Hi there...

It's so nice to have a fun and supportive group here, thank you to everyone who keeps it bustling!

Hi Coffeeshopgirl, it's great to see you. I can definitely relate to the ups and downs with mood swings, that can be very frustrating.

Chelsea, thank you for sharing your kind words. I love my lil Snickers! I hope I'm not allergic to him, I think I had a moderate or semi severe allergy to the Timothy hay and aspen bedding. My asthma acts up in the cold and hot weather, I was feeling a bit under the weather in the beginning of last week, so I'm not sure what's going on. I really hope that I don't have to part with my little Snickers, I think that things are better since removing the hay and bedding, at least for me, I hope he's not too out of his orient.

I've been a bit emotional lately, I'm not sure exactly why, other than a few things have been cropping up and I don't react well to feeling overwhelmed. I'm debating seeing a new therapist who is closer but I am not sure, I'll have to see. He does hypotherapy and I am considering trying that for pain management.

Take care and have a nice, safe and warm evening everyone.

Amy and Snickers

Howdy y'all... I'm still dragging a-s-s over the breakup with my Belgian friend, Robine. And I decided to step up my diet on February 1st by going back on the strict Atkins "induction" plan, so I don't even have the sugar-free muesli as a comfort food anymore. I'm trying to talk myself into thinking of cheese sticks as a comfort food. I do like the little zipper sleeves they come in, so at least they're fun to unwrap. =weak smile=

Why did I decide to go back on strict Atkins? For sort of a silly reason: my birthday is the 22nd of this month, and the 22nd is also the day of the month I weigh myself (I can't stand the stress of weighing any more often than that), and I want the scale to show a nice hefty loss as a birthday present to myself.

I just hope that the strict Atkins doesn't make me depressed. That's why I added the muesli in the first place, because I thought I was one of those people who gets depressed on Atkins. But I could've been wrong: it could've been the change in my meds finally kicking in that pulled me out of that depression last fall, not the muesli.

Such is the convoluted logic of a person still deep in grief over losing an amazingly wonderful friendship...

Deleted

I hesitated so much before joining this group. I hope I'm taking the right step to join in. I'm saying this because I can easily get dragged down when others are giving up (which I hope won't happen too often).
I'm going through a depression, I started prozac 10 days ago but before that I had never taken any antidepressant. Ever since I started the medication, I exercised only once. The day after the first day I took the medication I tried to exercise and got lightheaded. I live alone and I exercise on a treadmill so I got scared and that was that.
Before then I lost 6 pounds (my goal for the month). And now since I've stopped exercising I can't stop cheating with my diet. For me that's how it works the more I exercise the less I feel like snacking/overeating.
I hope I'll give and receive support from this group throughout this month. I don''t want to give up this time around.

Hi there!

Penmage- thank you so much for all of the hugs! I really appreciate them! That means so much. I am feeling better, my asthma is better tonight, thank God!!! I feel that my spirits are better too.

Fiona- Happy birthday!!! I understand wanting to lose weight, I want to lose weight too, but I just hope that restricting too much isn't too overwhelming for you. Sometimes when I restrict too much, I crave the forbidden fruit that much more. Good luck!

Thirti- welcome!! I hear you about getting dragged down easily, I do get dragged down too but I think that this is a great group. I was on Prozac about 15 years ago and it did help a little. Good luck with your meds, I hope you like your doctor. Take care.

I love this signature! What a great way to approach weight loss!

Your body was probably still adjusting to the medication when the dizzy spell happened to you on the treadmill, or maybe your blood sugar was low that morning. Now that you are used to the medication, it should be better. I hope you can find a way to exercise without being too lightheaded. Just take it slow, start out with short sessions, drink water, and make sure you have a small amount of healthy food before you work out.

Hey thirty4thirty, and I hope you can find some companionship and know that these great chicks really care about us!

penmage - Oh I am just too embarrassed to say hi at the South Beach thread I did so well, and just slipped back into old, bad habits and am w-a-y up in weight again. And just can't seem to stick to my resolve for even more than one flippin day.

Hey it is just horrid that the eharmony guy has pulled away! maybe he needs some time to digest what happened (I know that sounds like I'm making excuses for him...YOU'RE the one who was assaulted!! but we know guys' minds work differently than ours) It just really REALLY sux when the victim is blamed, but that's how some people work with an unpleasant problem.

again no time to say HI and to everyone personally, i stayed in bed again 2 hours later than i should, now I have to get ready for work. Really glad you are all here

Hello all, and welcome to all our new group friends! I can't post much today but wanted to let you know I found the thread and am keeping up. Fi it is good to hear from you and I am very sorry to hear what is happening with your friend. I have long distance friendships as well, and it doesn't effect the amount of impact they have on your life.

Things seem to be going well emotionally, though i did eat way too much bad stuff this weekend. I love food! It's a tough spot. My hands are still giving me a lot of problems that seem to be increasing again, but I have an appointment next week so hopefully that will start to help.

Good thoughts to everyone,
Chelsea

Hi all! I haven't purchased my scale from Amazon yet. Waiting on some money issues. Hopefully soon. I am supposed to do some errands today but I can't get a cab and it is stressing me out. I am trying to let go of it. I will try again at 4 to get a cab.

penmage - I found my book club on Meet Up.com. It has all kinds of groups. I haven't gone yet. It isn't until the 19th. I am still waiting on the book from Amazon.

I did my first weigh in at WW today.... 186.6

Not too happy, but it is a starting point

Evening ladies!

thirti4thirty- Welcome! I've not been on Prozac so I can't offer any advice, but I hope you find it works for you!

seabiscuit- Glad you're feeling better!

Holly- Thank you! And don't feel bad about the re-gain, I gained back everything I lost last time. Only 23 to go to get back where I was lol. Stupid bread.

CDubsGotGoats- Hi!

lilturtle- I looked on MeetUp just now and voila! There one is. Unfortunately I'm way out in the boonies (farm country. My neighbors have a dairy farm) so the nearest one is 40 minutes away. I'll check with the library, but last I heard they just had knitting and crocheting groups.

donijo23- Fingers crossed you'll never see that number again!

Wow, lots of communication going on in the group lately!!! I love it!!! I just ate a bunch of pizza and a little salad. Yes, I know, it should have been the other way around, if eating pizza at all! Ugggggh!!! I just can't seem to get back on board at the moment! I got in 35 minutes on the treadmill yesterday late afternoon and plan to get at least 30 minutes later tonight (after my food digests). I am finally exercising consistently, but I just HAVE to get the food part of this equation under control again if I am going to have success. I am driving myself crazy!

thirti4thirty: to the group! I hope you will find the support you need here to help encourage you toward your goals. I am so sorry that you are experiencing depression right now, but you are making the right move by reaching out for help (with medication and by joining the group). You just don't have to go through this alone. Sorry you got lightheaded while exercising when you first started your medication. Shr1nk1ngme gave you some great suggestions for when you are ready to try the treadmill again. That is interesting that the more you exercise, the less you are tempted to overeat. So I say definitely try that treadmill again, but take it SLOW and make sure you are well hydrated and not exercising on an empty stomach. Whatever you do, DON'T GIVE UP ON YOURSELF!!! You are worth every effort you put forth! YOU CAN DO THIS!!! And we will be here cheering you on!

penmage: First, let me say how sorry I am about the sexual assault you experienced. That is just AWFUL!!! And as if that wasn't bad enough, your eHarmony guy didn't even acknowledge it..... or you?!? I don't get it!!! Good luck going "back to the drawing board" as they say. That takes courage. You will find the right person when the time is right, I believe. eHarmony has a good track record, it seems. And, BTW, you are just fine to write as much as you want!!! So vent all you want if/when you need to!!! I am listening! BIG HUGS to you! Thanks for pointing out that you are in Ohio, too. Are you a Buckeye fan?

Fi: It is so good to have you back on board! I am still so sorry about the current difficulties you are going through. YIKES! The Induction phase of Atkins again sounds scary to me! How strict is it? You can do anything you put your mind to, though. And I definitely like the idea of giving a big LOSS on the scale to yourself as a b-day present! Do you think your adjusted dose on your med is working better for you now? Any more episodes of angina? I hope not! When do you see a specialist? I hope things start looking UP for you soon!

seabiscuit: Glad to hear from you! I sure hope you are not allergic to little Snickers!!! Sorry you've been emotional lately. I hate the feeling of being overwhelmed, too! Good luck with your decision about a new therapist and hypnotherapy. Trust yourself and your gut! You know yourself best!

Holly: Thanks for checking in and supporting everyone! It's always nice to hear from you.

Chelsea: Thanks for posting to let us know you found the thread. Sorry you are having problems with your hands again. Hope you can get some relief soon! I sure hear ya on loving food!!! That is a problem for me, too!

Trish (lilturtle): Glad you have the book club to look forward to. You will have to let us know how it goes.

donijo23: Congrats on your first WW weigh-in! Your weight sounds GREAT to me right about now!!! I'd take it! Just putting things in perspective....... it could definitely be worse! Good luck and let me know how you like WW!

shr1nk1ngme: Good to hear from you lately! Thank you for offering some great advice to thirti4thirty!

Keep up the great posts everyone!!! Each of you make this group what it is. It is so much fun to log on and read about how everyone is doing. It helps me to know that I am not alone in this battle with weight loss, especially on meds! So here's a hug for all of you!

Sorry guys, but I'm still too deep in grief to be supportive to other people, other than saying that I'm reading all your postings and thinking good thoughts in your direction. My eating has gotten very simple: turkey slices and cheese sticks. And cream in my two cups of coffee in the morning. I think the grief must be affecting my appetite: I hope my metabolism hasn't dialed way down, too. I've even skipped my leg exercises for a couple of nights in a row, but I'll get back with the program tomorrow night.

But I made a collage today! I've relieved that my art is back. It was only gone for a few days, but when I don't want to make art, I don't feel human. I hope everybody has a stellar Wednesday.

Yesterday was anxiety-free! After a lite dinner, I cranked out approximately 7 miles at the gym. I could tell some people were staring over in my direction a little bit, so I had to keep 'em entertained. Haha. Oh! And I watched Despicable Me 2. Good movie, much laughter.

I went a night without my meds. No sleep. I'm having pharmacy/refill problems. The doctor blames the pharmacy and the pharmacy blames the doctor. It's frustrating. Also because of the weather I might not be able to go out today again. I have stuff that needs done.