Food and Binge Eating Disorder Therapy
Understanding the Emotional Hunger Beneath the Cycle
For many, the struggle with food isn't about willpower it’s about emotional survival. Whether it’s late-night binge eating behaviour, compulsive eating under stress, or a lifelong cycle of shame around eating habits, these behaviours often point to deeper psychological wounds. The modern food landscape, with its ultra-processed, hyper-palatable options, only worsens the difficulty.
But this is not your fault. And you are not alone.
At Addiction Therapist London, I offer specialist, discreet therapy for individuals privately grappling with binge eating, food addiction, and emotional eating behaviour. My practice in London’s Harley Street Medical Quarter, St Pauls in the City of London and online, serves UK and international clients seeking compassionate, evidence-based care, without judgment, stigma, or shame.
What Is Binge Eating Disorder?
Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is the most common mental health disorder related to food in the UK, affecting around 1 in 50 adults. It involves regularly eating large quantities of food, often in secret and accompanied by intense feelings of guilt, shame, and loss of control. Unlike bulimia nervosa, these binge episodes are not followed by purging.
You may be experiencing BED if you:
- Feel “hijacked” by intense food cravings
- Eat rapidly or alone to avoid being seen
- Use food to manage sadness, stress, or emotional pain
- Make repeated, unsuccessful attempts to stop binge eating behaviour
- Feel intense shame or self-disgust afterward
For many clients, binge eating behaviour starts as a way to self-soothe. But over time, the eating behaviour creates its own emotional fallout, deepening the cycle.
Is Food Addiction Real?
A common question is: “Can you be addicted to food?”
The answer is: yes, food addiction is increasingly recognised in clinical and neuroscience research. While food is essential for survival and cannot be “cut out” like substances, certain types of food, especially ultra-processed, high-fat, high-sugar combinations can hijack the brain’s reward system much like drug addiction.
People often ask:
- “Am I addicted to food?”
- “Am I addicted to fast food or junk food?”
- “Why can’t I stop eating even when I’m full or ashamed?”
The compulsive nature, emotional triggers, loss of control, and tolerance (needing more to feel satisfied) strongly resemble other behavioural addiction patterns. Questions like “Can someone be addicted to food?”, “Are we addicted to food?” or “How do I stop being addicted to junk food?” reflect a growing awareness of this hidden, stigmatised issue.
In therapy, we don’t need to label you a “food addict.” Instead, we focus on understanding the emotional drivers, rewiring the underlying patterns, and helping you regain agency over your eating behaviour and your emotional life.
What Makes Food So Addictive?
- Hyper-palatable foods are engineered to override satiety signals and increase cravings.
- MSG, added fats, and sugars trigger dopamine responses in the brain, much like other addictive substances.
- For some individuals, eating stimulates emotional relief, a temporary escape from stress or trauma.
- Cultural messaging around body image, productivity, and self-worth can add intense pressure, feeding the cycle.
It’s not uncommon to hear questions like:
- “Does MSG make you addicted to food?”
- “Are processed foods addictive?”
- “Is food addiction the same as drug addiction?”
While the biology may differ, the emotional and behavioural patterns, and the suffering they cause, are often very similar.
The Deeper Roots of Binge Eating and Food Addiction
Behind compulsive eating often lies trauma, unmet needs, or relational wounds. Binge eating behaviour may be the most accessible form of comfort when others feel too risky or unavailable.
Clients I work with often carry histories of:
- Childhood trauma or emotional neglect
- Attachment insecurity and people-pleasing patterns
- Perfectionism, control issues, or chronic self-criticism
- Shame and bullying around weight or appearance
- Depression, anxiety, or emotional dysregulation
- Food insecurity during formative years
For many people, food may become more than fuel — it can feel like comfort, protection, or emotional safety when other forms of support have felt unavailable. As a psychotherapist with expertise in trauma and addiction, I help clients unpack the emotional hunger beneath their eating habits. This isn’t about restriction or punishment it’s about healing the root, not managing the symptom.
How Therapy Can Help You Overcome Food Addiction and Binge Eating
Whether or not you relate to the term food addiction, therapy provides a structured, compassionate space to untangle the behaviours, beliefs, and pain beneath the surface.
My approach is integrative and trauma-informed, often combining:
- Psychodynamic therapy to explore early attachment, emotional needs, and food-related dynamics
- CBT and relational techniques to understand and change binge eating behaviour
- Body-based and mindfulness approaches to restore trust in hunger, satiety, and body signals
- Art Psychotherapy (where helpful) to process shame, trauma, or identity non-verbally
- Nutritional psychoeducation (in collaboration with dietitians) for those needing structure and insight into how food affects mood and regulation
Together, we address not only how to stop bingeing, but how to heal the emotional void that bingeing has filled.
Where medically appropriate, I may recommend or collaborate with qualified dietitians, GPs, or specialist eating disorder services to ensure that physical health and nutritional needs are safely supported alongside psychological work.
Clients often express:
- “How can I stop my food addiction without dieting?”
- “How do I overcome binge eating and food addiction?”
- “Can food really be an addiction, or am I just weak?”
- “How long does it take to break a food addiction?”
- “What if I feel addicted to fast food and can’t stop?”
We explore these questions gently, with evidence-based tools and a deep respect for your emotional history. There’s no shaming or blame here, only understanding and compassionate change.
Private Mental Health Support for Busy Lives
My clients come from all walks of life who have spent years in secret battles with binge eating behaviour, ashamed to reach out.
They often:
- Appear “in control” in all areas of life, except their eating habits
- Have tried every disorder treatment option, diet, or coach with no lasting results
- Fear stigma, exposure, or not being taken seriously
- Carry the belief: “I should have fixed this by now”
But you are not broken, you are simply carrying unmet needs, in a system that never taught you how to meet them.
My private practice offers a confidential, personalised alternative to clinical or group-based eating disorder treatment, with international video sessions also available.
A Path Toward Healing, Not Perfection
Whether you’re bingeing daily or just feel uneasy around food, your pain is valid, and therapy can help.
This is about more than how to stop being addicted to food. It’s about understanding:
- Why food became your comfort
- What emotional needs were never met
- How to develop new, nourishing patterns of care
In my professional opinion, binge eating behaviour and eating disorders like anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa are not about a lack of discipline, they are often about a lack of emotional safety. My clients frequently describe food as their most loyal companion in a world that felt unsafe, critical, or absent. The work of therapy is not to take comfort away, but to build new forms of safety that don’t come at such a cost.
The path to change doesn’t begin with shame. It begins with curiosity, safety, and support.
If you’re ready to explore the roots of your relationship with food and not just control the symptoms I invite you to reach out for a confidential 15-minute consultation.
Book a complimentary consultation or a private therapy session.