Jenn's Journal - It's a Low Carb Life

[eeyore25]

Oh hon, I am so sorry that you are feeling icky. Here is some to get you feeling better.

Have a great weekend and take it easy. Don't want to overdo it after the last few days you've had

 

[keenercam]

Oh, boy, Jenn, that is just awful! I am so sorry you have been feeling so lousy. I had a similar experience a couple months ago and the only good thing to result was my weight was down about 4 pounds in 24 hours. Of course, as soon as I ate real food again, my body held onto it with all its might!

Gee, I am soooo sorry your STB won't be back on Monday as planned. Isn't that sad? I am thinking "win/win" situation -- she gets extra vacation time, and you get extra "STB-less" time!

Have a great weekend. Take good care of yourself!

 

[Mykelogan]

Yay for the airline strike, Boo for the food poisoning!!!

I hope that you are feeling better today and able to eat normally soon.

Mike

 

[Storygirl]

Sunday, August 14

(Friday = crackers all day)
(Saturday = crackers, toast and a little chicken. Half banana)

I am beginning to feel better today - yesterday wasn't as active as I would have liked. I was still really having trouble keeping things down. But I have to say...I am retaining absolutely NO water and I probably dropped a few pounds. Amazing what a stomach ailment will do. I had lots of crackers and lc toast and was able to stomach a little chicken. My downfall was 1/2 a banana...I thought the potassium would be good. DH and DS had pizza last night and the smell didn't knock me over like it almost did Friday at work (had to go to a "getting to know you" lunch with our new GM and almost had to leave the table when I was surrounded by everyone's plates of 'za).

But on to today! I am already feeling a bit more myself and I plan to walk to DQ with DS today to get him a slushie so I can get some activity in. It's supposed to be a beautiful day. Plus I need to do some Uber Cleaning in the house.

Not sure what's on the food plan, but I want to get back to counting those carbs so I'll give it the old college try...!

Hope everyone has a great day!

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Jenn,

Glad to hear you're starting to feel better. Can't wait until you are 100% again!

Have a great Sunday,
Mike

 

[Cruise04]

Sorry to hear you weren't feeling good. It is funny what a stomach thing can do to you!!!!! But too bad that's what has to get you.

Keep on
Chris

 

[Storygirl]

Monday, August 15

bfast: 2 slices sharp cheddar cheese

lunch: lettuce salad with chicken, tomato, cheese

dinner: Monterey Jack grilled chicken sandwich, no bun (Wendy's)

I did something today I am semi proud of and will do something Friday I will be very proud of. I made a doctor's appt. I hate going to the doctor. And I don't like my doctor. I had one for a while who I loved. She was wonderful - a family practice doctor who actually researched fertility drugs and consulted with other doctors only for me. Because she was the doctor to both DS and me and when I talked about wanting a baby despite the PCOS she said, "you are such wonderful people, you'd be great parents and should have a baby." So thanks to her, we do. And I didn't know, until DS's first doctor's appointment (of course she was his pediatrician!) that she had never done fertility drugs before and learned them for us. When she gave them to me, she said "Take them the first month and if you don't get pregnant, refill it and try again next month. If you're still not pregnant, but you will be, fill it again. If you still aren't pregnant, but you will be, we'll talk about the next step." She was so confident (outwardly) to me that I believed her. And you know what? It took two months. Just like she said. Two months on the lowest dose of clomid possible for a woman who hadn't ovulated in YEARS. Two tries. And I have a gorgeous child. And then our insurance changed.

ARGH!!!

Since then, although DH has a doctor he likes and we both LOVE DS's pedicatrician (friend of my dad's), I have not been satisfied with anyone since my OBGYN. Obviously, she can't help me with everything, so I needed someone else. The one I have now is just...emotionless. She doesn't really seem to get PCOS, she doesn't get me and I just don't like her. I don't dislike her, but I don't like her. She agreed that low carb was okay "to get you motivated and then maybe you can switch over to WW."

I hate going to the doctor. The nurse is a snot who acts like I am a child - treats me like I have sinned if I don't have charts with my sugars or can't tell her what they are or when I do, they aren't good. Hello??? I'm an adult. The only person who should chastise me about my health is ME. Plus, when I was in there 3 months after my mom's accident, I began crying as I told her about it ("has there been anything particularly stressful in your life?" was the question I was asked) sat there with a stone face, while I cried, and then asked me if I was seeing a psychiatrist. (answer: sortof - I had started seeing my counselor for grief).

BUT...

I need a doctor. The last few weeks have proven that to me. Dehydration, food poisoning/stomach flu, strep in the house...I can't keep calling or going to Urgent Care. I need someone I can trust who can HELP ME take care of my health.

SO...

I am going in on friday with a list of questions. And needs. I am tired of being a customer service rep when I am the customer. I am not there to make her job easy, I am there to be served. Insurance pays their bills. They need to make me happy, because even though we can't see our favorite doctor, we have a lot to choose from. I am going to ask her if she is my best bet for PCOS. If not, who is? I am going to ask her how she can work with me with my diabetic condition. And no, I will NOT be going to the educators/nutritionists again. I can tell you the freaking carb count of almost any food in the world. I understand food, I understand the disease. I do not need to deal with that again. I understand insulin, I understand metformin. I have experience with both. I had a 6 1/2 pound baby. Diabetic women can't do that without perfect pregnant sugars. I can control my blood sugar with food, with oral meds, and with insulin (no I am not on insulin now).

I am going to get my needs met, or I am going to move on. I am tired of laying down and accepting less than I want. Not her fault, it's mine. I don't push and try. And if the nurse is a witch again, I will tell her.

Whew! This feels good! Bring it on...

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Jenn!!!

I would wish you luck at the doc's but it sounds to me like you don't need it! You know what you need, what you are paying for and what you are willing to accept... don't compromise!! You will be victorious I am sure! Congrats on making this great choice for yourself!!

I hope that you have been having a good few days and that you had a great night!

Mike

 

[TigerCheer2009]

Hi J2N!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know where you are coming from! I agree with what Mike said. Many from a fellow Jen.

Now show them how feisty a double-n Jenn is!!! Luck luck luck!! Congrats on going!

 

[goldcupmom]

Morning, Jenn! Sounds like a wonderful plan for the doctor's visit. They are here for YOU, not just to make you another 10 minutes out of their day.

You're doing well. Just hang in there!

 

[Storygirl]

Wednesday, August 17

bfast: peanut butter toast

lunch: salad, roast beef sandwich (lc bread)

Our A/C went out yesterday - not sure what the problem is. DH is going to talk to the A/C guy at work to see if he as any suggestions. It's not unbearable here, but still warmer than I like. I hope we can fix it without it costing a fortune.

Need to come post more later - busy day!

 

[keenercam]

Hi, Jenn! I am so glad you are feeling better and that you are taking control of your health care provider issue. I am firmly convinced that most doctors will give us only as much as we demand from them.

I won't be around Friday to hear all about your visit, but will check in on your journal next week to see how you are doing and how the visit went. Good luck, sweetie!

 

[Cruise04]

Good for you Jenn. No one else is going to take care of this but you and you need to proactive with your health. You are doing a great job working on getting the weight off and getting healthier, now it's time to get some satisfaction with someone that will respect you for what you know and then find out how much more they can help you!!!! BRAVO for standing up for your health!

Keep on
Chris

 

[Storygirl]

What a crazy few days it's been!

We have been dealing with fixing the A/C - first it was fixed, then something else went wrong, now it's fixed again.

And our trip plans have been changing with dizzying pace. Including September - less than 30 days.

And I had my doctor's appointment and am more confused than ever.

I went in and asked my questions. She has a new nurse, thank goodness, who is very nice. We talked about some of my health concerns and she suggested something that I have qualms about. Although it makes sense for my situation (PCOS, overweight, big tummy area), it felt like something she decided to do for herself and is now pushing on all her patients.

Anyone ever hear of the Schwarzbein Principle? I did a search on the journals here and nothing popped up...

It's a plan written by an endocrinologist and it deals with healing a damaged metabolism and then using said metabolism to lose weight and stay healthy. "Catch" phrase: "You don't have to lose weight to be healthy, you have to be healthy to lose weight." It does seem to target people (women) with my particular problems, but something about the way she chirped it out and then handed me a sheet with the book details felt canned.

You have to eat 3-5+ balanced meals a day, watch the excessive exercise, get lots of water in, etc. While you are "healing" your metabolism, you may gain weight. This can take up to a year if you have totally damaged your metabolism, which it hints that I have. And everything you eat has to be totally organic, free of any chemicals, etc. And one stage is where you eliminate all kinds of things...drugs (okay, no prob), alcohol (again, no prob). caffeine (!!!!!!?!?!?!?), refined sugar (argh), and sugar substitutes (!!!?!?!?!). the cookbook? Doesn't even have a section for desserts. I live for desserts.

As I read the book (yes, I bought the book...I am willing to research and try new things), I kept yearning for my Atkins. Naturally, my doctor is very anti Atkins. "Science is wrong, isn't healthy, etc.". But you know what? It can be done in a way that isn't too much unlike the SP. I don't eat pounds of bacon and eggs for breakfast. I eat fruits and vegetables. And the SP limits carbs too.

I don't know.

If the book did anything, it has made me feel more comfortable with controlled carb eating. I know I have to limit foods. But this is just something - at this point with this knowledge - that I am not comfortable with. I have to go in and get my complete blood work done and then I go back in two weeks to meet with the nurse and go over the results and make a plan going forward if I need medication, etc. And I will ask lots of questions about the SP and among those will be, "if I don't want to do this...can it be modifiedto meet my needs? Or do I need to see someone else?" I don't have the time and extra money laying around to travel everywhere to get all organic, non chemically treated foods. I can't hop on line and order speciality products for my daily food intake. I can't track down all kinds of health food store things and bake them up any time I want cake or sweet type breads (banana, zucchini, etc) - and none of those are even allowed until I heal my metabolism, which could be years.

I need to read the book again, and I need to question my doctor and nurse. And in the meantime? I need to be comfortable with my carb controlling and my walking.

I am so confused.

And trip updates? Wow. We had something come up with my dad (stress, anyone?) so we are going to be cancelling our Thanksgiving trip. But it'll be okay. It frees up a LOT of points. I looked at all our options and discovered that...gasp...we had enough points for a cat 9 on the Disney Magic for February (near my birthday). And amazingly, a cruise on points is way less expensive than a long trip to AKL and VWL...what with the all inclusive parts of it. And we could add a few extra days at the end at OKW or BCV in a studio.

So okay then.

But then a quickie trip in September needs to be longer, right? So I hopped on to the Interval website to see if there was anything available at Vistana so we could head down on Friday for 9 nights instead of Tuesday for 5. We'd do 4 at Vistana and keep 5 at the Poly. Except...when I was going through it...OKW was there. I was actually able to get a week at OKW in a 1br, as an exchange for our Vail, CO II resort. $129.00 for 7 nights in a 1 br at one of our favorite resorts!! DH and I had that sucker booked in 2 minutes flat!

So now? Do we keep any nights at the Poly? We have to use points for the first Friday and the last Saturday. We are thinking of doing a 1br at OKW for the first Friday so we can see if we can just stay put. Then for the last night, move over to a 1br or studio at BCV just so we can spend all day Saturday at SAB...DS's favorite. We have ADR's at Yachtsman for Saturday night, and DS is booked at the Sandcastle Club, and Cape May for breakfast Sunday, so it would be worth it to move, just for that and SAB all day. We don't leave until 5:15 Sunday night either, so plenty of swim time.

The best part? We go from 231 points to up to 85 points and all the rest can go towards a cruise/WDW trip after the new year. So we could, conceivably, hit the Poly then.

I am going to write down a list of how many times these two trips have changed. Don't worry - won't be posting that - but it's amazing to me how many times we have had to switch things, change things. I love the planning but sometimes it gets overwhelming.

So today? I will eat and exercise in a way I am comfortable with. I will keep researching SP to see if I can live with it. And I will pull out the Disney Cruise book and immerse myself in that.

And I will try to forget that the STB is back tomorrow. Eeesh.

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Jenn!

I was on for two secs to update the August Challenge and I saw you had updated your journal so I wanted to say hi. I don't much about the Schwarzbein Principle but I do know that people on the plan post on forum.lowcarber.com Just wanted to get that to ya!!! I have to run now, hope to catch up more thoroughly soon!

Mike

 

[goldcupmom]

Glad to hear you are comfortable enough with your Dr. to really talk and have her listen (at least somewhat). I haven't heard of the Schwarzbein principle, but I've heard similar theories. They do seem to make sense.

I hope you're having a good weekend. Take care of you! Glad the AC is on the mend!

 

[Mykelogan]

Hi Jenn,

You still out there? Been thinking about ya, hope all is well!

Mike

 

[pearlieq]

You still out there? Been thinking about ya, hope all is well!

What Mike said!

Sending some your way!

 

[Mykelogan]

Jenny Jenn McJenn Jenn!
Where are ya???
I hope all is ok!!!

Mike

 

[Cruise04]

Wow Jenn - I haven't been on here since you last had and I'm sorry you are faced with all that about your health. It seems like it would be about the two weeks now so I hope all is going okay for you.

And we are DVCers too with OKW being our home resort. We did our 2003 cruise on points and it was the best decision we made. We had enough points for 2 adults but needed more for my dd who was adult price at that time. So our delimma was pay for a one time cruise or buy more points spending a little more money than the cruise would have been but having that value for the next 35+ years. So we went with more points and it worked out great.

Have fun planning your cruise and trips!!!!! Keeping you in my thoughts.
Keep on
Chris