Weighty Matters

Meigs Falls - Great Smoky Mountains National Park

June 26, 2013

Almost exactly one month ago, I wrote a post called, "There's Some Work To Be Done."  In it, I talked about the very slow weight creep that happens so often when we slip just a little here and just a little there.  I also mentioned that I was already a few days into my regular plan for shedding weight.  I am happy to report that just under one month later, about half of that weight is gone.  As is to be expected, the rate of loss has slowed dramatically and I expect it to take two months to shed the remaining pounds.  

I have not yet achieved the nirvana state where 100% of the time I can halt that little mind button that pushes me over the edge where I choose to eat something I know will trigger hunger and make a choice I really don't want to make.  Once I was back in the swing of things, the craving for "white things" left me completely and I've felt no desire for them.  But in the early months of this year and while on our trip to New York, it was like, "oh yeah, I'll have one (or three or six) of those."  Once I was able to flip that darn switch back, it's been smooth sailing!  

In addition to eliminating white sugar and white flour, I also made a conscious decision to eliminate all "nightshade" foods.  It is thought that those contain inflammatory agents and anyone with an inflammatory disease (in my case, Rheumatoid Arthritis) might do better without them.  I didn't write much about this earlier because it was difficult, but in January while in Florida, I experienced some major issues with heartburn.  Please understand that I'm not talking about your typical, "oh I hate too much pizza" heartburn.  This type of heartburn results in severe pain, asthma like symptoms and difficulty breathing.  Don't worry, this is well covered with my doctor - we know it is GERD resulting from more than 30 years of heavy anti-inflammatory medicine usage.  IT IS NOT CARDIAC RELATED.  I immediately stopped the anti-inflammatory, MOBIC, that I had been taking for two years and although I had some pain while coming off of it, surprisingly enough, I've been able to make it all these months with no anti-inflammatory medication.  I'm living on borrowed time with this because these meds are life savers for Rheumatoid Disease patients and I will likely not be able to tolerate them any longer.   So I am willing to try anything to see if it helps.  

Nightshades include tomatoes, potatoes (not sweet potatoes), eggplant, sweet and hot peppers and a few other things.  I'm o.k. with everything except the tomatoes.  I love them and with summer coming on, the thought of not eating little cherry tomatoes like candy hurts.  But so far, I've done it!  For over a month now, I've eaten nothing in the nightshade family of which I am aware.  And people, I can tell a difference!  Could it be simply the absence of any flare-ups in the disease right now?  Of course, but I honestly think I can see a difference because I ate a LOT of tomatoes all the time.  Let me know if you or anyone you know has eliminated "nightshades" from their eating, for what reason and whether or not it made a difference for them.  For now, I'm staying away from them and have even found some yummy substitutes for my beloved cherry tomatoes.

Thank you so much for all your well wishes and prayers for the folks about whom I wrote last week.  I am happy to report that little Zachary is doing as well as a little guy with his problems can.  His mom had a rough, rough recovery, but was finally able to go home from the hospital one day last week.  Earlier this week, they were able to hold baby Zachary for the first time.  What a celebration that must've been.  He now weighs 2.6 pounds!  I'll keep you posted.  

The memorial service for our friend who died in the horrendous fall is this Saturday afternoon.  Reading her obituary painted a beautiful picture of a life well lived and someone who held tightly to the love of family and friends.  We are encouraged to wear Hawaiian print or brightly colored shirts to the service and attend a potluck meal immediately following.  That is so, SO Karen!  I didn't see her that often - only at parties and such, but I miss her just knowing I'll not see her when I visit Bill at his college.  Bill is having a much tougher time.  Their offices were very near to each other and he interacted with her on a daily basis.  

In both cases, thanks again for your kind words.  They meant a lot to me.  

I will have some really exciting news to share in my next post.  There's lots going on in our life. A big change is in the works!  So check back the first part of next week!   In the meantime, don't beat around the bush.  Tell the important people in your life that you love them and tell them NOW.  You just simply never know what's around the corner.