patricia_lawrence

Hello everyone. I am kind of in a fix here, and I need some support to help me out of the situation. I was in a 6-year relationship with my childhood sweetheart, but we called it off, or rather he called it off claiming the usual, "It's me, not you" to support his argument. I am certain it was his next door neighbor Susan who was the reason for this breakup.

Nevermind that b****, as surprising as it sounds, the reason I am in a fix is not because of the breakup, but more so because I have gained 8 pounds since that time. The thing is, I don't really miss him anymore, and apart from getting a glance of him on a few occasions (sometimes with that b****) I really am not in touch with him. So I don't see myself developing any post-relationship trauma.

Then why is it that I have still put on so much weight (mind you, 8 pounds is a hell lot for me. I have a petite figure and would like to stay that way)?

joanna_cooper

Hi Patricia, first of all, damn your ex-boyfriend and damn that Susan (b****). He probably doesn't deserve you after all and I guess calling it off did more good to you than him. Now coming to the point, the only reason that I can understand for this weight gain is post-breakup stress.

You may not realize this as it happens at a subconscious level, that can create a lot of stress causing the affected to binge eat without any knowledge of the binge eating. Confused? Ok, remember the time after the breakup when you saw your boyfriend with Susan and you ignored it as a casual encounter. What happened after that? Twenty bucks say you went home or to an eatery and ate your heart out.

Awaiting your response.

patricia_lawrence

OMG, you're right. After seeing him, I went for a quick bite to a local diner nearby that day. Gosh, how could I forget? Now I remember as I ate more than my normal diet and that is something I can't forget. But I never imagined it was connected to seeing him. And if I can recollect now, I clearly remember eating something or the other after the 4 times that I have seen him post-breakup.

What is happening to me? Am I still in love with him? What do I do? Joanna, please help me out.

joanna_cooper

Hey Patricia, take a breath babes. Don't lose control of yourself. Think rationally. Now whether you're still in love with him or no, I cannot say much on that. It is for you to decide for yourself. However, I can relate to you how I handled this post-breakup binge eating myself.

First of all, I was in luck as I never bumped into my ex-boyfriend after our breakup, like never ever. However I did miss him a lot, and this put me into a lot of stress. I went into severe depression and that affected my diet as I found myself scouting for goodies in the refrigerator everytime I missed him. I put on 10 pounds in the first month after the breakup. The number on the weighing scale flipped my lid and I vowed to do something about it.

So I re-stocked my refrigerator with all the low-calorie items I could get hold off (low-calorie cereal, I can't believe it's not Butter, low cal ice-cream, skimmed milk, etc). Believe me, in the beginning, they taste awful, but once you've developed a taste for it, they are the next best thing you need to uplift your mood. They may not help reduce your weight, but they will definitely not contribute to increasing it either.

bettybotsomebutter

I agree here with Joanna. That is the best way to tackle this situation. Let go of the goodies and stock up the crappy stuff, until the time you are sure you are completely over him.

patricia_lawrence

Thanks a lot, Kate and Joanna. Let me give your suggestion a try. Hopefully, should do the trick for me.