EP2: WHAT BROUGHT ON YOUR BINGE EATING IN THE FIRST PLACE? (Causes V's Triggers)

In this episode, I'm uncovering the most common causes of binge eating that I come across as a practitioner in the real world, and how it's useful to differentiate them from your triggers, which are usually a whole other kettle of fish.

Thank you for listening to the Binge Eating Dietitian Podcast! As well as over 130 episodes, what else do I have in store for you?

• Grab my free CHECKLIST for a binge-free week here. 
• From Bingeing Unseen To Snack Plate Queen - Free Guide HERE. 
• Come say hi over on INSTAGRAM @binge.eating.dietitian
• Book your 90minute Clarity Consultation with me HERE. 
• (LAST CHANCE - SUNSET SALE) Smash Your Binge Eating Self-Paced Program HERE

Take care of yourself, Jo x

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to the binge eating Podcast. I'm Jo. I'm a registered dietitian and certified Intuitive Eating counselor. I'm here to smash the taboo of binge eating by bringing you personal and professional experience, real life stories and practical advice to help you get your life back from binge eating. Thanks so much for joining me for another conversation about binge eating. Today, it's a really good one, I'm going to be uncovering the five most common causes for binge eating that I come across as a practitioner in the real world. Of course, there are way more than five causes for binge eating. But these are the most common ones that I come across day after day in my practice, and you know, I think some of them are gonna surprise you. I know what you're thinking, you want to stop binge eating, you probably don't want to waste a minute thinking about what may have caused you to start binge eating. You just want the ticket out of here, but just stick with me because as humans, we are meaning seeking creatures. And knowing the why behind your binging may alter how you respond to it, and ultimately help you to move past it. All right, so before I get into the five main causes of binge eating, I want to draw your attention to the title of this podcast, I have called it know your cause versus know your triggers. I consider it causes and triggers to be very separate entities. 

1:32  
A cause is something more profound, more abstract than one particular trigger. And I have to be completely honest with you. No one knows exactly what is the cause of binge eating. But the research shows us that more often than not, there is a range of psychological, psychosocial and hereditary factors at play. So whereas causes are bigger picture things, triggers are usually everyday occurrences. For example, a rough day at work, a stressful conversation, feeling sad or lonely. So I guess you could say that causes bring about binge eating in the first place. And triggers are what keep it going. So today I'm going to take you through the most common causes of binge eating that I see in my practice. And in the next episode, I'll take you through the most common everyday triggers of binge eating. And remember what I said in episode one, we can't put ourselves into little boxes of definitions. If none of these causes relate to you, if none of them strike a chord with you, that's okay. That doesn't mean that your binge eating isn't valid. Even with all the research that we have, we still don't know exactly what causes binge eating or any disordered eating or eating disorder. So a reminder as I'm going through these calls is if none of them relate to you, that's cool. And if all of them relate to you, that's cool, too. Alrighty, so let's crack on here are the five most common causes for binge eating. Number one striving for perfectionism. So here's a good one for you. A common misconception is that perfectionism is simply striving to always do something perfectly. And in fact, that's not what perfectionism means. Perfectionism is striving for unrealistically high standards for yourself. And that doesn't have to be at everything in life that can just be in a couple of areas of life. You may be a perfectionist at work, but not with keeping your house clean. You may be a perfectionist with maintaining an exercise schedule, but not with your college assignments. Where I see perfectionism and binge eating is when you set yourself ridiculously high standards for your food intake. 

3:44  
So you'll lay out a specific plan for eating and veering off this plan means that you haven't been good, you haven't done it right, you have failed. And this sets up the black or white right or wrong good or bad mentality of thinking and approaching food. When you're a perfectionist with food, there's no gray area, there's just you've done it perfectly, or you've completely screwed it up. So take one step outside your perfect plan for eating and you may as well have run a mile in the other direction. So eating something that wasn't on your perfect plan can cause you to just be like, Oh, I've messed up FAK everything and headed straight for binge. It's that mentality of Well, I didn't stick to the plan perfectly, so I failed. So I may as well just go and dive right in at the deep end and binge for as long as I can until I have the strength to get back on my plan again. Striving to be perfect with food can also lead to a whole new realm of disordered eating where you become so obsessed with only eating healthily. And this realm of disordered eating is called orthorexia. orthorexia is not entirely defined yet, but it basically means that you are obsessed with

5:00  
With only eating healthily, you get obsessed with trying to have the perfect diet. So your perfect plan of eating may look like whole grain overnight oats, plant milk, lattes, superfood salads and energy balls from the health food shop. But these perceived healthy diets are often so low in calories that at some point, you get so hungry, and guess what foods appeal to you most when you're hungry? Yep, that's right. high calorie, high fat, high sugar foods, which I'm guessing aren't on your perfect plan of eating. If you're wondering, are you a perfectionist with food? Just take a step back and ask yourself, do I set myself a plan for eating say at the beginning of the week or the beginning of the day? And do I feel like a failure if I eat outside that plan, or if I don't stick to that plan for the entire week? If you're concerned that you may have Orthorexic tendencies about food, just probe a little bit about what your vocabulary that you use either internally or externally about certain foods. Do you use the terms good or bad, clean on clean

6:12  
treat or safe food, even by using these terms are creating this dichotomy that some foods are good and some foods are bad. And let me tell you as a registered dietitian, who's worked for a long time, there is no such thing as healthy and unhealthy foods. All foods are good. And bridging that gap between healthy unhealthy good and bad is a really important part of overcoming binge eating. The second most common cause that I come across for binge eating is a desire to lose weight or to be thin. Our culture values tennis to an insane degree. On from the earliest of ages, we have subliminally been fed the message that thin is good and fat is bad. Just look at Ursula from The Little Mermaid, or Mrs. Trunchbull from Matilda, or as you get a little bit older. And even though she's not a baddie, how Monica is portrayed and friends as been so much better while off since she lost a ton of weight. There are so many industries that make a lot of dollar, because we don't look like how we look. Think about it. Expensive underwear that sucks you in fake tan to make you look thinner, big handbags to make your bum look smaller. 

7:23  
Of course, it's not your fault. If you have a desire to lose weight or be thin. Social media certainly isn't helping, it's almost impossible to not compare yourself to others that you see on there. And to add another extra layer of complexity. Even if you don't compare yourself to anybody else. You may look back at your past and long for the body that you had x number of years ago, some people and this might resonate with you spend their whole lives trying to lose weight and be thin. I've worked with people well into their 80s who are still trying to lose weight. And I'll let you in on a little secret. They all say that they wish they had appreciated the bodies that they had 20 3040 years ago because even though they didn't accept them at the time, they can see now that they were the most beautiful creatures that ever walked the land. The third common cause for binge eating is one that you may not have heard before, but it's very interesting one and one that I come across so regularly. And that's feeling like you don't have control over your life. This one isn't talked about half as much as the other is. 

8:38  
But it's feeling like your life isn't true to you. Like it's not yours. Like you're stuck in a rut. Maybe you're in a job that you hate, or you have weird housemates and your living situation is not what you'd like it to be. Or you're doing a course a college on actually, it's really not for you. Maybe you dream of just dropping everything and traveling the world or you feel like you've outgrown your group of friends. Whatever it is, living a life that doesn't feel like it's your own or isn't fulfilling you is a very, very valid cause for binge eating. When life is like this, you may think, okay, I'll control what I'm eating because I can't control anything else in life. But at the end of the day, I'm the only one who can control what I put into my mouth, right? The thing is, it's not that simple. And remember point number one, when we set high standards for what we eat, it often results in the opposite effect and a backlash binge. And then this can make you feel even worse because not only is life outside of your control, but now your eating is out of control. And this can then make you feel a lot worse, which is completely understandable. If this is you just take comfort in the fact that I

10:00  
How you eat is not entirely in your control. And I know that sounds crazy, but in future episodes, I will explain why. How we eat is not always something that we can control. Common Cause for binge eating number four that I see in my practice is low self esteem. Having low self esteem is a common cause of binge eating. And self esteem is a term that is thrown around a lot. But what actually does self esteem mean? Well, the NHS define self esteem as being the opinion that you have of yourself. So when you have a healthy, high self esteem, you feel positive about yourself and about life in general, you are better able to manage what life throws at you. But when your self esteem is low, you tend to see yourself and your life in a more negative and a critical light. And the thing is, when you have low self esteem, you're more likely to hide yourself away from social situations. And that's where binge eating comes in. 

11:03  
Food becomes a kind of substitute for meaningful social connection, it becomes a kind of friend, and it's a friend that never lets you down. It's a friend that never makes you feel bad because you couldn't go to brunch. And it's a friend that never leaves your tax on double Bluetec. The thing is, though, meaningful social connection is one of your most primal needs. And always turning to food when we're needing social connection is probably not going to serve you in the long term, low self esteem and binge eating are connected in a kind of chicken and egg relationship. It's not entirely clear which comes first, remember that self esteem is having a low opinion of ourselves. So it's entirely plausible that we get a low opinion of ourselves because we're so disgusted by how much that we're binge eating, or is it because you have a low self esteem that you turn to food in the first place, perhaps to make you feel a little bit better, or because you feel that you're not worthy of having a life that you really want. 

12:05  
And lastly, number five is all of the others. I'm sorry, I know that's a bit of a cop out. But there are lots of other causes for binge eating some that we know lots about through research, and some that we don't know very much about at all. For example, an area that the research is emerging is the role of genetics in binge eating. There's a saying in eating disorders that goes like this, genetics loads the gun, and environment pulls the trigger. So it's the relationship between genetics and the environment that we live in, that can cause an eating disorder.

12:42  
So if you have a family member that has a history of binge eating, or any eating disorder, you may be more likely to suffer with an eating disorder or binge eating yourself. Another very valid cause for binge eating is if you have been a victim of trauma such as sexual abuse, and although unpacking the cause of binge eating isn't everything, but if you're looking to get professional help for your binge eating, having an idea of what may have caused, it may be a good guide to choose the correct professional. I'm all about staying in my lane as the binge eating dietitian. So if you have identified that weight loss or trying to be thin or always on a diet, or having Orthorexic tendencies towards food, working with an informed dietician may be the best option for you. But if you feel you struggle with low self esteem, or you have been a victim of trauma or abuse, then I would always recommend that you get yourself into therapy and work with a registered psychotherapist. All right, so just to recap, the five most common causes for binge eating that I see in my practice are number one striving for perfectionism. Number two, a desire to lose weight or be thin. Number three, feeling that you don't have control over your life. 

14:06  
Number four is low self esteem. And number five is everything else. And as I said at the beginning, if none of these resonate with you totally cool, don't freak out about it. And likewise, if they all resonate with you, that is so cool as well. And that often happens. One thing is for sure, though, something that's not a cause of binge eating is because you're greedy, or you have no self control and that you're weak. I hear that all the time as being a cause for binge eating. And that's just not true. Binge Eating is never rooted in greed. It's not your fault. Binge eating can be a literal eating disorder just as valid as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. So please, I beg you too, please offer yourself some real self compassion. All righty. Well, that brings me to the end of today's podcast episode. Thank you so much for sticking with me. I know that this is heavy stuff and I think

15:00  
It's brilliant that you want to stick around and learn more about the possible cause for your binge eating. Because I really believe that knowledge is power. And when we know how our binge eating may have come about, it can give us true insight into how we can start to overcome it. So wild on you. As always, if there's anything that you'd like me to cover on the podcast, feel free to send me a DM I'm at binge eating dot dietitian on Instagram. Give us a follow say hi, I love chatting with y'all. And I'll see you on the next episode. We're listening to this repost episode of the binge eating dietitian podcast if you didn't know already, I am taking some time away from the podcast in 2023. So I can focus on smashing binge eating in other ways. I am doing a doctorate degree. I'm doing a Doctorate of Education Degree in the realm of binge eating. And as you can imagine, it's taking some of my time and attention away from other pursuits like the podcast I am keeping in touch with you on my mailing list though. 

15:59  
So if you go to the link in the show notes now you'll see a link there that says Get your binge free week checklist. When you sign up to get the checklists, you will be added to my mailing list and I'll keep you posted on how things are going over there. And I am sharing all of all the episodes because they are full of wisdom about in eating that I know that you need to hear. So please keep listening and I'll chat to you soon over on my mailing list. Make sure you head to the link in the show notes now and sign up to get your free checklist to have a binge free week and then you'll get my regular emails after that. Until then please take care of yourself podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for individual medical or mental health advice and it does not constitute a provider patient relationship.