The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[DonicaB]

From here on, if I think I need one, I will be taking a day off--if not for my own sake, at least for the kids'.

I absolutely agree. You definitely should take a day off, when you need it. I will occassionally take, what I like to refer to as, a mental health day. There are just some days that I need to be alone and have no one requiring anything of me. Teaching is a very demanding career. I love it (and I love teaching middle school) and wouldn't want to do anything else, but that doesn't mean I don't need some time off now and then. You have to take care of you!!

Congratulations on hitting ONEDERLAND!!! That's awesome!


Donica

[Mavesse]

Grrr...

I don't know what's different, but cravings have hit me like a ton of bricks today.

I'm super busy, so that helps, but I'll be white knuckling it tonight. I'm obsessed with the strangest things--things you wouldn't normally find in my cupboards anyway. It's like they're haunting me...ghosts of snacks past...

Hope everyone is having a great day!

[nickieluv]

That seems to happen to me whenever I hit a bit milestone - like a new club, or I imagine onederland will be something I have to watch out for. Just keep your goal in mind (which I know you are doing from what you wrote) and they will go away. At least that's what they tell me - I have always given in eventually to this point - but no more!

[Mavesse]

Whew..this week is loaded with meetings, plus I had golf last night and went for a walk with a friend tonight, so I'm keeping pretty busy.

My program is tougher this week. I don't know where these cravings are coming from, but I wish they would go away. I'm paying extra attention to my carbs in hopes that further reducing them will bring relief...but that really gets on my nerves because counting and looking things up and planning and wondering etc. is exactly why Weight Watchers didn't work for me. I cross over this line into obsession and I gets so that food is all I can think about and, well, it's no kind of way to live.

On the bright side, I haven't slipped. I'm still hanging on, and I plan to carry on this way until I'm at my goal

[Mavesse]

I hope it's OK to copy and paste something I read in someone else's journal...Just because it means so much to me.

I honestly don't have an opinion on the issue being debated, but Lauren shared some insights on how Medifast can change our lives.

For many of eating is a constant source of trauma and drama for all our days and nights. For us, finding food in a packet is finally a relief, not having to think about food in the same way is a relief, and knowing that we can trust ourselves and our intake is a relief. For many of us it does feel like a "religious experience," as it's the first time we've found respite from the hell that is our daily existence of fat and dieting, and I'll tell you this...it's like finally believing God or something is on our side.

Oh man, that got me where I live

My level of commitment just ratcheted up to all-time high levels. I was really so done with life spent carrying around 85 extra pounds. And it's not the piddling 12 pounds I've lost so far that have given me a new lease on life; rather, it's the smallest sliver of hope that living won't always be such a drag.

As I mentioned to Lauren in a pm thanking her for her words, I wasn't suicidal before medifast, but I was definitely close to giving up on my body. And from there, it would only have been a few years before I would have to pack in my job, give up travel, even walks in the park...basically, everything I love.

I still have a tough time relaxing into the idea that if I stick to the program, the weight loss will follow. Where does this paranoia come from. There's a little devil on my shoulder whispering that maybe I'm a freak of nature and despite restriction of calories and carbs, fate has already determined I will be heavy and uncomfortable for the rest of my days

Anyway, I guess I'm a work in progress and I won't solve it all this month, maybe not even this year. Thank goodness I have this program as a framework to build from.

'Night again

[Serendipity]

Mavesse, I don't think Lauren would mind that you wanted to remember what she said. It is so true for many of us.

I just had to comment on the rest of your post. I felt the same hopelessness you describe. Even though I was getting out of bed every day and going through the motions, I was not living. I'm still amazed at how soon after starting Medifast, those feelings of hopelessness turned into hope that my life could really be different if I wanted.

You can succeed at this. As the fat layers peel off, so too, the desparation and hopelessness. There is hope.

[Pashta]

Mavesse you don't have to count the carbs, but if you want to be right on target for the maximum weight loss it helps. I know the lowest carb meals are scrambled eggs (10 carbs), fruit punch (10 carbs), cream of broccoli soup (10 carbs) and RTD's (12 carbs).

If you stick with a salad instead of cooked veggies you will almost always be within the perfect range without even thinking about it or counting anything.

Great job staying on plan, you can do it!

[Lauren]

Well, I replied in a pm as well, but just wanted to "publicly" tell you, Mavesse, that so many of us have the same story when it comes to food. We may lead different lives, have different histories and experiences, but the role of food and being fat in this world has plagued us in such similar ways, that it's no surprise something would hit a nerve. I am just glad it was a good nerve! :-)

Like Jo said, most of us felt like we had stopped embracing life and were just going through the motions. And also like she said, you will be amazed how quickly your enthusiasm will emerge, and suddenly it's like the birds start chirping again, the sun seems like it's always shining, and your mood shifts into a pretty darn positive place that almost feels foreign! We joke that it's the "medizone," but I actually like to think it's because for the first time in a long time we feel pride and self-love. From the moment you wake up to the moment you put your head back on the pillow, you are making choices that show that you are worth it and you deserve happiness. What could be better than that?

Anyway, cheers to you finding your "happy place," and don't get stuck on the daily minutia of the scale not moving much or feeling a little hungrier. Just keep chugging, keep pushing, keep following, you will succeed, you will lose, you will feel better, there's nothing stopping you now, kid!

Lauren

[Tawanda]

Mavesse, I thought Lauren's words were right on target for how I had been feeling, too. I think many people have. I finally became so tired of hating myself and feeling that I was letting down those I loved (along with myself) for continuing to over eat, stay heavy and unhappy.

I also felt guilt because I wasn't taking care of my body in the way that would be pleasing to God--and that mattered a lot to me. I do appreciate and am thrilled to have found the MF program because it is so simple for me to follow along with taking away the desire to continue in my self destructive ways. I have hope that I will succeed in getting to my healthy weight goal and stay there for the rest of my life. That is such a wonderful feeling that I do praise the program and also Nancy (and Terry) for providing this forum for all of us....

[ChynnaDoll]

Mavesse wrote:
Anyway, I guess I'm a work in progress and I won't solve it all this month, maybe not even this year.

Hello Mavesse! I love what you said in this statement ...it's like you have come to a "peaceful" resolve within your soul that you WILL be successful this time on your journey to a healthier life. You can DO'IT!! "One day at a time" is my personal motto now, and i KNOW if you remain compliant and consistent, at the end of your journey YOU will be this "beauuuuutiful" butterfly that has so gracefully emerged from her cocoon...i ain't callin'ya a bug or nothing girl, just an analogy...lol!

You have gotten some WONDERFUL advice here already!!

Keep on shsakin':+)

Chynna

[BiggerInTexas]

I just dropped by to say Hi! And hang in there!

[DonicaB]

Mavesse~ I may just have to copy this whole page of your journal......what wonderful stuff. I felt the same way......I was ready to just give up. Luckily for me......my family decided to challenge one another.........and I always rise to a challenge. It was exactly what I needed to get started. Lauren and Jo are so right, that it wasn't long until I started to feel differently inside and out. I'm still a work in progress too......I probably always will be........but I am so enjoying life right now and am loving my journey.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feelings. It truly helps to know that others really understand where I have been in my life.

Doni

[nickieluv]

There's a little devil on my shoulder whispering that maybe I'm a freak of nature and despite restriction of calories and carbs, fate has already determined I will be heavy and uncomfortable for the rest of my days

That little devil of yours get around, Mavesse, because he's visited my shoulders often on many diets - not so much this time, though. He only has the power you give him. We are not freaks - maybe our bodies will part with pounds slower than others, maybe not - but we are doing the right things and getting healthier! Flick him off your shoulder next time he shows up.

[Mavesse]

Here I am again, still plugging along. I had a derailment two nights ago--nothing too disastrous insofar as no one was killed or maimed. I guess my weight loss will be slowed by a day or two, but that I can live with.

The amazing part is I'm back on track and for that reason, the slip was almost worth it. I was really paranoid that I would go off on a bender and then be stuck with hundreds of dollars worth of MF food and not be able to make myself start again...but I did and now there is one less scary monster lurking around the corner.

Ironically, I feel just the same way I've seen others express in someone else's journal: In less than a month, Medifast has become my comfort food! Who would have imagined

Hope everyone is having a great weekend

[bikipatra]

Glad you were able to get back on track so quickly!