[chipper15173]

evening all,
to make a long story short here it is:
DX in 6/06 weight went from 286 to 212 by feb 07. came off 1 1/2 bp meds came off some asthma meds also. sugar levels never went over 100. was doing really good. THAN!!! doc told me since i had everything under such good control i needed to work on stopping smoking. I did. I quite 2 months ago. Now i can't seem to get back on the weight loss train. Gained back 8 pounds. i am still exercising even after finding out i have knee problems and back problems.
anyway, i need help getting back on the eating good train. i feel like i just lost my best friend by quiting smoking. i know that if i had also stopped exercising i would have gained more back. i just don't know what to do to get back on track. i haven't even taken my sugar readings.
any suggustions would be great.
thanks

[Ellen]

It can be hard when your program gets derailed. Maybe taking one day at a time will help. Make it through the morning, then the afternoon, then the evening. Each day you stay on track will help eliminate cravings and strengthen your resolve.

I wish I had easy answers. If I did, I guess I would be at goal and rich from selling the secret huh?

A good place to start is going back to taking your sugar readings. If they are creeping up, it might be just the incentive to get you back on track. I know high readings freak me out, and make me more careful.

I hope you will join us on the monthly thread here....

[Penney]

Oh - I so understand where you are...... in fact I fell off of the stop smoking wagon recently. It is hard.... But, I am going to get right back on it... that has been my biggest battle - it was easier to change my eating habits than to quit smoking. That has been an on-again/off-again, love/hate, truly warped battle. That I will eventually win.

Like Monet suggested - Baby Steps - I went through a real slump and just could not face another "failure" here is something I did, pick something each day that you know you can do or say maybe you pick something that you are going to do for 3 days or a week and then add something else - whatever works for you. Then with each success or goal met, you keep gaining momentum. It really helped me to regain my perspective.

Hang in there - you can do this!

[meowee]

Wow . . . all I can say is keep trying, it is so worth it . . . and it does get easier as time goes on . . .

I stopped a 'pack and a half a day' smoking habit cold-turkey about 21 years ago. It was not easy, I thought I was going to go absolutely insane for the first few weeks. I had to take sleeping pills because I couldn't sleep. I think it is the memory of that period of time that kept me from ever having another cigarette. I was sure if I had one, I'd be right back where I started from in no time. For the first few months, I even avoided all social occasions that usually led to smoking, like going out for drinks or even going out for dinner.

It took years (many years), but I finally no longer have any smoking cravings. Darn it all, I wish I could control my bad eating habits the same way . . . i.e., by never having another bite of food . . . I'm the exact opposite of Penney . . . quitting smoking was easier than quitting over-eating.