If Food Feels Out of Control, You’re Not Broken
Compassionate Binge Eating Disorder Treatment in Bergen County, NJ — Serving Englewood, Englewood Cliffs, Tenafly, Ridgewood, Mahwah, Wyckoff, and surrounding areas through virtual and in-person therapy.
Binge eating disorder can feel overwhelming, secretive, and isolating. You may find yourself eating more than you want, feeling out of control, and then struggling with guilt, shame, and low self-esteem afterward. You may have tried countless diets, meal plans, or “intuitive eating programs” that never seem to work, leaving you frustrated and exhausted.
If food feels like it’s controlling your life, you are not broken. Recovery is possible.
What Binge Eating Disorder Feels Like
Binge eating disorder (BED) is not a failure of willpower.
BED is a way the mind and body attempt to manage overwhelming feelings, stress, or past experiences, and it can affect anyone regardless of age, gender, or body size. It’s a learned coping mechanism that often develops in response to:
Emotional distress, anxiety, or depression
Trauma or past stress
Restrictive dieting or chronic food deprivation
Body dissatisfaction or weight stigma
OCD-like thoughts or perfectionism
Many people with BED experience:
Out-of-control eating that feels impossible to stop
Eating in secret, followed by guilt and shame
Feeling controlled by food or trapped in a cycle of restriction and bingeing
Persistent low self-esteem or body shame
Dieting or “following a plan” that never works
You are not alone in this struggle. BED thrives in secrecy and shame but treatment works when approached with compassion and evidence-based care.
Therapy can help you understand why these patterns developed, break the cycle of restriction and bingeing, manage urges and emotional distress, and build a healthier relationship with food, your body, and yourself.
Restoring Regular, Adequate Eating:
Binge urges are often stronger when the body is undernourished. Skipping meals, restricting calories, or dieting can increase the likelihood of binges.
We help clients
:
Establish consistent, adequate eating patterns
Reduce physiological triggers for bingeing
Reconnect with hunger and fullness cues
Learn that the body is safe when it is fed
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for BED:
CBT is a first-line treatment for binge eating disorder. In therapy, we help clients:
Identify triggers for binge eating
Challenge all-or-nothing thinking about food and body
Break the cycle of restriction, bingeing, and guilt
Develop healthier, flexible responses to urges
Understanding the “Why” Without Blame:
We explore underlying factors behind binge eating without judgment, including:
Chronic stress or burnout
Trauma or emotional neglect
Anxiety, depression, or OCD tendencies
Diet culture, body shame, or weight stigma
