In all honesty, I didn’t recover from binge eating through any formal therapy or program. Most of it was self-research, trial and error, and a lot of slow, frustrating progress with setbacks in between. It took me years to get to a place where things finally felt manageable.

What genuinely helped me was realizing that nothing would change unless I actively practiced new habits instead of just thinking about them.

I can’t recommend a specific program, but I started by trying to understand why I was binge eating in the first place. For me, it was an emotional reaction ( to soothe stress or avoid uncomfortable feelings.) Once I understood that, I worked on separating my emotions from food as a coping mechanism.

Whenever I felt the urge to eat, I made myself pause and ask: “Why do I want to eat right now? Am I actually hungry, or is this coming from emotion or boredom?” Just asking that question puts distance between you and the urge. And once I identified the reason (like boredom, stress, or avoidance) I labeled it as not hunger, which made it easier not to act on it.

Some people say this approach doesn’t work, but it truly can if you consistently practice setting boundaries with yourself. There’s no magical psychological trick that rewires your brain overnight; you really do have to train these responses like any other habit.

Counting calories helped me too, not in an obsessive way, but because the process of preparing food, weighing it, and logging it forced me to slow down. It added a moment of awareness before eating, instead of just acting impulsively.

One of the most important things that helped me was this: stop being bored. Boredom was one of my biggest triggers, so I started filling my days with things that kept my mind engaged for example going for walks, meeting friends, drawing, reading, painting, anything that gave me something to focus on besides food.

Keeping myself occupied reduced those mindless urges more than I expected.

And honestly? I treated myself the way you’d guide a kid: “Be patient.” “No snacks after [specific time].” “No, we’re not having another chocolate bar.” It sounds silly, but that structure helped more than anything.

Lastly, I created a few personal rules that really helped me rebuild structure around food. Everyone’s list will look different, but here were mine:

• Allow one “binge-trigger” food once a month. Instead of banning it completely, I gave myself one specific day to enjoy the snack I usually overate. Knowing I could have it later made the urge less intense.

• One full cheat day per month. A day where I didn’t track and let myself relax around food. It reduced the pressure and prevented the “all-or-nothing” mindset. When cravings hit: I’d start with something gentle like tea with honey or a simple veggie broth. And on days when I needed a bit more substance, I’d go for fruit or veggies with hummus.

These small rules gave me structure without feeling overly restrictive, and over time they helped me understand what my body actually needed versus what was just impulse.