I can't do this!

[laurlynn]

Hello everyone. This is my 4th restart on Atkins. I was successful after my first pregnancy (2001) and I managed to lose 30 pounds. Since then, I have had another child (August 2003) I have lost some weight but I want to shed another 10 pounds or so. I know the Atkins WOL works and I want to do it but there are a few problems. So...I need some advice.
Induction - I know that headaches and loss of sleep are a side effect of induction for me. The problem is that I'm already suffering from loss of sleep and headaches now. I went to see the DR. and he put me on meds for what he thinks could be a urine infection. I am getting up 3-4 times through the night to go pee. That also brings me to the water topic. I'm very scared to start drinking 8 glasses of water per day. I average 1-2 per day now.
As for the headaches, I'm already having them daily and I know if I start LC'ing I'll get them even worse. I haven't figured out yet if the headaches are from lack of sleep, stress or the humidity. Those are the 3 that I've narrowed it down to. So what do you think I should do?
I have two little kiddies that I take care of so I need to be in the best shape possible. I wish I could start LC'ing and just sleep through the day but that's not possible. Please help! Laurlynn

[Janetly]

It sounds to me like you just listed off all your excuses for why you are not doing lc. Especially with the title "i cant do this". Probably not, with that kind of negative energy anyway. You are the only one who can do it for you - no matter how much we try or want to, we cant change your attitude, its all you hon.

If your doctor thinks you have a urinary tract infection (and you have my sympathies for that, they are terrible) drinking lots of water will flush out your system. Is it possible you got your UTI by not drinking ENOUGH water to begin with?

I'd say if induction causes you problems, start with OWL. Or if you've got the self-discipline, go "backwards" from atkins... just start reducing your carb intake a week at a time (or if you're in a hurry 5 days at a time), eventually you'll be low enough to get into ketosis and lose :)

I dont want to sound harsh or negative or rude or anything along those lines, just the impression i got from your post was "here are all the reasons why I cant do this, now I want you guys to change my mind about them" and only you can change your mind.

Good luck!

[nets33]

You do need to make the decision for yourself to make the change in your life....

I do agree with Janet... it sounds to me like you aren't drinking enough water. Only 1 to 2 glasses a day? Your headaches could also be symptoms of your dehydration. If you do have a uti it is best to drink, drink, drink. They do sell cranberry tablets in health food stores which can also help with a uti.

Hope that you can make the decision to change. If you've done it before and were successful you know that this WOE can work!

Good luck,
Kiks

[Iowagirl]

How tall are you, Lauralynn? If you are only 125 pounds I hope you are fairly short. Otherwise a goal of 115 may not be appropriate for you.

[LucyLucy]

I agree with Janet, only you can do this, if you don't think you can do it, then don't. It sounds like you don't have the time or inclination to do any weight-loss plan, but remember, you have to put yourself first, you're better for your kids when YOU are taken care of, if that means enlisting your partner more, then do it, your health is important. I also agree on the water, I'm amazed your doctor is just putting you on meds without trying to find the culprit, and not drinking enough water will definitely contribute to UTI's. I"m also concerned that your doctor puts you on meds for 'what he thinks' is a UTI? Are you a ginuea pig?

Just based on your post, sounds like the headaches are stress-induced.

As for carb cravings, I weaned myself from carbs for over a month before I started induction, cut down on coffee and had NO symptoms when I started.

Lastly, you started and restarted Atkins 4 times, perhaps it's time to either get comitted or just don't put yourself through the agony.

Good luck :)

LL

[KoKo]

Hi Laura,

I think you need to drink more water too - if you are getting up to pee already 3 or 4 times in the night - then what can happen except you will do bigger pees each time - maybe this is what you need as you must only be doing tiny tinkles each time and will get the urge anyway but not have enough fluid to actually do anything worthwile.

If you are already having sleep problems, well I have to say the same thing, it shouldn't really get much worse than it already is, and eventually you will be tired enough to sleep (I think it's pretty common to have sleep problems when you have young kids).

Like some other people mentioned you don't absolutely HAVE to do induction - some people seem to find it nesessary to help with cravings but maybe you don't have that problem - I didn't see where your weight was posted, but someone mentioned that you are 125?? then you probably don't have much to lose and maybe just doing Atkins without the induction period would be more what you want, or another low carb plan - one that does not require the ketosis (since that's what often causes the sleeping issue)

I also don't want to sound harsh - but I have a really hard time losing even an ounce lately - if anything worked for me but it meant I would miss some sleep, have a headache and need to pee a lot - I would jump at the chance to be so inconvenienced if it resulted in losing weight.

[cs_carver]

You don't say what you're using for birth control, and it's none of my business. Diaphrams are notorious for causing UTIs, ESPECIALLY if you've been changing weight (and then they're notorious for failure), so if that's part of the picture, you HAVE to drink more, before and after using it.

[laurlynn]

Okay, I got lots of responses here.
I know I can do this as I've done it before. I wasn't trying to give excuses but merely describing some of the symptons that I'm already suffering from. I know how my body reacts to induction. I get some really bad headaches. I'm already a headache sufferer as I said, so I don't want to drag them on or do something that I know will bring one on.
I guess that answers my question about induction. I should skip it and move onto OWL.
My weight right now is 130 and I'm looking at a goal of 120. Even I will admit that 115 is low and I'll be surprised if I get to it. My lowest before becoming pregnant with my last daughter was 117.
nets33 ~ I have bought the cranberry supplements and I'm hoping that will help. I've also bought some multivitamins with the hopes that I will have more energy. I'm going to keep taking those 2 supplements. I am willing to try and drink more water. I was just wondering if I should add 8 glasses right away or just add an extra glass each day?
Koko ~ I agree with your statement about having sleep problems when little kids are around but.....my lack of sleep is because I'm going pee all of the time. My kids sleep through the night so there are no disturbances there. As for having severe headaches to lose weight- I don't think so. If it was just a light headache, yes, but these are migraines.
Cs Carver ~ There is no birth control involved as hubby has had a vasectomy.
Again to sum this up: I can do low carb. I have done it before and I find it quite easy to do. As for induction: no I don't think I can do it. I guess I should have worded some of this different. Thanks!
Laurlynn

[Cara73]

Hello and welcome to the forum :wave:

I have to comment on the UTI situation. Before my hysterectomy, I had problems with UTI's. Somebody posted about cranberry pills. My doctor told me to take 2 in the morning and 2 at night. Well, I take enough other vitamins and such, I take 1 in the am and 1 in the pm. Since doing this, I've had one in 4 years. I highly recommend it if you're having that trouble. But the doctor gave you meds without doing a urinalysis?? That doesn't make much sense. They can have the answer very quickly if you do have one. I'd do some more checking.

As for staying on induction. I think you just have to be at a certain point. I tried Atkins several times in the past several months and after a few days, I'd fall off. This time, I'm just at a place where I want it more than I want to cheat. I've had a couple weak moments with little cheats, but I'm on day 21 now and having few to no carb cravings. I think you just have to be ready for it with no doubts. Otherwise, it won't work. I think the thing is, you only have 10 lbs to lose if I remember right. The thing I thought of was this...I used to wear glasses. I hated it and went in for contacts. My eyes weren't really bad, I could see without my glasses, but it wasn't perfect. Once I had contacts, they were such a pain, I never took the time to put them in. My dr said he hated giving people like me (where eyesight isn't terrible) because the absolute need wasn't there. Ok, I've rambled way too much. My point is, maybe since you only have 10 lbs to lose, the true WANT isn't there yet.

Ok, I'm shutting up..:lol: Sorry to bore everybody!!!!

[Cara73]

I just read your last post, laurlynn. I had mine typed out before you posted yours, but I was interrupted, so I'm posting a few more things after reading what you wrote. If you are losing sleep because of going to the bathroom so often, has this been a problem for quite some time or did it just come on? If it just came on, I'd say it's a UTI. Do you have burning while going, and frequency while you're awake, too? And depending on how severe, a UTI can cause quite a bit of pain. If it's something that's been ongoing for some time, you may want to see a urologist. It could be a problem like overactive bladder or something like that, and they have medications that can take care of that. I wouldn't ignore it. You said the doctor gave you meds, how long have you been taking them. If it is a UTI, you should see an improvement in 2-3 days. Not 100%, but quite a bit of improvement.

I'm no doctor (wish I had their money, though :lol: ), but I've had my share of problems where they it concerned.

Just some ideas. You may know all of that already, but just offering what I know.

I wish you the best of luck!!!! :)

[KoKo]

Hi again Laurylyn (so pretty a name!!)

Sorry I didn't realize they were migraines - that's a totally different story.

As for upping your water - well I would try to go all the way to the 8 glasses but space them through the day and try to get them in early enough so that you don't have to drink much in the evening - sorry for the next question it might be TMI but when you need to pee at night is your bladder totally full each time or do you just wake because of the feeling of a need to go and its just a little bit??? Because it's hard for me to understand why if you are only drinking a couple of glasses you would have a full bladder that often in the night - this is why I think that drinking more wouldn't really make you wake more often - but of course I am not a Dr. just someone spending far too much time thinking about peeing :blush:

[Cara73]

LOL Koko!!!!! I guess I'm spending too much time thinking about peeing, also!!! ;)

[flwrfrog]

As for headaches, if you're getting them everyday after your first weeks of atkins(induction headaches), you'll probably notice that they go away. Before LC I had a huge migraine problem, at least 2-3 times a week, and I was on prescription meds. I still have ocassional migraines, but can't remember the last time I had to take a prescribed med to get rid of one. I've had headache/migrain problems since I was 15. I thought it was normal until LC.

=)
Cori

[laurlynn]

Hi Cara. Thanks so much for being so helpful. This has been a problem for 7 months now. I've always been one to wake up atleast once in the evening but it has progressed to about 3 times per night. No burning though. No itching. Nothing. The frequency is the same when I'm awake. Every couple of hours. The DR. gave me Amoxicillin and I started it on Friday. I'm taking 3 pills a day and so far there is no improvement. I know a lot of people would suggest that I look for another Dr. but there is a huge shortage of Dr's in Canada so that's not a possibility. The only other option is to go to the hospital in emergency. I'm sure they wouldn't appreciate me going when I don't have an emergency and I already have a Dr.
Just my opinion though.

[laurlynn]

Koko ~ My bladder is totally full when I go. I need to go to the washroom or I can't sleep because it's such a full feeling. I wish I could dismiss it and just go back to sleep.

[Cara73]

Hi Laurlynn,

The fact that he put you on amoxicillan is weird. Again, I'm NO doctor and there is TONS!!!!! I don't know about, so please don't take it that way. I'm just trying to offer some suggestions of things I've been through. Fortunately, I can go 8 hours many times without going. Since I've been on this diet, that's not the case because I drink 90 oz of water. Anyway, I had the doctors baffled, so they treated me for overactive bladder (DUH at them, I went forever without going) but if you've been having the same problems for 7 months and no pain and no burning, I highly doubt it's a UTI or any other type of infection. If it was UTI and went untreated for 7 months, you would have been in the ER a long time ago, with a kidney infection, I would imagine. Are you able to go see a urologist? I've been to so many dr's where you have them stumped, and instead of admitting that and sending you to a specialist, it's always, "try this med and see if it works and so on". I've been there, many times!!!! Do you ever have a problem where (not trying to be gross) if you sneeze or cough you had "problems"? I don't want to get too graphic :lol:. I have to be honest with you, I don't think he knows how to treat you. In all of my UTI's, I've always been prescribed a med that's pretty much specifically for UTI's. If you have a urologist you can see, I highly recommend you trying to see one. And then, once you start taking antibiotics, many people get yeast infections from them, it's very common. It's a vicious cycle!!! Did your doctor take a urine sample?

[laurlynn]

Hi Cara. Well no problems really with coughing or sneezing. At times a bit of urine can come out but I blame that on having a baby 10 months ago.
My Dr. prescribed the Amoxicillin and then he sent me to the lab for bloodwork and a urine sample. He wants to see me in 2 weeks to do an exam. If it's not a UTI, what could it be then? One of my friends mentioned diabetes but both the hubby and I were tested for that a few months ago when we took out our life insurance policy.
I do see my Dr. in 2 weeks so maybe I'll have to demand to see a urologist. I've had the yeast infections too (not for a long time) but they are the worst.
Again, any idea what this can be?
Thanks! you're a great help.

[KoKo]

yes, Cara we ARE pee-obsessed (I was actually going to ask her to measure her output :lol: ) Laurlyn - I'm in Canada too, but luckily have a lot of Doctors to choose from here, I don't know what Province you are in but if it works like here in Ontario if you want to see a specialist you have to be referred from your family Doctor. That upsets me because you have to take the doctor they recommend - but I have managed a couple of times to get to the particular specialist I wanted by phoning them first and asking if I got the proper referral from my Doctor would they see me - so then I could ask the family Dr. to just refer me to this particular Dr. of course if you don't know of any good urologists there is nothing wrong with taking whoever your Dr. would send you to. But it sounds like maybe you do need a specialist to look into this.

Now back to the actual pee :lol: - I notice that even though at times I feel really "full" I don't actually seem to output much and yet at other times experiencing the same degree of fullness sensation there is a real outpouring - I wonder if you could stretch your bladder by trying to hold a little longer at times during the day ( I think I read that once as an exercise to help with frequent need to go)

[Cara73]

LOL Koko, I guess we are pee-obsessed!!! Too funny.

Laurlynn,

Again, no doctor here, but to me, it sounds like you may have overactive bladder. When I asked about coughing or sneezing, that's exactly what I meant, if urine came out. They have medication (prescreption of course) that will help overactive bladder. I know one is detrol and another is ditropan. Here is a great website for overactive bladder. It has a little quiz to take to see if your symptoms match that of overactive bladder. http://www.oabrelief.com/ . It's nothing serious, just a pain. Like I said, I never had it, but they treated me for it. Once I found the right doctor, he yelled at me for not forcing myself to go more often. But the first several doctors I saw just didn't know what was wrong, and wouldn't admit it. It turns out, I needed a hysterectomy due to endometriosis. Of course, that isn't the problem you have. One word of advice, educate yourself. If you think it may be this, read up on it and arm yourself with knowledge for when you go back to the doctor. He will take you serious and be forced to explore other options if you offer him some. Also, in the mean time, do a search on "kegal exercises". They help strengthen the pelvic muscles which will in turn help with bladder control.

I am just concerned he gave you that medicine without knowing what it was, and is waiting 2 weeks to see you. I don't think the time will hurt you because it sure doesn't seem like a UTI, but if he thinks it might be, it doesn't seem right.

I hope some of this information helps you. Again, I don't think it's anything to worry about like it's bad, but you of course want to get it taken care of :)

[laurlynn]

Thanks Cara. I'll definetely check out that website. I just checked those pills and there are 3 days left on them so I don't think that this is the cure.
I'll also check out the kegal exercises and I have heard that they can help. Thanks for all your help hun. I appreciate it.

[laurlynn]

Just to update. I did that quiz and it is leaning towards an overactive bladder. Definetely something I'll suggest to my Doctor. Thank you Cara. I plan on doing much more reading on this and I'm thinking that I may try to get into my doc sooner since these meds aren't doing anything.

[Cara73]

You are very welcome, Laurlynn. Again, I am no doctor. I just have a little bit of personal experience with this, and thought I'd offer some information. It may not be that at all, but it just kind of sounded like it to me. At least worth checking out :) . I sure hope they figure it out soon. It's no fun going from doctor to doctor.

And in regards to the diet, the support here is exactly what has helped me stay in check. It may be the key to helping you out, also. If you start a journal, it's a great way to get to know people. I've met some good friends here, and it sure has helped. But again, I think you really have to be ready. I've gone into it thinking I was, but just didn't have what it took to make it.

I wish you the best of luck in whatever you decide to do. And also with the doctor. If you can get in to see him, I'd say go for it. If you decide to stay here, drop by my journal and let me know how you're doing!!!!! :)

Cara

[laurlynn]

Thanks very much!

[Cara73]

You're very welcome :)

If I can help at all, don't hesistate to ask!!! Just stop by my journal.