HI guys...I've been a member for a long while, but I've been MIA for a bit. I'm in a lot of health and diet trouble....I need help! I've always had a weight issue, but when I was younger I was able to keep my weight to where I was stage comfortable (performer). When I had to stop performing and working...I packed in on. I went up to 240 and I just hit 5'. I had weight loss surgery at 60 and lost my weight. I did great for three years and then stupidly decided that I'd gain a it for the holidays and get it right back down. I live in Arizona and all my friends and family are 1800 miles away, When they came out for a big visit...they all wanted my holidays recipes and I though I'd enjoy, gain a bit and get it back off. Well...now I've gained back 30 pounds! No mater what I do, I can't lose. I'm staying low carb, no more than 20 carbs a day and not losing anything....I've been really strict with it now for over a two months...not so much as an ounce lost! The only thing different I do now that I didn't before, is 7 oz of Merlot wine in the evening, which I can't give up! I was hospitalized for severe insomnia....hallucinating, the whole works, it was terrifying. Nothing makes me sleep. One Dr gave me hydrocodone and it worked but I also became addicted and had to kick that, which was horrible!, Nothing has had helped. Counseling, to see if it was psychological issue, every pill in the book......finally, an old medication called "trazidone", combined with two Aleve PMs, and a glass of Merlot...actually works enough to where I am getting in 4 to 5 hours a night. I'm at my wits end as to getting this 30 pounds off. I'm thinking of just going back to the old fashion counting calories. ANY advice would be so very greatly appreciated, and I'm sorry this is so long!!

If you're only eating 20 carbs a day, you're probably not eating enough vegetables. Eat more vegetables, and at least some of them should be leafy greens. Eating some fruits and legumes would probably help too, and quitting wine would help.

What have you been eating in the last few months, other than wine?

Thank you for your response. Breakfast is a 4carb tortilla with one egg, two strips of bacon with sharp cheese, or two bacon, one egg and and half an avocado. Lunch is a salad with spring mix, shredded cheese chopped backed chicken, or an Atkins bar. Dinner is sauteed bells peppers (yellow, green, red, and orange) with two tablespoons butter, and chopped chicken, or broiled salmon and broccoli. I have a snack layer in the evening of two cheese sticks. 7 oz of wine nightly. I'm pretty much following what my NUT told me to do when I had weight loss surgery. I'm getting my 64 oz of water in I can't really go too much over as I still can't really eat a whole lot at one setting

Which other diets have you tried? It sounds like your current diet isn't working for you, so maybe it's time to try something different.

I recommend cutting down on butter, cheese, bacon, and Atkins bars. Too much dairy fat or animal fat increases risk of heart disease. Processed meat increases risk of cancer. Atkins bars are too processed.

You can replace those foods by eating more vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains.

Are you getting enough vitamin D? (you can get enough by getting 15 minutes of midday sun)

This is why I'm thinking of going back to calorie counting! I'm being told, "eat more fat", "No fruits" etc......I'm going shopping today and I'm ging to fil hte house up with fruits and start counting calories!

You do need some fat in your diet, but you're eating a lot more fat than what's necessary. Ideally you should be getting the majority of your fat from nuts, seeds, and avocado.

The "no fruits" advice is nonsense. There have been multiple studies showing that fruit does not cause weight gain (source 1, source 2), and there have been thousands of studies showing all kinds of health benefits from eating fruit. There's one study which shows that eating kiwifruit improves sleep quality (source). I tried it myself and I didn't notice a different, but eating kiwifruit can't hurt, so you may want to give it a try.

What you eat is more important than how much you eat. If you eat a healthy balanced diet, then calorie counting isn't necessary. Personally I think about my diet in terms of minimums instead of maximums. For example, each day I aim for at least 4 servings vegetables, 2 servings fruits, 2 servings legumes, 2 servings whole grains, 1 tbsp flaxseed, and some nuts (these are minimums, so I actually eat more than this on most days).

Fruits and vegetables are very filling (per calorie), so if you eat a lot of them, you'll be less likely to overeat.

I'm also finding it more difficult to lose weight after 50 what's working for me is weight watchers. WW a balanced diet that doesn't eliminate any food group. Check it out , it might be what works for you too If you decide to join heres a link for a free month.

https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/ch...ken=833491DB00

Rather than low carb try focusing on calorie deficit or maybe intermittent fasting.
Also I think maybe a little workout or simple exercise can help you with your sleep.Recently I have been practising 22 hrs fasting and it really works for me although I have cheat days once a week.I hope you can find it a bit useful.