Alternatives to binge eating at night? (Not BED)

Hi guys, looking for advice from anyone who’s experienced something similar, knows anything about medicine, or has watched at least one episode of house md.

I’ve got autism and adhd, and a have a referral to see a rheumatologist for hEDS (in nine months).

I have terrible circulation so when I get tired i get pain in my hands and feet, brain fog, impaired memory and cognition, impaired coordination, and i can only lie down, but i still have to change positions constantly because the blood pooling is painful. No, unfortunately it’s not an iron deficiency, i really wish it was. It is worsened by anxiety but this is not psychosomatic.

The way i relieve this pain and fatigue is by binge eating. I don’t know exactly what im gettjng from the binge eating sugar, electrolytes, or just dopamine, but i need to figure that out so i can get it without gaining the body type of a promising sumo wrestler.

I exercise as vigorously as my joints let me literally every day, i am trying to improve my sleep hygiene i eat regular meals as well as the binging, i do everything my physio tells me to do, i drink lots of water, i meditate, i do yoga, i stretch.
The only things I’m not doing right are sleeping enough, occasionally drinking coffee with my adhd meds, too much screen time, and of course, the binge eating.

What didn’t work:

Increasing my salt intake=> pain became debilitating, unless i drank like 8L of water a day which only made me more light headed. Wasn’t exactly a scientifically rigorous trial though, just involved put a bit of salt in my water. There could be a perfect ratio of salt to water im just missing out on. Or it could be to do with not replenishing electrolytes sweating a lot from exercise. Who knows at this point.

Exercising less=> joint pain everywhere. I almost definitely have dyspraxia so if i stop my motor skills get very very fast

Exercising more=> more general fatigue later, but felt great while doing it

Getting off that damn phone=> still working on that one

Accepting that i may just be the very hungry caterpillar now=> not only caused weight gained but my god you never stop defecating. I refuse to live with a porcelain throne as my gilded cage.

So is there anything i can do? I’ll literally try anything i’m so desperate at this point. GPs can’t really do anything except refer you and tell you to reduce your stress. Because I’m neurodivergent I struggle with identifying and locating sensations, and well as labelling them as good or bad. I’ve had friends who have had been wrongly disregarded by doctors their whole lives and friends who had been grossly incompetent in terms of taking of themselves, so i’m open to any ideas.

Posted Jul 5, 2026, 12:23 PM UTC

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