Habit/Addiction

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

Thanks everyone! Sushee, did eat fruit or drink fruit juice on your pre-op diet?

Kazbah; when I was doing my raw vegan diet I found I wasn't really hungry either. I just wish it wasn't so expensive argh! Modifying it though (maybe editing out the vegan part) would probably help. Thanks.

Marydean; that's me to a T! I remember reading that artificial sweeteners have the same effect.

Alexis, thanks for the support! It's a shame you're all the way down in Mandurah, we could exercise together!

Astrid, do you know how much it costs? I just had an idea, my friend is studying to be a natropath, mebbe she could help me or know someone who could?

I was thinking about this all day actually (where I've eaten a hot chocolate, dessert and a buscuit sigh) that I've always been addicted to something. When I was a teen I was only slightly overweight because I did zero exercise but my eating was quite okay. Why? Because I was smoking cigarettes, pot and drinking alcohol! Even when I used to binge because of the pot I would eat fairly healthy stuff, like soup, baked beans and avocado sandwiches. Trouble is when I stopped all that, I went back to eating (which is what I used to do as a kid - I used to eat so much I vomited sometimes). I managed to quit all of that, so why can't I quit sugar?! Stopping smoking was easier than this!

[MrsFabuloso]

I managed to quit all of that, so why can't I quit sugar?! Stopping smoking was easier than this!

I think it's because we HAVE to eat. Most other addictions like smoking are things we don't need. With food, we need it and can't get away from it....

[krysalyss]

Acupuncture can help. There are points that deal with general cravings/addictions and can also work for smoking. They can tape some beads to the points in your ears and then you can continue to activate the points after your needle treatment. HTH

[sushee]

Nee,

I've said that to myself SOOO many times in my life - I'm a strong woman, I quit smoking after a pack a day habit, I work and study, I did so many rounds of IVF. Why is it I could be strong for those things but not with my weight? I felt like it was an addiction I could not break, no matter what I did, and it made me feel weak.

I have to say though that the writing for me is now on the wall. It wasn't about strength, it was about a crap metabolism, and years of yo-yo dieting, and now I'm almost 30kgs lighter than I was 6 months ago, but it was from exercising like a demon and eating the equivelant of a 3yo at each meal (and that's thanks to my lapband, btw)! How many people can honestly sustain that sort of thing FOREVER, when temptation is there everyday, in fact whenever you're hungry? I know I couldn't! Hell, we're human, not robots!

You shouldn't be so hard on yourself, babe. The fact is, if you want to quit sugar, put your mind to it and do it. But be prepared to fall off the wagon sometimes (I do too!). And if you do, don't despair, just get back on it the next day. Eventually you will come to a day when you will not be addicted anymore.

To answer your other question: on my re-op diet, I only ate veg and meat for two weeks, no fruits at all. But I do eat fruits quite a lot now - it's the only sweet thing I still eat regularly.

[KatieRabbit]

I will PM you Neenee, but aside from that, sugar addiction is very real and very very common. A GP once told me that it was harden to stop than heroin addiction but I can't personally vouch for that. I try replacing really sugary things with sweet good things like dates and fruit even though it is all sugar! I also think that you have to have a decent amount of protein at every meal and also eat really well. This means heaps of veg and salad, whole grains, full fat milk and yoghurt and cheese, nuts etc so that you feel nourished and not empty waiting for the next sugar high.

[Astrid]

Astrid, do you know how much it costs? I just had an idea, my friend is studying to be a natropath, mebbe she could help me or know someone who could?

I paid $60 per session, may have been more for the first one. Then there were the tonics and suppliments. I was spending $20-$60 per session. Once you have been and if there are no changes you can gets the tonics without a session.

I have been through sugar withdrawals, it is so hard, but so worth it.

[paradise lost]

It's so funny you posting this Nee, i've given up sugar for lent!

I'm not actually Christian (i occasionally do ramadan for a few days too) i just love a challenge. I eat a lot of sugar and i know it makes my weight harder to control and i knew it'd be really hard to quit so here i am, end of day 1. I've had a headache since 10am!

I haven't strictly given up ALL sugar though, because i'm still having fruits, and for instance i have to put a little sugar in my bread to feed the yeast and i'm not stopping that! But i'm off sweets, biscuits, cakes, puddings, chocolate, sugar in my coffee (and i LOVE my sweetened coffee!) and sugary drinks (i'm still drinking the diet version because i always did, and i don't have it very much, but if i'd been usually drinking the full-sugar one i wouldn't have switched to diet if that makes sense). Which is actually a lot of my diet!

Today wasn't hard in the sense of wanting to eat sugar because once i'm determined i'm determined, but i have felt headachey and off. I'm hoping once lent is over i can have sugar in much greater moderation than before. I will admit i was eating a LOT of it over the weekend in anticipation of the self-imposed ban today, and i was getting rather sick of it anyway.

If you want to quit it i am happy to share the journey.

Astrid how long does the withdrawal last!? LOL

Bx

[Astrid]

Normall y 3 days with withrawal, I think seem take a bit longer. OMG I was just feral, so crabby, angry, jittery, headachy, felt ill etc. I had some sugar free lollies that helped get me through, but had to ration them so I did not get the "laxative effect". I also cut out caffiene at the same time, so got a double whammy. I think though that happens to a lot of people, as cutting out sugars, milks etc, often means they don't have their normal cuppas. It amazing though how you wake up one morning and feel fantastic!

I so need to do it again, but still breastfeeding, so can't cut back hard, only a bit so I never fully break the cravings.