Food: The Good Girl's Drug

by Gold, Sunny Sea

• ISBN13: 9780425239032
• ISBN10: 0425239039
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-04-05
• Publisher: Berkley Pub Group

Summary

A guide to ending compulsive emotional overeating and establishing a healthy relationship with food. Sunny Sea Gold started fighting a binge eating disorder in her teens. But most books on the topic were aimed at older women, women she had a hard time relating to. Calling on top psychiatrists, nutritionists, and fitness experts, Sunny offers real advice to a new generation fighting an age-old war. With humor and compassion from someone who's seen it all, Food: The Good Girl's Drugis about experiences shared by many women-whether they've been struggling with compulsive overeating their whole lives, or have just admitted to themselves, that yes, it's more than just a bad habit.

Author Biography

Sunny Sea Gold is a deputy editor at Redbook magazine and the former health editor of both Glamour and Seventeen. She is the founder of the online overeating support site www.healthygirl.org and lives in Brooklyn with her husband.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. xi
Foreword	p. xv
understanding what's going on between you and food
Would Someone Please Explain Why Can't I Stop Eating?	p. 3
What is Binge Eating Disorder, and Do I Have It?	p. 8
What Eating Disorders Can Do to Your Body	p. 10
What Exactly Is a "Binge," Anyway?	p. 11
How Many People Binge Eat?	p. 14
Are All Bingers Overweight?	p. 17
Does Food Make You Miserable?	p. 19
Sound Familiar? A Few Things Emotional Overeaters Have in Common	p. 22
Eating in Secret	p. 23
Lying About What We Eat	p. 27
Vowing to Start Over	p. 30
Eating Crazy Stuff	p. 32
Choosing Food over People	p. 34
Oh, So That's How We Got This Way	p. 39
Your Genes	p. 40
Your Family's Economic Situation	p. 42
Your Family Traditions	p. 44
Your Mom's Relationship with Food and Her Body	p. 46
let the healing begin! how to start getting sane about food
It's Not About the Food: What the Real Problem Is, and How to Fix It	p. 57
What's Self-Esteem Got to Do with It?	p. 58
Do You Expect Perfection?	p. 60
Exercise: What Are Your "Shoulds"?	p. 63
Do You Suffer from Black-and-White Thinking?	p. 68
Exercise: What Irrational Beliefs Do You Have?	p. 72
How Traumatic Experiences in Our Pasts Push Us Toward Food	p. 74
Exercise: What Are You Avoiding?	p. 81
Yes, You Can Interrupt a Binge	p. 84
Trigger: Stress Overload	p. 86
Exercise: Impulse Substitution	p. 90
Trigger: Anger	p. 91
Trigger: Anxiety!!!	p. 94
More Binge Triggers	p. 98
A Very Real, Very Serious Binge Trigger: Depression	p. 99
Strategies for Avoiding a Binge and Getting What You Really Need	p. 100
The Emotional "Toolbox" Every Young Woman Needs	p. 110
Tool: Physical Activity	p. 112
Yoga: The Perfect Exercise for Binge Eaters?	p. 117
Tool: Support	p. 118
Tool: Therapy	p. 123
Therapy 101: What Is It, How Do I Pay for It, and Where Do I Get It?	p. 127
Tool: Reading	p. 130
Tool: Meditation	p. 132
Meditation 101	p. 135
Tool: Spirituality	p. 137
Learning to Love Your Body (or at Least Not Hate It)	p. 144
Body Image Quiz	p. 145
For Women, Body Hate Starts Early	p. 147
Society's Idea of What's Beautiful	p. 149
Media Images 101: A Quick Reality Check	p. 152
Sometimes Body Image Isn't About Your Body at All	p. 154
Exercise: The "Then What?" Game	p. 155
Exercise: Track Your Negative Body Thoughts	p. 159
Creating Your Own Idea of What's Beautiful	p. 160
Healthy Girls Don't Diet	p. 165
But What if I'm Truly Obese?	p. 172
Get Back in Touch with Your Hunger	p. 173
Exercise: Start a Food and Hunger Journal	p. 175
Create a Plan for Feeding Yourself Well	p. 176
Eat a Balance of Foods	p. 182
Give Yourself a Fighting Chance!	p. 186
Know that the Way You Eat Will Change Again and Again	p. 188
living your life without relying on the good girl's drug
How to Deal with Friends, Loved Ones, and Food Pushers	p. 193
Food and Your Friends	p. 194
Should You Tell People You Date About Your Food Issues?	p. 199
Dealing with Loved Ones Who Don't Get It	p. 203
What Life Is Like When You Get Sane About Food	p. 209
What Does Being "Recovered" Really Mean?	p. 210
Why It's Important to Celebrate All Your Little Victories	p. 213
Letting Go of the Good Girls's Drug Is Hard, but It's So Worth It	p. 214
Resources: Where to Go for More Help	p. 219
Support Groups 101: How to Find One Near You	p. 219
Further Reading: Recommended Books	p. 221
Online Resources: Recommended Websites	p. 222
Eating Disorder Treatment Centers: Inpatient and Outpatient Programs	p. 223
Sources Cited	p. 225
Experts	p. 229
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