I think I had a sugar crash
 

I've barely had any actual white sugar for months on end (only getting the natural sugars found in fruit, etc.), plus I'm not eating any white bread or other simple carbs.

Then last weekend, the BF and I went to his family's house. Got invited for dinner of course, and then went shopping for the meal. The meal itself was good. Lots of pinto beans and roasted chicken breast, and I passed on the white tortillas. I was feeling pretty good about it all, as I sometimes get a little nervous when I'm not the one in control of the prep or serving.

I was asked if I wanted some of the fresh pumpkin we'd just bought. Sounded good, right? It had just been baked; it wasn't a pie so I didn't think it would have much sugar added to it. His mom scooped a huge portion into my bowl and it seemed everyone was watching me eat. I thought it looked a little syrupy . . .

So later, on the way home, I had a mad craving for cookies. Not just any cookies mind you, the chocolate chips ones they have at McDonald's. I haven't had that kind of "treat" in months and months, nor have I had a craving that strong since I started eating better.

I caved . . . had three of those suckers. I voiced that I wasn't too pleased with myself over scarfing them down, which prompted my BF to say, "Oh yeah, I forget to tell you, my mom loaded that pumpkin up with a ton of sugar when she baked it, and added more to your serving . . . "

Oh boy. She and I do have a lack of communication going on, and it can make things awkward between us (she's not comfortable speaking English and I don't know much Spanish). And I'm not angry or anything, but at least I'm sure it was that pumpkin that sparked the horrible cravings I had for the cookies. And I don't think she has any idea that I've been trying to avoid sugar these past few months (and I'd rather not make a spectacle of it). :(

And when I look back and think about how many sodas I used to drink every day . . . yikes! I'm sure what I had that night was pretty typical of my old self, but I think my new self kinda freaked out. I was actually buzzed that night, and instantly became exhausted a little before bedtime. Went to sleep, and was extremely groggy the next morning. Drifted in and out of sleep until 3 in the afternoon! :o Makes me wonder how much sugar I actually had there, because wow, I've never had that happen before! Maybe it was a big shock to my system or something? I get the feeling I need to be much more careful about sugar from now on if this is what it does to me. In fact, I'm still not quite back to my normal self and it's been a week. Does it really take that long to work out of my system or is this all in my head? :?:

Anyway, I'm picking up the pieces and moving on. My weight's stayed the same this past week, so I'm taking this as a lesson learned and have been back to my normal routine of veggies, fruit, and other good-for-you stuff. :)

I'd definitely say that you had a system shock. My body reacts in a similar way. I get a migraine and dizziness/ wooziness that lasts a couple days if i go overboard with sugar. Since i still eat a little sugar every now and then, i think my body's a little bit less sensitive then yours could be, especially if you basically never eat it.

Wow, why on earth would she put extra sugar in your serving? But I know what you mean. I'm not off the sugar right now since I crave sweet things and have given up artificial sweeteners, but there was a time when I was sugar free and I do sympathize with the fact that when you are sugar free even a little bit can trigger an uncontrollable binge followed by a sugar coma. Maybe increase your water till you feel flushed out and better. amazing how something like sugar can have side effects like a narcotic.

Have you ever tried plain pumpkin? I don't think you'll ever not notice when it's sweetened :).

Maybe she thought adding extra sugar was a way to treat a guest special? I bet with the "syrupy" properties it was loaded with butter too.

I've never tried just cubed roasted pumpkin but I'd love to. I wonder if it would be good with pumpkin pie spices but without sugar. Sort of spicy but savory.

Oh my. Sorry you've gone through this.

I never reacted well to sugar, though that didn't stop me from ingesting it in massive quantities. But since I gave it up and then brought it back in, in small quantities upon hitting maintenance. Forget about it. I really, really, REALLY react poorly to it. I remember having 1 1 /2 banana pancakes one evening. The next morning I was in a fog. Headache-y, out of it. Dizzy-ish. Nauseous. I was like a limp noodle. Useless. It lasted till late that afternoon. And it took me a good 2 - 3 days to get fully back to myself. Now whenever I do have sugar, it's in teeny tiny portions and only in certain items. For some reason different combinations of foods with the sugar bother me more then others.

I'm not sure if it's the sugar that's still affecting you, but who knows?

It's tough while eating at someone's home. If I were at a restaurant, I wouldn't hesitate to ask how something is prepared. Even some innocent sounding pumpkin. Your BF's mom, well that could be tricky. Now that you know this is how this woman cooks, you've got to be careful. I would make my BF do the investigating. It's not worth taking a chance.

I hope you're feeling better soon.

It sounds like you are handling it in all the right ways. Good for you!

I have to avoid all sugar, even in fruit and high starch veggies or I have the same problem. I tried to convince myself several months ago that I could slowly add fruit back in until I realized my food for the day consisted 90% of fruit, then it went downhill from there. I am back to avoid any and all sugar and for the most part, the cravings aren't even there.

Thanks everyone. :hug:

I'm guessing that she's in the habit of adding extra sugar to it before serving; I was the only one having it at the moment and my BF had never paid attention to the way she'd served it before because he doesn't like pumpkin.

I'll definitely have to try it under better circumstances, without all the added sugar (and possibly butter). ;)

I'm just really shocked that it affected me so strongly . . . and it makes me wonder what it was doing to my body before when it had actually adapted to the stuff! :o

I had a similar reaction the other day, but to cream, not sugar. I made my boyfriend a special treat of chicken alfredo, I haven't had it in months, but I had a small portion that night. About 30 mins after I ate it, ugh. I felt ill all night. My body is just not use to all that fat anymore. Back to stir fry and baked chicken, and tomato based sauces for me.
I see as a good thing though, to see how foods affect me. It makes me much more aware.

Crazy huh? I had birthday cake for my daughters birthday and sugar crashed HARD and then had horrible cravings for three days afterwards! Sugar=the devil. For realz.

I eat very little sugar because it elevates my blood glucose too high. I'm not diabetic, but who would want to risk the horrible consequences, having sugar stick to your organs and making you blind and unable to heal? I never thought about it when I was young, but being obese I progressed to insulin resistant, and then to pre-diabetic. Limiting my refined carbs I've been able to go back to normal. But, it's true that when your glucose is high and your BP is high (high blood glucose can cause high blood pressure) you can feel dizzy and disoriented. Plus, who want's to have to take all those drugs? I test my blood glucose at home on my own just to keep it in check.