Really struggling

[Sam72]

Hi all. I was diagnosed last sept and managed to get my hba1c down from 13 to 7.2 by end of December. I felt really energised and committed to a new way of living until just. After Christmas. I'm really struggling to keep the carbs down and crave food I shouldn't have all the time. I feel really down about it and fed up with myself. Anybody got any motivational ideas our there??

 

[sanguine]

Hi Sam, sorry to hear you've lost a bit of motivation at the moment. The time of year doesn't help.

Think back to before Christmas when you felt energised and committed. It felt good to achieve a great result in getting down from 13 to 7.2 didn't it? It will be a shame if you let that go. When are your next tests due? Think about the alternatives if you don't get back on the wagon - more medication, greater risk of complications etc.

Come on girl, clear your cupboards and fridge of stuff you know you shouldn't be eating, that in itself should make you feel more positive. And keep talking to us here, you know you will get support

 

[Sam72]

Thanks @sanguine ! You're absolutely right. I know you are and I'm frustrated with myself and should count my blessings rather than be fed up I can't eat bread... But it sometimes just makes me want to cry! Pathetic I know.

There is always stuff in the house for my 5 and 7 year old but I'm usually good at avoiding that. I think I'm feeling low and reverting back to old comfort eating strategies that I just can't do now.

 

[cold ethyl]

It is hard I think to grasp the " this is forever" aspect of both the illness and its management. I tried explaining it to my mum who once lost 8st by saying that she knew when she lost the weight she could alter her diet back to being more flexible and while she was dieting could have a day off without any consequences. It's not like that for us sadly. I've lost 5st but I can't ever go back to three carb meals a day. Some days I have moments of despair about it all, and I think that's part and parcel of diagnosis and any long term condition. It's easy to be motivated for a week or a month. But forever? I find the best way is to say I'll do my best today. So that means prepping ahead, planning low carb meals, not buying stuff that I know will tempt me and so on. That way, I can do my best today and I put in enough good todays for them to become the norm. It takes time to form a new habit and that's what we need to do to manage this for the long term. And if I do fall off, I remind myself it's just for today and I don't have to do it again tomorrow.

 

[sanguine]

I try and look at the lifestyle change as a positive move in my life, not something to use as a basis for regretting or harking back to the past. That way you don't have the reason for craving and relapses. So for instance I can look at toast, cocopops and bacon sandwiches (sorry!) as something I remember with affection and pleasure, but now I'm somewhere new with different, sometimes rediscovered, things to enjoy such as more fish, veg, nuts, avocados and so on. Not to mention the feeling fitter and healthier.

 

[PepperTed]

Sam, thinking "I can't have bread" is one of the worst things you can do. You CAN have bread, but you're deliberately choosing not to because the pleasure it gives you doesn't make up for the damage it causes. Don't think of it as a forbidden food or it will be so much more tempting. I had to remind myself of that small but important difference when I stopped eating meat, and eight years later I have never been tempted enough to eat any.

 

[Sam72]

Thanks everyone. I think I'll draw a line under today and start again tomorrow and think "ill do my best today". Think I need to sit and draw up some more meal plans and ideas. Getting bored of my regular things.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Sam, do you know for sure you can't eat some bread? Have you tried a slice of toast with plenty of fat such as 2 poached eggs with a mound of cheese? Some breads are relatively low in carbs. I eat Hovis Wholemeal Seed Sensations, which is a large loaf and thick. It has 14g carbs per slice. I have it with a meal that contains fat. I have tested and tested and tested this bread, 2 slices, 1 slice, half a slice. 1 slice with fats does very little to my levels. Half a slice does nothing at all. I can't manage 2 slices though. I don't want to encourage you to start eating it, but if you miss it so much that it pushes you off the waggon, maybe you could try, if you haven't already.

 

[Totto]

Thanks everyone. I think I'll draw a line under today and start again tomorrow and think "ill do my best today". Think I need to sit and draw up some more meal plans and ideas. Getting bored of my regular things.

I quit smoking four months ago. The only way for me keep off the fags is to keep off the fags. I understand a lot of people have a similar relationship to carbs. So if you want to stay off the carbs, well you know what to do?

 

[cold ethyl]

Do you read the what have you eaten thread on the low carb forum? Lots of lovely ideas on there. Even if don't cook some of them, they make me think of ways to adapt foods I used to eat to be more low carb friendly.

 

[Kat100]

Good luck SAM , you might be depriving yourself to much ....come on you can put a plan together ...best wishes Kat
Let us know how you get on ....

 

[Kezzer4321]

Sam we all have days, weeks or just moments when we feel fed up, sorry for ourselves or depressed by our lives, Our decision making, food choices etc...but I know you can get back on track. Maybe this time start small, perhaps by reducing your carbs to a more generous level - a lot of people are able to lower there bs levels without ditching the carbs... You need to find the right level that works you,,,, I know I personally can't live without potatoes of some kind. So I still have them but only occasionally or in small portions....BS wise it's always disastrous but that's a price I am prepared to pay occasionally. My diabetic doctor tells me that the small blips don't matter it's the overall results that count. So if for most of the time you are making the right choices, the odd wrong choice really won't matter.

 

[izzzi]

Best of luck @Sam72 , My problem is addiction which is not as bad as what your going through.
30 years ago I gave up Smoking simply by taking up a new addiction which happened to be Alcohol then that soon changed to sweets then coffee and so on. Lucky for me I managed to control this type of addiction.
I think the food that you are now giving your children these days must be quite healthy,so your food shelf's etc; can't be that bad.
Always remember your in control and not the diet.
If your not happy it is not working and there's more than one way to choose a diet that does the job.

 

[the_anticarb]

As for can't have bread - er, yes you can it just has to be a lower carb bread. I swear by Livlife bread which is made with soya flour and less than 4g carbs per slice. The only one I can eat without spikes. I can't live without it!

 

[Sam72]

I feel so much better just from the supportive messages and understanding on here- thanks! I know you're all right and diabetes is horrible but there are so many other things that could be worse. I've tested and tested bread and they all spike me into 11/12 apart from livlife which gives me indigestion!!! Not tried fried bread though yet - might be a test for the weekend!! Again, so grateful to those who took time to reply- just needed a virtual kick up the bum to stop me feeling sorry for myself. Brand new day tomorrow

 

[cold ethyl]

I feel so much better just from the supportive messages and understanding on here- thanks! I know you're all right and diabetes is horrible but there are so many other things that could be worse. I've tested and tested bread and they all spike me into 11/12 apart from livlife which gives me indigestion!!! Not tried fried bread though yet - might be a test for the weekend!! Again, so grateful to those who took time to reply- just needed a virtual kick up the bum to stop me feeling sorry for myself. Brand new day tomorrow

Have you tried spelt bread? I find I can eat that without any appreciable spike. I can't say I'd want a sandwich made from it ( maybe an open one in summer) but it is nice toasted with a boiled egg. Sort of bread that your fancy artisan bakery sells. Also timing of your bread fix might have an impact. Many of us can't handle big whacks of carbs first thing so try eating a slice later on with lots of fat to slow it all down a bit, you might manage I that way.

 

[Emie]

Hi Sam. I find I can eat 1-2 slices of "nimble" bread by hovis. Each slice is 8.1g of carbs, they are small slices but to just know I can have 1 or 2 as toast and not make a huge impact on my sugars is great . I put cheese on top and also have a couple of boiled eggs with it.

Emie x

 

[Sam72]

Will try all ideas and let you know how it goes!

 

[jack412]

Hi all. I was diagnosed last sept and managed to get my hba1c down from 13 to 7.2 by end of December. I felt really energised and committed to a new way of living until just. After Christmas. I'm really struggling to keep the carbs down and crave food I shouldn't have all the time. I feel really down about it and fed up with myself. Anybody got any motivational ideas our there??

draw a line and start week 1 again
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/lowcarb101/a/firstweek.htm

 

[Kezzer4321]

I just had a brain wave... but it could be just a blondemoment. Would having the bread as a toasted sandwich, you know the ones you butter on the outside of the bread before you put it into a machine that heats them up and cuts them make a difference? Just a thought. I might have to get my old sandwich toaster out at the weekend and do an experiment.