My story

JFR · Post by **JFR** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 12:51 pm

I posted this story in another forum which is focused on low carbohydrate eating for weight loss. It is the only other health related forum I participate in. I understand that most people here do not have a problem with weighing too much but some people might relate to that part of the story. I also talk about the MC part of this journey for me. I figured I would post it here in case it might either help or encourage someone. Since writing this my weight has gone down another 5 pounds although I am not focused on that at all and am no doubt eating more than most people who say that they are on a "diet".

"My story is not the usual one you see posted here. I have no idea what date I actually started nor do I know what exactly I weighed. The highest weight I remember being is 245 lbs and that was somewhere around 2003. Somewhere around that time I changed my diet. I never wrote down the date nor did I write down how my weight changed, although I did check my weight regularly on the scale. My goal was always more health oriented than weight oriented although I did want to lose weight and was happy when it happened. So here's my story as best I can recollect it or at least as I now reconstruct it. Maybe it didn't happen quite this way but what is definitely true is that I have lost approximately 117 pounds and I am much healthier than I used to be. What is also true is that I am older but I take no prescription drugs nor do I see the doctor except for an annual physical so she remembers who I am.

All my adult life I have had gastro-intestinal problems ranging from mild to moderate, bad enough to interfere with my life in many ways but not bad enough to completely derail my life. Most of my adult life I suffered from major depression, the kind that makes you want to end your life. I tried pretty much everything but nothing helped very much or for very long. In my 40's I developed asthma and had to take daily medication to control it. There was other stuff sprinkled in there too but the final straw was when I realized that I was no doubt on my way to diabetes or already there. Along with the weight gain I had episodes of increasing hypoglycemia that alternated with times of extreme fatigue. I recognized these symptoms as signs of blood sugar dys-regulation and that did it for me. My memory of my paternal grandmother is of an old woman in a wheel chair without any legs, amputated due to diabetes. I did not want to become her. I decided it was time to do something about it. That was about 13 years ago. This is what I did, the condensed version:

1.Read Dr Bernstein's "Diabetes Solution" and started following his 6-12-12 , 30 total carbs a day, low carb plan plus joined the forum on his site. His plan made sense to me because I knew that what I needed to do was get rid of the high carb food in my diet and there was plenty of that, take out, home delivery, drive through. You name it I ate it and the more I ate the hungrier I got. Whole pizzas, pints of Ben and Jerry's ice cream, Starbucks Frappacinos, packages of Pepperidge Farm cookies. I ate until I felt sick and it took a lot to get to that point. I also felt disgusted with myself but I couldn't seem to stop.

2.Read "Neanderthin" by Ray Audette The paleo plan made sense to me, basically eat real food. I adopted his plan to my low carb Bernstein approach. Things started to get better. My hunger decreased, my blood glucose stabilized, my fatigue lessened and my gastro-intestinal symptoms lessened but not enough nor did my depression diminish significantly. But I was losing weight.

3. I read Elaine Gottschall's "BREAKing the Vicious Cycle" and adopted her specific carbohydrate diet, keeping it low carb. This turned out to not be as successful as I hoped although it did clue me into the relationship between specific kinds of foods and gastro-intestinal symptoms. Unfortunately some of the mainstays of her diet turned out to be foods I was sensitive to but it took me several years to figure this out. I was continuing to lose weight all this time.

4. I followed along in this way for several years and my weight continued to slowly drop until I reached 155 pounds and I continued to battle all the gastro-intestinal ills which seemed to be getting worse and were making it more and more difficult to do anything outside the house. Seeking out medical help was of no help. In fact by deciding to follow the advice of the doctors I tried a bunch of things that derailed my up until then strict low carb eating. I gained 20 pounds and went up to 175. At that point I hated the scale, got rid of it, and decided to go back to strict low carb eating, practicing portion control but not counting carbs precisely. I decided that no doctor could be of any help to me. I had already tried that route.

5. All hell BREAKs out. My intestinal tract goes into overdrive. I cannot leave the house. I can barely leave the bathroom. I already know that going to the doctor is not going to be of benefit. Six Immodium at a time get things to stop but only temporarily until I try to eat again and then hell returns. I got on the internet and found a website about microscopic colitis. The symptoms fit mine. The info I got there saved my life. I got tested through a place called Enterolab, discovered my numerous food sensitivities, removed them from my diet and finally I began to get better. I do not eat any grains, any dairy, any soy or other legumes, any eggs, any chicken and any beef. For a long time I couldn't tolerate any fiber so for about 2 years I was close to 0 carbs. I still avoid the above listed food but have been able to add vegetables back in. I eat a big salad every day (low carb veggies only). And I can leave the house without anxiety, without worrying about the location of the nearest bathroom or nervous when sitting in the audience at any of my granddaughter's events (those were the only ones I would go to). I missed my daughter's wedding because I could not travel. This was a bad time but it has improved so much.

3. So how did this effect my weight and health? Sticking with low carb but no always weighing things, either myself or the food (I pretty much knew what the carb counts were) in 2 years I lost 30 pounds. bringing me down to 145 and a total of 100 pounds lost since my highest weight. I discovered this when I had a physical at my doctor's office. That was 2 years ago. All my health problems are virtually gone including lifelong depression, asthma, Gerd, rosacea, seasonal allergies, arthritis, dry eye, blood glucose swings (most likely diabetic or prediabetic).

4. I remain very strict about my diet. I continue to avoid grains, dairy, soy, eggs, chicken and beef. I am 100% real food paleo. I have lost another18 pounds without any effort and now weight 127. I walk 4-6 miles a day (remember I used to be afraid to leave the house) and I think that helped with the final weight loss but before that I was pretty sedentary, 100 pounds came off because of dietary changes. I believe that by removing the foods that caused me so many digestive issues I was finally able to stop the weight gain and start losing again. But what keeps me thin and healthy has as its foundation low carb real foods."

Jean

Post by **tex** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 2:23 pm

Great post. Thanks for sharing. Hippocrates was right on target.

Tex

Vanessa · Post by **Vanessa** » Thu Sep 01, 2016 8:58 am

Jean!

What a journey you've been on. Thank you so much for sharing. I remember when I did my low carb "experiment" I thought of you many times thinking, How the heck does she do it? I am thrilled to hear that you have resolved some really tough issues through diet alone. This is a testament to you warrior spirit. Sounds cheesy but its true!

jlbattin · Post by **jlbattin** » Thu Sep 01, 2016 12:57 pm

Jean, what a story! Thanks for sharing!

I'm kind of right there with you on the Paleo diet, but I do eat beef. I can't go without my beef. I, however, don't eat much chicken anymore since that's all I ate for about 6 weeks or so several times a day and I just got burned out!

I also have lost about 50 pounds which I needed to lose, but I'm kind of at a stand still now. I need to take off a little more weight but I'm going to have to work at it. The first 50 pounds came off by eliminating the gluten, soy, and dairy from my diet. I'll need to start some exercise to get the rest off!

What an inspirational story though!

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Thu Sep 01, 2016 3:02 pm

Jean
thanks for sharing - It is great to have these journeys captured

I am one that has struggled with excess weight during my MC journey.
for me i think MC is a symptom of the other health issues, but how i approach healing the other issues is impacted by MC.

JFR · Post by **JFR** » Thu Sep 01, 2016 6:21 pm

Thanks Tex, Vanessa, Jari and Gabes. I really appreciate your comments. In my case patience and perseverance has certainly paid off and of course knowledge, much of which I got on this forum.

Gabes - My perspective is that we always need to look at the body as an interactive system rather than an amalgam of isolated parts. I never even got a diagnosis of MC. By the time I found this forum I decided to skip the diagnosis part and go right to dietary treatment. We tend to reify diseases as if they were things that existed in the body rather than as expressions of underlying dysfunctions. That's how I view MC. It make sense to me to go after the underlying cause rather than assume that the symptom(s) is somehow equivalent to the whole disease. Jacalyn Duffin, a doctor and medical historian, says that diseases are only ideas not things and ideas can change.

Jean

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Fri Sep 02, 2016 5:10 pm

Jean
this news story has just come out...

for me it makes sense, when my immune system is happy i have been able to lose weight
but when it is unhappy (evident by symptoms status of health issues etc) I struggle to lose weight

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-09-i ... eight.html

JFR · Post by **JFR** » Sat Sep 03, 2016 3:21 am

Gabes - For me, whatever else may drive obesity, I am sure that high insulin levels caused by a high intake of carbohydrates is the primary driver. Insulin is the fat storage hormone and converts excess carbohydrates into fat. Some people are more sensitive to carbohydrates than others. I come from a family with a sad history of type 2 diabetes and the various problems that causes including a grandmother who had 2 legs amputated and an aunt who had 1. That said getting rid of all the foods I was reacting to clearly jump started a process that had stalled and even gone backwards a bit so other things are also clearly in play.

Jean

brandy · Post by **brandy** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 2:36 pm

Hi Jean,

Thanks for sharing your story. I always enjoy reading your posts!

Marcia K · Post by **Marcia K** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 5:04 pm

Thank you for sharing your awesome story, Jean. From not leaving the house to walking 4-6 miles a day. Nothing short of amazing! If only more people would realize that changing what they eat would make a world of difference in their health.

humbird753 · Post by **humbird753** » Thu Sep 08, 2016 12:25 pm

Jean, thank you for sharing your story. Very encouraging for others.

Paula

Cat · Post by **Cat** » Mon Sep 18, 2017 8:23 am

Wow, Jean.

This one post alone has given me a tiny ray of hope. Frankly, just diagnosed and (now) reading over everyone's trials and tribulations on this site was making me depressed as heck.

You managed to get your life not just back, but butter than it had ever been - lending credence to the thought that each event is an opportunity.

You took many events and created a wonderful opportunity.

Now - on to me! :) :)

Microscopic colitis is my new diagnosis. The Bufosonide is doing nothing. I don't know where to start and am a food and wine writer !! - and eating lamb, rice and sweet potatoes only makes me cringe.

Where do I start?

What should be my first step?

I can tell that my (young) doc has few ideas, though I'm going to go see her again soon.

Thank you,

Cathie

sunny · Post by **sunny** » Mon Sep 18, 2017 8:39 pm

Jean,
Thanks for such an inspirational story! You are such a humble lady and show such a strong inner sprit to persist in the path you know is right for you.
I agree that some people are more carb sensitive than others and I too fall into that category. I am truly amazed plus inspired by your dogged determination to reach your hpgaol of health.
Thank you for your honesty, vulnerability, and truthfulness.
Sunny

starfire · Post by **starfire** » Tue Sep 19, 2017 6:17 am

What a wonderful story. What great perseverance you have and I love your never give up attitude. I'm glad this thread came up and prompted me to read your post. I started gaining weight when I was on prednisone for 3 months when first diagnosed in 2004 (I think that year is right). I gained 40 lbs in that 3 months and never really stopped gaining although it did slow down. My highest was 213 and I've lost 28 lbs so far. Still working on it and a long way to go. I really should get a new picture up. This one is from a looong time ago. After I gained so much weight I became extremely camera shy. LOL I still believe the pred changed my metabolism rate since I had never had a weight problem until that time.

JFR · Post by **JFR** » Tue Sep 19, 2017 12:23 pm

Thanks for reading my story. I posted it hoping that it might provide some encouragement to people. I still stick to the straight and narrow and things remain good.

Jean