OK I am going to document this in the family site. I wanted to see if I thought it would last first.
I was not sure, when I sat down to write, how long I have been doing this so I checked the television schedule to see when the program that started it all aired. It was on on the 19th in the evening so I started on June 20th. That was almost 3 weeks ago. I ordered the book and got it in late last week. As I read it and understand more, I am changing the plan. I’d call what I am doing a low fat vegan diet.
If someone had suggested I do something this drastic I doubt if I would have, but the speaker approached it as a way of beating diabetes, which I probably have by now. The last glucose tolerance test I had was a couple of years ago and I was so near the mark that makes it official that I agreed to start taking medication. The dr prescribed metformin which slows the rate that the liver releases sugar into the blood stream. It is hard on the liver, but my doctor said that high blood sugar was hard on everything and that taking the medication now might keep me from developing full blown diabetes.
It bothers me that I am taking medication that is hard on my liver. It bothers me that I need it. When this speaker offered me a way to beat diabetes by diet, and to possibly do so very quickly, when he talked about the way animal proteins and other things affect body, I was hooked.
At first I cut meat (except fish), dairy, and refined carbs. Later I learned that cutting animal protein means cutting fish and eggs too. I also learned that fat in all forms is to be avoided so I stopped cooking in oil, even that little bit of olive oil to brown onions, salad dressing, and, to an extent, nuts. I still eat nuts, but not near as many. I also eased up on the carbs. Sugary, highly refined, and airy carbs are to be avoided, but whole grains and dense carbs, like pasta, are ok.
You would think it would be hard to do. It surprises me how easy it has been. I know that most of what makes it easy is that I had that moment of decision that makes change easy, at least for a while. I am hoping that it continues to be easy.
The first things I noticed happened in about 3 days. I noticed that my digestive system was happier. I have long had a problem with, I assume, Candida. That was and is still gone. For the past few months I have been having pain in my legs that is different than any pain I have had before and seems to have no cause. I wondered if it was the beginning of neuropathy. It was becoming more frequent, almost daily, and lasting longer. After the first 3 days, I had 2 brief (maybe 5 minute) mild episodes. After the first 10 days, I have had none at all. Also, my joints don’t hurt. Even my knees, which sometimes hurt very badly, don’t hurt. I still have trouble walking and when I get up after sitting with them bent for too long, but they feel weak and compacted rather than painful, and they never throb and ache in the evening.
When I went to the doctor a week ago, I discovered that, since my last appointment a month before, I had lost 20 pounds. That may not all have been due to eating differently, but at least 10 pounds I have to credit to diet. I got on the scale this morning and was pleased to see I have dropped another 4 pounds. It doesn’t show. I weigh so much that 24 pounds is probably like a normal sized person losing 4 pounds. I can tell, though. I am wearing a cotton muumuu that was too tight a month ago. It is enough looser to notice.
So…. being a vegetarian agrees with me. Maybe I am all the way to vegan now. Not only does it agree with my joints, stomach, and weight, it agrees with my appetite. The change is hard to describe. I get hungry, but the quality of hunger is different. I even get munchy i the evenings, but the quality is different. I don’t think about food in the back of my mind all the time. I am hungry when I get up in the morning and I eat. But I used to have a hard time stopping eating, especially if there was a chocolate cake around. I used to crave chocolate so obsessively that I would go buy almond m&ms. I suppose I would still like chocolate, but I don’t crave it. I seldom even think about it. I forget about food. I mean, I really forget about it. I don’t remember the last time I forgot about food (unless I was very busy). I don’t mean forgetting about the time… I always forget about the time and have supper time slip up on me. But now I forget about food entirely, even when I am doing nothing at all. I will just become aware of hunger. And even then, even though sometimes I am really hungry, I may forget about it again… even when I am not that engrossed in anything. It is odd. Even when I was on the weight watcher diet, successfully, I seldom completely forgot about food. My body likes being a vegetarian.