Man Was Spending Rent Money on Delivery App, Eating 7,000 Calories in One Sitting: 'A Real Low Point'

• Lachlan “Lucky” Munro struggled with food addiction at an early age because he never learned to process his emotions

• At his lowest, he was eating 7,000 calories in one sitting and spending his rent money on food delivery

• After gaining nearly 100 lbs., Munro began a 12-step recovery program and turned his life around and hopes to raise awareness for others who need help

A British man is opening up about his years-long struggle with food addiction and how he overcame the eating disorder.

Lachlan “Lucky” Munro — a life coach and music producer from London — shared his lengthy and difficult journey in an interview with The Independent. The 43-year-old explained that his eating disorder started at a very young age. As a child, he recalled stealing sweets at school, rummaging through other students' bags for chips.

Munro said his childhood obesity was a result of his inability to process his emotions, and “food helped me to feel okay.”

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However, by the time he was 13 years old, he turned to alcohol instead of food after joining a new friend group.

“Food wasn’t such a problem during my late teens — teens to early 20s — because substance abuse took its place,” he told the outlet. “But my life had got to a place where I had to quit drinking at 24 because it was killing me.”

“I got sober and picked up food again. Bang. I couldn’t deal with all the anger and the rage that came up – the unaddressed feelings. My food addiction was rampant. It was back with a vengeance because I had no crutch,” he continued. “I gave myself carte blanche to eat whatever I wanted, justifying it because it’d been so hard giving up substances.”

Munro’s eating habits led to significant weight gain over the next few years, as went from 161 lbs. to 259 lbs. His health took a turn for the worse when a food delivery app, Deliveroo, became available. He said it was like “convenience heaven.”

“I was eating 7,000 calories in one sitting – I’d order three Deliveroos and spend £30 on each one,” he told the outlet. “The weird thing about an eating addiction is that it’s not about, ‘Am I hungry?’ I always felt hungry. I’d order all this food to my house — and I’d eat it until I felt stuffed, but I’d still want more.”

“It was always impulsive. I’d be spending my rent money on Deliveroo,” he added. “By the age of 34, I looked like a huge cannonball.”

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Munro told The Independent that he typically had meals delivered to his house because he wouldn’t have to deal with “the shame of people looking at you” if he was eating alone. “I was at a real low point,” he admitted.

“Rock bottoms come at different times. We only get a few windows of opportunity and it depends on how it is phrased, who says it, and the desire to change,” he explained. “I said to myself: ‘I can’t do this anymore. I’m killing myself.’ But the obsession and compulsion to pick up my phone and order food was overwhelming.”

Munro didn’t start to change until a friend of his — who he had a “massive” crush on — invited him to a 12-step recovery meeting. He went with her to Overeaters Anonymous and was able to receive the eye-opening message he needed to abstain from overeating.

“Food is such an embarrassing addiction to have — I’ve lost the shame around having an eating disorder now that I’ve found the right help for it,” he said.

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Munro ultimately learned what foods were triggering and slowly removed them from his diet. That included cutting out chips, donuts, chocolate, biscuits and pizza.

Today, Munro has his health back on track, saying he's lost the weight and hasn’t ordered Deliveroo for eight years.

“I feel proud of myself — I don’t miss it at all. Sometimes giving up your favorite thing makes your life 100 times better. It takes vigilance – but, now at [182 lbs.], I’m a much happier person now. I have my freedom back,” he told The Independent. “I’d spent over a decade without a girlfriend — or any romantic interest at all. To get back on the wagon was such a painful and difficult process, thinking my love life was completely written off. I was 28, and I saw my stretch marks.”

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“As a man, I was so ashamed of that. I felt so fat that I ate to feel better about it. It was a vicious cycle,” Munro ended. “I don’t use Deliveroo anymore — I make all my meals myself, prepare the food and enjoy doing that. After seeing a nutritionist and working out what a balanced meal looks like, I had to re-educate myself. I’ve got my freedom back.”

Munro tells PEOPLE that he’s sharing his story because there are many misconceptions about eating disorders and addiction.

“Addiction is still widely misunderstood by people. I know intelligent people who still think it's a matter of willpower,” he says, noting that there are several 12-step recovery programs available to those struggling and wants “people to know they exist.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, The Alliance for Eating Disorders provides a fully-staffed helpline at 1-866-662-1235, as well as free, therapist-led support groups.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

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