Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Asha on July 24, 2011 at 5:02pm

Start exercising, even little bits here and there, drink water first before snacking and know that the better control you have on your bgs, the less hungry you will eventually feel, when your bgs are high you feel hungry, when you're dipping low you're also going to feel hungry. hope this helps a little.

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Permalink Reply by Zoe on July 24, 2011 at 5:03pm

I know that is frustrating, Tina. If you are eating a lot of sweets and/or carbs, they can cause cravings - the more you eat, the more you want. I myself was a total sugar addict and the only way I could stop the cravings was to discontinue eating it altogether! You might not want to go that extreme, but if you cut your carbs back some you will probably have less cravings. Be sure and eat lots of protein and healthy fats (yes, fats!) so you don't feel hungry. Also, the more you cut your carbs, the less insulin you will need which will also help you lose weight. I don't know how recently you were diagnosed, but assuming it was fairly recent some weight gain is normal because our bodies are getting back to healthy use of our food. But beyond that, lowering carb intake and insulin will also help.

I've also started on Symlin recently which is supposed to help you lose weight at the same time as it lowers your blood sugar. So far no weight loss for me, but I'm increasing my dose to see if that helps and lots of other people have had good experience with it. I'll also tell you what everybody tells me: exercise helps! I pretty much ignore that advice other than walking a lot, but maybe you will be smarter. LOL.

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Permalink Reply by Asha on July 24, 2011 at 5:21pm

Ive been on symlin for 4 yrs and have lost 20lbs along with eating better an reg. exercise. symlin rocks!

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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on July 24, 2011 at 5:27pm

When I was dx'ed, they didn't have carb counting, they had exchanges. I got a pump in 2008 and went back to the dietician for a "refresher course", pretty much told her up front "I've lost like 40 lbs and want to keep losing for a while" and was horrified when she told me "you are active so you should eat 3x 45-60G of carb meals and 3x 15-30G snacks" which would have worked out to way more carbs than I was eating or felt would help me meet my goals, like 180-270G of carbs/ day. I'm eating about 150 most of the time, not exactly "low carb" but I've cut way back on a lot of stuff, particularly starches. If you are following a dietician's instructions, you might be able to stop gaining weight or even start losing if you try eating less? Exercise played a huge role for me too but I sort of think the food made a bigger difference?

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Permalink Reply by Rock on July 24, 2011 at 6:54pm

My first suggestion would be to look for another endocrinologist. Yours is obviously not doing his job. The first thing he should have explained is that insulin lowers your blood glucose. When your blood glucose gets lowered, your body responds by making you hungry. You eat more to help relieve the pangs of hunger created by your insulin. It is a vicious cycle, and a good physician should have warned you about it. The best medical science can do is to "live with the weight gain".

There are all kinds of diets out there, almost none of which will work for a diabetic. This includes the ones sold to you by "Certified" dieticians. The feeling of being hungry with a blood glucose level of 80 is intolerable. You have to eat. I was eyeballing the neighbor's cat and the barbecue grill not long ago and licking my chops.

Every time my endo tells me to lose some weight, I tell her to find something else besides insulin to control my blood glucose levels. She does not think this is funny.

My diet is relatively low on carbs and high on protein, fats (Yup) and veggies. I had chef salad with barbecued chicken strips this evening. It helps smooth out my glucose levels, which makes me feel better. Never underestimate the links between your diet, your insulin dose, and your sense of well being. When I eat carbs, I eat the complex ones with a high glycemic index. The glycemic index is not popular in the US because it was invented in a foreign country. A high glycemic index carb may have the same NUMBER of carbs as a candy bar, (for instance) but the conversion to glucose occurs at a much slower rate. Most of the good information I have been able to find about the glycemic index comes out of Australia.

I realize that my remarks may not sit well with the mainstream thoughts of how medicine treats this disease, but I have to go by my own experience, my own mistakes, and don't want to see anyone else wind up in the same mess I was in until I did some reading and made my own conclusions.

Also remember that no two diabetics are exactly alike, and doctors hate this with a passion. They were trained in med school to recognize symptoms and give the right treatment. When a patient tells them their treatment doesn't work, they have to stop and think and figure out why not and find a better way. Some doctors can do this, others cannot.

Hang in there, kid, it will get better.

Rock

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Permalink Reply by still_young_at_heart on July 24, 2011 at 7:47pm

You don't look heavy in any of your pictures and I'm going to suggest not worrying about your weight. You probably gained weight right after diagnosis because your body started to be able to use the food you ate once you went on insulin. That's a good thing.

I will eat a small handful of almonds between meals when I'm hungry and that usually holds me for several hours. When I want something sweet, I'll eat a small square of 70% dark chocolate. If you focus more on how you feel in general and keeping your blood sugars as stable as possible you might be able to stop craving food. That's the problem with diets, you keep your focus on what you can't have which builds up cravings.

Good luck,

Maurie

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Permalink Reply by Baby Tee on July 24, 2011 at 8:59pm

Hey Tina. I'm gonna give you a few possibilities.

Malnourishment - If blood sugars run high, you become dehydrated. Along with removing that fluid from your body, your body gets rid of nutrients you need. If you're malnourished, your body will respond by being hungry...if your blood pressure is low, you might crave chicken noodle soup because you need sodium or you might crave orange juice or bananas or potatoes because you need potassium. I read on here that diabetics tend to run low in vitamin D. Then a doctor on TV said that if an A1c is above 7.0, it is likely the vitamin D levels are low. I had my dr check it because I was really tired all the time, and it was really low (16 - they say it should be around 50). I started taking vitamin D and in about a week or two, I was less hungry.

Depression / Stress - Anyone with a chronic disease can struggle with depression and hopelessness at times, and depression can cause food cravings that are emotional cravings rather than physical. I am an emotional eater at times. When my mother died, I couldn't eat very much for about a year. When a jerk of an ex boyfriend tormented me after I dumped him, I started overeating when he would leave a message for me or email me. He was mean and I got comfort from food.

Attempted self-deprivation - If you try to deprive yourself completely of things, you are thinking about them and that will result in you eating them. Ice cream was my big thing. I bought a pint of ben and jerrys and ate 1 to 3 bites every night before I went to bed. Before the container was finished, I stopped craving it. The container actually got freezerburned because i didn't finish it. It might not work for you, but it did for me.

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Permalink Reply by Jason Sandeman on August 1, 2011 at 10:14am

About the Ben and Jerry's - if someone hooked it up for an electric shock everytime I touched it, I would still try. ;)

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Permalink Reply by Lila on August 1, 2011 at 10:27am

Ben and Jerry's sell pint locks at the factory in Vermont...

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Permalink Reply by Zoe on August 1, 2011 at 10:32am

I have to respectfully disagree with the "don't deprive yourself" theory. I think if you are regularly eating carbs and sweets you will crave them for about 30 days more or less. After that, feeling "oh, I'm deprived, how I miss ice cream" is a set-up, because you're locked into that paradigm. I haven't eaten sugar in 16 years (after being severely addicted to it for 30 years before that) and don't feel the least bit deprived nor have any "longings" for sugar items. None. I think if you stay stuck in the feeling that you're deprived without something and fight constantly against your cravings, you are going to lose, because you believe you will (and what's more, you deserve to!) It's called a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Not sure if I've explained this well enough to make sense.

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Permalink Reply by Jason Sandeman on August 1, 2011 at 10:46am

It makes sense to me. In essence, I quit smoking by never taking another puff. It has been 3 1/2 years since my last cigarette, but I know the second I succumb to 1 puff, I'll be right back to smoking 1.5 packs a day.
I guess sugar is the same. I find it harder to give up than cigarettes, and I NEVER thought I would find something harder!

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Permalink Reply by still_young_at_heart on August 1, 2011 at 10:49am

Hi Zoe,

I half agree with you. I gave up many, many foods about 20 years ago when i started to get a bit more religious. It took a while but I no longer have any desire for them. (I still remember some of them fondly - who wouldn't smile thinking about a meal of fresh pasta and cuttlefish ink at Harry's Bar in Venice).

But self deprivation can also mean making one's diet so austere that it fails to provide pleasure. As a foodie, I'm sure you really enjoy most of what you eat. I enjoy my fruit, fresh vegetables, high end chocolate, good olive oil. I think that is part of what BabyTee was getting at.

Maurie

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