Hi, there,
New to this board, and really hoping to be able to gain (and give) some support. Oh, what to say without boring you all rigid!

I grew up pretty fit, in a family of runners and swimmers, and used to swim and do yoga most days. Then I got married, had my first son and moved to Canada (near Toronto). That's followed by a diagnosis of depression (an ongoing battle ever since) and a whole new country and fast good culture and I'm suddenly 150lbs over my previous weight. When my mom came from England a year after we moved here, she said if my husband hadn't been stood next to me at the airport she wouldn't have recognised me.

So, here I am...another son down and still can't shift this weight. I've tried the Weight Watchers, CAD, GI...I lose on all of them and then fall of the wagon in a big way. My 'unique challenges' are the depression and a low blood sugar problem. I'm thinking CAD might be best for me as the Reward meal is a huge plus...but I need to work out the days meals, allowing for me eating breakfast mid morning at work and lunch mid afternoon...so it needs to be 'carryable'.

Ok rambling here - hoping to find some solutions here. Looking forward to 'meeting' you all.

Welcome to you! You landed in a good place here.

Any plan you find or come up with yourself that results in fewer calories taken in than burned will result in weight loss. The trick is to find a way of eating that you can do forever. There isn't an end to this once the weight is gone. Not gaining it back requires the same effort as losing it and very few additional calories.

I have also struggled with depression since I was a teenager, so I know the added difficulty that adds to losing weight. But the weight is also a trigger for depression so getting rid of it helps a lot in that area.

Anyway, just wanted to say !

At one point in time, I was majorly depressed, overweight, stressed, and unhappy. When this happened to me, I felt I have to eat A LOT-- to feel REALLY full, in order to cope.

So, I made the decision that I would not fight the feeling to eat SO much- instead I would find every healthy, vegetable recipe I could..... the majority of what i ate at this time being ALL veggies.... and i would make big fruit smoothies with soy milk.... and lastly, large pieces of lean protein.

I ate A LOT, I didn't deny myself at all - despite eating huge amounts, I lost weight. It is literally impossible to gain weight on fruits and veggies.

If you don't have a therapist to help you through your depression, focus on something that you CAN do....

My diet still contains many fruits and veggies and i've maintained 150- 160 for the past year (my highest weight ever being 230).

When the depression hits, I go straight to the grocery store and really stock up on fruits and veggies.

I am hoping to understand my problem better in the future- I'd like to start psychotherapy to understand my urges better.

good luck and btw, i know first-hand, it is hard moving to another culture and leave behind family and friends..... i moved from america to germany.

Welcome! You will find a ton of support here. What does BBW mean?

mamaspank, BBW means Big Beautiful Woman, I believe.

And welcome to the site Havisham, I'm sure you will find it useful. I know I do

Welcome to 3FC and good luck with your goals.

Hugs
Michelle

I had no clue what BBW meant. To me it means Bath and Body Works.

Welcome to 3fatchicks! It is and awesome place to give and get support!

BBW is often used on dating and social networking sites... it doesn't bother me as much as "more to love" which is the option given on myspace. I'd much rather say "plus size" or even just "fat."

Oh, and Welcome to 3FC Havisham!

to 3FC Lots of great people and things to read on here.

Those are my challeneges as well, I try to watch my calorie intake and it's hard to not get low blood sugar. One thing I'm working on now to help with that, is cutting out caffeine, I find my blood sugar doesn't spike up and dip down as much, it helps me feel better throughout the day. Though it is hard cutting out caffeine, I don't drink coffee unless it's my day off from work now, I just drink tea (it's a slow weaning process)

Anyways, enough about that, welcome! I just joined as well so hopefully we find some good support people

Thank you all for the warm welcome! Apologies for the BBW confusion - it's a North American thing, I think, and yes it's on social networking type sites. Personally I never use it but I know it's common. A horrible term!

Anyway, Bonnnie, I agree totally on the veggies and fruit - it's just keeping them in the house with two kids!

Stephanie, I hear you on the caffeine. I was totally addicted to Coke (Cola) and only recently managed to quit, and that's helping. I'm possibly the only English woman out there who doesn't drink tea, but I'm finding a love for Perrier with lemon juice. It's a start!

Thanks, again, to all of you...looking forward to getting to know you all.