behind food addiction are mainly negative emotions. The food gives temporary relief, a kind of happiness to compensate for the negative feelings. Steve’s story illustrates that the need for food is reduced once the causes stop and are replaced by positive emotions such as love, hope, and goals. These positive feelings pushed him forward to change his life drastically.
So, if you feel you have problems with overeating, you need to look inside and understand the causes so that you can change. If you can’t find it, you can ask for help from a therapist, and together you can discover the problem.