After having dealt with Night Eating Syndrome for more than a year, the awful wake-ups, the weight fluctuations and not to mention the roller coaster of emotions and issues with eating, I decided to put together a thread of ways that have helped me lose weight, and stop gaining in spite of even my worst nights. A lot of this you have probably already read from me, but we have been getting a lot of new members lately and I would love to share with them the things that have helped. (And if you have anything to add to this list, please share!!!)
1. *Eating Regularly During Daylight Hours* (Get your body used to it, and don't starve yourself during the day because you felt guilty about the night before. A lot of us got into this in the first place because of restricting our calories and overexercise. It is very irrational to do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. Believe me, I did it long enough to learn my lesson! After increasing my daily calories, I gradually ate less and less overnight! Win win!!)
2. *Don't Stress Yourself Out, Let Go of The Guilt* - (Upon waking up every morning, I'm sure you are feeling bloated and ashamed. Another night you "lost control" and you ate more than you thought you did overnight. You may be tempted to mentally insult yourself for your lack of consciousness at night, and this may cause you to be afraid at night, nervous about the night to come up. Will it be good or will it be bad? Although the night may have been bad, your day does not have to be. If you take two steps back, you will always have the opportunity to put your right foot forward in the morning! Take a look outside! I bet it's beautiful! Maybe you have children? A boyfriend? Wife? Puppy? Instead of making the bathroom mirror your first stop in the morning, give your child a kiss, pet your dog, embrace your spouse or loved one and be thankful. Count your blessings every morning and aim to be free from the stress NES causes you. Living in a positive state of mind may also help dull the effects of your NES because you may be less stressed before going to sleep. You never know, so why not give it a try? Reflect on what you are thankful for, and forgive yourself for the night before! Also, keep in mind that stressful situations raises the hormone Cortisol in your body, and when Cortisol is being produced your body will burn carbohydrates instead of fat which is why a lot of us want sweets and other carby foods when we are stressed. best to keep those levels down as much as possible.
3. *Eat nutritious foods* For the people who have NES without the issue of compulsive exercise or food restriction, you may be malnourished during the day. So many foods that are commonly eaten nowadays may be very tasty, but they do not give our bodies what we need to function properly. Your body may be waking you up because it is "missing something." This is just a hunch, but it wouldn't hurt to adopt a healthy lifestyle when it comes to food, and not only look at calories. Look at what the food is made of, maybe take a peak at the food pyramid and what your body needs in the day to function and everyone will tell you that a healthy diet makes you FEEL better. Feeling better may help reduce your stress levels, and reducing stress levels may help your NES.
4. *Keep moving* Do fun activities and keep yourself busy. Getting out of the house a lot makes me not want to sit around and snack during the day because I'm not thinking about eating. I'm just thinking about the task at hand, and whenever I am hungry, my body lets me know!
5. *Strength Training* Muscle burns more than fat? It sure does! I've said this before but a pound of muscle typically burns 3x as many calories as a pound of fat and is much smaller than a pound of fat. So the lovely benefit of putting muscle into your body is that not only will you be burning more calories, but if you keep up with a balanced healthy diet and stay away from junk, you will probably be able to afford whatever calories (within reason) that you consume at night without worrying about gaining weight. Your weight loss may still be slow (like mine) but it will come as long as you are moving that body, building muscle, eating regularly and NOT limiting your daily calories too much.
6. *But don't Overdo the workouts* (Especially the strength training. Your body needs time to heal, so sometimes spending 4 hours at the gym after a bad night may not be doing you any good. You'll see much faster results with muscles that aren't worn and tired all the time, and you'll be in a much clearer, less exhausted state of mind! 45 mins to 90 minute workouts are enough. And always always always get enough daily calories to make up for the exercise you do. your body needs the nutritious fuel.
7. *Food by the Bed* In the Overcoming Night Eating Syndrome book, it talks about a chain of behaviors that encompass NES. The wake up, the getting up, the going to the kitchen, the eating, then the going back to bed. If you find a weak link in this chain then it is best to break it any way you know how to or try different things. Food by your bedside (premeasured, healthy, low calorie snacks are ideal) and water or a no calorie beverage of your choice. When you wake up, eat your snack(s) and drink your water and do your best to go back to bed. If you have 2-3 wakeups, maybe leave 2-3 small snacks. I love using grapes and apples. Bananas work too. And you will be eating something nutritious for you as well as very tasty. 
A couple other things I found helpful was to not eat from two hours before I usually go to bed and shifting most of my calories to earlier in the day and having a light and satisfying dinner. Also, brushing my teeth after every meal helped to make me want to snack too close to bed. Warm drinks, tea, diet hot chocolate, very much help me to relax before bed. Especially chamomile. Put me right to sleep! lol
And that's about all I have so far, if anyone has anything to add, please feel free!!! Here's to a good night for all of us!
