Got hooked on carbs and sugar in the hospital...

... of all places!!  Back at the beginning of the year, I had spinal surgery that didn't go well, and I ended up in the hospital and a nursing home for about six weeks.   Let me tell you, they have no clue how to feed someone who has had a "partial gastrectomy," as I kept calling it.  The couple of times I said weight loss surgery, they assumed I'd had a bypass, and of course no one had ever heard of a sleeve, so I just started saying partial gastrectomy.  Still clueless!  I must have met with the dietician half a dozen times, and NEVER got my food straightened out.  I could only eat a few bites of what they brought me for meals, and then half starved to death until the next meal came.  Consequently, I lost so much weight in just a couple of weeks that I was skin and bones.  I finally got them to start bringing me a snack -- jello and graham crackers, sigh.  Up to then, I had not had sugar or simple carbs post-sleeve.  What the heck, I had to eat the jello and crackers to keep from starving.  Then they began to bring me Cokes, thinking they would make me feel better.  ACK!  They *did* make me feel better!!  Probably the calories as much as anything, because I was still half starved.

And that is where my foot first stepped off the path and onto the slippery slope.  And when I got home, I was still very disabled ... and skin and bones ... and the doctor commanded me to "eat lots of Haagen-Dazs" to put the weight back on.  Good girl that I am, I tried it.  And my church family brought me more and more fatty, starchy, sugary food, God bless 'em.  And when I could get up and out, I bought even more.  AARRGGHH!!!

So here I am, months later, and caught in the vicious cycle.  I keep saying NO MORE, but then I go out and buy more.  Darn food addiction, darn sugar and carb addiction, DARN!!!

Thanks for listening, y'all....
--Dorothy

Hi Dorothy,

First of all BIG Hugs!! 

I am happy to hear you are home, sorry you had to go through that whole ordeal, with the hospital and nursing home...

You did not ask for advise, but if I wanted to get control again, I would do the 5 Day Pouch Test, to de-carb, then start back to basics, including tracking my food, water and exercise.

You can do this, look what you just went through to survive your back surgery.  Coming here was the first step.

You are welcome to come and join us over on Sleevin' & Achievin', you can set some goals, we can cheer you on, and we can all watch you attain them and get back on track.

So with the addiction of the sweets, where is your weight now, you don't mention that...?  Are you still skin and bones or have you put on weight?

It is good to see you!

Big hugs,

maybe you can change or substitute your ice cream for egg face protein ice cream, your crackers maybe you can make a bunch of crackers out of parmesan cheese, or get some low carb tortillas and make some chips.

getting off the carb monster is not going to be easy, but  i have all the faith in you to fight this... it might mean making substitutions, so you dont feel like your totally missing out.. make up some fab low carb deserts so you have them to snack on if you get a sweet attack..

i really do feel for you, and we are here to support you in what ever way we can.

Sometimes I have to give myself a firm talking to, out loud, right in the middle of the aisle of the store. 

I hope someway you can dextox yourself girlie.. maybe go to OA for some in flesh skin?  Does your church have some sort of addiction support program?

I know we laugh because its just food, but its not.  I mean it is but its not *just* food.  For some of us, it changes our body chemistry and its just as harmful our spirit for us to break our word to ourselves over and over again, and we learn that we cannot trust ourselves.

I am thinking of your girlie and keeping you lifted up.  I can only have refined starchy stuff once in the month - and then for the few days after I know I am going to deal with the whispers in my noggin.  I also chart my cycle and do not indulge in them when I am without a firm footing (hormonally, emotionally, if I have had the lonelies.. its just me asking for trouble).

*squeeze*

Hi, what a rotten deal! the care home sure should have been able to accomodate you. too bad your church group didn't bring you almonds and cheese. don't blame you a bit for eating what you were provided - i mean were you gonna get up and go somewhere else for dinner?  I sure hope you are recovered from your surgery. But its good you recognize that carbs and sugar really are an addiction. I have mentioned the book "The End of Overeating" by Dr. Kessler.If you haven't read it, it might help you. Its about how the food industry conspires to get you addicted to their junk food with combinations of sugar, fat, salt and chemicals. It makes you aware of this stuff and makes you hate big food companies and their junk like you hate big tobbacco. Thinking of it helps me walk by the junk food displays in the stores and of course there are aisles and aisles devoted to the stuff. you also might to the sugar free pudding with a spoon or two of protein powder mixed in. thats my night treat thats a substitute for some nasty sweet. or maybe just pretend you are just out of surgery and do a few days of liquid protein. anything to cut that cycle. and thanks for sharing this story. we all fear the same thing and most of us will probably go through the same thing at some point. let us know how you do. thinking of you. D

Sugar and carbs are so evil. I am fighting them too. It seems so much harder now than it did
weeks ago before my birthday binges. I am glad we all have each other for support while we find the same demon.

(( Dorothy ))