Hello, for the third time

[aj_cohn]

Hello everyone,

This is my third attempt at a low-carb plan. The first, in 2003, was wildly successful (60 lbs in 90 days), but short-lived. The second, in 2006, fizzled immediately. This time, hay fever is forcing me back. Unless I keep to the straight and narrow nutritionally, I go into allergic hell. Plus, I'm right on the verge of being unable to donate blood due to my blood pressure. Since I can donate to babies, this is a very important civic duty to me.

I don't know if I'll be ultimately be able to maintain anything more than a cycling diet (3 days low-carb, 1 day moderate carb), due to my anxiety. The LC diet exposes my defective brain chemistry — messed up neurotransmitter regulation — and no meds, natural remedies, or exercise plan have helped rein in that anxiety. Not to mention that a LC WOE makes restaurant eating dreary, unless I want to spend a lot for a fancy, high-quality dinner.

I don't have any words of wisdom for the true newbies that other people with better track records than I haven't already said at some point in these forums (unless you want to hear me expound on the miracle of coconut oil). :D

Take care,
jake3_14

[Luzyanna]

Not to sound like a downer, but you already sound like you have one foot out the door on this 3rd attempt. You must determine you will stick with it for it to work for you. This is a wonderful place to learn what you need to make it actually work this time. Don't give up so soon.

[aj_cohn]

Not to sound disrespectful, Luzyanna/Leslie, but until you've walked at least half a mile in my shoes, don't presume that determination can overcome biology. I've struggled with various biologically-based mental and emotional disorders all my life, and I'm pretty successful in spite of them. But when you run the gamut of doctors, with their PET and MRI scans, drugs that make you want climb out of skin, drugs that require other drugs to cope with the side effects, naturopaths with their amino acid therapies, and herbalists with tinctures that leave you loopy, you come to accept that some things just cannot not be fixed.

I hope that you do not have such challenges in your makeup; I wouldn't wish them on anyone, even to build character. But believe me when I say I am a very determined person, and that perseverance takes you only so far when your body resists your best efforts.

[Luzyanna]

Many people here have health issues that restrict their diets severely not to mention at least 99% of the people here are here because of health reasons - overweight, diabetes, heart problems, etc. I'm sorry that you have had to experience such setbacks in your life but there are many people here who face turmoil on a daily basis both emotionally and physically.

I have no doubt that you CAN do anything you want - I just hope you want to....huge hugs to you hon. Can't wait to see your progress. :D

[Felicie]

aj cohn, I am very curious - what turned you off "naturopaths with their amino acid therapies"? Because this is what I am trying out now (after having failed on Atkins several times). I am trying it out, of course, in combination with changing my diet. Not just low carbohydrate, but other restrictions, such as eating everything natural, no sweeteners of any kind, no pre-packaged foods, MSG, preservatives, nothing from cans, jars, etc. I have been on this diet-therapy for a month and I'm beginning to feel some improvement in my overall health, although nothing dramatic yet.

I would be very grateful to you if you shared in what way aminoacids failed you. Thanks.

[RubyMack]

HI Aj Cohn, I am a newbie here too! Sorry to hear about your medical issues. As you say though sounds like you have overcome (or learnt ot live with)most of them. What I have learnt in my 8 year (on and off) low carb journey is everyone is different, there isn't a one size fits all solution so sometime we have to get creative to find the best way for us. I am trying to do this myself at the moment...

I am sort of 'cycling' as well. Although I dont have any specific health conditions (so far!) apart from being overweight, I find that pure low carb is too restrictive for me nowadays so I am doing 5 days low carb (week days) then 2 days (the weekends) with a bit more carb. As well as the problems I mentioned in my other post (heart palpitations and cramps on atkins) I find I need a little bit of low more GI carb for my brain to function properly. Being in a sales job I really notice the difference between how 'sharp' I am when on low carb and when I allow a little bit more carb in every now and then.

I am trying to stay away from anything processed / artificial. I suspect I wil lose weight slower than when I used to do atkins (I too lost a lot in a short time) but that suits me fine.

We can do this!!!

[aj_cohn]

Hi Felicie,

Sorry I can't send you a private message, but one needs a minimum number of posts before the system allows you to do that.

In short, the amino acid therapies produced no results, either good or bad, except to lighten my wallet. The ND tried loading me up on precursors to serotonin, and GABA. My brain simply destroys or my body discards these chemicals faster than they can get converted into the neurotransmitters . Only SSRIs, which prevent the destruction of the serotonin, have been effective in putting a floor under my organic depression. Nothing has been effective in reducing my anxiety consistently .

[aj_cohn]

Hi RubyMack,

Not everyone is metabolically suited for a pure low-carb diet. I read Metabolic Typing (http://www.amazon.com/Metabolic-Typing-Diet-Customize-Chemistry/dp/0767905644/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208140085&sr=1-1) and The Nutrition Solution (http://www.amazon.com/Nutrition-Solution-Guide-Your-Metabolic/dp/1556434375/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208140379&sr=1-1) before deciding to pursue a low-carb diet.

It sounds like you're taking a sensible approach, and I suggest you ensure that you're getting enough healthy animal fats in your diet to replace the carbs you're removing (gotta fuel the metabolic engine with something, you know). I haven't done that before (I depended on coconut milk and oil), and I want to see if some homemade, organic lard and suet makes a difference in how my body feels this time around.

[RubyMack]

Thanks AJ Cohn, I might read those book as well , thanks for the tip.

In the meantime, I like to think I am halfway to getting it sorted....

The fats I tend to have are olive oil, butter, cheese, mayo, a bit of cream here and there and the fat that is on the meat/ in the eggs i cook. Lowish carb definitely suits be better than anything else I have tried but I still need a certain level of carbs.

I don't particularly choose ultra fatty cuts (although I love pork belly occasionally!) but I will for example eat the skin on chicken, some of the fat round a steak if it is crispy. I also love duck which can of course be quite fatty. I heard somewhere (could be an old wives tale) that duck fat is better for you than other animal fats because it is more liquid at room temperature. But as I say, how much truth there is in that statement remains to be seen!!!

Haven't cooked much with coconut oil (although I use coconut milk regularly) but may give it a whirl. Like all nut oils I suspect it can be heated to a very high temp which gives good results when cooking - I am a serious foodie, love to cook!! I tend to cook pretty much everything from scratch - very little pre-prepared or processed in my cupboards. And I love vegetables....tend to choose gren leafy types more often obviously but love all kinds of veg...

I also tend to eat local , seasonal, organic if I can afford it (and it hasn't been flown in from the other side of planet!) and free range when it comes to meat.

Generally I fee very good on what I eat - good energy levels and my weight has stabilised but I just need to start shifting some weight again....oh and I eat too fast when stressed so i need to work on SLOWING down, chewing everything and not just inhaling food!!!

Anyway good luck on your journey as well, i agree sometimes it isn't a case one plan fits all, we have to tweak things a bit to try and get the results we want... we can do this!!!

[moggsy]

I guess I am lucky. I have found this way of eating to help my depression and anxiety. I don't know if it would be the case if I was carb cycling every three days. For me, Induction flu starts around the second or third day and I start to feel like crap around that point. The first day is hard, well, just because I am still craving the carbs. It's probably a YMMV thing.

I need to be in ketosis have the benefits of this. Well, at least I need to be eating under 30 carbs. I don't know if it is actually related to ketosis or the foods I am eating.

Anyway, good luck with this plan of yours. I believe there are people who carb cycle on this board, and you'd probably find support and advice from them.

[moth]

Heya

I have wicked anxiety problems, too. They derail me about once every 2-3 weeks. I've been learning to live this way for about five years now, too. I think of it this way: thirty years of eating (and other) habits cannot be relearned in just one year. That whole "Rome wasn't built in a day" phenomenon.

One of the major criticisms of this "WOE" is that it is difficult to maintain. This is true. To me, it's not a matter of personal failure that causes me to fall off of the wagon. We've been conditioned through various sources that we have a right to please ourselves with food. For myself, I am a big, big fan of Cook's Illustrated. It stinks to already be struggling with so much and just pile yet another thing on to worry about.

If you don't already know how to cook, it helps to learn how. Learning about food chemistry goes a long way towards reinventing recipes so that when the anxiety hits, the 'cheating' is not really cheating.

[ajia]

Hi. I'm new here. I tried low carb a couple of years ago, and lost 28 lbs. in less than 3 months. I have been yo-yoing on and off of South Beach and Weight Watchers, but have decided to Somersize again, since I had great results. I have to get this weight off. I am borderline diabetic, and on steroids right now for asthma, which makes me want to do nothing but EAT!!! It's going to be good to have people to talk to that are in the same boat. Ajia

[willow972]

Perspective on switching to a low-carb lifestyle...most of us, all our lives we've pretty much eaten anything we've wanted unless you have a serious food allergy. Most of us grew up on fast food, tv dinners and processed convenience foods. We've had sugar, starches and high carbs be part of our everyday. Now, we are shocking our bodies and our minds with this new WOE. Because of how we've eaten throughout our lives, it's easy to fall back into those engrained patterns, we just have to remember, when we faulter, when we cheat or make a mistake with something we eat...we pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and get right back to a low-carb WOE. And the biggest thing to remember, is not to beat ourselves up over slipping up or making a mistake.

I've been reading about so many ailments we all have...anxiety, medical condititions, hormones imbalances, etc....adding on daily life, work, kids, family, being pulled this way and that, we have so much to deal with already, our WOE should be something to be enjoyed not to be a burden. And after a while, or after the struggle, it will be.

"stepping down of my soapbox"

[aj_cohn]

Hi RubyMack,

If you want the skinny on fats (sorry, I couldn't resist), check out the web site of the Weston A. Price Foundation (http://www.westonaprice.org/splash_2.htm). In the left-hand navigation area, click on the "Know Your Fats" link. If you want more in-depth reading, check out the books by two of the site's primary owners: Nourishing Traditions (http://www.amazon.com/Nourishing-Traditions-Challenges-Politically-Dictocrats/dp/0967089735/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208228620&sr=8-1) and Know Your Fats (http://www.amazon.com/Know-Your-Fats-Understanding-Cholesterol/dp/0967812607/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208228703&sr=1-1) . It completely blew my mind when I read them the first time.

Regarding coconut oil, be sure to get the premium stuff that never reaches retail stores. I get the unrefined, centrifuged variety (http://wildernessfamilynaturals.com/virgin_coconut_oil_centrifuged.htm) from Wilderness Family Naturals. It's a lot better tasting, milder, and effective than even the stuff I got at health stores. By effective, I mean stopping my body from reacting to my own sweat with rashes, stopping my eczema, treating warts (really!), softening the elephant skin on my elbows, enabling all my skin to retain water better, and so on.

Make sure to get your CO in glass containers, not unlined plastic jars. Oils and plastic are electrically non-polar, meaning they will leach into each other, unless the container is lined. I checked with Wilderness Family Naturals, and they receive their shipments in plastic barrels with a food-grade lining, so there's no leaching. I don't know why anybody sells oils in unlined plastic containers, but that's a topic for another discussion.

[aj_cohn]

Hi Moggsy,

I think much guidance in life, including here in these forums, is a YMMV affair. ;) Everyone's entitled to tweak plans set forth in books to maximize their health and happiness. Your progress numbers imply that you've found that happy path.

Myself, I think I'll try a higher-carb day once every 3-4 weeks. My wife makes a mighty tasty chili with beans, and I'd put her cajun-fried liver and okra against anybody's (the contrast in textures makes this combo work).

[aj_cohn]

Hi Ajia,

Welcome to our community. A LC WOE certainly can stave off diabetes. My mom was also borderline diabetic before I introduced her to this WOE, and now she has no overt diabetic symptoms; all her blood tests are in the normal range.

I relate to the urge to EAT, even though my reasons are different than medication. I am graced right now, in that no matter how much my addict's head wants a bag of M&Ms, seducing me with the promise of release from anxiety, I can listen to my body say "M&Ms? Meh." That, plus the allergy hell from high-carb foods is enough to keep me on plan for now.

I wish you the same success that you've had before and more.

[RubyMack]

Thanks AJ Cohn I will indeeed check out the links you suggested and will also give Coconut oil a whirl. I will try and find a premium supplier here in the UK, shouldn't be too difficult thanks to the wonderous internet! Thanks for the tip - coconut oil in glass only!

My step sister will freak if she reads this post. She has a serious nut allergy, not that I cook for her much anyway but just the mention of cooking with nut products of any kind has her (understandably) running away screaming. Actually I should probably avoid rubbing CO on my skin when I am due to see her - one hug could have disastrous consequences!..... I feel so sorry for her, I LOVE nuts....

[moggsy]

Hi Moggsy,

I think much guidance in life, including here in these forums, is a YMMV affair. ;) Everyone's entitled to tweak plans set forth in books to maximize their health and happiness. Your progress numbers imply that you've found that happy path.


I agree that everyone's entitled to tweak their plans. I, in fact, don't follow Atkins to the book in that I don't eat every 6 hours (if I am not hungry) and I've gotten to the point where I don't strictly measure and count everything. I am sorry if my post sounded like an admonishment to you. It wasn't meant to be.

What does concern me is when we put our personal touches on a way of eating, we should take those alterations into consideration if we fail. Also, I wanted to put out there that not everyone with depression or anxiety find it hard to stick to strict low carb eating. Not for your benefit or mine, but for others coming here for answers on eating healthy who happen to also have the diagnoses we are talking about which may or may not be effectively controlled by medication. Of course, your experience tells you that not everyone is helped by controlling their carbs. I didn't expect to be helped by diet, but I have found it to be a nice side effect.

Again, I wish you luck with the changes you plan on making and I hope you find good support here.

[ajia]

Thanks, ajcohn. I am also an M&M addict. I just went back on this yesterday, but already feel more in control today. I guess it's like "drying out." I have decided this is going to be a lifetime battle, and I am just going to get through one day at a time. I'm always looking way down the road, and that seems to be what screws me up. Then I think it's okay to cheat for now, because I can get back on tomorrow. All I know is this has been controlling my life for 20 years now. And I'm sick of it. If that's one thing I want to do before I die- is get back to where I used to be. I was a skinny healthy size 7 or 9 in High School, and during a 16 year abusive marriage, ate my way to a 16. I had no friends at all, and was so miserable. But, that is the past, and excuses, excuses. It really did change me, and I am trying so hard to mentally be who I used to be. This is the biggest hurdle. When anything goes wrong, I just want to crawl right back into all that cushion, and protect myself. ajia

[Kristine]

Hi and welcome back. :wave: I think I remember you: are you acohn? (http://forum.lowcarber.org/member.php?u=24059) Would you mind terribly logging in using your old account? The lost password link is here (http://forum.lowcarber.org/login.php?do=lostpw).