FluffyChix

I don't have any words of advice for you. Wish I did. But I can relate and identify to a lot of what you wrote. I'm 55, and have been through a similar past and struggle with depression through the years. ((Hugs)) I do want to give a HUGE congratulations to you for deciding you're worth the fight!!!! And for overcoming so much in your life. You are independent now!!! Wooooooottttt That's amazing girl. What a redemption story. I truly believe that if you keep your present focus, you will only continue to get stronger. And good, healthy men, are attracted to strong women who have a proper sense of self. I can tell you, that each day you fight for yourself, is one step closer to realizing what an amazing and strong person (resilient) fighter living within you. Men (and women) can be total tools. And it seems like, sometimes, the more you search and yearn, the more elusive "Mr. Right" becomes. I kinda feel like, the more you focus on developing your inner person, spirituality, your hobbies, career, interests--the more you develop a network of friends--the more open to a connection you become. Also, with that comes experience. It's good to have a childlike heart. Soft hearts are loving and loveable hearts. But you can have that childlike heart without being naive--and you gain perception by experience. Keep walking your walk. Keep your eyes wide open and your head on brighter and lighter things and it will happen for you. Keep working with a therapist, because I believe depression, ptsd, anxiety, etc, are life long battles that you CAN stay on top of and claim victory over!!! Again, amazing cudos to you girlie!!!!! You'll figure it out and meet someone worthy of you!!

Honestly, when you are deep into ketosis...you get (many get), deep anorexia and aversion to food. The easiest way to get out of it is to reawaken your body and get it out of deep ketosis. Can you have any solids yet? If it was me, I'd do as @Sosewsue61 suggests and try some milk or chocolate milk, or a few saltines and chicken broth or something like that. Anything just to bring you intoa more shallow level of ketosis... Sorry you're struggling! ((hugs))

Hmmm...there is nothing worse than a reformed smoker, drinker, drug addict, etc... Trust me, anyone who wants/needs to know what's in the koolaid will ask.

The infamous 3 week stall. Keep on keepin' on! Sucks, but happens.

Congrats on your surgery!!! ((hugs)) Hang in there sweetie!!

You can do this. One day at a time. My doc will let me add psyllium husks to one or two of the shakes. It fills me up longer.

Hydration helps. It will go away eventually. Drinking lots of fluid will help dilute the ketones and will help your perception of taste.

@Connie Stapleton PhD With all do respect, while I have mad respect for your PhD and knowledge, this is just folderall and semantics. Lifestyle Changes are simply the fad term for today as is "mindfulness." 20 years ago it was called CBT, but few embraced it because it didn't have the right spin. Please name 1 person who "food journals" that isn't on some kind of diet/fitness plan? I know of zero of these types in the general public. Diet may be a 4 letter word, but it isn't necessarily a bad word. In fact, I would posit that in my formative years when most of my damage occurred, had I understood a proper diet composition and the consequences that come from overeating beyond my needs or body's ability to process certain food types, I would not be where I am today. There is no way that I will remain successful if I do not track how much and what I eat. If I do not weigh or measure, I won't possibly know how much protein I take in, nor will I have any awareness of how many calories I'm consuming. That is a diet, no matter what you choose to call it today--in the popular term. I also know, that my surgeon has prescribed lifestyle fitness changes for me. She says that failure to exercise daily and to improve on core strength and muscle building exercises will eventually result in having an unmaintainable weight loss. That exercise is also part of my "diet/lifestyle/exercise" prescription that I'm supposed to "journal." So there is nothing wrong with being on "A Diet". Every animal has a special diet that allows its species to thrive. As humans, there is no one-size-fits-all diet. They must be tailored to fit our specific needs and to address as many of our sociological and cultural traditions as possible while optimally being health-oriented... I want to just add: This is the diet that never ends...at least for me. I will never "be done" with it. I will follow some iteration of this diet for life. Hopefully if I am truly successful at this with few deviations, I might actually be able to maintain my losses from the initial honeymoon phase of this WLS diet. Just sayin...

Wow! Me=not worthy! I do love to cook this way! But You do it for your family!!! Cudos! I think your methodology is so smart and saves so many steps! And btw? The brisket sounds soo good. Did it turn out great? (I have leftover salmon from last night that I'm turning into Nicoise salad tonight.

Let's play a game. I think it would be fun to see where our minds are with relationship to cooking and eating. And how that is affected by our weight, pain levels, endurance, and desire for certain foods. Do you use pre-prepared foods for convenience, or would you rather cook from scratch. For instance, I'll go first. FluffyChix: 54 years young/female pre-surgery (will have rny) 228lbs/little energy 30 minutes or less for cooking evening meal (ideally 15 minutes) foodie but will take short cuts to save time likes eating mostly simple, natural food, but will use prepared sauces that fit my diet plan, eats a mostly low carb-ish Mediterranean diet (lots of fish, chicken, greens/veg, and a splash of evoo) I think it's interesting because when I was 325 or even 287lbs, it hurt so badly to cook. I didn't spend more than 10minutes on my feet, so consequently I either ate fast food from a drive thru or else, I ordered from some crap food delivery like Chinese or pizza. Small wonder I felt bad and was so heavy, right? And now that I've lost some of my weight, I have more energy, less pain upon standing and can handle spending 30 minutes on an evening meal. So my interest in cooking has been woken up again. My interest in cooking/eating healthy has grown enormously and while I'm still not a food purist, I find myself wanting to concoct simple, nutrient dense meals that are low cal/carb and low-ish fat (cuz I'm post meno, low-ish fat works better for me to lose). I don't necessarily feel like I have to cook 100% from scratch--preferring instead to have the convenience of "semi-homemade" meals. What is your weight, pain level, and how much time do you want to spend on food prep/cooking? Are you a foodie or do you have little interest in food/eating? Did that change after surgery? Are you a purist and do you cook from scratch 100% of the time or do you like using some convenience foods if they fit your diet plan? Ok, hope y'all will play along!

Oh wow. I haven't seen these. Will have to look at the store on the next trip! Thanks!!

Great post! Thanks for the inspiration and practical advice! Congrats on your success. ((hugs))

Love morels! You're so lucky!!! Super duper expensive here!!

I actually would like to try Quorn. The cranberry/goat cheese options sounds interesting. Love that combo with chicken. I kinda chickened out about trying Quorn cuz I read that you could have super bad reactions to the mushrooms? I eat other mushrooms though without problems. In the old days I used to love Morningside Farms grillers. I actually miss them. I may have to see if there are Quorn crumbles in the freezer section. It's not that I'm looking to go vegetarian, vegan, or to up my veg/fiber consumption cuz I already eat over 1lb per day (per Dr. Weiner), but I do love to just have options and variety. One of my most satisfying meals is the combo of mixed mushrooms sauteed with garlic and greens and egg/egg whites. It's very meaty and substantial without making you queasy cuz it's so heavy and rich. Sometimes I'll add turkey sausage crumbles or will add a bit of cheese like feta or goat cheese.

Oh dear Lord...hold me. I'm not ashamed to admit that makes me throw up a little in my mouth. (not that there's anything wrong with that ~ seinfeld)

Not so much...hehe

Hope by now, it's all over and you're on the the road to the new you!!! Congrats!

You know, on a side note, cricket flour has a ton of iron in it? I think I remember reading that it's easily absorbed iron, too! LOL! Maybe instead of taking more iron supps when our iron gets low, we need to just shout out to your bug-lovin' daughter to whip up a recipe for us with crickets?

Holy crap Batman! That's fantastic, amazing, inspirational, etc, etc, etc! You look so happy and your inner hotty has shown itself! WTG!

Yes. I love the Flatout Lites! I only eat 1/2 a wrap at a time, cuz a whole one still manages to fork with my bgs. I love stuffing with tons of veggies (super greens trio, red onion, rbp, cucumber strips, smoked turkey and any kind of lighter cheese with either a drizzle of italian dressing or asian dressing). I love the 3zero's greek dressing (zero cal) and also compromise with WF asian or sesame ginger. I also love using the crispy wraps (1/2 of one) for pizza. I melba toast them in the oven. I also love Wasa's. But I have to be careful, cuz I could eat a ton of them. They are so satisfying to me taste and crunch wise that they're a semi-trigger. Creekimp13 Did your food interaction/time spent cooking as a foodie (and more purist) increase or reduce with your weight loss and improved energy/pain levels?

@Creekimp13 Your lunch looks great! I do like mixing up my protein sources and love Mediterranean diet(s)! (Psst...I also love music and long walks by the sea! hehe) I'm looking forward to the metabolic reset so that I can hopefully eat more legumes again. Right now, they really jack with my blood sugar, so I use them like a condiment. Wish I could have tofu. I'm actually one of "those" who love tofu. LOL. But with hormone positive BC, my onc ers on the side of caution and has me eliminating as much soy interaction as possible. I was gonna make one of my quick green soups for lunch cuz it's so cold here, but Mr. F. is home today and he wanted a roll-up -- so I went with super simple easy peasy. I had a turkey Reuben roll-up with grape tomatoes (sorry no piccy). Took about 5 minutes to throw both lunches together and it will last me about 3-4 hours. (1.2oz Boar's Head lacy swiss, 2oz BH smoked turkey, Grey Poupon country dijon, BH sauerkraut, Walden Farms thousand island with xtra Bragg's ACV) 188cals; 24g protein; 8g fat; 4g carbs; 1g fiber; 3g net carbs @Creekimp13 Did your food interaction/time spent cooking as a foodie (and more purist) get more or less with your weight loss and improved energy/pain levels?

Aw man! Sucks!!!! But so much better to be on the safe side, especially since it's a UTI thing. There are so many awful bugs for this area right now--and with your history, that would just be tragedy to have to battle septicemia in addition to a typical post surgical situation! Hopefully the infection responds to the medicine and you'll get into urology and in 10-15 days you'll have your clearance and new date!!! Saying prayers sweetie! In the meantime, hunker down here and play with me while I wait too...cuz you know, "misrah" loves company!

Yay!!!!! Congrats to you!

As I understand it, it's the "continual" part that is important. So you just can't skip a month on your checkups ((hugs))!!