Late-night eating

Like many of you, I have a problem with late-night snacking, eating, bingeing ... whatever you'd like to call it. I've settled on the word, "eating" because my night-time caloric intake was usually around 500 calories. Snacking, by my definition, is around 200 calories, and bingeing is in the 1,000+ range.

Somehow, over the years, it became an ingrained habit. After the kids and my husband went to bed, I'd plow my way through anything I wanted. Chips were an especial weakness, but I would also partake in cereal, junky leftovers, Halloween candy, anything that struck my fancy.

I've tried a few different tactics to address this unproductive habit. Nothing ever stuck until, seemingly, three weeks ago, when I ... just stopped. I sat there watching a movie with my family and decided that on that night, I wouldn't eat anything else.

My tummy was rumbling, probably due to mental hunger or habit, but I didn't give in. I got myself a cup of herbal tea and sipped it while sitting with the feeling of hunger. I googled articles and Reddit posts about getting comfortable with hunger and how hunger is part of the human experience and, in moderation, can be beneficial to health.

One Reddit post, in particular, had a few comments that helped me. One commenter likened late-night eating to other forms of addiction and noted that that first week is the hardest and that hunger is a thing that would happen. That helped me frame the situation as just a hump I had to get over. The week would pass anyway, regardless of whether I gave into my desire or not and whether I was hungry or not.

For the first night that I can remember in my entire life, I went to bed hungry. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't impossible either, and I didn't die. For the next week, and on and off since then, I've gone to bed "hungry."

I thought I would have trouble sleeping, but in fact, I have slept better than ever. Maybe it's because my body isn't preoccupied with digesting all those calories ingested right before bed. I think a large part of it is that I don't have excess calories fueling energy unnecessarily when I'm trying to wind down for the night.

There is a "truth" out there that habits take 21 days to form. I've read that some experts say, in fact, they can take much longer than that-- in some cases, up to a year. In my case, I think that 3 weeks has gotten me through the danger zone, but it will be another year or two before I can call this battle won. 

Part of the reason I think this is because I stopped drinking for 2.5 years after a decade-plus of abusing alcohol. When I tried having a drink after that period of time had passed, I found that I could enjoy drinking moderation. I can have a glass once every few months, and not feel like I have to keep drinking until I lose the capacity to form short-term memories.

In fact, now I don't even enjoy drinking. I have fond memories of sipping a glass of cold Sauvignon Blanc at an outdoor restaurant, and those positive associations make me want to drink. But then I scan my body and mind to see if I actually want a drink. I usually don't.

In the same way, I hope that I can continue this abstinence from late-night eating and make it a permanent part of my lifestyle. I think I can because I now have the most important weapon in the fight ... knowing that being hungry is okay and a normal part of life.