# Friend Needs Help -- Eating in the Middle of the Night **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 30, 2009, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873 "2009-04-30T18:44:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/1 "2009-04-30T18:44:06Z")
I’ve recently become friends with this woman who has previously had an eating disorder. These days, it’s begun acting up again in different ways. One of those is by her getting up in the middle of the night, ostensibly to pee, then deciding she _has_ to have a snack in the interim before heading back to bed. She hates this and wants it to stop and what she’s pinning her hopes on is a sign (or signs) she can put around her apartment to remind her why she really doesn’t want to eat after all. The only caveat is that it MUST be humorous. And as a surprise, I wanted to make some up for her on my computer, but right now I’m not thinking up with anything decent. Can you guys help me with a brief funny slogan or two? Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/2 "2009-04-30T19:01:59Z")
I wanted to find a notepad with a picture of Jesus on it, and “Jesus says…” so I could leave notes around the house for my ex-roommate. Like “Jesus says…thou shalt always clean the lint trap” or “Jesus says…is it that hard to take off your boots in the garage?” Unfortunately, I didn’t find any. My friend says one of his roommates left a sign on the lint trap “Not cleaning the lint trap is for pussies.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/3 "2009-04-30T19:11:03Z")
I can’t think of any signs, but how about hooking up a motion-detector alarm on a timer in the kitchen? Put the alarm on the far side of the kitchen so there’s no chance of getting to it without setting off the alarm. The timer can be set so the alarm is only enabled from X p.m to Y a.m. At least your friend is aware this is happening. I’ve heard cases of people sleep-eating where they have no idea they were snacking. One women was complaining about her weight, and her husband said it was probably because of the handfuls of cereal she was eating every night. She had no idea! ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2009, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/4 "2009-04-30T20:35:28Z")
There’s that joke about dreaming you ate a giant marshmallow, and you wake up and your pillow is gone. Maybe you can riff on that. ---
**Author:** ![Marconi\_Schmeese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Marconi\_Schmeese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marconi_Schmeese)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/5 "2009-05-01T00:56:00Z")
Is she taking ambien? This can cause this… ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/6 "2009-05-01T14:23:01Z")
Thanks everyone for the replies. As far as I know, she isn’t on any sleeping medication and this supposedly is just one of her triggers whenever she’s _not_ drinking, so I’m really not certain beyond that. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/7 "2009-05-01T17:07:26Z")
I can totaly sympathise with this. I do the EXEACT same thing. I feel starved at 2:00 am when I get up to go. I can’t think of anything to put in a sign. The only thing that worked for me is to tell myself to go back to bed and if I’m still hungry in an hour then I’ll have a small snack. 9 times out of 10 I realize I’m really not hungry enough to drag my lazy ass out of bed AGAIN just for a cookie (or I fall back to sleep). ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/8 "2009-05-01T19:59:40Z")
She should try taking an acid reducer before bed. Not Tums, because the stomach will create more acid to counteract it, but one of those newer ones like Zantac or Tagamet. Also, a glass of water may be all she really needs. Very often people with eating disorders confuse thirst with hunger. Re the OP: sounds like a job for Maxine! [www.maxine.com](http://www.hallmark.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/article%7C10001%7C10051%7C/HallmarkSite/Maxine/CrabbyRoad/) ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2009, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/friend-needs-help-eating-in-the-middle-of-the-night/494873/9 "2009-05-01T20:16:36Z")
My Grandmother has a picture of a pig in a bathrobe sticking its head in the refridgerator with the caption, “Deliver me from Temptation” on her fridge… Maybe something like this: [No Pig Oout Poster](http://www.blubberbuster.com/pig_click.html)