My therapist says that I have learned to detach from my emotions as a way of coping since childhood. I binge eat or drink or just spend too much money shopping. Tonight is one of those nights apparently-since I just ate a ton of crap. I gained 25 lbs. last year after leaving TSCC. Emotional baggage to say the least. I also started spending too much money, it's so compulsive. Anyway, what do you do to detach? Or have you found a better way to deal with it all?

I hate running. It's the worst thing in the world. It's the only thing that would distract me enough to detach from my emotions, since after a few minutes I was so focused on not dying, I couldn't think about anything else.

Running became my way of dealing with things. When I don't run, I stress. By the time I'm done with a run, I'm so mad because I hate running to the point where it's all I'll think about until I fall asleep (assuming it's in the evening). I hope the cycle keeps on working, otherwise I'll have to find something else.

Just make sure you run away from your starting point (and not in a loop), so you're forced to run back. For me, it turns emotional pain into physical pain, which I enjoy. I've ran half marathons and one marathon and never got the "runner's high" either.

Ok, Pineapple. All that you're saying about running I agree with but I decided life is too short to spend any of it doing something I hate and I quit running.

Why do you still run if you hate it so much? Especially if you obsess about it even when you're not running. At least when I was finished, I felt a bit of accomplishment and relief that I didn't have to put those shoes on for another 48 hours.

This is an interesting and helpful thread because I have gained about 15 pounds in the past 3 years and I'm having total failure in not being able to lose any of it. (And I know there is nothing wrong with me physically to preclude me from losing.)

I hope more people contribute.

Try mindfulness based stress reduction. There is compelling evidence for its health benefits, there is lots of free or cheap information about it, and it sounds from your description like you might benefit from learning to accept your feelings without judging them or rushing to silence them.

I know, what I just wrote sounds hokey, but you can look at the research for yourself in Google Scholar--no prayer or fasting required.

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction.

You are trying to comfort yourself through these measures. Try to find other things that you find comforting -- a cuddly pet, a novel, familiar movies, tea, visits to the library, walks, baths, massages, etc.

I guess that means pain is comforting to me...makes sense :)

I have indulged to excess in the first two....but not much anymore (now quality trumps quantity)...and I hate shopping with a passion.

Ron Burr

Buddhism teaches me NOT to detach...but to face life and embrace it head on and be grateful for each and every minute. Everything in my life teaches me something or is just there for me to embrace it.

I've felt similarly. When I left Mormonism I also lost a fiancee that I loved very much. Sent me into a deep depression. Most of my family and friends also abandoned me. I ate too much and I drank too much and I ended up gaining about 30 pounds. One day I woke up and realized I was slowly killing myself and that I needed to make some goals.

I lost the weight in about three months. It became my new focus. I could concentrate on setting up my diet and workout plans and that kept my mind off losing my religion and most of my friends/family, not to mention the woman I loved. After losing the weight I set some new goals. Some involved staying fit. Some were financial. Others involved my future plans. Point is, these goals gave me something to think about, something to focus on. That is what has helped me. Of course I still have my down moments, but having written down goals that I can strive for has really helped me. Good luck, OP.

Posts like this make me smile and give me hope I can do the same :)

I know exactly where you're coming from. I've been eating too much lately and gained some weight. At least I became aware of it and stopped gaining. Now I have to lose, which can actually be a lot of fun if you get into it. Believe me, I've lost weight before.

You need to find ways to interrupt the pattern, as Tony Robbins says. I try to distract myself from eating with books, music, movies, etc. Or it can be fun to procrastinate that pizza until tomorrow or the next day. It's really amusing to use creative procrastination to achieve your own goals for a change.

Thats a strength

Order up ! Organizing comfort increased confort
Order up! Increased awareness of life comforts

You are the chef and the customer has placed an order

Grapple with life routines enriching comforting things
Enriching comfort variables

We all experience comfort different, from different perspectives think ages & stages or inner child. Incorporating or expanding a comfort routine/ stratigically/
Can pay off big for you & everyone involved in your life or life with you

Think coping skills; very strategic sculpting : coping skill enhancement

Write. Just get it all on paper.

After you have a moment where you realize you've eaten, drank, or bought too much, sit down and write about it. Try to remember what you were doing or thinking about right before it happened. The writing can help you identify and avoid future triggers.