Moving halfway across the world from Florida to London and living alone made me very lonely. With no one to talk to, I stayed at home every evening watching TV. With TV came popcorn and popcorn slowly lead to binge eating. A few weeks of this routine made me gain six pounds and resulted in skin eruptions. When the dress I got for my sister’s wedding didn’t fit, I realized I had to stop depending on food to cure loneliness. I bought an aerobics workout CD, worked out every day and lost the excess pounds. I also made some new friends and we hang out almost every evening, with healthy food on our plates, of course.

Some people eat when they’re depressed, others eat when they are happy. But I used to eat because there was a lot of food around. Owning a bakery means access to delicious food all day and I am a woman with little self control. I used to take leftovers home every evening, have them for dinner and breakfast the next day. One day, my friend looked into the refrigerator and asked me why I have no ‘real’ food, which was an eye opener. I realized that I had not only been eating unhealthy food but was binge eating subconsciously. The next day, I swore to stop bringing home leftovers and donated them to the homeless shelter nearby. Now I eat healthy, home cooked food and my blood sugar seems to be in control.

Being obese as a teenager made me a subject of much ridicule. I had many unpleasant nicknames with no social or romantic life. On my 18th birthday, I decided to take control of things and resolved to become fit. My mother politely pointed out that the first step towards achieving my goal is to stop binge eating and resorting to unhealthy comfort food when I felt depressed. It has been two weeks since I adopted a healthier lifestyle and although there has been no noticeable reduction in my waist line, I feel good about myself.

I was unfortunate to be laid off by my employer in 2009, which meant that I had to spend a lot of time at home. Depressed about the lay off and being unemployed for a while made me sit in front of the TV all day with beer, chips, fried chicken and other unhealthy munchies. I got so comfortable with this routine that I stopped working out. But one day, I couldn’t climb two flights of stairs without gasping for breath. My girlfriend who had observed this change in behavior talked me out of binge eating and suggested spending more time with my loved ones instead. I took her advice, started working out with my twin brother and was back in shape within no time.

I have always been a foodie and constantly indulge myself with junk food. Two years ago, I gave birth to my first child and was given a six month maternity leave. With my husband out at work all day and no one else at home but the baby, I felt bored and turned to baking, my favorite past time. All day long, I baked cakes, muffins, pastries and had to eat most of them myself as there was no else to share. Not that I complained. In three months, the binge eating made me gain nine pounds! One day, my maternity clothes refused to fit and that is when I decided to watch what I eat. Every morning, my husband and I went out to jog, and I found other activities to keep me engaged. In six months, I managed to lose the extra pounds as well as the baby weight. Not that I have stopped baking altogether, I only bake once a week and indulge in small portions.