Appetite suppressants

I don't think it's that you sound difficult Sarah it just seemed like you were determined not to try anything different from your normal diet..it was getting a bit frustrating but only cos we care, honest.

Part of the problem with carby food like cereals is the more you eat of them, the higher your sugars go and the more hungry that makes you and so on and on in a wee circle.
I know what it is like on a very tight income, luckily my diet isn't as restrictive as yours cos I like all my veg and love salad. I think the most important thing for you is to be willing to try different things and not just assume you will hate them.

How about, you give us a couple days of what you normally have (like you did elsewhere) and we can try some suggestions. There will be things that you KNOW you just can't try but there may be others that you think "not sure if I would eat that" but the idea doesn't make you feel sick. :lol:

I'm not sure if you do eat eggs, maybe can't think of them for brekkie but honestly, the 4 weetabix really will make you ill..that's a heck of a lot. Tell us your grub and see what peeps can come up with.

Just being in a determined state of mind is a bonus.

Sarah,

You HAVE to get your mind round this and STOP putting obstacles in your own way. I sense a feeling of you want someone else to do all of it for you?? They can't, only YOU can.

There is no magic cure and there is no easy way. I did a dinner tonight that I know my husband didn't enjoy, he ate it though because it was low carb and it is what he HAS to eat for the rest of his life if he wants to continue pain free, he too would have liked mash with it but he is not given that option any more.

I read from your posts that you seem to be always starting to do something; i.e., eat low carb when your book arrives, bought your cross trainer but not used it yet etc. You are going to have get your ass into gear and start now!!

I heard about low carbing from a friend one Friday lunchtime, my husband and I started doing it next day and the number fell immediately. I actually had to throw things out of my cupboards that I knew we just 'couldn't' eat and let me tell you, coming from Yorkshire, that was hard

A good start tomorrow would be to cut down to 3 weetabix!

Can you walk with your hip problem? Even slow walking is better than sat watching morning TV (come to think of it anything is better than that!)

GULP!! 4 weetabix is 49g of carbs. Today, my carbs have been 9g and are unlikely to go up any higher, if they do, it will only likely be by 1g as I add a little splash of fresh single cream to a sugar free jelly. The reason I am telling you this, is to show a comparison. My daily carbs are very low, so I am not the best person to show yours and mine, but even higher carber's would find 49g of carbs for breakfast impossible. As ladybird said, when we eat carbs, they are turned into fuel and so you become much more hungry much sooner. If you eat protein such as bacon and eggs, or a two egg omelette with bacon or cheese or mushrooms infact any meat it will fill you up and keep you satisfied longer and is very low carb. I know you are finding this difficult, but just a small change, from Weetabix to bacon and eggs is for a diabetic a much healthier choice.

Topsec, I absolutely agree with your post, right up until you hit the exercise part. I can't exercise either. Nor can I sit on a couch, I have a chair that is like and can be used as a computer chair. It tilts forward and back, has a pump to regulate the back support, well you get the message. That and my wheelchair (under total and absolute duress I use 'the wheeled contraption) are the only chairs I can sit in. Please don't bash non exerciser's, I know it wasn't in malice Some of us just can't do a lot. That said, I wiggle my toes, move my legs NEVER sit with legs crossed at ankles. I fidget and do make concerted efforts to move, but that I all I can manage.

Defren,

My exercise question was that, a genuine question. I know Sarah said she used to be a carer so it was querying whether she could get out for a walk, if it was just the lifting and carrying that was stopping her working.

The reason for the walk was more to get out of the house and away from the temptation of snacking!

Hi

I agree with what has been said about low GI foods. I always try to ensure that my potatoes have the skins on and baked potatoes. My diet is not perfect, but i try to ensure it is healthy. Since having info for carb counting I also have peanuts or any nuts or seeds. Oats as in porridge. If you can just include some of this in your diet with some fruit and veg ( hopefully there will be some that you like ) I am sure it will help..............Good Luck

Topsec said:

I know Sarah said she used to be a carer

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Watch out, pedant coming through!

Just wanted to point out that someone who is employed and gets a wage for caring for people is a careworker, not a carer.
A carer is someone who looks after a relative, usually without any kind of respite and often does this for 24 hrs per day..they receive a grand total of £55 per week for their devotion.

Sorry to go offtopic but I had to spread the word.

Topsec said:

Defren,

My exercise question was that, a genuine question. I know Sarah said she used to be a carer so it was querying whether she could get out for a walk, if it was just the lifting and carrying that was stopping her working.

The reason for the walk was more to get out of the house and away from the temptation of snacking!

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I did say I knew your comment was not made with malice and I stand by that. I wasn't having a 'dig'. Just pointing out some of us would love to exercise, but due to physical limitations cant. I absolutely agree, if you feel like snacking, and can get out, a walk with purse or wallet left at home is a great idea.

Sarah, I have hesitated and hesitated about this post. More than anything else like every one here I want to see you with tight BG control, and keep your health. The reason I have hesitated is, I hoped you would at least try low carbing, and as you see to be making very positive moves in that direction, then I will post this. Yes, there is an appetite suppressant, it is available on line or at your local Holland and Barrett. It's acai berry. This supplement has never been proved to be effective in scientific trials, but real people who have tried it (me included) know it works (others have said it did nothing for them - I feel obligated to add that). I took it a few years ago, when I began to put on weight, it cut down all the snack attacks between meals. Psychosomatic? Perhaps, but for me it worked. I have just started to take it again, not as an appetite suppressant as my appetite is not good, but is getting better, but as an anti oxidant. If you use acai berry you must change your diet, it is with that in mind, I decided to detox. I am not going in for the drink only water for X amount of days or what ever the celebrity version of detox is, but as I do eat a lot of salad, fresh veg, then I am hoping it will help give me a good old clear out.

If you choose to try acai berry (mine are from health spark) be very careful where you buy them. Also as you are on other medication, make sure your GP knows. If you Google acai berry health benefits you will see loads of articles. It is then for you to decide if they are what you are looking for.

I'm still not 100% sure I should hit the submit button on this post, but if you really, really want to get yourself onto a healthy diet and get your BG stable, this could be an option. I am NOT saying it's a miracle, and I don't believe much of the blurb, I can only say what I found. I must add, if when I last took them I was given a placebo it may also have had the same effect, as I said it could well be psychosomatic, but you have my results, it's your shout. Good luck.

Sarah - look at all the replies you have, the support and encouragement is nothing short of amazing.
When all is said and done I think its fair to say that everyone of us had to make changes to their diet in order to gain good control of diabetes, become fitter and lose weight. Yes some are still struggling to reach their goals but they are willing to make changes. I wish had a £ for every time someone told me that they don't like rabbit food. People just begin by making a few changes they go into this with an open mind and flexible attitude, willing to give things a good try.
At the end of the day you need to make choices and live with the consequences, its the same for all of us.
Now how about muffins or waffles for breakfast? Cauliflower doesn't taste bitter if its cooked properly but there are other vegetables you might like instead.
Just don't put barriers in front of you before you even start.

Sarah69 said:

With regard food do you eat the same thing day in day out ie the same breakfast etc.

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You don't need to, there are lots of options.

Sarah69 said:

Is there no cereal that I could change to that is ok to eat?

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All Bran isn't too bad (although not bran flakes). Some people eat special Granola or porridge.

Sarah69 said:

If you only eat 9g of carbs, whatever are you eating?

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Forget about 9g. You won't need to get anywhere near that low. If you could get your carb count down to around 150g a day it would be a huge achievement from where you are now. The great thing is that you'd be able to see the benefit almost instantly, on your BG meter and on the scales.

I admire the fact that you're prepared to give this a go. Well done.

Sarah, cauliflower mash isn't an essential for a diabetic . I most certainly don't eat it ; though I do eat quite a lot of cauli as a veg.
You don't have to cut out your carbs completely. Indeed that would be foolish for several reasons, not least of which you need to make sure you know how to cut down your insulin sensibly That will involve some trial and error even if you cut them down.

In my opinion, all meals need to be balanced, some carbs, some protein(protein is a big factor in keeping hunger at bay) and some fat. Most meals should have some form of fruit or veg.
Because we are diabetic, and because we take insulin we have to take account of the carbohydrate.
1) because we need to dose insulin correctly,
2) For health, I think it's better to choose lower processed carbs. (ie not broken apart, reconstituted and squashed back together in a factory)
For both reasons. I think that its better to choose carbs that don't work quickly in the body ie lower glycemic carbs.
Even when we inject rapid insulin it can't always work quickly enough to cope with very fast carbs. This is particularly true if we have some insulin resistance , which is the case in T2s on insulin and many T1s. If try to raise the amount of insulin and inject enough to cover the quick rise, then there may be too much insulin in the body later causing a drop in levels; and quite possibly hunger.

4 weetabix + 210ml of ml amounts to 62g carbs. Weetabix has a very high GI (71) so will raise your blood glucose quickly and if you don't take enough insulin to cover it properly then it may very welll stay raised until lunch. You will then need more insulin at lunch to cover both the higher level and your food. (and there is the double whammy, if you take enough to cover the initial quick rise you may then end up too much insulin sloshing around so your levels may fall too quickly.)

A 40g serving of real oats (not quick ones) has 24g carb
with the same amount of milk (210ml), the total is 36 g carb.
You can then add a few berries (very low carb), I use frozen ones except at the height of the season . ( to save money I freeze blackberries and wild strawberries which I gather myself) Add maybe a sprinkling of flaked almonds, walnuts or seeds for extra 'good' fats.... though not too many, they are high in calories.
Personally I find that quite a filling breakfast, in winter you can make it into porridge, in summer perhaps reduce the oats add a few other seeds and nuts and serve as a muesli.
You can also vary the grain and use other whole grain flakes but they tend to be sold in health food shops and can be relatively expensive.

There are other alternatives like:
yoghurt and fruit/nuts/seeds
a slice of low gi bread (bergen, rye or sourdough.. not supermarket wholemeal )
with eggs(or did you say you didn't like them?)
or bacon
and add tomatoes (use tinned for ease and cost) and or mushrooms.
You could even try low sugar baked beans and a slice of low GI toast.(200g low sugar BB have about 22g carbs)

Sarah, Jeannemum is correct re my calories. The Metformin is playing havoc at the moment, hence why I can use acai berries as a detox. I am reasonably certain you wouldn't like my 9g of carbs diet. Yesterday I had a ham salad, with a boiled egg and some fetta cheese. This included all the salad staples, but no potatoes. Today I am having smoked trout fillets and asparagus. However, I have managed lunch today, for the first time in weeks. I had some Greek style yogurt 10% fat with a small amount of strawberry's, blueberry's and blackberry's. This is a major achievement for me, and I am thrilled. Lunch was 6g carbs, I really am over the moon at managing to eat it. Food for me, like you has been a real struggle. But I am determined to do all I can to be well and healthy.

Borofergie is right, like I said, I am not the best role model for low carbs, as I am ULTRA low and you don't need to be anything near as low as me. I showed my carbs, just to give a comparison against Weetabix. You have been given loads of really brilliant advice, and Whitby Jet has a shed load of low calorie recipes she posts for us all. These can be used to make your diet seem 'almost' normal, but with much healthier ingredients. You CAN do this. You have to pull down all barriers and be open to try new things. Have faith in YOU! Good luck.

Sarah, I am so glad that you are taking this seriously. Until you get the carb counting sorted out just cut what you are eating now down to smaller portions and cut out what snacks you can. This way you can at least have made a start. Then you can start planning around a daily carb allowance.
Sarah, this is so very important! We have people on here who have lost limbs due to diabetes. We are trying so hard to help you!

Just a quick hello to say hi Sarah! One step at a time - you sound like you are thinking seriously about doing the 'right' thing and that is a major step forward!!

By the way, gravy is fine, just not too much

Just wanted to say re Weatabix - although everyone else has commented on it being quite bad for BG levels - i eat nothing else for breakfast! I found cornflakes, shreddies, rice crispies etc.. really bad for BG levels. For weetabix i eat 1 - the reccommended it 2. Cereal is the best thing for appetite though - maybe try sultana bran? Or granola/weetabix with fruit on the top. I know my doctor said when I was first diagnosed to "never eat bananas!" I a moment of 'rebellion' at school a few months ago (and nearly ten years later) I ate one and found it was so much better than lots of other fruit, as there was no sugar spike.

Of course everyone is different, and my body is absolutely useless and wierd when it comes to insulin absorbtion, but this is what works for me

Oh, and as far as berries go for snacks - I'm not one to talk as I eat them all the time, but it is very easy to just eat and eat them as they are so small - in reality though, they can cause huge sugar spikes too so be careful!

Good luck with everything!

Sophs