Addiction

[FTL.Wanderer]

Over the past year, locked up at "home," I finally kicked my sugar addiction. It was very, very, very hard. The worst is that nothing I tried to replace sugar with comforts me when I feel very bad. People used to laugh at me when I confessed to having a sugar addiction. So I stopped sharing. But anyone else with a sugar (or other food) addiction knows it can own your life.

If only I could at least say that I feel better for having given up sugar and switched to a far more nutritious diet. But I feel pretty much the same. At least I'm saving what I used to spend every day on junk food...

Anyone else have or had a sugar addiction? Did you find anything to replace it successfully?

 

[stygal]

Yes, I am addicted to sugar as well.
Whenever I start eating something even slightly higher in processed sugar I go all in and don't stop until it's all gone.
Sugar is the worst.
Whenever I stop eating it for a few days everything gets better: digestion, mood, hunger cues, skin...only fruits and occasional use of sweetners help me not to crave it though.
I try to avoid it as best as I can.

 

[FTL.Wanderer]

Yes, I am addicted to sugar as well.
Whenever I start eating something even slightly higher in processed sugar I go all in and don't stop until it's all gone.
Sugar is the worst.
Whenever I stop eating it for a few days everything gets better: digestion, mood, hunger cues, skin...only fruits and occasional use of sweetners help me not to crave it though.
I try to avoid it as best as I can.

Did you find anything else to comfort you instead, if you ever used sugar as a source of comfort?

 

[Life_and_Death]

yes, i was horrible for eating raw sugar out of the bowl when no one was looking.

 

[FTL.Wanderer]

yes, i was horrible for eating raw sugar out of the bowl when no one was looking.

When I was a kid, my mom would take me with her to a tea reader. I'd sit at a table by myself munching on sugar cubes. At 7 or 8. Later, I'd to out to pancake houses for shots of hot maple syrup in those tiny (1 ounce?) cups they provided for your pancakes.

Did you ever join OA. Quick story. An old college roommate and I once went to an OA meeting near campus, thinking we could kick our respective food addictions. We got so hungry listening to everyone talk about food, we went to the bakery right downstairs in the meeting building right after they let us out, only to find 2/3rds of the room already there. For the next two months, every day I bought SIX giant cookies--chocolate chip (gooey and hot) and Heath Bar crunch. I'm breathless right now remembering...

Food addiction sucks.

 

[Life_and_Death]

When I was a kid, my mom would take me with her to a tea reader. I'd sit at a table by myself munching on sugar cubes. At 7 or 8. Later, I'd to out to pancake houses for shots of hot maple syrup in those tiny (1 ounce?) cups they provided for your pancakes.

Did you ever join OA. Quick story. An old college roommate and I once went to an OA meeting near campus, thinking we could kick our respective food addictions. We got so hungry listening to everyone talk about food, we went to the bakery right downstairs in the meeting building right after they let us out, only to find 2/3rds of the room already there. For the next two months, every day I bought SIX giant cookies--chocolate chip (gooey and hot) and Heath Bar crunch. I'm breathless right now remembering...

Food addiction sucks.

no i didnt but your story about sugar cubes reminded me that id share them with my horses. 1 for you 1 for me lol. it also reminded me that when i was little we would go to a restaurant and i would eat the little sugar bags. not knowing there was any difference i grabbed a sweetener. that works if you dont want to do that again lol eww

 

[lost_soul83]

I am hopelessly addicted to sugar and processed food. And worse, I'm on methadone, which makes you crave sugar even more! I drink at least 4-6 cans of Monster a day, plus candy bars, cupcakes, etc. it's horrible! I know how bad all this stuff is for me but I'm so addicted I can't imagine my life without it! If anyone has any suggestions on how to kick this addiction to sugar, please let me know!

 

[kkatt]

Everyone has an addiction to something and it is all relevant. If it controls your life,it is every bit as bad as a class A drug.
I quit heroin after 30 years and there is only one way to quit an addiction IMO.
You have to be ready. Fed up of it. Had enough. Tired and bored. If you still like it,you will just set yourself up to fail and each time you fail,failing will become easier.
There are techniques you can use to make yourself believe you genuinely don't like this stuff. I've done that with a few things. But it isn't easy at all.
Good luck

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

I think the only thing I'm physically addicted to is caffeine. I literally get intense migraines anytime I go more than two days without consuming enough caffeine. There was a time when I tried to kick it entirely but that ended up only lasting a few weeks and I had constant headaches everyday most of the time no matter what medicine I took. Nowadays when I get caffeine headaches, I have to drink like some coffee or tea and take a pill to get it to stop.

 

[kkatt]

For many years I was convinced I was being given placebos by the doctors as no medicines seemed to have any effect not any withdrawal symptoms.
Same goes for any drugs or alcohol,no matter how hard I would hit it.
In fact,I would quit various drugs and alcohol simply because I thought "What's the point of spending this money when it's doing nothing?".
But like anyone,I had my achilles heel,which was opiates. For me,that is a special kind of hell and I will always be an addict,just not using today