Mad I understand your dilemma as that is how it was for me the last 2+ months going through this situation with Daddy's health issues. It is sad to say that even in the hospital cafeteria you cannot find the right foods to stay lowcarb plus no one else was going to eat there any way. We ended up eating a lot of fast foods and I had to just try to keep my portions down. I honestly believe that getting diabetes in control is possible even doing that if you have to. The problem I had was that it made me hungry all the time. I know you love doing low carb, but you have to do what you can and I remember when I worked weird hours like you do with your shifts, there was no way I could have done it. We do what we have to do and do the best we can. And sometimes that has to do with our lifestyle and the people around us.

Carol Sue I used to do the same thing with my family. I would make a meal with a starchy carb/s for the family and I just didn't eat it so I could stay lowcarb. And I agree that IF and IE are harder to do when you have to cook even one meal for someone else. I have that with DH. One thing I've decided to do since things have settled back to normal with DD doing better and we don't have to go over so often is I am going to try not to eat my breakfast until 10 am. Then I can go 5 hrs before I eat the main meal with DH. I know that eating lowcarb following Dr. Westman's rules, I won't be hungry again until then. I can go another 4 or 5 hrs and have either a lowcarb meal/snack. The problem I find I'm having is that logging my food on MFP, I am adding food I don't want to get close to the 1200 calories they expect me to eat. So I may just have to log and not finalize it each day. I just want the carb count any way.

Casey actually says that she still has a problem eating only when she is hungry because she eats with her DH who also eats this way. She told about him being away for a month and she was able to lose 9.5 lbs while he was gone because she was able to eat only when she was hungry. She gained a lbs or so when he came back. She also states that you can lose as fast or slow as you want. I will have to listen to that part again, but I think it has to do how much she want to eat only when hungry or the times you have to eat with someone else.

Yesterday DH and I went to Golden Corral. This one is so much nicer, cleaner and friendlier. So much nicer than the one we had in SC. I really think it is the young men that run it. Any way I told DH that I wanted to go there because I could stay OP. I had the roast beef w/o gravy, green beans and yellow squash. I was going to get the sugar free jello, but they didn't have it. DH tried to get me to go get the no sugar added ice cream since I wasn't eating my usual dessert. I know he was trying to help me, but he just could not understand that I couldn't eat those carbs. I got home and when I logged it on MFP, I had eaten only 6 grams of carb. If I didn't know better, I would think he was trying to sabotage me. It really is harder to do any type of eating diet, IF or IE.

One of the big things that is helping me right now is watching my Daddy. He has always tried to take care of his health to the best of his ability. I do not want to go through what he is and I know if I change what I know I'm can change now, it will give me a better chance to get my health back. It is worth the fight. I know that my Daddy tried to not let something like this happen to him, but he didn't know how. You cannot take all the sodium out of your diet. He is learning that he has to have some. I remember a cardiology nurse telling me that people were so afraid of sodium that they try not to eat any and that is just as dangerous as eating too much. WebMD says you need 1500 mg. An average person can eat up to 2300 mg, but evidently a CHF only can handle 2000 mg.

I think we have to learn how to take care of ourselves and we have to do it the best way we can in whatever situation we are in. I did read where Dr. Westman said when you do get off, just get right back on at the next meal or snack. Back when DH and I first married and I was doing lowcarb, I allowed myself what Carbohydrate Addict's calls a Reward Meal. I was careful to start my meal with a salad, tried to keep my plate balanced and followed it with a dessert. This is really what DH expected me to do yesterday at Golden Corral because that is how I have always done eating there. But I can't do that yet. For one thing I am considering this the Atkins Induction of 2 weeks. My goal will be to stay on Induction until I get my weight down and allow myself an occasional Reward Meal when I eat out. I read in Joyce Meyer's book Eat the Cookie where she and her DH had a trainer when she lost weight and working to get healthy. They were allowed one carb meal a week on the same day. So I could even do that after the 2 week Induction of 20 gram carbs a day. I've known for years this way of eating was right for me, but y'all know how I have fought it. At 73, I just don't think I can fight it any more.

You know I can remember when we moved to SC, I was doing lowcarb. One day DH and I went to Walmart. They have a McDonalds in their store and DH wanted to go eat a hamburger. I told him to go have his hamburger while I shopped. He asked what I was going to eat and I told him that I didn't want the bread or fries so I would eat something else when I got home. I was disciplined and that is what my goal is now. Discipline myself to do it again.

Have blessed Sunday.

Trish, many people make the mistake believing that sugar-free is good for diabetics. It might be better than having the sugar, but it still has carbs. My friend's husband is diabetic and she was so proud that she bought him some sugar-free cookies for Valentine's Day. I didn't say anything. She just doesn't understand that it's not just sugar that's the problem.

I want to tell you about sodium. My husband's brother went to the doctor and had some blood work done. After he came home, the doctor called him and told him to go to the ER right away because his sodium was dangerously low. He called DH to take him, and it's a good thing he didn't try to drive himself because he had a seizure on the way to the hospital and another one in the ER waiting room. They took him right away and he was on intervenous all day to up his sodium level. What happened, he has high blood pressure and his doctor put him on meds. He started cutting all salt and sodium out of his diet, and he went too far.

I don't think you should worry about trying to eat extra food to up your calories. If you feel satisfied with what you're eating and don't feel hungry, then you are eating enough calories for you. MFP can make a suggestion, but everyone is different. It's not black and white. Unless you have a specific medical problem, your body will tell you when you need more food. A woman on another forum told me that when she had surgery they accidentally damaged a nerve in her stomach and she no longer recognizes hunger. So she has to eat a specific amount at each meal even though she does not feel hungry.

Carol Sue Thanks for sharing your BIL experience with going too low with the sodium. I have shared it with Daddy and my sister so they can see why he has to at least eat the minimum amount.

Today I did managed to get to 1200 calories today (planned it in advance) but found it difficult to get the sodium to the minimum at first, but I did get the calories around 1200 and the carbs 18, net 15 and sodium a little over 1600 mg. I have set my calorie limit at 1300. It is suggested that you use boullion cube broth for raising the sodium, but I really don't want to do that. I just had to add some dill pickle relish to the tuna salad I'm having tonight and that brought the sodium above 1500 mg.

I agree that most people think diabetic just have to give up sugar, but they don't understand that there are other foods that raise the bs. Also people don't understand that when you say you are doing low carb that you are just talking about sugar, starchy and sometimes dairy and fruit carbs not ALL carbs. They forget that non-starchy veggies are carbs too.

Trish, I will have to look at my sodium level next time I track my food. I don't like salty foods, like potato chips or pretzels. I cook with very little salt and let people salt their food at the table, and rarely do I add salt to my own food except for eggs. But they say that added salt is only part of it, that most of your sodium is in the foods already. I don't eat things like canned soup or canned vegetables. I don't think my sodium was ever low, but I don't know. I never paid a lot of attention to it, but with all the medical problems I've been through I have never been told that my sodium was too high or too low. The only thing they ever told me was my potassium was low one time in the hospital and they put me on an IV. So they were checking everything. I sure hope so, with all the blood they took out of me every morning. LOL

I am trying to add healthy fat. It's harder than you think it would be. Most things have saturated fat. One thing I'm starting to add regularly is olives, as they are almost all Mono fat. Just 8-10 a day. And I've started eating a few walnuts a day again. I had gotten away from that. I was eating an avacado once a week but I got tired of them, so maybe I will be getting back to them at another time. So when I track, my fat is going to be higher than usual but I won't worry as long as it's healthy fat. Fitday separates them out and tell you how much sat fat, mono fat and poly fat you have consumed.

Trish, I think my BIL was taking a blood pressure med that was designed to lower his sodium and he didn't realize that, so he was cutting the sodium intake additionally on his own. His doctor told him he didn't have to be so crazy about watching sodium. He used to eat an awful lot of salty snacks. So when he cut that out, his sodium intake dropped considerably. I have bought Utz No Salt Potato Chips, twice. I really love them, but I have to stop buying them because I don't need to be eating potato chips, even if they don't have salt.

I did a nutrition course a while ago, and I actually started adding a bit more salt to my diet. I buy sea salt, and salt at the table for the most part. I don't eat a ton of prepared foods, except when eating out.

One problem with eating prepared foods is that they are high in sodium. (as we all know) BUT>>>> industrial kitchens do not usually use iodized salt.
This doesn't sound like a big deal but, people who eat a lot of prepared foods can sometimes wind up being low in iodine, and therefore start to have thyroid issues as a result.
SO salting some at home and avoiding those high sodium prepared foods is more important than ever for us who are facing challenges about our weight and other hormones like insulin, because there is a like between the different hormone systems and many diabetics wind up with thyroid issues as well.

I was thinking about low carb yesterday, and stayed low carb all day, but in the evening just felt that I hadn't had the full feeling I get from eating something bread-like and I miss that.
Then I saw a little note on my fridge for "muffin in a minute" with flax meal.
I looked around the house and happily found an unopened package of flax meal! (must have picked it up last time I was low carb-ing)
I made a larger batch, and had some toasted up with some fruit spread for "dessert"
Had it again this am with peanut butter for breakfast.
I had completely forgotten about it, and am really happy to have this recipe again. Its the hard part of low carb, not having bread, but this substitute is good and works for me.
I got the recipe on this site, and learned to make bigger batches as I find it too nit-picky to make every day. TO make a triple batch, I use 4 times the flax meal, twice the baking powder and 3 times the butter and egg, and still just use one pack of splenda, since I prefer the savoury bread. 3 Times the cinnamon too.
Oddly, it doesn't taste terribly strongly of the cinnamon. I also cook the larger batch for about 2 minutes, then slice right after I tip it out of the container.

If anyone is struggling and wants to use it:

spray inside a coffee mug with cooking spray

in the mug mix
1 tsp melted butter
1/4 cup flax meal (almond meal also works for a change)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 pkg or 1 tsp splenda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 lg egg

mix well, microwave in a mug for one minute, slice and toast.

Happy monday everyone

Mad Thanks for the info on sodium. I was surprised that the CHF RN who guides Daddy on how to eat said that he could have prepared foods as long as the sodium was below 700 mg. It was also interesting that by removing the cheese and pickle from a Whataburger hamburger and using mustard rather than mayo that I was able to lower the sodium down below 500 mg. Strange how we never thought of those things. I switched to sea salt years ago and I hope what I'm using now is iodized. I know I was able to buy it that way in SC. Hubby usually get the salt when shopping so I'll have to check. I have really missed your healthy wisdom from your nursing skills dear friend.

Thanks also for reminding me of the "One minute muffin". I forgotten about it. I saved your way of making a bigger batch to keep on hand. I will have to see if I still have any flax meal. I've thought of making a healthy home cooked hamburger for DH and I will be able to have one on the muffin rather than just on lettuce.

Carol Sue I never worried about the sodium before. In fact, I always ignored it when MFP showed I went over. I also wasn't aware that there was a minimum amount that we need either until the article from WebMD. I don't always add table salt to my food. As for Daddy, I knew he needed to hear your DBIL story because Daddy is one of these people who goes overboard. He is the personality that would try to eat as little sodium as possible. Kind of like I did when they first decided that fat was bad for us. I had just been diagnosed diabetic and they didn't know how low you could safely go. So I went crazy with almost eating no fat. I was later blessed to see a woman on tv who had gone so low on her fat that she could not get pregnant until she added some fat back into her diet. Going to nofat, she couldn't have a period.

Daddy is finally learning that he is going to have to eat the minimum of sodium. So I am so thankful you shared the story with me.

My weight is back down to where I was when Daddy got sick. Weight this morning was 214.8 and my FBS was the lowest it has been since way before I moved here. It was 119 this morning. So my diet plan is working. I actually felt hunger last night. It was so strange. We were watching a movie and I thought I was through with food for the day. I had to go potty and on the way back to the living room, I realized I was hungry. I was so shocked because I said to myself "How can I be hungry?" I had eaten a tuna salad with mayonnaise and very little veggies. But there it was... hunger. I decided that I really did need something. At first I was going to ignore it, but I realized if I really was hungry and I ignored it that my FBS would be up today, but if I would honor the hunger and eat a bite of something it should be a good reading this morning. So I decided on a slice of Canadian bacon. I get it at HEB because they are less sodium and carbs. I keep them for DH mostly since I'm back to eating regular bacon. So happened there was a slice that was smaller than usual. I ate it and was fine. No more hunger. Great progress. And I was rewarded with the 119 FBS reading this morning.

Making tacos for DH today, but I will have tacoless taco salad for lunch. I've got to go to MFP and log it to check the carb count.

Oh last night DH said something to me and I said to him, "I know you think I won't stay with this way of eating, but you are wrong". I reminded him that this is how I ate when we first married and when we first moved to SC until our church decided we would all do the Daniel Plan with all the carby starches. He didn't remember what he had said to me at Golden Corral, but he said he was sorry. He told me that he would never want to discourage me and that he is glad that I am going back to eating this way because he knows it works for me. It really made me feel good that he is on my side. I think he still doesn't understand some of my choices, but he knows that I know what I am doing. Great feeling.

Y'all have a great day

I got this article from WebMD today and decided I would share the link since we've been talking about Keto Diets.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slidesh...If%40hE%40k%3d

Trish, I wonder why we get different things from WebMD. I didn't get this one, and I remember sharing one that you said you didn't get. Maybe when we signed up we had to check off our interests.

My DIL buys sea salt but I would never buy it because I heard that it does not contain iodine. Now I googled and saw online that you can buy iodized sea salt. I wonder if they have it in stores? I won't order online. One time I was having a medical test, and I had a bad reaction. They told me it was from the iodine in the dye and from now on, I have to tell everyone that I am allergic to IVP dye and have to be pre-treated. I stopped buying iodized salt, and DH got mad and said we have to have iodized. I'm wondering about me now, because people allergic to iodine usually can't eat shrimp or other shellfish, but I can it it with no problem. Maybe that one test was a fluke, but I won't take a chance again, and always get pre-treated. I will look for the Iodized Sea Salt in the stores. Sometimes I get symptoms that make me think my iodine is low, and I take a kelp tablet and then I feel better. I don't take it every day, only when I feel symptoms, because I don't know if my iodine is really low.

Trish, your Dad is like my BIL. When he was told he had high BP he stopped eating anything that had sodium. He went to extreme. He does these things all the time. One time his doctor told him to eat more vegetables. So he went to Aldi's and bought a ton of veggies and went home, chopped them up, and ate them raw. Well you know what happened. He had such a bad belly ache. Raw veggies have to be started out in small amounts to let your body get used to them. Now he says, he can't eat vegetables, they make him sick. He won't listen to reason. He cooked a roast and ate the whole thing. He got bound up from not having anything with it, so now he says he can't eat meat. But he will eat all the cookies and cakes and potato chips he can get. I'm not saying that your Dad is like that. Just that they both go to extremes with things.

Mad, I want to try the one minute muffin, but I don't have any Flax Meal. I have some Flax Seed. I wonder if I could grind that up and it would be Flax Meal, or should I buy some Flax Meal. I bought these Flax Seeds when I was on this kick to make Flax Seed Crackers. I got over that, LOL, and now I have these Seeds left. I don't even know if they are still good. Guess I will just buy some meal.

I won't make a triple batch, because if I like them, I would be like my BIL and eat them all. LOL Making one at a time only takes a couple minutes so I will do that.

FBS was 117 today down 2 pts from yesterday. Weight was .2 lbs up, but yesterdays reading was up and down and as you know we take the lowest reading. LOL So I consider this a good thing. BP is a good reading too. Not really low like they used to be, reading last 2 days was in the 120s over 70s. I am so thrilled with that because of how Daddys and his sisters was so low at times. I used to think having it low was a good thing, but if it will stabilize in this are even with the medicine, I will be very happy with it. I love knowing I'm doing so many good things for my body.

Carol Sue I get gobs of stuff from WebMD all the time and they tag things with it. Some things I am interested in and some I'm not. I don't know what determines what we get and don't get. Sometimes I think it is our computers seeing things we read or look up and thinking for us, which is kind of scary. I was pleased to see how much they have learned about low carbing and all the good things I am doing for my body to be healthier which was the reason that I decided to share it. I saw that it was also good for CHF patients, but decided not to share it with my Daddy because I'm not sure how he would do with it. I think it would help him, but I'm not sure if he would over do it. I know there are people who go 0 carbs and I am not convinced that is healthy. And I was not sure if it would be wise for him to follow it. Maybe if he sees it work for me doing it the correct way, then maybe I can share it with him. LOL Although, I hope he has learned his lesson with the salt.

I have bought Iodizes Sea Salt in Publix when they came to SC. I'm sure if anyone sales it here HEB will and if not we have Drug Emporium here and they definitely will have it. They used to be rather reasonable on their prices, but when I was looking for foods low/no sodium seasoning for Daddy the lady actually told me that HEB had the same thing cheaper. I used to take kelp, but haven't seen it in years. Dr. Westman says not to take iron when doing Ketogenic Diet. I think it is because protein probably has enough in it.

I am cooking talipia for lunch today, I don't like it because it tastes smells fishy to me, but can tolerate it with cornmeal. However, I cannot have even a smidgen of cornmeal because of the carbs. So I am going to cook mine and added it to my salad. I am able to eat Ranch dressing again and that will hide the fishy smell. I wish I liked it better as I do like the texture of it.

Another nice day at home. DS took DD for a hair cut and then they are going out to eat. She said he had to have a hair cut or people was going to think he is a hippy. LOL I finally talked to the nurse at CHF clinic and they are calling in prescriptions for the 2 meds he takes so I don't have to split them any more. They had me call the cardiologist office about his blood thinner as it is costing him $90 a month and we hope the doctor will give him something cheaper when we see him in March. They are giving him samples to last until we see the doc. DD doesn't want to do coumidan because he doesn't want to have to go for blood tests ever few weeks until he it is regulated like DH does. So he may have to stay on the $90 medicine.
Any way I have that taken care of for now. I feel like I am working again. The things I do for my Daddy are the very things I did for the little lady I took care of on my job before I married DH. I find it interesting that it is like God was preparing me all those years that I took care of people in nursing homes, home care, etc so that I would know how to care of my DD and other family members I have cared for or helped care for through the years. I always say that my parents took care of us girls as babies and children and then I helped Daddy take care of my Mama when she had cancer till she died and now my DS and I take care of our Daddy. Strange how those things go. I'm just glad we were able to move here and help my DS with him. It is so much easier with the 2 of us and our DH to share in the care. Each one has their on expertise (lack of better word) to hopefully meet his needs. We have come so far in the past few months and it is good that he can get out and do more for himself. Not quite ready to drive yet though. I think he has to be more stable on his feet. He could drive, but I think he still needs someone with him. Sorry so long. I'm feeling pretty blessed right now. I appreciate y'all being here for me through this ordeal. Really appreciate y'alls support and prayers.

Y'all have a blessed day.

I was just in Walmart and they did not have any iodized sea salt. I told DH I was looked for sea salt and he pointed at something and said "There's sea salt." It was potato chips with sea salt! LOL I said "What am I supposed to do, lick the salt off the chips?" I can't remember where I bought my Kelp but it was hard to find. Walmart doesn't have it. I think I got it in a local grocery store that sells a lot of unusual supplements. GNC would probably have it. I should probably start looking for it now to get some before my bottle runs out.

I don't have trouble with the smell of talapia. I buy mine frozen in bags at Walmart, right where I buy the bags of frozen salmon. I never noticed a bad smell. I like it grilled, though, no coating.

I heard years ago that women over menopause age should not take iron unless they are specifically told they are low in iron. If you look at Centrum Vitamins compared to Centrum Silver, you will see the regular has iron but the Silver does not, or has a lower content. I think I probably eat enough red meat to get my iron needs, as I don't think we really need a lot.

I don't think 0 carb is exactly not healthy, but I don't think it's neccessary to go that low to be healthy, KWIM? Some people just don't like veggies, so they say they are not necessary. I like them, and I don't think they are what is keeping me from losing weight. I just eat more than I need. I have always heard that we should never go below 1200 calories, but once again, one size does not fit all. We need to judge for ourselves as individuals. I think if you don't feel hungry and are not wasting away to nothing, then lower calories is OK. People who are what I call "normal weight" don't sit there with a calorie book each time they eat. They just eat what they want. They have no idea how many calories they are eating. Some days they might eat more, some days less. One day their weight might go up, the next day, down. They don't even think about it. I know from what my friend told me she eats that she is not going over 1000 most days and maybe even lower. She does not count calories, but eats very small meals. She says she doesn't get hungry. She lost about 30 lbs and is Ok with that. If she would start to go up on the scale, she would probably cut back a little. She used to be the type who would snack in the evening and cookies, mindlessly, even if she wasn't hungry. She started to gain, and decided to cut the snacking out, and also made a few changes in her meals. Also, she walks outside, and lives in a 3 story townhouse and is up and down stairs all day.

I don't track every day, just once in a while to see where I stand. I usually come in around 1200-1500. Over 1500 and I will start to gain. Most of my calories come from dinner.

You are doing very good Trish, and taking good care of your Dad. I hope he continues to improve.

Did any of you ever go on the 3FatChicks Community Site instead of the forum? There are so many articles there and recipes. Very interesting and informative. If you google 3FatChicks.com and then select the one that says Official Site instead of /forum you will get it. And then you can actually go to the forum from there, too.

That link goes right to it. 3FatChicks.com

just FYI: sea salt is naturally iodized, but here in Canada, all salt has to be iodized, so more is added, even to sea salt.
Glad you found the recipe helpful.
I think its fine to grind the flax seed, (not sure how, its so fine, a coffee grinder maybe? ) and whatever you are using, make sure there is no "old" or rancid smell. Part of the point of flax is the natural healthy fat in it, but the fat can spoil like any other, so if you find any of your foods having that "old" smell, throw them out, rancid fats are dangerous to our health.

I am happy to say I got through another day low-carb. I was working all day, and by the end of the day after a longish delivery, I realized I was really weary and felt low. DH said he had put a pizza in the oven and it would be ready when I got home. I knew if i did the 30 minute drive home, I would cave and not eat healthy, so I went to Harvey's and got a burger without a bun, lots of pickles and tomatoes on it, (no other toppings), a salad instead of fries, and a bottled water instead of soda.
Ate that on the way home, so I felt ok when I got here.
Tomorrow I will dip below 180, I am excited!

Thank you all for your posts, to know I am not struggling alone really helps.
And I am struggling, recent success notwithstanding, maintaining this is really hard.

Mad, I looked in Walmart and they did not have Flaxmeal. I am a little hesitant to use my Flaxseed as I've had them for a while. I will probably toss them. I can check the 2 other supermarkets in my area for the Flaxmeal. We don't have a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods in our area. I hope I can find it because I really want to try these flax muffins. They sound so easy.

I'm not going to worry too much about the Sea Salt because I use so little salt to begin with. I think most of the salt I consume is already in the food I eat.

I have been reading up on alkaline vs acidic, and I believe that my psoriasis could be caused by my body being too acidic. I sent for some test strips and tested this morning and I tested around a 6, and 7.2 is considered normal. It's not as bad as I expected, but I am going to try to raise my number. I just read an article about how cancer cannot live in an alkaline environment, leafy greens promote an alkaline body. I am going to start adding spinach to my salads every day and see if that makes a difference. Lemon water is supposed to help, too. I do lemon water, but not every day, but I will change that. It all comes back to the "Eat your vegetables" that we always hear! LOL

pretty excited to change my ticker this am, and get under 180 for the first time in a couple of months. Back to pre-Christmas weight. I am still struggling to add the third metformin tablet into my life. Doc suggested it with supper, but I seldom remember then. I have set a permanent alarm on my phone for 4 pm to take it then, however, yesterday when it went off, I was in a delivery and forgot to take it later. Mostly I have been taking double doses late evening. Side effects haven't been too bad, so perhaps its not such a big deal this time.
Its Wednesday, middle of the week. hope its good for you all

Mad, congratulations on your new low, or back to your old low. Either one is good! I tend to forget to take my Metformin at dinner, and sometimes remember a while later so I take it then. I really don't notice that it does anything, but I might notice a big difference if I quit taking it.

I was reading more about the lemon water, and now I read that it will turn your urine alkaline but won't make changes in your body ph. Everyone has an opinion, so now that I have these test strips, I am going to drink lemon water at bedtime for a few nights and see if I get a different reading. The only way to get to the truth is N=1. Test myself.