Thanks for that article on those deceptive products, Kim. That was excellent. I was always very suspicious of these products, not to mention, why eat processed junk when you can eat real foods?
Annie....I've been commenting on your blog because I'd observed how much difficulty you were having. There is nothing worse than depriving yourself for long periods and then showing NO results on the scale and I know just how frustrating that is.
So I figured it was worth a try for you to see if low-carbing might work better for you.
And the 2 things I observed on your blog were that you 1) were having poor results and 2) were easily lapsing and going off-plan.
Regarding the second one....listen, it IS going to take some amount of will-power to stop eating an entire category of high carb foods you are used to eating. BUT, controlling the cravings, when low-carbing, can be a huge help. I really suffered on any diet where I could include any sort of high carb foods....and was always starving. Yet on Atkins, I practically have to force myself to eat all the food I really should. I'm not all that hungry and have zero cravings. Any and all prior binge and craving behavior is a thing of the past.
But like I said, you will also need to utilize some will-power, especially in the beginning. It gets much easier once you go into ketosis/fat-burning mode after the first few days.
Also, someone commented on your blog that all diets are doomed to fail and we will always gain our weight right back. Not necessarily true. Kim has maintained and kept the weight off for 6 years and when I lost weight back in the early 90's on Atkins, I maintained for 12 years with no problem...until I was put on a medication that altered my metabolism and caused horrific weight gain.....which I have lost most of and am pretty close to goal (146.8 this morning....so about 11-12 lbs. from goal) and I have no fear of gaining it back because I know how to do maintenance and had no problem with it for many years.
But...are there people who have such serious psychological issues associated with food/binge-eating/compulsions, etc. that they MUST deal with these before any diet can succeed? I'm not completely sure, to be honest. And this is mainly because whereas I've had horrible problems with low-calorie diets or any diets where any high-carb foods were allowed...even in only small portions, on Atkins, ALL those problems are resolved. So I'm not totally sure if in many cases, it might not be the actual DIET being used when they are blaming it on psychological food issues.
I mean sure....issues like anorexia and bulimia are another story. I'm talking about having difficulty sticking with a diet, repeatedly going off-plan, craving, binge-eating, etc. I'm truly wondering if this stuff is more metabolism/physiologic than actually psychologic. And convincing these poor folks, women especially, that they may need to go to years of therapy in order to resolve their food issues....which may not even resolve them...when all along, they are just spinning their wheels due to the wrong diet....is very unfortunate, IMO. And it makes them feel defeated before they even start, believing that their psychological issues have already doomed them.
BUT Annie....you WILL have to use some will-power...especially during the first few days. I'm not gonna lie to you. BUT, if you can't utilize will-power, let's face it.....you won't be able to stick to ANY diet, right? But for me, after the first few days, Atkins has made the rest of it a literal breeze (piece o'cake)
And what I found to be extremely helpful with maintaining will-power was reading and re-reading the early Atkins book. It was my bible. Just understanding what was happening, why it was happening, and how it was going to work in my benefit, really helped me with motivation and will-power.
One other thing....how many meds are you on in total? Anti-depressants are not notorious, as a general rule, in causing weight gain and making it difficult to diet but one of your other meds may possibly be. If so, you really need to identify which one it is. I absolutely had to go off the medication that was altering my metabolism (literally shutting it dow) in order to get the diet to work for me again.
Also...don't fool yourself. Many doctors do NOT know how to properly taper off medications that alter your brain chemicals. What happens is that they believe what the drug reps tell them...and what they tell them is way too overly optimistic and not realistic. Notorious for this are suboxone and benzodiazepines (xanax, etc.). Most of them have no clue how to taper off correctly and also think you can get off them with no problem and just stop at way too high a dose. Message boards are the best places to get advice on tapering properly. There, the folks have been there and done that. They know the real deal, not the bull that the drug reps sling to the doctors.
deena
Considering joining you in a week or two!
). 
If you must refer to a website, you may want to check out Dr. Atkins wife Veronica's website.....
