Welcome to Gaia! ::

I had seen the doctor last Friday when my husband was alarmed at the swelling in my feet and surprisingly I had a call last night from one of the referrals the Dr sent out... the referral to the Nutritionist.
I went and saw her this afternoon, and she really gave me something to think about.

We talked about diets and she does not recommend them. She thinks lifestyle changes are much more productive. This got me thinking, my biggest problem over the last couple years was the overall lifestyle change:
Depression = losing my mom right here in my home
Hysterectomy = onset of menopause
Marriage = well, just a change
Very ill for the past year = less activity
Quit smoking = slowed metabolism (she agreed) + the fact some people start sticking something else in their mouth... usually food or candy
Asthma = difficulty with activity

She agreed that any one of those things may have set a person up to gain 15 or 20, but I have kind of gotten a full plate

She sent me home with a lot of papers to read through, and asked if I would start a food diary. She said the diary may reveal to me that I am eating even more than I realize... I told her realization is not the problem... I KNOW I pig out domokun
I asked about the eating plans offerred by Jenny Craig, Nutrisystems, etc, and she said they kind of fall into the diet category, and that unless I am willing to eat them the rest of my life or at least assimilate them into my life time eating plan... rolleyes

She said come back in two weeks and to do three things before then:

1 The Diary, start keeping it faithfully/pay attention to potion sizes
2 Read through the materials she gave me
3 Start eating breakfast!!! (I am terrible about not doing that)

I also told her about the Geek - Cycle at slim geek and she thought that sounded so promising she is looking into one for herself! Nice when the neophyte can bring news to the expert
rofl

Good luck and *hugs* to you Lizzy! xd heart

see ladies, this is why i wanted this forum in the first place, it's all about motivation, and i think being able to talk amoungst ourselves about our aims and goals will help us all a lot 3nodding

Lizzy, it sounds like at the very least you have a good doctor!! This alone goes a long, LONG way to recovering and maintaining your health!! (old joke: What do they call somebody who graduates medical school with a "C" average? answer: doctor!). I wish you the best of luck and hope that you can incorporate some lifestyle changes into your .... well... your life! I think most of us could use to do that, to be honest. Between the tv, the computer, whatever video games, etc., the emphasis on healthy lifestyles has been steadilly edging *away* from being outside and being active. And that, imho, is a true shame. And yes, here I sit too, with my few extra pounds and less-than-in-shape-self.... Anyway, I will stop rambling now and just reiterate that you, and others in this subforum, have the support to help you attain your goals, and I wish you all luck!!

{{hugs to you all}}

I did a food diary a while back, and it actually helped me a lot. My meals became more regular, and it really prevented me from snacking. For me the only bad thing about the diary was that I became completely obsessed with food, not so much the eating but I was constantly planning my next meal and counting calories all the time rolleyes But all in all the diary was a good thing, I learned a lot about the importance of regular meals and how to eat healthy (not that I actually eat healthy now though, but I could if I wanted to xd ).