If you're hurting, maybe this can help you

I just e-mailed this to a hurting friend, in part of my reply, and thought if anyone reads this, who is suffering, maybe some of this might help you.

1. *I* find that I am much much much less tempted to binge - even not tempted at all - no matter how miserable I am - when I have lots of greens. A couple of days ago I actually had kale salad for breakfast and 1/2 portion of broccoli with garlic sauce and brown rice for lunch and whole grain (not whole wheat or multi-grain, but whole grain) pasta with my "pesto" which was lite firm tofu, some fresh parsley, lots fresh spinach, couple garlic cloves, about 2 T oil in whole thing (I ate less than half) and some dried oregano, in food processor setting of blender. Oh with a little water too.
And an apple mid-morning for snack.

That wound up being the easiest clean feeling I've had in ages.
I'm trying to learn a lesson from it myself.
My emotions were in a better place with that day of eating.

2. I am now writing 100 gratitudes a day, and trying never to repeat. It's been about 2 weeks so far. A couple of years ago someone at a sangha (buddhist group) shared that she "used to be a miserable person" and was told to do 100 gratitudes a day (not repeating). So she did what she was told. It was challenging. But she said it changed her life. To the point that she was still doing it - 15 years later!
I was moved by her sharing.
But I felt I could never do it.
And I didn't.
But I never forgot.
So I started, about 2 weeks ago.
Maybe you wanna try?

3. Is there someone (or are there many someones) you can call right before binging or right before purging?
I go to oa, and having phone numbers in my phone isn't even enough for me. I literally bought one of those little 2 dollar address books to carry around, and wrote the numbers I would be most comfortable calling in pen, and others I might call in pencil. Others I decided not to even put in there, but might someday. (I copy numbers from meetings in the book that goes around).
Sometimes I use the numbers, including this past Sunday evening, when I was desperate - not about food but about life - and driving around aimlessly and sobbing. I wound up meeting someone for tea and it helped.
Sometimes I just open the book and look through the pages and feel comforted - kind of an "I'm not alone."

4. Once before when I was quite desperate (decades ago, when dating J and he broke up with me because he was moving to LA, I literally went to a therapist at a clinic - every day for 3 weeks (weekdays). At no charge. Is there anything like that available to you?

Me? I'm kind of a wreck. Heartbroken and scared over J. Rushing soon now to get to aunt's funeral:( Mother decrepitating:( His mother too:(
But
I'm doing all I can right now, as in:

Every morning -
prayers
3 readings (daily readings books)
100 gratitudes
call my oa sponsor
meditate for 10 minutes

going to some oa meetings 1 - 3 a week
and 1 coda meeting when I can (most weeks)
saying yes to virtually all invitations
initiating some
(trying to *not* spend too many hours isolating in depression at home alone)
even setting alarm for am just in case, then relaxing with tv and falling asleep on couch then shuffling off to bed in evenings - not healthy for long-run but comforting some nights now
going to library every Sat. and either taking, renewing, or returning book(s) and at least 1 dvd
getting up early and going to bed early even on weekends
doing enough laundry to get me through a week, on weekend

Now at the same time,
I haven't taken the garbage out in weeks!
Never yet the plastics or paper recycling!
Have tons of other laundry piled high needing to be done
Haven't changed the sheets in I don't know how long
Have only lost 1 pound in over a month
Have been overspending (but have a new commitment to stop)

So I have a lot further to go to even get through 1 day without pain.

But let's do this!

Let's put self-care somewhere there at the top of our list in at least one way for at least this one day.

Okay?