some success

[Relief]

just a little post to note progress. I have lost 8 pounds since Easter. 12 to re-reach goal. but I have such hope now!

just sticking to the plan--very limited diary, no wheat AT ALL not even the small amounts on low carb stuff. keeping the calories under control. i really do have to avoid the wheat flour-- I had 2 ( count them two SMALL) onion rings the other night off of SO's plate and gained a pound of water overnight--after weeks of downnward trend only

hopefully this will be the last time i have to do this and I willhave found the right combination( medication plus correct food) to maintain.

[Mitra]

:cool: Good news :D . It's certainly a well-earned success. I think that what you've faced - eating well and still seeing your weight creeping up again - is something we all dread. The way you've stuck to it, and investigated everything to find what works for you has been so impressive.

[gitfiddle]

What a wonderful thing to find out! :cool:

[Shadow]

Deborah - While I'm sorry your eating is so restrictive, I am thrilled you've finally found the combo that works for you :D. Congratulations :)!!!

[BethB]

Great progress, Deborah. How goes the cookbook?

[SherryJ]

Good to hear from you, Deborah... and, kudos on the results! :)

Sherry

And, YES, how's the COOKBOOK coming!?!??!!?

[Relief]

thanks for the kind words ( and I'm down ANOTHER half pound this morning --I LOVE this!!!) the cookbook languishes at the moment-- too much going on with the family ( i went from 13 to 16 grandbabies in the last 4 months with 3 more due before year's end!!!) to work on it much--but it foments in my brain so I'll be working on the plans again soon.

[Missy]

Congratulations Relief!!!!! :D :D :D I'm looking forward to your cookbook too! :D

[Relief]

and .....( drum roll please) another 2 pounds gone .. total of 10.5 dropped since easter--9.5 left to go to goal. funny how the last couple of pounds have made a huge difference in clothing; some things are getting too big :D and my sweetheart is able to see a change too!

[SherryJ]

Oh, Deborah, I can't tell you how delighted I am for you... it's been a long time comin'!!! :)

Congrats, my friend!

Sherry

[Mitra]

:D. Isn't it odd how sometimes a pound or two can make all your clothes too big? Oh well, you'll just have to get some new ones ;).

I'm eagerly awaiting your "How not to be beaten by your hormones," book :).

[Relief]

this is turning into my personal weight "re- loss" journal!

It's been nice to be abel to look back at the dates to know where I was and when when.

1 more pound down in the last two weeks. 11.5 total since eater. It has been frustrating and hormones have been a bit out of whack again--as eveidenced by nearly constant hot flashes and terrible insomnia. Finally slapped an estrogen patch on my behind and things are improving!

even though only one pound has registerd on the scale I'm fairly certain that my inches have been going down. Clothes are getting looser all the time. But I hope I can get the rate of loss up a bit --half a pound a week is achingly slow!

[Mitra]

How long has all this hormonal chaos lasted? I was just thinking of Deirdra's comment in another thread, that once she had passed through the menopause she was able to lose weight again. I hope that happens for you, too, and that you don't have much longer to wait!

[Shadow]

Relief - That's fantastic on the weight loss :D! Sorry about the added symptoms, though :(!

Mitra - I hope she's right too :p!!! If not, my sanity is seriously at question :lol:!

[Relief]

Weight today was 2 pounds lower than last report on the 5th. total of 13.5 pounds gone. size six pants are wearable ,slightly tight, but definitely wearable whoohooo!!!! ( I was up to 12) This puts me only 4 pounds to 122 which is where I was last year at this time. I am not calling that goal, however. I am planning on staying with this eating plan til I get below 120lbs. And THEN avoiding the word "Maintainance" at all costs. every time I've let that word into my vocabulary, the thought --"I can have a little bit of that" has come right along side it and I've been sunk. Granted that the major issue this time seems to have been thyroid and now that that is controlled, MAYBE I don't have to be so vigilent--but I'm going on the assumption that I DO!!!. I never, ever want to have to do this again.

[Missy]

Good for YOU RELIEF!!!! ~ we certainly do have to keep ourselves in "the game" don't we? lol Congratulations! :D

Thanks to you..and telling us about that Wilson's site, I talked to my compounding pharmacy about my body temperature issues..and hopefully, what he's suggested to my Dr. about adding iodine and DHEA as a prescription will improve MY thyroid function too. I hope anyways. I just wanted to say thanks!

[Mitra]

And THEN avoiding the word "Maintainance" at all costs. every time I've let that word into my vocabulary, the thought --"I can have a little bit of that" has come right along side it and I've been sunk.

It's one of those things most of us seem to have had to deal with, isn't it, that what you eat at maintenance really isn't much different from what you eat while you're losing weight. I can remember thinking that I'd be able to eat this or that, "when I reach maintenance," but actually, I just increased my carbs to about 60g, which, while it gives quite a bit more leeway with vegetables and fruit, isn't anywhere near to a pasta-fest! I don't worry now about having carrots from time to time, or a serving of the new season's peas or broad beans, and I don't measure the raspberries and blueberries so carefully, but I'm pretty far from the various indulgences I'd imagined.

My husband (who's lost about 50 lb this year :D) is at that stage at the moment: "when I've finished, we can eat pasta once a week," or, "have potatoes," or, "I can have muesli for breakfast." (Yes, there are people who crave a bowl of minced cardboard :confused: - and I'm married to one of them!) I just keep emphasising that he'll need to monitor carefully and introduce his planned indulgences one at a time.

[Relief]

this morning I was down to a new low--124.5--which is 1.5 pounds down from last report. its has been 3 1/2 weeks so that is averaging about a half a pound a week, though I was sitting at the same weight most of that time--either regrouping or because of the BBQ overeating season! so that is 15 pounds lost since Easter--2 to former low and about 5 to where would really like to be. feeling very happy with my size and look these days! all my size 6 and 4's are fitting!

[Shadow]

Deborah - I am so very happy for you :D :D :D!!!! What awesome results!

[Carmen Sandiego]

It's been nice to be abel to look back at the dates to know where I was and when when.
I've found that helpful too! Especially with those times when the scale jumps unexpectedly! It's nice to see that it normally evens out!

[lowcarbgirl]

:D :D :D :D :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :exclamation: :exclamation:


hugs,
Willow

[Relief]

123.5 today! and it has been exactly 2 weeks since last report. so still a consistant half pound a week! given how I'm eating I would think that it would come off a BIT faster--but at least it isn't still going the other way!

[Mitra]

At this rate you have less than two months to go to see 120 again :cool: .

Do you need to keep re-testing for your hormone/thyroid levels?

[Relief]

I have to get another thyroid this month--just TSH-- so that my doc will keep prescribing it.--just making sure the dosage is right. I wouldn't mind upping it a little, so we'll see what the test results are. I just ordered a new product for my other homone imbalances. I'm intrigued as it is all homeopathic and a girl friend of mine, who has chromic fatigue and figromyalgia, as well as menopause, is doing very well with these products. check it out-- http://www.wellnesscenter.net/ and here http://www.wellnesscenter.net/hhr/hormone-rejuv-kits.php I'm getting the testosterone/ adrenal kit. Even though I've been taking DHEA, I am not making enough testosterone--my body hair stopped growing and am losing muscle as well. all signs of low testosterone so......this seems like a good alternative to try before actually supplementing testosterone, which aparently doesn't really work all that great in women anyway. I like homeopathy anyway so decided to give this a try.

[Relief]

Its been nearly 2 months since my last confession!

weight wise I have been faffing about at 1 .5-2 pounds above the lowest weight reported above. ( sigh)

the TSH came back WAY too low which means to my doc that I need to cut the thyroid dose back a lot--and as soon as I did my losses came sceeching to a halt and I even started gaining some--no change in eating of course!
body temp is again far too low--basal is in the 96.8-97 range every morning. this combined with the TSH tells me that I need to do another T-3 intervention per Wilson's syndrome and probably don't need T4 at all. The midwife i have been using really has no expertese in all this and has basically been going on my recommendation but has become uncomfortable with that-- and I really don't want to put her in that position--she is a good friend as well, soooo... I have an appointment with another practitioner who I hope will be on the same page as I am and maybe in a better position to help me. Just found her through the pharmacy that was prescribing the T-3 for me so I hope it works out.

the hoeopathy did nothin' far as I can tell. still having hot flashes/night sweats and no libido--hopefully the practitioner can help with that as well!

[Relief]

I saw the new practitioner yesterday and was very impressed. we are going to do another whole saliva hormone panel ( re the low libido and hotflashes) and also a full thyroid panel as well. She didn't charge me for yesterdays consult at all-- just took a little history to decide the direction we need to go. She also has a nutritionist there as a package deal part of the consult. that part was fun as he is completely on the same page as we are here! After taking my "typical eating day" down he just smiled and shook his head and said--I have nothing to add. he was totally impressed that I knew all about good fats; getting protein at every meal; omega 6 vs omega 3; avoiding sugar....etc etc. I was totally impressed that he wasn't a vegetarian granola head! he even recommended avoiding soy ( he was REALLY impressed that I knew that one!) I think I can really trust and work with these people! ( though is is a LITTLE bothersome that the practitioner was a little overweight--she is at the menopausal stage herself; we had some good laughs about hot flashes but... you get my point. Though I suppose I should cut her some slack--she could be on the downside end of losing a whole bunch of weight, right , and just not comletely there yet, just like me!)

I am also trying the intermittent fast thingy. did my second day of fasting yesterday. I find it easy to do and rather fun. no headaches or anything; I just drink a lot then really enjoy my dinner! I am down a pound this morning, which is wonderful. if it helps me just maintain till the test results get back it will be a blessing! the most interesting thing--I don't have any idea if it is related or not--but this morning my basal bady temp was in the normal range! The IF has the reputation for resetting body systems so maybe...

[Relief]

Soo it has been over a year since I last reported ( how can that be?)--And what a year it was!

Over the holidays lats year I lost my mojo completely, stuffed myself with fudge and christmas cookies and regained all the lost weight--back up to a size 12--in 6 weeks!!!!

The good news is that I am back down to 122 and a size 6. and it only took 10 months.:( :eek: in fact , in reading over my reports of loss last year I could nearly ditto them for this year, almost to the week.

So....the holiday debacle is NOT happening this year. I'm already working on strategy. :D ( I found the information in Taubes' book to be VERY motivating)

Homones seem to be under better contol. The only thing I am "on" now is thyroid. It did take a while ( again ) to find the right dosage. And I really started to lose when I began a new retail sales job--on my feet 8 hours at a time. Somebody at work brought in a pedometer and it turns out we walk over 10 miles a day. not bad eh:D

Gary Taubes may be right in that exercize doesn't help you lose fat if you are eating carbs -- but if you eat protein when you are hungry maybe it does!!!!

The next hurdle for me is too add back some slow burn weight sessions. I need a bit more tone. Back pain issues are pretty bad right now though and I need to address that before I can really hit the weights again.

cheers!

oh and I now have 22 grand babies--whew!

[Shadow]

Deborah - How wonderful to see you again :D! And wow - what a journey, huh ;)? Congratulations on the weightloss and the grandbabies! Try not to be a stranger - we miss you when you're not here :). And good luck getting that back calmed down again :nod:!

[Mitra]

Deborah, how good to hear from you :D. Well done for getting back after your "excursion." We're close to the same weight again, as I've somehow drifted up to about 120 :(.

I'm trying to exercise around lower back problems, too - sacroiliac. I'm lucky that most of the time it's not too painful, though.

Don't leave it a year before your next post ;). And congratulations on all those grandchildren :eek:.

[Dharmalisa]

HI Deborah. Your story is very inspirational for me. I'm struggling with hormone issues and no weight loss for nine months. I'm 15 lbs from goal. I was back up to 156 this morning. :mad:

I'm cutting calories to 1200 (if I can) while keeping the fat up. Hopefully something will start to change!!

[Relief]

Dharma I was stalled for over 10 months--PERFECT PP eating and no loss!!!

I didn't get things under control until the thyroid piece got resolved. Thyroid issues can be very complex around perimenopause. the main issue is conversion of T3 from T4--if you are estrogen dominant or just low progestrerone you may not be converting properly even though your TSH shows up totally normal; and if there is insufficient conversion you will not be able to lose weight. period.

Getting everything balanced requires some good detective work and a good support system from medical professionals--not always easy to find!!!

Christiane Northrup's work and Dr. Wilson's ( wilson's syndrome--you can google it) helped me the most--as well as finding someone who would prescribe the T-3. good luck to you--getting past menopause evens a lot out.

[Mitra]

I'm pleased to report that thyroid doesn't seem to be the issue for me. Since you and Gary Taubes inspired me to pull my socks up a bit, I've dropped my carbs down to Intervention levels and dropped 3 lb - not overnight, but quite quickly. A definite indication that for me the problem was carb creep :(.

[Relief]

Mitra glad to hear it! the fact that the weight came off pretty jquickly once you carbed down does seem to indicate that your hormone state is still pretty healthy. BTW Taubes was inspiring to me as well! Really reinforced for me the absolute necessity of clean eating.

Over the years of research to help myself, Ive come to a theory about menopause and why it can be such a problem for us here in the west.
I believe the combination of trans fats, high refined carbs and very low omega 3's throughout our childhood and young adulthood absolutely DESTROYS our adrenals, not to even mention what it does to other body processes. I think this is much more significant a factor than the "stress element" that everybody is always pointing out as the culprit. When your adrenals are healthy, they can take up the slack as your ovarys age and you can more or less sail through the change--which is typical is countries where the food supply is more whole and less processed.

The earlier you start mending those things the better chance that by the time you do hit menopause, there will be some adrenal recovery and you won't have the hotflashes and weight gain and other distressing symptoms.

My two cents: two things you MUST do.
1. get your fats under control--making certain you are getting your omegas 3's and eating only whole healthy fats
2. and ( of course) carb down.

If you do hit menopause with exhausted adrenals, it can be daunting--judicious use of bioidentical hormones, thyroid if indicated, supplements and PATIENCE with the healing process.
hope this helps anyone.

[deirdra]

I believe the combination of trans fats, high refined carbs and very low omega 3's throughout our childhood and young adulthood absolutely DESTROYS our adrenals, not to even mention what it does to other body processes. I think this is much more significant a factor than the "stress element" that everybody is always pointing out as the culprit. When your adrenals are healthy, they can take up the slack as your ovarys age and you can more or less sail through the change--which is typical is countries where the food supply is more whole and less processed.I've come to the same conclusion as I am one of those who sailed through. I grew fat at puberty eating that crap and failed on high-carb low-fat diets for 30+ years, then took up grain-free, soy-free, sugar-free, processed-food-free eating just as I started missing a few periods. 7 years later I'm 60 lbs lighter and still haven't had any of the symptoms my mother and sister experienced (on high refined carbs & TF and negligible O3s). And I take no hormones and have a very stressful job.

[Mitra]

Deborah, I think you have a good point. I haven't had hormone tests, but the problems I have experienced as I approach menopause (and I'm actually still menstruating and ovulating as far as I can tell, unless I'm ill, or stressed - big stresses like being with my MIL while she died) are mainly tiredness/not feeling up to dealing with things. My temperature wanders about a bit, but I'm not consistently hot or cold. I've noticed that if I'm feeling cold, then getting disturbed or agitated, or even just stimulated a bit, like speaking up in a public group, will make me feel warmer. It's as if it's all just hanging on by a hair, and the tiniest thing disturbs the equilibrium. Patience and taking things pretty easy are helping a bit.

I've never eaten low fat, and always favoured real fats like butter, but through the years probably took in some transfats unknowingly in processed foods, though I've always cooked most of what I eat. I certainly had a decade or so of eating too much white flour and not enough protein. Pasta with parmesan and butter, or toast with marmite and lots of butter. Too many pizzas. That was the decade when I gained most of the weight. I was about 107 at 20, 115 at 30, 145 at 42 when I started PP, the first time I'd ever tried to control my weight, and I'd never tried to reduce my fat.

How do you get your omega 3s? I eat oily fish at least a couple of times a week, but I don't think there's really that much oil in it. I take CLO or fish oil (depending on my mood when I'm supplement shopping), but maybe I should increase the dose. How much do you find helpful?

[Relief]

Currently I take CLO--carlson's lemon flavor--about 1 tablespoon a day. which is 3300 mgs of omega3's. Im thinking about trying Krill oil per Dr Mike. And I'm going to get the book He recently reviewed ( "The Brain Trust" I think?) did you catch his blog about it? some talk about ketones helping hot flashes and a ketone cocktail for menopause. I want to read more about that.

[Mitra]

Thanks. I'm taking CLO at the moment, but only about a tsp. I have been taking krill oil too. I'll have to check up on the EPA quantities.

I got a copy of the Brain Trust Program. The Ketone cocktail is MCT with some fish oil (quantity specified in terms of EPA), and some flax oil. He also suggests some supplements, and more magnesium than usual.

He suggests that the low estrogen symptoms aren't caused so much by low estrogen directly, but are withdrawal effects - less estrogen than your body's used to. Apparently morphine-addicted rats get hot flashes that go away when you give them estrogen. There's a lot about how the brain gets and handles energy - which is why the ketogenic cocktail is recommended.

[Relief]

Sorry--I'll probably go " duh" when you tell me--but what is MCT?

[Mitra]

Sorry, it's Medium Chain Triglycerides. It's a bottle of oil. Apparently it's very easy for the body to turn the medium chains into ketones, which brains like as fuel. The flax oil in the mix is also mostly burned for energy, and the EPA speeds up the burning of long chain triglycerides, so that's also there to help generate ketones.

Apparently low estrogen levels reduce the level of glucose available to brain cells, so the ketone cocktail is intended to ensure there's plenty of alternative fuel available.

[Bones]

just sticking to the plan--very limited diary, no wheat AT ALL not even the small amounts on low carb stuff. keeping the calories under control. i really do have to avoid the wheat flour-- I had 2 ( count them two SMALL) onion rings the other night off of SO's plate and gained a pound of water overnight.

This must be a thyroid thing! I cut wheat out of my diet because of some information I read about wheat/gluten and thyroid problems. At the time, I measured my thyroid to see if there would be any noticable difference, and after one month of being wheat/gluten free, the swelling in my thyroid went down 1 1/2 inches! Wheat/gluten definitely creates problems for me as well; aside from my thyroid, I suffered from fatigue, depression, and ongoing "subtle" headaches (never anything severe, just annoying). I don't have these problems anymore. I do okay with others grains in limited amounts though, rice being the least problematic.