SMART help for overeating – and over-drinking
Where do you go for help if overeating has become a habit that’s hard to control? Overeaters Anonymous www.oasydney.org with its 12 Steps approach is one option, but now there’s another. SMART Recovery, a free self help group program established in Sydney three years ago by St Vincent’s Hospital Drug and Alcohol Service, is now open, not just to people wanting to overcome problems with alcohol and other drugs, but also to overeaters and those with other addictive behaviours. SMART (it stands for Self Management and Recovery Training) has meetings in a number of locations in Sydney and NSW, and began its first Melbourne program this month at Turning Point, the drug and alcohol service based in Fitzroy.
Does this mean there’s now a formal diagnosis of food addiction? Not quite. There’s some emerging evidence from the US to suggest food has similar effects on the brain to some addictive drugs – one study found that Naltrexone, a drug that reduces cravings for alcohol and heroin, for instance, also helped reduce binge eating. But so far the jury’s still out on whether food addiction really exists. What is clear, though is that overeating and dependence on alcohol and other drugs do share similar patterns of behaviour and thinking, says Josette Freeman, co-ordinator of SMART Recovery.
“Some people use food and alcohol for the same reason – it numbs the pain. But food can also be self destructive in the same way. People don’t binge on healthy food – the food that’s overeaten can often contribute to health problems,” she says. “The thinking is also similar. ‘I’m only going to have one biscuit’ when you know that one biscuit can set you off eating a whole packet is similar to a problem drinker who says ‘I’m only going to have one drink.”
Guilt is another common denominator – at a recent SMART meeting in Sydney, one woman described going from shop to shop to buy chocolate to disguise the fact that she ate so much of it – some problem drinkers do the same, Freeman says.
But the good news is that the same strategies that can help people overcome drug and alcohol problems can also help people curb overeating.
SMART Recovery, a non-profit charity, sees dependence on alcohol or other drugs – or food – not as a ‘disease’ but more like a problem behaviour that can be overcome. SMART takes a practical rather than spiritual approach, using techniques from Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) which helps people change irrational thinking and is widely used in the treatment of addiction and depression. These techniques can help people cope with cravings, stay motivated to avoid drugs, alcohol or overeating, to problem solve and help them put more balance back into their lives. For anyone who can’t get to face to face meetings, meetings are also available online.
How do you know if you’ve got a problem with overeating – or with alcohol and other drugs? When the habit is starting to affect your life in a negative way, says Freeman. With overeating that could mean you have problem with weight or with your health, you feel you have to eat secretly, or you feel guilty. For people who are dependent on alcohol or drugs, the negative effects can be problems with relationships, problems at work and financial problems.
For more information about SMART Recovery or for details of meetings, go to
www.smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au
Source: http://blogs.smh.com.au/lifestyle/chewonthis/archives/2008/06/smart_help_for_overeating_and.html
If you’ve overcome a problem with overeating – or over drinking, what helped you? Send us your comments below.
