Thank you so much for your replies and words of encouragement and advice on the fish oil. Knowing that I’m not alone out there and seeing people with similar limitations and accomplishing their goals give me so much inspiration and hope. Congratulations to all of you for your weight loss. WOW so amazing especially with all the challenges you all have! You all inspire me more than you can imagine, not just for the weight loss but for being proactive and positive, as I am the same.
This is the first time in a long time that I feel like I have found something that will work, as I am seeing results. I think where I went wrong was skipping meals, not eating breakfast and then eating all my calories at night. I am learning to correct those bad habits. That and living with a husband that was anti vegetable and a junk food junkie was my biggest challenge. He is learning to enjoy vegetables slowly but surely.
I have a love of cooking, especially cooking from scratch, hence my FIM disease (Fork in Mouth). I have always been passionate about cooking healthy; I was a vegetarian for 20 years until I met my husband. LOL I was excited that many of my recipes that I have been making for years are South Beach acceptable. I will be posting some of them soon if anyone is interested.
Thank you again for sharing your stories with me and for the warm welcomes!
Kat
Hello Everyone! I just joined this list after reading through the postings. I was just diagnosed 2 weeks ago with FMS, and while that is good news of sorts, any one with Fibro will tell you that is more than plenty. After 4 months of various and sundry testing to make sure I didn't have anything else, I guess this *is* good news! During my last visit with my neurologist, we were talking about the Do's and DO NOT's for me going forward. One thing was weight loss and the other was <gulp> exercise! He said "Have you ever considered a diet and exercise program?", quite nicely because he's an absolute peach. And because I'm more of a peach tart, I said "Doc, I wasn't always this old OR fat!" And he hit me with the first Do NOT: Do not go for a radical diet plan, taking into consideration my nerve health and not worsening this condition. He said he liked the SBD because it gave a good balance of protiens, good carbs and fats. I told him I would be happy to look into it. Exercise DO was go Slow Slow Slow to begin, and try to increase a little each week. Ok..so no Jillian Michaels for me! For a big boned 5'9 Dutch girl, I'm starting at a weight today of 239, down already from 256, and all I am doing is trying to catch up on a year of housekeeping that got left undone. The very best part is that my husband is going to do SBD right along with me. We start officially on Monday. We're just practicing it right now! I'm so glad I found this forum! Congratuations to all the people having their awesome sucess! Great Job! Wish me luck!
PS. My profile pic is of a little thing I call Attitude, because sometimes Attitude is all you have left, so hopefully it's a good one!
Someone earlier on mentioned Krill oil. That's what I take, and I have no issue with fish burps. The Krill oil caps are much smaller for the same amount of nutrients.
As for autoimmune - I'm trying to stay wheat free now, because I've been reading that the wheat we are eating today triggers inflammation. I have auto-immune thyroid disease. Not anywhere near what you guys with Fibromyalgia are dealing with, but I believe they are similar. Since Phase one is gluten free because of it's design, take a look at how you feel. I didn't think I could do it, but somehow that has actually become pretty easy!
Well, here we are at the end of Phase I SBD, and 22 pounds gone. I know a lot of this had to be water weight, but I really don't care Its GONE! And I don't wan to ever see it again! 234 this morning, even with jammies still on. My husband, bless him, I hate him) is down 25, but he is a ton more active than I am and he's a man. Strangle him! LOL! Treadmill and I don't get along too well YET, but doing a lot of stretches and light weights trying to get things loosened up. FMS Sucks. One thing I noticed in Phase I tho, is that I didn't/don't have carb cravings. My galpal made extreme lo-carb cupcakes, and I took a bite and it was like sweet overload! I've noticed some people out there are restricted to their use of artificial sweetners, and I am recommended by my neurodoc to try to cut back on any artificial ingredient. My husband is finishing off the Splenda in his coffee, but I've switched over to stevia/truvia. Anyone have any information on using Truvia? Since I've gotten into label examination, there are a lot of things that just don't come into our house anymore. I think its too soon to really tell a difference in how I feel, other than it's easier to move, and I seem to have more energy! But..all in all...PROGRESS!
Keep doing great!!! Every movement is movement in the right direction
Wow - 22lbs! That is NOT all water weight! Congratulations! That is outstanding. The fact that your weight loss is even close to your husbands is pretty amazing - men usually lose weight twice as fast as we do!
Re: Truvia - I started out using it, but am going to pick up some Stevia drops the next time I'm near a health food store. The Erythritol in in Truvia is metabolized as a carb - even though it has no calories. That just doesn't seem fair!!!
Also, for your FMS - check out posts on topical Magnesium and things like Epsom salt baths. I've been reading about that recently, and their might be a "do no harm" application for you.
Wow - 22lbs! That is NOT all water weight! Congratulations! That is outstanding. The fact that your weight loss is even close to your husbands is pretty amazing - men usually lose weight twice as fast as we do!
Re: Truvia - I started out using it, but am going to pick up some Stevia drops the next time I'm near a health food store. The Erythritol in in Truvia is metabolized as a carb - even though it has no calories. That just doesn't seem fair!!!
Also, for your FMS - check out posts on topical Magnesium and things like Epsom salt baths. I've been reading about that recently, and their might be a "do no harm" application for you.
Thank you so much, CatMat! I *know* it is amazing, to me too! I just had one of those AHA! moments! I went into my dresser, pulled out a top I could NOT wear 3 months ago because it was too tight to pull over my head and on. I got it on...and yes, it is still tight, but the thing is..I CAN wear it ! That is my mini-project here. So, I reached a little farther down the stack and pulled on a top that I couldn't wear for 2 years because it was just too snug..and now its a little loose. YAY! With my husband and I..its not a competition. He's so awesome and supportive. When I get discouraged, he says "it's easier for men than women, you know that! You're doing great, and remember, your medications make your gain weight and you are still loosing!" I will keep him! I'm not looking for a magic bullet for the Fibro. I'll take the good days and use them to my advantage, and I'll tough through the bad days. Losing weight will help to make movement easier, and that's very cool for me! I'm noticing a difference already, especially with going up and down the stairs, so I can only imagine what it will feel like with a lot less of me! Thank you again, CatMat!! You're awesome!
PS: thanks for the info on Truvia. I don't use it much but there was something bugging me about the ingredients info on the box. Brain fog got me and I couldn't remember what! LOL!!!! Plain ol' stevia is not on the grocery list!
Last edited by Diona; 07-17-2012 at 11:54 AM.
Reason: Added PS for Truvia info
Hi Kat:
I have Cerebral Palsy, Fibromyalgia and Arthritis in a few spots. I had the same probs with Lyrica and Cymbalta. Lyrica made me swollen fat and blank Cymbalta less swollen but fat and psycho. (God bless hubby!)
I find when I don't eat Wheat my symptoms are better. Right now I'm working on being grain free for a month and seeing how that helps.
Elena Amsterdam from Elenas Pantry has MS and cites Fish oil and a grain free diet for keeping her inflammation down. Worth a shot!
Lisa I didn't know you had that stuff going on!
Anway You're not alone Kat! and while I am in and out of this forum the chicks here are super supportive!
Kierie
Hi Kierie, wow! Good luck and congrats for how far you've come! Awesome job! Cymbalta nearly killed me with side-effects. I had no clue how bad I was until I'd gotten through withdrawal (2 solid months! gack!), and could look back on what I could remember! The song lyric that went through my head was "What a long strange trip its been..." Anyway, I'm on Lyrica now and found the smallest effective dose for me, no more crazies! I am also taking EPA and DHA capsules, 2 per day and a couple of Aleve at night for some arthritis relief while I sleep. When I weigh, I look at the numbers, then at my feet to see how bad my ankles are swollen then try to remember "its the meds! its the meds!" I wear compression stockings while working because I have to sit for long periods of time, to keep the swelling down, and they help.
I'm so tickled there are more people out there playing with the same deck of cards I'm holding! *you* understand!!! My friends really don't have a clue, and my husband, bless him, tries very hard! Thanks for being here, all of you!
Laid up with a flare-up in the neck, upper back, and shoulder. My flare-ups are typically related either to temperature or stress, and clearly this go around is stress. Work has been overwhelming lately and I'm afraid my trigger/tender points are going crazy! Definitely have some nerve stuff going on. I don't usually take anything but Advil didn't cut it last night so tonight it's flexiril and tramadol. It's not doing much but loosen me up a bit and make me loopy. Hoping for a good night's rest tonight. Hope you other girls are doing well!
This is a great thread....so good to know I'm not alone in this
I also suffer from chronic pain-lumbar/SI clear up to occipital and FM. Also osteoarthritis in my knees.
Mobility nil, muscular atrophy and shortening, consequent guarded movements which just exacerbates everything....I spent 4 weeks in a rehabilitation clinic which gave me my life back after every single doctor i had been to see (even the specialists!) said there was nothing wrong and the fybromyalgia symptoms were just me overreacting, being wimpy and basically making the whole thing up. unbelievable!!! Perhaps one of the disadvantages to universal health care...
I also get flare-ups due to stress/anxiety & take Katadolon on bad days.
Exercise, physiotherapy and CBT keeps me in a good place....just so tough keeping up a regular regimen---still fighting/not accepting the cards fate has dealt me (not helpful)(and whiney to boot =) )
weird how i haven't thought about changing my eating habits to alleviate the symptoms, only to lose weight. thanks for the great advice!
So, I haven't had a lot to say lately because I have been sitting on a plateau, and didn't want to get any one as discouraged as I felt. Maybe I should have shared, maybe I had to wait to get some positive outcomes before I did. I am not sure but I'm back! I'm on Lyrica for my FMS, and my major side-effect is water retention. I'm dealing with it. And not well, but I am. Anyway, my husband had a lo-carb Atkins and SB friendly cookbook, and he had a recipe that he tried for low-carb high protein rye bread. Perfect for Phase II of SB! So I made a loaf, and it didn't turn out like bread, but more like a rye bread brownie. Oh well, it tasted good, so I did some adjusting to the water temp for yeast proofing, tossed in a tablespoon of molasses, and added more oat bran, rye flour, and brown rice protein, and tried again. Much better results! Mr. Scale and I had a battle every other day, and I was about as discouraged as I can be, and it was just Friday things started inching downward again! Hurray! Progress!
While this was going on, in retrospect, I was noticing that my clothing was getting looser, and I generally felt better. Ok, I'll take all that. I was reading a lot about FMS and nutrition, and comparing what dietary changes I had actually made for us while SB'ing, not counting pastas, potatoes..what had I changed and how did that compare with nutritional advice on other FMS sites. I do think by adding in allowed SB superfoods such as spinach, kale, fennel, and changing to better, leaner, and grass-fed or organic meats has made an impact on me too. Last night, while out with my band wife friends, I felt a flare-up starting, and it is going on yet today. But, it really is the first big one since I started getting started to do SB, and frankly, to even feel this much widespread pain feels "unusual" compared to what the last few weeks were like. Again, Progress!! This flare will calm down, as we all know. I can't say what triggered it, but I know that the last week has been hectic and busy, and I know I've not been getting enough rest or sleep between band gigs, practice and work. And that is as critical to feeling decent as anything else. There's just so much to do! LOL!
Today I reached my halfway goal, and didn't realize it until I edited my sig line. This isn't the easiest thing to do, losing weight with FMS and taking Lyrica, but I am hoping someone else can take courage from this note. South Beach has made dieting a very good thing for me, and I find it easy to follow the good eating habits it helps establish. It's made it easier to stick with it, a lot easier, and to limit any slips and stumbles along the way. Birthdays happen, holidays happen, and starting Sunday, a cruise happens for a week! I have told me that I will behave as much as feasibly possible...See you all in a week!
Just wanted to let you know you're not alone. I have Fibromyalgia, was diagnosed with it in the Spring, and I also have a number of other health issues. I have found that with the right medicine that it is easier to manage. Do you have a good rheumatologist?
Two rheumatologists who I have seen say that weight loss really helps improve Fibromyalgia so that is just another reason and motivation to keep trekking on the weight loss journey!
Take care, and feel free to private message me anytime
Also, I have found that the book Fibromyalgia for Dummies is a good book.
Oh, I feel for you. Maybe you can benefit a little from my experience. I don't have FMS (thankfully) but I do deal with chronic nerve pain and sciatica, both of which originate from a cervical spinal injury. I have about 7 years of experience with Lyrica. At a low dose it seemed to be marginally effective at controlling the pain but, after about 1 year my doc had me try it at about 3x the usual dose and my pain symptoms were greatly diminished (the good) Unfortunately, I also gained about 100 lbs. in the 5 years since the dosage increase (the bad). I had no motivation to lose weight, my mobility, as limited as it already was, became severely limited and I started to exhibit signs of depression (the ugly).
Last spring it just got to be too much. My doctor recommended going back to gabapentin. I started on Neurontin immediately after the accident (in 1999) but it seemed like it was losing effectiveness over time. This time, she suggested a different, time release formulation combined with Tramadol (a synthetic opioid). So far, it seems as effective as the Lyrica at controlling pain but I don't have any drastic increases if I am the least bit late taking my next dose. I have regained motivation to exercise and eat right. I've lost more than 10% of my highest weight since May. I can't say it was all due to the switch away from Lyrica, but the difference is more than coincidental.
I recommend keeping up with the SBD. Even if your weight loss slows you will at least learn to eat foods that are healthy. My current strategy is to count calories using the food choices that I learned from Ph II and Ph III of SBD. After 4 months, this is the longest stretch that I've sustained without a plateau and the increase in exercise (including 1 hr in the therapy pool each week, regular stretching and meditation) have helped me manage the pain.
So sorry about your condition, but excellent advice. I am 99% positive that my FMS was a background condition after a severe lumbar injury 14 years ago that went undiagnosed or even discovered by me until 7 years later (torsion and scoliosis of L4-L5). son of a...... But then after the neuropathy got unbearable my doctor tried me on Lyrica and I felt FANTASTIC.. and lost 11 pounds just from being able to move again without wincing. Then the insurance said "oh no no no! No Lyrica for you! But you can take Cymbalta, we will approve all you want of that!" and so I did. About a year and a half later with an extreme Cymbalta mania going, constant diarrhea, spasmodic head motions, eyeballs rather bulging, abdomen swelling, Parkinson's gait and arm/hand movements (feeling a lot like Quasimoto I was!) I insisted there had to be a correlation to Cymbalta and they moved me to neurontin for my withdrawal off Cymbalta (it's horrid..not recommended for the faint of heart). Neurontin did ok initially but at the highest dose to manage the leg/back pain, that is when I tacked on 25 pounds in water weight alone from the swelling. So she referred me to a neurologist and he was the one that took me off neurontin and started me on Lyrica again. It was a tough sell for my insurance company to pay for it, but he got it through after some 300,000 dollars worth of tests to satisfy them it wasn't anything more than neuropathic leg and back pain (chronic) and now...Fibromyalgia.. the spazzy stuff quit after a while, but I was left with horrid muscular pains in my upper back, shoulders, arms, neck...well, any place have muscle groups. But, on the other hand, it wasn't a brain tumor, ALS, MS, Parkinsons, or a myriad of other diseases... and that was it for me! If it wasn't going to kill me, or even really "hurt" me, I was going to get my rookie into high gear and he suggested that I try SBD because it provided more complete nutrition and also allowed for oils that would help my nerves themselves to be healthier. "I gotta Mayan Temple I am determined to climb," I told him, "And I got stuff to DO!" He said, just go slow building up..you've been very restricted for so long, take time and care of yourself." I climbed my Mayan Temple week before last, by the way, all by myself..perhaps ungracefully..but all by myself. And now that is off my bucket list. Also, you CAN go on a 7 day Caribbean cruise and not gain any weight, if you are gentle with yourself and forgive slips. It's ok to slip, you just can'f fall on your butt if you do, and just keep going. A slip is not an excuse to fall into the buffet line with 4 platters, right? It's just a bit of something you can enjoy for that moment, not a gateway into failure. Since I've been back home now for a little over a week, another 2 pounds has fallen by the wayside, and I am still so thankful and joyous about my little accomplishments. OH! And I found out that I *can* still ride horses! Not the old barrel-racing days, but I can still get on there without killing myself or the horse, and the after effects were not too shabby! Attitude..it's half the battle! Starting is the battle half done..so I figure I've got a quarter of the way to go Right?
I'm so glad I found this forum! Congratuations to all the people having their awesome sucess! Great Job! Wish me luck!
