Hey all!

I am out of school for 5 days !!! Yipppeeee- I have a bunch of stuff to do but I don't have to "go" to school... I have not been eating so good this past week... heck The past two days I haven't eaten a total of 500 calories... back sliding... some people would say oh that great but I just can't diet like that. I am up 3 pounds but it is almost TOM so that is the reason for that. I was really hoping to reach goal by the end of the year but at this rate down two pounds and up three it doesn't look like I am going to get there.

Well to all of you who celebrate Thanks Giving Hope it is a happy one..... just in case I don't make it back this week.

Hugs to you all,
Amy
176/144/130

I have a question for those who have lost lots of weight already. Do your periods get lighter when you loose weight? In other words do fat people have heavier periods? Isn't that so politically correct?

I have one more day at work. Then I get 4 days off. I am more than ready. I have 3 weeks left till Winter holiday. I am so ready!!

Well, my hair is still wet so I should go dry it before it is time to go brave the North Wind today. I am such a baby today! ~flower I will check back in tonight.

Flower ~ Honestly when I started losing weight my periods got so much better, they were lighter didn't last as long, before... they were real heavy with lots of cramps... Well that lasted for about 4 months and I am back to same ole same ole... painful, last for days and heavy as heck... so you explain that one?


Amy

Oooh, goody! I love talking about periods! Girl Talk! I can say that I have easier periods since I've lost weight. I think that it's due more to consistent exercise than weight loss though. I hardly ever have cramps--if I do it's for a few minutes [really!] and then it's over. Yoga helps too--all that stretching has to massage your internal organs, I guess.
I'm 38 now and my periods aren't as regular as they used to be, just off by a few days though.
I've eaten really well for over a month and have stopped short of being full and I've lost that 'fat' feeling. As a matter of fact, this month I didn't have the period bloat at all! And my husband told me that he didn't notice any premenstrual tension this month! So what I'm doing is working for me---all I can say is 'so far, so good'!
This may sound crazy but I've always loved having my period and when I'm menopausal I'm sure I'l miss "Aunt Flow"! Maybe because I don't mind it I've never had any real problems with it.

Great to see you back on the food journal, Flower--you too LaMorgan!

In April after doing WW for one month, I noticed no pms, no bloating and my cycle went from 25 days to 28. I also had begun 1 hour walks per day, but I'm suspecting it's a blend of water and excersise that changes the menses.

It's been over 6 months, and I'm still on a 28 day cycle, and although I do feel tense shortly before it's due, not out of control.

My legs and hips ache though, for the first few hours after I get my period. I'm 39, and my periods last around 4 days. My uterus is very tipped, and I think that it has to contract a lot to empty out...

After each birth my cycle changed slightly too. Probably tipped more each time...

Today I'm ovulating, and really hungry.

Lam ~ going for a wee nap....

Hi girls.

Nothing new or startling to report, just the same thing, day after day. Sleep, work, sleep, work...yada, yada.

We had another ballroom dance class tonight. I was really dreading going because I was so tired, but once we got there it was fun.

Just waiting for some fish to bake for dinner.

What an exciting life, huh?

Hello. It's thanksgiving here but it doesn't feel like it. I have a bird in the oven but since I am not going anywhere or having anyone come here, it is so ordinary.

There is something wrong with me. I get the burps if I eat dairy, with or without taking a lactaid enzyme. I get the burps from carbonation. We are taking about major stomach pain. Ranks right up there w/ childbirth and kidney stones or an infected tooth. I had the same gas last night for 8 hours. But this time, no dairy or carbonation. I have to figure out what else causes the extreme gas problems. burping not farting. I went online when I was screaming and crying in pain last night and I read something about simple carbs. So I am doing an investigation. I did consume way too much white bread yesterday thru out the day. I will give bread up forever if I need to to keep that pain away. I took Gas-x 7 times. 4 in 24 hours is max. I wanted to die. I knew it would go away eventually so I didn't go to the ER. I have no insurance so I was being brave. I must figure this out. I haven't eat a drop of food today. I am scared to. ~flower

I was "visiting" and noticed your pain...have you ever had gall bladder problems or gallstones? What you describe may be just that.....I too had such pain (many years ago).....and was eventually diagnosed with gallstones (after they initially thought I had an ulcer and subjected me to nasty liquids and tests).

I remember being afraid to eat anything for fear of an "attack" and death was actually preferred!

I now have my gallbladder out, and no problems since then....

Diagnosis is simple...just an ultrasound of the gall bladder.

Goodluck and I hope it's not anything serious!

Froufy

Well, here was I lurking around on your thread, , and I thought I would butt in to the periods thing.....hope you dont mind.....
I have found that my periods have got strange as I have got older, and starting when I was at my heaviest. I am 36 now (I think....or am I 37??? something like that) and I am finding that when i use tampons it really hurts! It never used to! This is very annoying for me! I spoke to the woman who did my last cervical smear and she said it was because I was overweight, but I am not sure that I really buy this. She then told me to eat less cakes and sweets, which was.....er....patronizing??/!!!! Oh well, she was doing her best. and she was not so far off....she just should have said pasta and cheese really......

Anyway, I have been lurking around here for a while, as I am a bit of a less than wholly conventional one I suppose. Sufi lesbian psychotherapist great cook and sometime painter. Do I count in my diversity??!! I usually post on another thread in the WW section, and I love and adore my ladies there, who are with me through fat and thin (maybe we have not got to that yet....), and are completely 100% gold, jewells, and all the autumn colours ever. But I thought I would play away for tonight.......

Love to you all
Lilac

Flower, is there any kind of free medical clinic near you? Or even a hotline you can call where you can talk to a nurse? We have one here, so I was wondering if you might. I think you really should see your doctor. Do you have a lot of heartburn or reflux? Major stomach pain needs to be looked at. You have to eat something, even if it's just broth....don't get dehydrated.

Here's a few links for you to check out, see if maybe you can get some idea of what's bothering you.

http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1680.50909 on gallbladder


http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1680.51289 on GERD

http://my.webmd.com/content/asset/adam_symptoms_burping

http://my.webmd.com/content/asset/adam_disease_ulcer

Let us know how you're feeling this evening, okay?

Froufy, visitors are always welcomed, and if you'd like to stay a while that's great too!

Lilacglitter, glad you came out of lurkdom to say hello. Yep, you qualify! Come play with us here anytime.

I went to work today, only to leave around 11am. I have strange pain that is making it difficult to walk....can't figure it out...doesn't hurt to touch, it's not IBS-related, not a "female" thing (nope, definitely not pregnant), not a bladder infection, no fever, all "plumbing" working fine....it just hurts...I suppose I was brushing my teeth too vigorously this morning and pulled something? I was up and about for a couple of hours before it started. Just plain weird. I'd blame dancing but if I'd pulled something last night I think I would have felt it before 7am. If it's no better tomorrow I'll have to call the doc.

And man, there is crap on TV during the day.

Froufy and Lilac--Welcome! It's always fun to meet new folks--I hope we see you here more often.

Flower--I have nothing constructive to add as a solution to your problem. But know that I'm thinking about you--God, you sound just miserable! Please let us know what you find out....

Flower ~ Sounds like Gallbladder to me too... the only thing is doctors skirt the issue with this so much, (test running) that it is usually the last thing they end up diagnosing. You should check out your local public health and see if you can find a doctor, it is necessary to have it looked out... Overweight females are effected 50% more with gallbladder disease than any other.

Got to run! Hope you feel better...
Hugs,
Amy

Flower, good luck with checking out with the medics what is up with you - it seems important to do that .
I want to offer something else as an 'as well as'.

I think physical pain can often help us diagnose some psychological and spiritual malaise as well. It can tell us something. You could try closing your eyes and breathing in to the pain, and letting an image come in to your mind, using your imagination. An image for the pain, or located in the pain.

Once when I did this I got a scythe, once an insect, but it could be anything at all.

Then dialogue with the image - what is it there to tell you? What does it want to do? What is its Job? And when it has told you, then you might be able to ask it to change its job to something that gives you less pain....

This is not an instead of, but an as well as. I hope it helps
lilac

I've had 2 friends who suffered gallbladder, both had them removed with laser surgery and that was an instant cure except for one friend who still has trouble with fatty foods. A ghost gallbladder?

I went to a menstruation workshop where the woman leading the workshop talked about flowing with the pain, and letting all that creative energy to come. It was good, she also recommends purchasing bright red underware for use only when you have your menses.

Tipped uterus has also made it nearly impossible to use tampons anymore. Cuts off my bladder, and that is not comfy.

The trials of getting older have only begun I fear. Lol.

Welcome to our new women!

Lamorgan

A belated happy Thanksgiving to the Americans in the group! This was definitely a year to give thanks, for life and for reminders that life is short and we need to focus on what's really important.

Flower, poor thing, get yourself to the doctor ASAP! You should have gone to the ER instead of surfing the net! I hope you get diagnosed and are feeling better very soon.

I don't have a lot to add to the menstruation discussion. I have found my periods changed about every decade. As a teenager and young adult, they were quite irregular. After giving birth, they were less painful and more regular, coming about every calendar month. In my early thirties, I began to experience PMS, which I never did before. Now I have 28-day periods and my breasts become EXTREMELY tender for about two weeks before my period, which is probably going to send me to the gyn eventually because it's very uncomfortable. Actually, the breast thing might have coincided with the weight gain, but I'm not sure. Other than that, I haven't noticed a change. I've been fat for about two years.

I have all my appointments set up to get started with Opti Fast on December 29 or 30. It's pretty rigorously supervised from a medical standpoint, which is good. I believe that exercise is going to be the key to how much weight I lose how quickly. I will be doing the 800 calorie/day full liquid fast. The clinic I'm going to requires full fast patients to attend a weekly group session where we discuss our eating habits, why we got fat, how to prevent re-gaining in the future, etc. I have to have a consult with a nutritionist and an exercise specialist. I get a full physical before starting, including lab work and an EKG, and the lab work and doctor checks continue throughout the course of the program. So I feel confident that it is safe and not a "quick fix." I'm glad I found this particular clinic, as I didn't at all like the tone of the woman who answered the phone at the first place I called. It's going to cost me a lot of money, but if it works it will absolutely be worth it. I am really psyched.

Since September 11, I have felt a growing urge to become more religious. It's not because of outright fear ... I can't really explain why. I think a lot of people in the US have felt the same way. So I have begun to return to the practice of my religion (I never lost faith, I just stopped sort of living the life, you know?). At any rate, I have been fasting for Ramadan, and in addition to it being a wonderful spiritual experience, my ability to successfully fast from dawn to sunset has demonstrated to me that I ought to be able to successfully do the Opti Fast program. Of course, Opti Fast is different, since I will always be consuming nothing but the liquid, whereas now I get to eat before sunrise and in the evening -- but the important thing is that I have been able to control and/or ignore my hunger and caffeine cravings, which is an important lesson before undertaking Opti Fast. So right now I feel incredibly psyched. I even feel better about myself -- even when I feel fat, I feel like it's really and truly temporary, as I will be resolving that problem over the first six months of next year. The more I have thought about it, the more I realize that this is my typical way of undertaking changes -- I kind of think and think and think about the problem, and then at the eleventh hour I rush in and address it with an extreme, gung-ho plan. So I am feeling confident in a way I never felt about just doing a normal diet and exercise program. I am just an extreme kind of person, I guess.

So do you guys mind if I continue posting from time to time while doing Opti Fast? I don't know why I feel funny about it, or why I feel like I need your blessing. I don't know, what do you guys think?