PCOS/Insulin Resistance SupportSupport for us with any of the following: Insulin Resistance, Syndrome X, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, or other endocrine disorders.
I can do it for three months. I can do it for eight months. I have even done it for FOUR YEARS, but why, oh why, do I continue to fall HARD off the wagon? I KNOW that I need to eat well for my health and well being and yet I continue to have relpases. I am hurting tonight ladies. I lost a great deal of weight and inches the first twon months of this year, and then I added carbs (and they were BAD) back in a little at a time. Now I am out of control again.
It is so easy for me to avoid meet, MSG, sugar, etc, but bread, pasta, etc... I feel like I am going insane. Can someone help me?
My body hates grain carbs, especially wheat. Some things that have helped me to avoid them:
~Low carb, high protein, moderate fat. The protein controls my appetite, the fat gives me a feeling of satiety, and I get loads of healthy nutrients from veggies and fruits.
~Trying lots of new foods and new recipes. Enjoying a variety keeps me from wanting to resort to stuff I think I love, like pasta and sandwiches.
~Knowing my "wheat triggers." For me, it's not foods that trigger cravings, but emotions. For example, stress makes me long for bread - fiercely. I'm learning better ways to handle that.
~One of my diet rules is "There is no failure. Only learning experiences." Whenever I stumble I analyze WHY and make the necessary adjustments to not go there again.
~Establish a support system! Whether it's friends or family or this board. you MUST have someone who understands your food plan and your weaknesses, and will keep you accountable, give you a shoulder to cry on, and remind you that are an awesome person who is so much more than her disease and her weight.
I think the way to solve it -- so it isn't just this vicious cycle -- is to admit, accept... (which are really hard!!!) once and for all that we can't be like everyone else...
We can't just eat a slice of cake or a piece of bread or a serving of pasta, because it will lead to eating more. Moderation doesn't exist for people who have IR because it just triggers the vicious cycle inside of us.
I just feel so down about it. I feel like it takes so much energy to get started again, then only to fail at some later point. This is the worst it's been in a long time, though. I am getting back in gear tomorrow.
I think I do have to ACCEPT that we are not like everyone else. That is so, so hard.
It is hard. But you are succeeding, overall. It's easy to lose track of that in the day-to-day frustration.
I also find that each time I succeed for a time, I learn something new that helps me the next time. AND each time I slip back into bad habits, I get new (sometimes forcefully) realization that I just can't eat that way anymore. I see high blood sugar readings; I get heart palpitations; I gain weight again; I start having to use a cane to walk again...
I find that when I write and regularly re-read my "health scripts" -- little phrases and paragraphs of encouraging text that I can use to combat the "bad scripts" that my internal self sometimes says -- it really helps keep me on track.
Slowly, the times off-plan may become shorter. And the times on-plan will become longer.
It's hard and every day you have to remind yourself of your goal. I am starting today and it feels like I've started Monday diets for the past 10 years. Like I try to tell myself, I will take one day at a time and congratulate myself for my small goals. If one day you eat badly, try the next day to eat well.
I think I do have to ACCEPT that we are not like everyone else. That is so, so hard.
It is hard. I had to go through the stages of grief when I got the dx. It took me a long time to reach total acceptance that I have this LIFELONG chronic patient condition and there IS NO CURE.
There is only management.
Once I could accept it, I could change my thinking to "I am managing all I can today. I am not managing all I can today."
And that's another layer of acceptance. "All I can manage today" changes and being ok with that.
There's the demands of kids, jobs, elders, etc to meet as well as our own needs to meet.
Thank you so much, ladies. I cried when I read your posts. Sigh...
You are right, though, I am waaay better off than when I first got dx in 1998 and even better off than a year ago. I learn something knew every time. I guess we all have to keep pushing up that hill!!!
I very much understand. I'm beginning my fight to lost the SEVENTY pounds I've regained after losing 90 a few years ago. It's disheartening, but it needs to be done! For me, I know the only time I feel proud is when I know in my heart I'm trying my best without self pity and excuses, the result is secondary. The number on the scale is arbitrary, eating well and exercising is good for us even if the scale never budges, know what I mean?
So tried of CONSTANTLY starting over!
