This is just an observation but I'm on my 3rd week of induction and it's great. My blood sugars have consistently low/normal and I'm very happy about that. I was having my snack today and realized that since I've been on Atkins I eat way more veggies than I did before. I have attributed this to my addiction to high-glycemic carbs and some low-glycemic carbs too! Because of my experience with other 'diets' I have been able to identify some food addict behavior and one identifier is lack of vegetables or slowly stopping vegetable eating. I can remember months ago seeing myself eating only carbs and protien, no veggies and when I'm deep in my addiction I only eat carbs. The carb side of my plate is covers about half of my plate and meat on the other. I wouldn't get any fruit or veggies because I didn't have room for the large carb portions I wanted. In addition after eating like this for a while I lost my appetite for veggies, I just didn't want them. Mentally I couldn't see the point in eating them I wasn't trying to be healthy I just wanted to eat a soon as possible and get as much comfort from it as I could. I'm grateful that at every meal and snack I have some veggies. I love them when I'm not acting in my food addiction. I eat celery which I don't even remember buying for the last year at least. I have salads and greens and the other day I had eggplant which I finally found out that if I take out the seeds I can tolerate it much better. I don't have a desire to eat processed food or low carb imitation food. It feel much better to eat this way. I remember some years ago reading an article that said we should eat anything we can kill, pick, pluck or grow. I'm finally eating that way(except potatoes and rice) and I love it. This is a great WOE and I'm grateful to have a sane way to be release from my food addiction. At one time I went into a 12-step program for food addiction and even though that program worked for most of the people there it never worked for me. I tried three times and 'relapsed' each time, but I was still eating grits, oatmeal, rice, potatoes, and corn. And I was hungry all the time I couldn't understand why because I was measuring my food like everyone else. Now after 2 weeks I have the answer. My heart and life filling up each day because I don't have to focus on what my next meal is, or work all day to wake myself up from my hypoglycemic episodes or measure and weight all my food. And I'm so glad we are all here to support each other.

Wow msruthie! Your post was awesome! I am so glad we are all here to support each other too! I am on my second week of induction and I'm finding that my way of thinking is changing as well! I didn't necessarily think I was a carb addict, but after being off of them for a week and a half I can see things in a whole new way. I think that's what you are kind of saying too, right?

Keep up the great work! We can do this!

Very motivational post Ruthie! Thank you, I need it this week.

Very cool!

Msruthie

I couldn't have said it any better

you are 100 percent on to something!

That's exactly what I'm saying. I am thinking clearer because I'm no longer in that carb fog. I have known for years the addictive properties of sugar and high-glycemic carbs and beleive it or not I can't control eating brown rice either a low-glycemic carb. One doesn't have to diagnose themselves a food addict to follow Atkins I know everyone knows that but I know I'm a food addict and it is working for me. It's nothing short of a miracle that I'm not hungry all day and I can make decisions about eating, before I didn't have a choice I just ate for the **** of it. I feel like I have choices today and they are all so easy and healthy. This has been a very long road for me. I've been off and on over the years when I look at my eating patterns as addiction(trying to escape reality through food) I can see clearly that I abuse high-glycemic carbs/sugar when I find it necessary but I can survive without it. I'm just amazed and I believe it's going to keep getting better.

I have claimed for many many years that I'm addicted to sugar and if I eat it I find it takes over my life. I've been told many times that you cannot be addicted to sugars, not like cigarettes or drugs, but I so disagree. It was just as difficult for me to leave sugars as it was for me to quit smoking.....and I had to do it over and over and over again because eating any sugars pushes me back into eating it none stop.

Atkins is the only time in my life that in one short week I didn't care about sugar anymore. I have in the past spent 2 weeks off sugar and been able to go on not craving it anymore but nothing like this program.....it's been so simple and since I've always been a veggie person the huge amount of veggies I'm allowed is just a monster plus for me.

I'm glad others are discovering it. I wish I could sell my daughter. She weighs 350 lbs and thinks she eats healthy because she doesnt' eat red meats or use salt.......there is just so much more (and I suspect she knows that but with her demons pushing her toward overeating carbs she won't admit it. I worry about her. I know if I push her she will just draw back farther. Maybe watching her Dad and I will eventually convince her to give the book a read?)