So, I’m not sure if this is a breakthrough or a realisation, but it hit me like a tonne of bricks why I can’t lose weight. Some may find it difficult to understand; but, I will do my best to explain.
I recently fasted for 48 hours, partly because I was feeling bloated and unpleasant. During the fast, I was searching for meals to make for my spouse when a thought occurred to me. I have food fomo. I believe this food obsession derives from growing up so impoverished and never knowing where my next meal would come from.
When we had a few extra dollars, my parents would treat us to fast food, which made us feel like kings. So, from that point forward, I always thought of eating out as a treat. And, with the food fomo, as I grew older, I felt compelled to keep eating/clear my plate/eat my entire meal for fear of missing out on my next meal. This resulted in A LOT of overeating over the years. Another food phobia I discovered is the fear of eating out at restaurants because the establishment may close.
Another food fomo. I realised I have a fear of eating out at restaurants because they may close. So, if someone asked whether I wanted to eat out at this or that restaurant, I’d always say yes, because god forbid that establishment closes and I’m unable to eat there again. Thinking about it now, it sounds ludicrous, yet I’ve thought this way for almost 35 years.
Thank you for sharing your realisation; it sounds like a huge step forward in understanding your connection with food. It’s inspiring to see how self-awareness can make such a difference on the path to greater health!
It was nearly alarming to me to realise I had food fomo. I was thinking, “How the heck does someone have a fear of missing out on food?” “Food can be found everywhere.” But I suppose it’s so deeply ingrained when you grew up like I did.
This makes great sense to me, and I applaud you for realising this and taking action. I don’t have food fomo, but for years I was under the impression that overeating was a way of life because everyone in my family did it, and all of the ladies in my family are large. I also realised and acknowledged that you cannot outtrain a terrible diet. For years, I exercised virtually every day and lost nothing. I finally understand, and I’m losing weight–slowly but steadily. Good luck!
Thank you for sharing! That is a significant step in repairing your relationship with food: understanding how it was destroyed in the first place. Over time, I’ve realised that this was something that affected me as well. The entire “clean your plate no matter what” approach. So I’d clean my plate, but then I noticed my mum hadn’t completed hers, so I finished that as well. You don’t want to waste it, right? Except she usually put a lot of stuff on her plate and only ate some of it, so I was easily consuming 2-4 pieces of hamburger helper per night. I was a child.
Mine was realising that every meal I had growing up was eaten as quickly as possible. Most lunches were quick stops at petrol stations before returning to work in the fields. Supper was delivered to us, or we didn’t eat. Caffeine was necessary to keep going. And I figured it was how everyone lived, or at least everyone who farmed. Little did I know that most people took a break for lunch and supper, sat down, ate, and Mayne took a little 20-minute nap. And the food at petrol stations was not particularly healthful. I’m also working on my relationship with food; I just wish I’d done it when I was 18 instead of 33.