Conference rocks::weight_control

    I have a friend who had to go on a special diet because of her asthma.
    She got the diet from a nutritionist who said she was literally
    killing herself with what she ate.  I should not call this a "diet",
    because it was not for weightloss, but rather a new eating plan.
    I asked her was it hard to stick to such a strict "diet" and she
    replied that when you are really aware that certain foods are like
    poison to you, that it isn't as difficult to stick to the plan.
    Now, she does have her moments of slipping (and her nutritionist
    can tell right away just by looking at her!), but she knows what
    foods represent life for her.  Eventhough I said this wasn't a
    weightloss diet, she did lose about 20 lbs in 4 weeks and she was
    only 20 lbs. overweight.  The key seems to be making better choices
    and finding reasonable substitutes for problem foods.  Health food
    stores have many items sweetened with fruit juice rather than sugar
    which are relatively low in calories and good tasting.  The other
    items mentioned in this file should help also.  BTW, my friend also
    took a special supplement (for nutrition not appetite control).
    
    Hang in there Ann.  Feel good about yourself and love yourself so
    much that you couldn't possibly do anything to hurt you.  You are
    worth much more than any fattening food.
    
    Phillipians 4:13

    
    Ann,
    
    If you are eating just what's on your food plan, then diet pills
    aren't going to help, and they can be dangerous!
    
    You might want to sit down and have a long talk with your doctor
    about what she really wants from you, an adjustment of the types
    of food you eat, or weightloss.
    
    If you can't stick to your food plan (I'll say it again) GO TO OA!
    
    I know that you are a very spiritual person, and I'm sure you can
    find friends in OA to help you with those hard times.
    
    If your doctor insists that you go on diet pills, then you might
    want to get a second opinion.
    
    							--- Neal
                                 

    In a life-threatening situation, you might want to investigate the
    in-patient programs.  It sounds like what you need is intensive
    counseling and full-time attention to this problem.  Ask your doctor.

    Good luck,
    Beverly

    Getting some fine replies to this note.
    
    Ann, I've been following your progress both in this conference and
    offline for some time now, and a pattern of being unable to stay
    on a weightloss program for more than a few weeks at a time seems
    to be repeating itself.
    
    Especially given the serious situation that you're in as outlined
    in your .0, I feel it's time to take an honest look in the mirror
    and ask yourself, 
    
    	"What keeps me from succeeding?".
    
    An honest answer to that question will go a long way in determining
    what your next step should be.  Some fine advice is contained in
    the replies preceding this one.
    
    Neal makes an excellent point in .2; for some people, food becomes
    a compulsion/obsession to the point where it is impossible to stay
    on a weightloss program.  Almost like the alcoholic who can't get
    through the day without a drink, or the chain smoker who has to
    light another cigarette as soon as the one he/she is currently smoking
    is finished.  If after some honest reflection you feel that such
    may be the case for you, perhaps an organization like OA or something
    similar that deals with *why* you overeat is what you really need.
    
    Perhaps an inpatient program Beverly mentioned in .3 may be helpful.
    You won't know until you get some info about it...
    
    I'm not you, so I can't tell you exactly what your problem is and
    exactly what you need to do to solve it.  You really need to take a
    good hard look at yourself Ann, and find the answer inside of you.
    
    In closing Ann, if you get nothing else out of the replies to this
    note, please heed the advice in the next to last sentence of Darlene's
    .1: 
    
    >	Feel good about yourself and love yourself so
    >	much that you couldn't possibly do anything to hurt you.  
        
    and convince yourself of what the last sentence of that reply says:
    
    >	You are worth much more than any fattening food.                  
     
    I have a strong feeling that if you did that Ann, it would be a
    BIG first step.
    
    
    Best of luck,
    Paul
    

    Forgot to put this in .4:  
    
    I agree 100% with the advice about getting a second opinion regarding
    the diet pills.  Although I'm not a physician, it just seems to me that
    the risks involved far outweigh any potential benefits.  
    
    
    Paul

    
    re .4:
    
    Thanks Paul!
    
    Food does become an obsession for some of us. My first nutritionist
    told me that if you can't stay on a diet for medical reasons, then
    you must be a compulsive eater.
    
    I could never stay on a diet, in fact, I'm not dieting now, just
    eating sensibly, 3 meals a day + snack NOTHING in between.
    
    It can be done! I could also talk the talk so to speak. I always
    knew how to lose weight but just couldn't stick to it, no matter
    how much weight I lost.
    
    For me, just going to OA didn't help at first. As you know I ended
    up checking myself into a hospital. I've lost over 60 pounds since
    then and I'm out of medical danger. My blood chemistry and pressure
    are the best they've ever been in my adult life.
    
    I agree with Paul, it's time to look a little deeper. What you've
    tried is not working. Maybe it's time to stop looking at the symptom
    (the eating) and instead turn around and look at the cause.
    
    I just got back from dropping off a friend at the hospital. She is
    not what you'd call heavy, but she can't stop eating. If you'd like,
    send me VAXmail, and I can get you information on programs like
    what I've been through.
    
    I've gone for over 5 months without sugar/salt/caffine and I haven't
    eaten compulsivly. If I can do it, you can too.
    
    							--- Neal
                                                   

    This past week/weekend, I was depressed over a certain situation
    (not weight related).  Since I already felt bad, thinking about
    what I couldn't eat to stay on program made me feel worse.  I couldn't
    change the other situation right away, but I could eat honey roasted
    cashews, double beef cheese burgers, etc.  I had done well on my
    program for about 3 weeks.  The bottom line is that I was trying
    to make myself feel better by eating whatever I wanted (which didn't
    work, BTW).  Eating food cannot be a substitute for dealing with
    life's problems.  If anything, over eating usually makes me feel
    worse physically and emotionally (why did I just mess up all the
    work I just did?!).  When I dealt with the problem, I gained a lot
    more control over the rest of my life.  I'm back on program with
    a minimum of damage.  
    
    If you ever experience anything like this, I suggest finding some
    other inexpensive thing to pamper yourself with.  Call a friend
    long distance; buy yourself some flowers; do anything that makes you
    feel good other than eating.   The problem with eating is that once
    you swallow the food, the satisfaction is gone.  So you have to
    keep eating to maintain the satisfaction level.  Getting a new hair-
    do makes me feel good a whole lot longer than eating a snickers
    bar.
    
    Anyway, be encouraged and consider some of the advice in the former
    replies.
    

    I have a question about the diet pills which have been mentioned
    here. My understanding is that diet pills are used as an appetite
    suppressant. You lose weight because you don't eat as much *because
    you are not hungry*.
    
    Now, if the reason one overeats is something other than *physical
    hunger* (as is the case with so many of us), these pills will not 
    do you one bit of good, right? So why bother?
    
    I agree completely with Paul, I think it is time to treat the disease
    instead of the symptoms. In other words, try to discover *why* you
    overeat and attempt to deal with those issues. I would expect this
    will make the achievement of your goal, to lose the weight, that
    much easier.
    
    Again,
     
    Good luck.
    
     -Amy.

    
    I have spoken to three people why I feel I eat ... We talked about
    everything so I feel I do know why.. 
    I will think over what you all have been telling me.. I go back
    to the Dr's tomorrow..do I will let you know...how it goes,,,
    
    Thanks for you helpful hints
    
    
    Ann
    
    

    
    I lost 2 pounds and I'am happy as I was stuck on the same weight
    for along time...
    
    It was hard and still is with people eating Strawberry Shortcake
    this time of the year...
    
    I would rather lose and look and feel better...
    
    
    Thanks for your support...
    
    
    Bless you
    
    
    Ann
    
    

    Ann, going over notes in this and other conference's yours are always
    the loveliest of notes, you are always giving encouragemnt and support
    to others, I will share my diet pills experience with you. 
    
    Age 16 weight 132, I took diet pills to get down to 120, got hooked
    on the pills, married at 19, got pregnant, had many complications
    during my pregnancy (high blood pressure, toxemia etc). At age 28
    (eight years later) I went through my own personal hell getting
    of the diet pills (weight 220).  Now divorced, all children married
    drug free, Weight Watcher at work progam since Jan. 1987 down 125
    pounds.  I still have forty pounds to lose.  I have my ups and downs,
    but thanks to a fellow noter when I do stray from program I maintain
    my weight rather than gain it back.  It is a heck of a lot easier
    and less demoralizing to start back on my program at the same weight
    that I was before straying.   PLEASE do not let anyone tell you
    that diet pills will help, all they can do is compound the problem.
    Like every thing else in life they only work for a little while,
    just enough to get you hook line and sinker.
    
    Regards
    Eileen

    I forgot to tell you Ann, the note that has helped me over many
    hurdles is 263.6, it works for me now, it is worth a try for you.
    Eileen
    

	In all fairness, if the doctor is good, and he is well aware
    of your past medical history, it may be a good idea to follow his
    advice.
    
    	He may be weighing the risks and deciding that the diet pills
    are necessary because your weight is life threatening.
    
    -mike z

    There are some new drugs on the market that do not control appetite
    but seem to control behavior.  They add a chemical (serotonin) to the brain
    the chemical that many compulsive eaters seem to lack.  Your doctor
    may be considering one of those medications.
                                                                  
    I would not dismiss medication without discussing the pros and cons
    with the doctor.
    
    I feel that one has to weigh the odds...I have consumed a lot of
    frozen diet dinners and other products that probably contain things
    that are not good for me...but they helped me lose the weight. 
    Being overweight is as harmful as pills or those products.
    
    Good luck, Ann.
    
    

    
    re .14:
    
    As far as I've heard, the serotonin drugs are not yet available
    to the public. They are still be researched by a few universities.
    
    Not to mention, the is no way to cheap produce it, this type of
    treatment is still a ways off.
    
    							--- Neal
    

    I have been hesitating to answer this topic, because I'd hate to
    seem to be pushing pills on people, however my experience with diet
    pills is pretty good, and the fact that I always regained the weight
    back when I stopped the pills is due to my lack of "fortitude" rather
    than the pills themselves (it happened with ALL the diets I went
    on, whether I took the pills or not). The pills I took were always
    prescribed by a doctor, my generalist or my gynecologist. I took
    several different brands, until I found one which had no after-effects
    whatsoever (except cutting my appetite, obviously). I am still taking
    this pill once in a while (2-3 times a year for about a week), when I 
    feel I need external help.
    
    I never got hooked on any pill, my problem, as I see it, is really
    that I DON'T get hooked, and just stop taking the pills after one
    or two weeks!
    
    So Ann, pills are not always bad, and, as there are many different
    brands, maybe you could, with the help of your doctor, find one
    that suits your metabolism, and helps you along the way. 
    
    Obviously, NOTHING REPLACES MOTIVATION, and I have gained weight
    while taking pills, because I dodn't really care a damn one way
    or the other, and kept eating though I was not hungry ...
    
    If you find YOUR motivatiing factor, then anything you will do will
    work! But that's probably the toughest thing to find.
    
    Good luck Ann, in whatever you decide to do.
    
    Joana

    Hi Ann,
    
    I know of people who are using the diet pills under doctors care,
    and they are working fine for them.  
    
    I know of others that they are not working, even under medical care,
    because they are NOT following their doctors advice.
    
    So, my advice is to follow your doctors advice.  That is what YOU
    are paying her/him for.
    
    Also.... my other advice stems from what I have read you writing in other
    conferences... STAY AWAY FROM KIMBALLS!.... I am not one to judge,
    but I doubt your doctor has THAT on your diet... Organizing trips
    there can only hurt you not help you.  Yes, I know I should not
    say any thing, but when you care, you say something.
    
    
    
    Gale

    
    
    My Dr .. told me that I'am doing so well and that my last Blood
    test improved so much that she just wants me to get weight in
    twice a month and she just has to see me twice a year.. if I
    keep it up (-:
    
    My Blood sugar has been Neg..for a month now so she is very pleased.
    
    I'am not in Danger like I was.. I may have licked it...in time 
    (^8  
    
    I will make it...
    
    
    Thanks for your support.
    
    
    Ann