There are two main things that will help with the pattern you describe. First you need to shift your focus away from the eating/feeling fat part of the battle and instead, work on eliminating the purging. Knowing that we can purge is an indirect way of saying, “Yes” to the bingeing. It’s important to say that “yes” consciously, without requiring the purging component to take away our guilt. Guilt and shame are what keep an eating disorder in place, and we can’t work through those issues as long as we’re allowing ourselves an escape route. While you’re working on eliminating the purging, it’s important to allow yourself to eat whatever you want and in whatever amounts you want. Trying to control your eating while you’re also tackling the purging will keep you stuck in the food battle and further prolong dealing with the actual issues.

The second thing is that you need to find ways to take your emotional energy out of the eating disorder and put it on other things. You may want to explore new job, hobby or relationship — you may just want to veg out and relax for awhile. It doesn’t much matter what else you focus on — the important thing is to put your energies into something other than food, eating and weight.