I'm finding this way too difficult again right now

[PlutoIsAPlanet]

I seem to keep cycling through 3 phases, lasting about a week (or less) at a time..

First phase.. I start feeling hopeful that I can control this and will be able to sort everything out.. I eat healthy, my blood sugars come down and start looking more stable.. but then it just becomes too much for me to to maintain. Watching every calorie, sugar intake, going shopping to buy the food, being able to afford good food, etc.. so I just fall back into second phase...

.. I end up binge high carb easy to cook food, pastas, pizzas, chips.. then see my blood sugars going crazy.. get even more depressed.. start drinking.. stop monitoring my blood sugar for a few days.. before I eventually hit 3rd phase..

.. which is pretty much living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and that's all I'll eat for the entire of the day..

I just went to try and make some healthy food, I'm feeling starved and I want something tasty.. but there's nothing in the house. Looked at a jar of sweet n' sour sauce to mix with some chicken and veg and thought that might work well if I only have a small bit.. but it's 14g of sugar for 1/4 of the jar. I'd previously would have eaten an entire jar in one day.

I'm just feeling exhausted, ****** off and I think I'll just stop eating altogether. I can't go back to the phase where I binge eat and drink, I know I can't.. I've done that too often recently and seeing how it takes my blood sugars so high has got me feeling terrified.. but I just.. I don't know. I hate this.

 

[PenguinMum]

I seem to keep cycling through 3 phases, lasting about a week (or less) at a time..

First phase.. I start feeling hopeful that I can control this and will be able to sort everything out.. I eat healthy, my blood sugars come down and start looking more stable.. but then it just becomes too much for me to to maintain. Watching every calorie, sugar intake, going shopping to buy the food, being able to afford good food, etc.. so I just fall back into second phase...

.. I end up binge high carb easy to cook food, pastas, pizzas, chips.. then see my blood sugars going crazy.. get even more depressed.. start drinking.. stop monitoring my blood sugar for a few days.. before I eventually hit 3rd phase..

.. which is pretty much living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and that's all I'll eat for the entire of the day..

I just went to try and make some healthy food, I'm feeling starved and I want something tasty.. but there's nothing in the house. Looked at a jar of sweet n' sour sauce to mix with some chicken and veg and thought that might work well if I only have a small bit.. but it's 14g of sugar for 1/4 of the jar. I'd previously would have eaten an entire jar in one day.

I'm just feeling exhausted, ****** off and I think I'll just stop eating altogether. I can't go back to the phase where I binge eat and drink, I know I can't.. I've done that too often recently and seeing how it takes my blood sugars so high has got me feeling terrified.. but I just.. I don't know. I hate this.

Hi I see you have only recently joined the forum so welcome and hope you read as much here as you can, lots of encouragement and no judgment at all here.I don’t know how long you have been diagnosed so if recently you might be feeling shocked, confused even angry. If you have had it a while you might have some burnout. Its not easy and it doesn’t help that right now good food is very expensive and cheap food is all the stuff not so good for anybody. Some folk are very good at fasting but I’m not one of them and can’t bear being hungry. I don’t know if you just prepare meals for one but I would suggest getting a notebook or a tech version and plan out main meals for a week, go buy the stuff and it doesn’t have to be complicated, meat or fish, green veg or salad, cheese, eggs. You can add flavourings like dried spices or herbs. Rather than buy a jar of ready made sauce buy tinned chopped tomatoes to add to mince or chicken which should yield two or more portions eg Chilli or Bolognese. Get to know subs for pasta or rice. Cauli rice (best packs of 4 frozen portions from Asda or Iceland though cheaper to grate and bag your own) is great or green beans or broccoli or spiralised courgette instead of pasta. Nothing wrong with frozen veg either. going without bread, potatoes, pasta and rice takes a lot of discipline but can be done. If you can double up when you make something and freeze a portion in a plastic bag for another time its good on time & effort. If you can persevere it does become a pattern of eating and you will feel better for it. Sending you every good wish.

 

[PlutoIsAPlanet]

Hi I see you have only recently joined the forum so welcome and hope you read as much here as you can, lots of encouragement and no judgment at all here.I don’t know how long you have been diagnosed so if recently you might be feeling shocked, confused even angry. If you have had it a while you might have some burnout. Its not easy and it doesn’t help that right now good food is very expensive and cheap food is all the stuff not so good for anybody. Some folk are very good at fasting but I’m not one of them and can’t bear being hungry. I don’t know if you just prepare meals for one but I would suggest getting a notebook or a tech version and plan out main meals for a week, go buy the stuff and it doesn’t have to be complicated, meat or fish, green veg or salad, cheese, eggs. You can add flavourings like dried spices or herbs. Rather than buy a jar of ready made sauce buy tinned chopped tomatoes to aff to mince or chicken which should yield two portions eg Chilli or Bolognese. Get to know subs for pasta or rice. Cauli rice (best packs of 4 frozen portions from Asda or Iceland though cheaper to grate and bag your own) is great or green beans or broccoli or spiralised courgette instead of pasta. going without bread, potatoes, pasta and rice takes a lot of discipline but can be done. If you can double up when you make so ething and freeze a portion in a plastic bag for another time its good on time & effort. If you can persevere it does become a pattern of eating and you will feel better for it. Sending you every good wish.

Thank you for the reply.

Prepping meals in advance sounds like a good way to do it. Honestly I just wish I could make the decision making out of it when it comes to eat. Just have something ready to eat to go, but something that isn't the same thing for 4 days in a row. Trying to figure out what to eat is it too straining on me mentally.

Think I might have been a bit too emotional when it came to earlier. After I saw the amount of sugar in that jar I burst out crying. However, I've calmed down a bit - revisited the kitchen and found I do have a jar of pasta bake tuna tomato that only has 4g of sugar in for the same serving.. so going to whip that up with some tuna and a pepper. No cheese though so it'll just use a serving of that jar as a sauce.. got to taste better than egg & bacon, that's for sure.

I've been diabetic for at least a year now, maybe even 2? I can't remember. My most recent a1c was over 100 though.

 

[PenguinMum]

Thank you for the reply.

Prepping meals in advance sounds like a good way to do it. Honestly I just wish I could make the decision making out of it when it comes to eat. Just have something ready to eat to go, but something that isn't the same thing for 4 days in a row. Trying to figure out what to eat is it too straining on me mentally.

Think I might have been a bit too emotional when it came to earlier. After I saw the amount of sugar in that jar I burst out crying. However, I've calmed down a bit - revisited the kitchen and found I do have a jar of pasta bake tuna tomato that only has 4g of sugar in for the same serving.. so going to whip that up with some tuna and a pepper. No cheese though so it'll just use a serving of that jar as a sauce.. got to taste better than egg & bacon, that's for sure.

I've been diabetic for at least a year now, maybe even 2? I can't remember. My most recent a1c was over 100 though.

Take a look at the “what have you eaten today” (low carb) thread for ideas. Some people are amazing cooks and some are (like me) making simple dishes. Keep asking questions and you will get ideas.

 

[MrsA2]

@PlutoIsAPlanet
You might find this book, website, and the links within it, help you

Home | Fork in the Road | Guide to Low Carb Eating

Welcome to Fork in the Road! A website dedicated to sharing resources and tips on low carb eating. Helping people recover from Sugar Addiction

forkintheroad.co.uk

Jen is the wife of a UK GP who champions low carb, but Jen struggled herself with controlling her eating and as a psychologist is now helping others to understand why they eat what they eat.

I also like the very practical podcasts and blogs from these 2 Australian doctors who focus on why and how we eat as much as the what.

Medical Weight Loss Doctors with Online Programs for Real Weight Loss

Dr Lucy Burns and Dr Mary Barson are weight loss doctors. They will help you lose weight and reverse metabolic disease. Online weight loss programs for long term weight loss with trusted advice

www.rlmedicine.com

Hope they help you as much as they did/do me

 

[MrsA2]

Practicality is what you need.
I always have hard boiled eggs in the fridge, cooked sausages (high meat content), ham and 2 or 3 cheeses. All good for snacks or meals when I can't be bothered to cook.
Breakfasts of full fat (10%) greek yoghurt mixed with milled seeds and frozen berries can be made enough for 5 or even 6 days ahead
I bake a low carb sweet cake in a 7" inch tin, cut it into 16 squares and freeze them. 1 sq is a daily treat. 1 cake lasts over 2 weeks = baking only once a fortnight, or do 2 at once in different flavours for variety.
Low carb pizza dough (called fat head) makes 2 pizzas, but I make double and freeze 3 of the portions.
Vegs don't have to be fresh, frozen works well
Read around the forums there's loads of ideas

 

[Lainie71]

Thank you for the reply.

Prepping meals in advance sounds like a good way to do it. Honestly I just wish I could make the decision making out of it when it comes to eat. Just have something ready to eat to go, but something that isn't the same thing for 4 days in a row. Trying to figure out what to eat is it too straining on me mentally.

Think I might have been a bit too emotional when it came to earlier. After I saw the amount of sugar in that jar I burst out crying. However, I've calmed down a bit - revisited the kitchen and found I do have a jar of pasta bake tuna tomato that only has 4g of sugar in for the same serving.. so going to whip that up with some tuna and a pepper. No cheese though so it'll just use a serving of that jar as a sauce.. got to taste better than egg & bacon, that's for sure.

I've been diabetic for at least a year now, maybe even 2? I can't remember. My most recent a1c was over 100 though.

Well I remember sitting on the kitchen floor in floods of tears as I thought my life was well and truly over! I thought I would never eat anything nice and satisfying ever again. How wrong was I. This place is a wealth of knowledge, non judging and having a sense of humour definitely helps. By the way my hba1c was a hell of a lot higher than yours I can can tell you. Stick with it there's lots of info and ideas on what you can eat here. It is mentally draining it gets to me, but you will get there x

 

[SaskiaKC]

I seem to keep cycling through 3 phases, lasting about a week (or less) at a time..

First phase.. I start feeling hopeful that I can control this and will be able to sort everything out.. I eat healthy, my blood sugars come down and start looking more stable.. but then it just becomes too much for me to to maintain. Watching every calorie, sugar intake, going shopping to buy the food, being able to afford good food, etc.. so I just fall back into second phase...

.. I end up binge high carb easy to cook food, pastas, pizzas, chips.. then see my blood sugars going crazy.. get even more depressed.. start drinking.. stop monitoring my blood sugar for a few days.. before I eventually hit 3rd phase..

.. which is pretty much living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and that's all I'll eat for the entire of the day..

I just went to try and make some healthy food, I'm feeling starved and I want something tasty.. but there's nothing in the house. Looked at a jar of sweet n' sour sauce to mix with some chicken and veg and thought that might work well if I only have a small bit.. but it's 14g of sugar for 1/4 of the jar. I'd previously would have eaten an entire jar in one day.

I'm just feeling exhausted, ****** off and I think I'll just stop eating altogether. I can't go back to the phase where I binge eat and drink, I know I can't.. I've done that too often recently and seeing how it takes my blood sugars so high has got me feeling terrified.. but I just.. I don't know. I hate this.

I've been feeling the same way and I'm just as frustrated and fed up. Reading your post today has helped a lot, so thank you for posting. I am sorry you are in this same boat.
I try to keep meat snacks in the fridge but after awhile just the thought of eating more meat, again, makes me feel sick.

I agree with you about Pluto.

 

[Guilty]

Just off the back of a 4 day binge myself. Don't beat yourself up.

Meal prep is great. You can just pull stuff out of the freezer on a lazy day and pop it in the microwave for a few minutes. And you've cooked it so you know it's healthy and delicious.

My faves to portion up and freeze:
Soups
Chilli
Currys
Stir-frys
Bolognaise

They all last forever. Just make sure you label them unless you like the surprise of wondering if you're having chilli or bolognaise for dinner

 

[HSSS]

No cheese though

Is that because you have no cheese are are choosing to have no cheese? Cheese is low carb and quite filling and need not be avoided.

 

[alimar77]

I seem to keep cycling through 3 phases, lasting about a week (or less) at a time..

First phase.. I start feeling hopeful that I can control this and will be able to sort everything out.. I eat healthy, my blood sugars come down and start looking more stable.. but then it just becomes too much for me to to maintain. Watching every calorie, sugar intake, going shopping to buy the food, being able to afford good food, etc.. so I just fall back into second phase...

.. I end up binge high carb easy to cook food, pastas, pizzas, chips.. then see my blood sugars going crazy.. get even more depressed.. start drinking.. stop monitoring my blood sugar for a few days.. before I eventually hit 3rd phase..

.. which is pretty much living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and that's all I'll eat for the entire of the day..

I just went to try and make some healthy food, I'm feeling starved and I want something tasty.. but there's nothing in the house. Looked at a jar of sweet n' sour sauce to mix with some chicken and veg and thought that might work well if I only have a small bit.. but it's 14g of sugar for 1/4 of the jar. I'd previously would have eaten an entire jar in one day.

I'm just feeling exhausted, ****** off and I think I'll just stop eating altogether. I can't go back to the phase where I binge eat and drink, I know I can't.. I've done that too often recently and seeing how it takes my blood sugars so high has got me feeling terrified.. but I just.. I don't know. I hate this.

Hello, I’m new! I’ve not read all the replies to your post (but I will) I just wanted to say what you have written, it’s as if I wrote it myself! I feel your struggles!

 

[annipinkmoped]

I seem to keep cycling through 3 phases, lasting about a week (or less) at a time..

First phase.. I start feeling hopeful that I can control this and will be able to sort everything out.. I eat healthy, my blood sugars come down and start looking more stable.. but then it just becomes too much for me to to maintain. Watching every calorie, sugar intake, going shopping to buy the food, being able to afford good food, etc.. so I just fall back into second phase...

.. I end up binge high carb easy to cook food, pastas, pizzas, chips.. then see my blood sugars going crazy.. get even more depressed.. start drinking.. stop monitoring my blood sugar for a few days.. before I eventually hit 3rd phase..

.. which is pretty much living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and that's all I'll eat for the entire of the day..

I just went to try and make some healthy food, I'm feeling starved and I want something tasty.. but there's nothing in the house. Looked at a jar of sweet n' sour sauce to mix with some chicken and veg and thought that might work well if I only have a small bit.. but it's 14g of sugar for 1/4 of the jar. I'd previously would have eaten an entire jar in one day.

I'm just feeling exhausted, ****** off and I think I'll just stop eating altogether. I can't go back to the phase where I binge eat and drink, I know I can't.. I've done that too often recently and seeing how it takes my blood sugars so high has got me feeling terrified.. but I just.. I don't know. I hate this.

Keep your chin up don't end up like me.i was getting fed up of all the blood monitoring 4 injections a day then appointments being cancelled by the doctors etc. For the whole of this month I have felt very unwell to the point I said I won't be here next week had two weeks off sick no energy then went back to work for a few days still not feeling well and lost loads of weight then I ended up in hospital with ketones. Every hour I was having blood taken and being pumped full of inculin. My blood sugar was through the roof. I'm starting to feel better but I tell you for sure that's a lesson learned. Don't let this bet you take control.set yourself a goul and then have a treat within reason hope this helps

 

[SaskiaKC]

Keep your chin up don't end up like me.i was getting fed up of all the blood monitoring 4 injections a day then appointments being cancelled by the doctors etc. For the whole of this month I have felt very unwell to the point I said I won't be here next week had two weeks off sick no energy then went back to work for a few days still not feeling well and lost loads of weight then I ended up in hospital with ketones. Every hour I was having blood taken and being pumped full of inculin. My blood sugar was through the roof. I'm starting to feel better but I tell you for sure that's a lesson learned. Don't let this bet you take control.set yourself a goul and then have a treat within reason hope this helps

I know you weren't replying to me but your post sounds really helpful to me. I binged out on a new kind of cake last week and felt really wonky and weird. I was very relieved when the feeling wore off and since then I been eating much more sensibly. I hope I will stay scared enough from that experience to keep on eating sensibly. But, like @PlutoIsAPlanet , I find it hard to get up an appetite for anything nourishing, and too easy to either not eat at all or to eat ready-to-eat carbs and snacks instead of cooking meat or veg. Canned soup has meat and veg, but the veggies are the carby kind, not the leafy kind.
Even my cat prefers milk sometimes to meat -- despite being an obligate carnivore!

 

[SlimLizzy]

I've been feeling the same way and I'm just as frustrated and fed up. Reading your post today has helped a lot, so thank you for posting. I am sorry you are in this same boat.
I try to keep meat snacks in the fridge but after awhile just the thought of eating more meat, again, makes me feel sick.

I agree with you about Pluto.

Have you looked up Grain Free Granola?
Make a batch, it's not a complicated recipe, and you will have a readymade snack, or breakfast in the fridge and without meat.

 

[SaskiaKC]

S

Have you looked up Grain Free Granola?
Make a batch, it's not a complicated recipe, and you will have a readymade snack, or breakfast in the fridge and without meat.

Sounds nice. Thank you. Is there a recipe here on this board, or should I Google one?

 

[lessci]

Just off the back of a 4 day binge myself. Don't beat yourself up.

Meal prep is great. You can just pull stuff out of the freezer on a lazy day and pop it in the microwave for a few minutes. And you've cooked it so you know it's healthy and delicious.

My faves to portion up and freeze:
Soups
Chilli
Currys
Stir-frys
Bolognaise

They all last forever. Just make sure you label them unless you like the surprise of wondering if you're having chilli or bolognaise for dinner

The amount of times I've had Bolognaise with Cauli rice because i wasn't sure what was in the portion

 

[SlimLizzy]

S

Sounds nice. Thank you. Is there a recipe here on this board, or should I Google one?

There is , but I can't remember where. Sorry. Some recipes suggest using butter, but I use cold pressed rapeseed oil, pinch of salt and keep the granola in the fridge.
Had one batch with butter go rancid. Yuk.