Oreos, Pringles, and Ice Cream, Oh My!

All of these foods found their way into my shopping cart today!  UGH!  Later they also found their way into my mouth!  With my first pregnancy I never had any cravings, if anything I craved really juicy fruit.  This time however is a whole different story!  I'm having crazy cravings that change by the minute.  One minute I'm repulsed by something and the next I can't get enough of it!  This is frustrating because I'm really afraid of losing what I've worked so hard for over some lame hormonal cravings.  Now, I must emphasize that these are not your average "head hunger" kind of cravings... more like "I won't be able to stop thinking about X until I get it in my face".  I've tried ignoring them... no luck.  I've tried not buying such foods, but then I end up stranded at home with a sleeping toddler upstairs ready to eat my nearest appendage.... this leads to baking or other kitchen "creativities" which are generally worse than indulging in the original craving for two oreos.  I keep telling my self that "as long as I'm not gaining it is fine... if I start to gain, I'll just reel things in a bit".  This justification is what scares me!  I feel like right now I could convince myself that just one little taste of my poor little Boston Terrier would probably be OK!  I really need some of Brandilyn's harsh self talk to fall back on here!  I feel like maybe these cravings are a year's worth of dieting crashing to the surface under the guise of justification (pregnancy, hormones, etc...)  Now, I feel the need to add that I'm being very mindful of getting in all of my protein, water, vitamins, etc and making sure that the baby and I have what we need.  The cravings tend to fill in the spaces in between.  Not sure what I'm looking for here, maybe just a place to vent my fears.  I know this probably seems like a post better suited for the pregnancy forum, but I find that they're not very nice over there, so I'm getting this out where I'm comfortable,  I guess I prefer to air my dirty laundry among friends.  Any advice or thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

I feel for you - don't know how pregnancy changes things but I assume it's even harder. what I do know is that eating those things  (sugary & salty/fatty) make me want more more more.

I wish you good luck, this has to be difficult!

When I was pregnant with my son, I gained 100 pounds and had a very difficult time. The cravings were INSANE! I had a tremendous craving for potatoes and ate them baked, fried, mashed, tater'd, and every which way I could eat them.

I have never felt more out of control in my life! I started having super high blood pressure and they were threatening to hospitalize me, which I could not afford since I was still working at the time.

I found that if I went low carb I could get my blood pressure down, but I'd go through maybe a week on low carb before I'd fall off the wagon.

I ended up with a very complicated and unwanted vertical c-section because my son ran out of amniotic fluid. It was horrible.. you don't want to gain the weight like I did, feel out of control, and have all of my complications. I had the most excruciating delivery possible, and had to be slit down my navel under general anesthesia.

So the bottom line is I KNOW it is sooo hard! Here's what I would suggest.. go to the store and buy the yummiest foods you can find that are more healthy. Not diet foods, but healthier foods like nuts, cheese, fruit, your favorite veggies, the yummiest meats you enjoy, etc.

Don't worry about the calories, but do try to pick the best quality and most nutritious foods. Prepare those in advance and have those all ready to go. Get rid of the junk.. neither you nor your baby need that.. there's nothing to grow a baby in those foods.

Have good foods on hand and lots of choice, so you have a strategy in place for your finicky tummy. Hope that helps...

It is interesting that you mention the blood pressure thing, because I actually think my bp might be behind the salt cravings.  My bp is crazy low right now (96/64) and I'm getting really light headed a lot.  On the days I eat more salt it is a little higher (103/70) and I'm not as light headed.  I started taking it at home a couple times a day and I've noticed this trend over the last few days.  Might be me trying to justify the pringles, but it is something that I've been wondering about.  With my first pregnancy I really only gained about 15-20 lbs and I'm hoping not to go over that this time either.  I still weigh every day and I'm determined to keep this in check.... even with my bad days (which I know are inevitable).  Thanks for the advice... it is just what I need to hear to get my head on straight!

Dear Paula,
I really feel for you.  During my pregnancy I could not control my eating at all.  The cravings drove me crazy and I gained a good deal of my weight.  I never did get a handle on it, but the first half of the pregnancy was the worst in terms of cravings, they subsided significantly after that.  I hope this is true for you too.  One thing I did that sometimes worked for me, is I would turn over my eating to the baby, what I mean by this is that I would only eat it if I thought it would nourish the baby, if it didn't, I wouldn't eat it.  This worked better after the first trimester when I could feel the baby moving inside of me.  You might want to get really clear on what the baby needs and what is "bad" for the baby.  I know it is just replacing one head game with another, but that is the best I've got.  By the way, please feel free to post anything you want here.   It this is your safe place, than use us to help you get through this.  I am sure I am speaking for just about everybody when I tell you, you are very welcome here.

Thanks!

Gosh this must be rough. I have never had children but certainly had my share of food obsessions and cravings and it must be so much worse in pregnancey. All I can suggest is buying these things in small quantities, doing pretzels instead of pringles for the salt as its lower calorie or salted peanuts which is a little healthier, and frozen yogurt or lower cal ice cream or making protein ice cream or lower cal fudgesicles that have 100 cal so one doesn't do so much damage.

and below is my recipe for cinnamon almonds. this is a sweet slightly salty treat that i made every few days over the holidays. it is what kept me from eating other holiday sweets and bad stuff. tastes really good and has protein and hunger satisfying element of nuts.

all the best to you. taking care of "sprout" is the most important thing and I know youwill do that. Post here any time.


Cinnamon Almonds

3 cups raw almonds or more
1 egg white
1 or 2 heaping  tsp cinnamon (or more)
1 /2 vanilla
2 heaping TBS brown sugar splenda
1/2 tsp salt  or more if you want saltier

Beat the egg white with a whisk and then whisk in the vanilla, cinnamon, salt and brown sugar splenda. stir in the almonds until well coated. they will seem sticky. spread on a cookie sheet in a single layer that has been well sprayed with pam. Bake 10 minutes at 300 degrees, then stir well and bake another 10 minutes.  remove and cool on sheet. (stir a bit so they don't stick)  they will seem still sticky when removed but will crisp up as they cool. Tastes great and while brown sugar splenda has some real sugar in it, tastes great. could probably do it with a reduced amount of white splenda if you want to avoid every bit of sugar. Do not overbake. I mix these in one of those great big pyrex measuring cups for ease.

I do not have any good things to add, having never been a breeder or dealt with pregnancy cravings.

Ummm.I really need some of Brandilyn's harsh self talk to fall back on here! . my harsh self talk?  ouch.

I am glad other folks may have good and helpful things and possibly that the pregnancy after wls can have extra helpful things, since those folks know Jack. 

be sweet and incubate well.

I simply mean that you're always so good at talking yourself down off the ledge!  I'm much better at convincing myself that just this once I might be able to fly, lol.

Luckily, I'm craving savory, salty, spicy foods, and the sleeve is making this pretty easy. As you know, I've gained 3lbs, I'm chalking it up to adding in fruit juice, and water weight because I'm sucking down so much salt it's not even funny. I've been able to steer clear of the sweet over indulgences for the most part, but I'm not having to deal with sweet cravings.

I think it'll change, and come in ebbs and waves at least that is how I feel about all of it.

I do know that I can rely on my permanent, constant restriction, and go back to low carb after delivery. I'm not looking to gain the 30lbs that has been recommended, but I'm also not freaking out over the number on the scale at this point. Of course, we can revisit this subject when I hit 9 months pregnant, and we'll see how the numbers on the scale are looking, and how I really "feel/think" about it.

I know that weight gain is normal and expected, and I'm not going to beat myself up for gaining weight nor am I going to cut my calories below 1700 calories they told me to shoot for every day. I might cut some white carbs here and there, but in all honesty, I'm not going to get back into ketosis until after delivery, and then I'll be low carbing my ass all the way back down to 125lbs.