Dear Reddit:

I really hope all of you stop with the 'just eat less' stuff. I too was once really heavy. I too was constantly told 'just go on a diet' 'just exercise' and a bunch of other bull shit.

I was an addict.

What people don't understand is the psychology of eating. We eat because of emotions, because of rejection, because of stress, because of fear, because of caffeine, because of lack of sleep. Most of all, we eat because when we dope our bodies with sugar, we feel GOOD. We feel SLEEPY, and the PAIN we feel inside goes away. I used to eat an entire pizza by myself and then go get doughnuts. Sometimes it was binge eating disorder, sometimes it was just plain addiction to hide the pain inside.

What most people don't understand is it's not about exercise or about eating less. It is about treating the addiction. It is about understanding that there is a mental issue at play, and placating it with sugar and fats is not healthy. I am slim now, and I STILL fall into a bad path of alfredo sauce & pasta (the second most addictive food) and Potato Chips and Dip (the third most addictive food). (number one is fried chicken). Something about the chemicals in these foods fuck with my brain. Add in a bunch of sugar to ease my pain, and yep. I will gain 20 lbs in 3 months.

The hardest thing to do is go cold turkey. Understand that you have an addiction, but that you are better than this. That you have to take control of your body AND mind, and NOT listen to your mind when you salivate for chips, chicken, alfredo, ice cream, and sugar. You have to FIGHT that desire to relax with food, fight the desire to eat away the pain. Nobody gets it like I do. I was there. I am always there. Addicted forever, but now, just slimmer.

When people tell you 'just eat less' just smile, and know that they have no clue about addiction, and how hard you really have it.

The most important step is recognizing you need help and finding people to talk to, support groups, and above all, fight the food addiction.