Claire, a member of Obsessive Eaters Anonymous, traces her problems back to her early teens: "When I was about 14, I felt I was massive. Everything started to revolve around what I ate. I took up smoking thinking it would stop me eating, but it didn't.
"Then, when I was 22 I started going to the gym. I started with half an hour because I wasn't very fit and then it went up to about three hours. I used to walk for an hour to get to the gym at 7 a.m. even though there was a bus running outside my door. I couldn't take the bus because I wouldn't burn enough calories. Then I would spend an hour or so in the gym and walk home for another hour. "They did a programme for me but I didn't want to know about it. If the programme said to spend 15 minutes on the treadmill, I would try to spend an hour on it. I always wanted to do more and more.
"Everything revolved around exercise, seven days a week. I couldn't organise a night out with friends in case I missed the gym. Or if I did, it would have to be the weekend, so I could starve myself beforehand.
"It certainly wasn't enjoyable for me. The exercise was all wrapped up in the belief that I had to lose so much weight. It was a form of punishment. When I started the 12-step programme I made a conscious decision to stop. It was like giving up smoking. I was so tempted to go back and it was very hard. I would go in and get price lists and then try to forget about it. But I succeeded. Now I go for a walk, maybe about half an hour a day. I really enjoy that."