I too think that you are doing really well.
day at a time that is all we really have control of.
bizi

You know, what keeps the motivation ticking over at the darkest times, when the 3am Craving Demons come out, is the support I am getting from all my Friends here.

Thank you all.

Dave.

HI dave, Just wondering how is it going?
bizi

Hi bizi,

Official fortnightly weigh-in on Saturday at noon, but the diet has been going extremely smoothly. Got some health issues with my HbA1c having gone up to 7.1 5 weeks into the diet, and 2 months after cutting out all the junk. As Hopeless points out, my figure may have been 9.1 without my dietary changes! I have to have more bloods taken in a month to see if I have to start Metformin.

I also have a concern regarding liver function which I have to have a scan for as I had a gallbladder tumour and removal in '05 and cancer in '13. It's never ending stress, but I am not going to let it derail me.

I will Post my weight trend on Saturday. I really do appreciate you asking.

Dave.

well the a1c is an average over the past 3 months...that is the life of your red blood cell.
I am sorry that you had cancer.
((((HUGS))))
bizi
anxiety can be a b****!

Jus had my fortnightly weigh-in. Weight loss in this 2 weeks 5.5lbs, so I round down to the 5lbs:)

That's 19lbs in 6 weeks, reached another English 'Stones' target today, but not a big one, just a nod to keep things interesting.

Also lost another inch off my waist. This is painfully slow, but rather than having a solid mass of fat in front of me, everything is becoming softer as the fat slowly disappears. One day I will be able to see the scales instead of relying on them talking:D

Dave.

Dave, I think that you are doing really well.

Healthy sustainable weight loss (which is what you are doing) is the way to go.

Keep on keeping on :).

Congratulations DAVE!!!!!!!
Remember that every pound of weight loss equals 4 sticks of butter!
It really is something to marvel about. You are doing so well.
bizi

Thanks Kiwi, and bizi - I did not think to convert lost pounds into sticks of butter, our packs are about half a pound, so I have lost around 36 packs of English butter. Took me a lot longer to eat that much:D

Dave.

also to consider. if a pound of fat =3500 calories, we have to consume 500 calories fewer per day per week to lose one pound!
You are doing awesome!
bizi

Great to hear you're doing so well Dave.

19lbs - that's 8.6kg in our money - fantastic! Especially with being unable to exercise.

Keep going mate - slow and steady but surely winning.

MANY Thanks
 

Just clicking on the Thanks button was not enough for me. Wanted to say how much I appreciated your post.

Another 3.2lbs this fortnight, 22.2lbs total. I believe the weight loss slowed this segment because my Calorie intake has dropped too low on several days. I have eaten fish regularly these past two weeks, and salads in the hot weather without compensating.

The additional stress of waiting for the abdominal scan did not help. Had mixed results from that scan, first, no 'focal points' so no tumours. But whole liver shows as bright and initial dx is Stage 2 Steatosis of the Liver. That is because it has become symptomatic, causing a fair amount of pain. Waiting for results to be passed to GP so we can decide on further tests, biopsy… or whether this diet and possibly Metformin will help control it.

Dave.

Dave, I think that you are doing really well with your controlled weight loss :).

It was good to read that your liver scan did not show anything sinister.

As far as steatosis is concerned, you might find the fairly general info in this NHS link helpful when talking with your doctor; http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fatty-l...roduction.aspx .

Hi Kiwi,

Keep the encouragement coming regarding my weight loss PLEASE, you have no idea how hard it still is with the Metoclopramide problem. I appreciate everyone's words of support.

Thank you for the site link, I had not had time or inclination to scare myself with a search. I like the NHS Choices site, it is well written with just the right amount of information for starters on most conditions.

So, it turns out Stage 2 is called NASH and is characterised by pain and liver cells dying off. I will not panic about this, I am losing fat at a sensible, steady rate, so it will be leaving my organs and their surrounding area as well, and I will wait until I see my Dr for course of action before I get stressed. No tumour is reason for celebration - gonna have a little piece of Baklava today:D

Dave.

Dave, I promise that I will keep on doing my best to support you.

I didn't know about your Metoclopramide - I will have a look around (PubMed and friends) - if anything which might help turns up I will pass it on.

I think that you are right about NASH and that you are doing the right things (reducing body weight, etc) to deal with it.

Enjoy your Baklava! A while ago my Mum came across from NZ so we took her to a local Lebanese family-run restaurant. She had not come across Baklava before but was very impressed :D .

Hi Very new at this. I don't know how this works yet. I am a Japanese women living in Pittsburgh since April. I came for medical treatment at UPMC. I was diagnosed as having geniculate neuralgia after struggling 5 years with pain in my ear and tongue. I have been on so many medication. I suffer from depression too. It would be so nice if I can communicate with people with similar conditions. I am sorry if I came into a wrong place. if Thank you so much. Looking forward to hearing your comment or advise or just anything will be nice. Yuka :grouphug:

Hello Yuka,
You may want to post on our New Members forum, or you can look on our main page for a forum that fits your condition..
main page -
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/index.php

Hi Dave
Congrats on shedding more lbs. Not able to match you - I'm only down 6lb - still tapering some of the steroids but hopefully once they're gone it'll help.

Re the NASH you're already doing the main thing recommended for managing it - losing weight. One other thing I read is that supplementing with Vit E (if you aren't already) can help improve the histology - this is recommended in the US but not yet in UK apparently.

Thanks for sharing this info re your condition - I figure I'm a likely candidate for liver steatosis so will take on board what you're dealing with - yet another wake up call for me.

Hi Yuka,

As Jo*mar says, it is better to start your Thread in the best place for it so more Members will see it. We have an Occipital Neuralgia Forum which includes Geniculate Neuralgia, and a Depression Forum, too. You can find them following Jo*mar's Index Link, or Post first on the New Members Forum, here:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum88.html

As a Trigeminal Neuralgia/Paresthesia and Depression sufferer - amongst other things - I will be very happy to talk to you. I am just sorry you have had to come and find us.

Dave.

Hi Dave,

Haven't seen you around for a several days so just posting to let you know if things have got a bit rough your end that we're thinking of you and sending lots of healing thoughts.

Hope you're soon well enough to grace us with your usual insightful and empathetic wisdom (and sometimes irreverent humor).

Cheers bluesfan

Good Luck Dave on your mission to lose some weight.

I know how hard that "battle" is ... hence the saying " battle of the bulge"
:-)


I try to fill up on lean protein along with my veggies... but I CRAVE those carbs!!!

I noticed that one of the side effects of many meds I've been on is weight gain.

Some meds can slow metabolism , retain water and just make me hungry.

For the metabolism, I started eating more spices that help speed it up like
chili powder, cumin,turmeric, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper.

Looking forward to your updates....

Good Luck Dave on your mission to lose some weight.

I know how hard that "battle" is ... hence the saying " battle of the bulge"
:)

I try to eat mostly lean protein , soy products, low fat and low salt dairy products and nuts , along with my veggies... but I CRAVE those carbs!!!

I noticed that one of the side effects of many meds is weight gain.

Some meds can slow metabolism , retain water or just make me hungry.


For the metabolism, I started eating more spices that help speed it up like
chili powder, cumin,turmeric, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper.

Looking forward to your updates....

Dave, I hope that you are OK - haven't seen you round for a bit.

Bit worried and concerned about you.

Dave, just wanted you to know that we are thinking of you here.
((((((HUGS)))))
bizi

Diandra posted on Chronic Pain...
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread223597.html

Just thought you'd all like to know.

thank you lara, I appreciated you posting this for us.
bizi

Dear All,

Thank you all for your concern, I have detailed what's been going on on dear Diandra's Thread, Linked above. It's too painful to type repeats here.

One thing that I have not lost sight of is my weight loss goal. I reached a total loss of 28lbs in 10 weeks last Saturday. I am in a good routine, still have cravings and hunger because of the Metoclopramide, but I am winning with all your support.

Dave.

Hi vintagewine,

All I have done is cut out the Junk, balanced my diet, controlled portions and cut calories to 12-1300 per day (under my GP). I fight against Mirtazapine which has psychological effects and Metoclopramide which empties the stomach quickly.

I miss spices, they are a sure trigger for my Hypersensitivity and Neuropathy. For a treat my daughter made chicken curry from scratch on Saturday. The Garam Masala made my already aggravated nerves burn like H… for 24 hours. At least at the time the meal was worth it - 720cals including Basmati Rice.

Dave.

I will go read there.
((((HUGS)))))
bizi

Dave, we will all do our best to offer you support.

But (and I think that it is a big but...), your hard work and determination are really important.

I reckon that you should be very proud of yourself for what you have achieved :).

Even with the additional pain my weight loss regimen and targets are still on. 4.6lbs lost this past fortnight, 33.4lbs in 12 weeks. I am slowly closing in on my first target.

I also had my HbA1c taken again last week, 8 weeks ago it was 7.1 - greatly reduced from it's probable figure by my starting this diet. 11 weeks in and my numbers are right down to 6.4!

It is still very hard. An old friend I have not seen for a few years called yesterday and she commented on how much weight I had put on. I told her how much I had lost, but it made me realise the damage the Mirtazapine and Metoclopramide have done, along with the Depression and poor choices. It also put into perspective how far I have to go and that has very much affected my Mood.

Dave.

Dave
Congratulations on your progress - especially the HbA1c numbers.

Your personal battles on many fronts, (the successes as well as the setbacks), are motivation to others here, myself included, to keep fighting.
'Procrastination' became my middle name after the onset of illness - I said things to myself like: I can always do something about the weight gain once my health settles or I won't get diabetes/liver disease etc because I'm managing the Addison's okay. Thanks largely to you (and others) I'm now being more pro-active at preventative measures. Above all your determination to stick to your goals is a reminder when I'm tempted to indulge in something that's bad for me.

We all make poor choices at times so don't beat yourself up over something that's in the past. I know times are difficult for you right now but look for the gains and benefits (no matter how small) you have already made from your diet changes and celebrate those. I hope you have a treat planned for when you reach that first target.

Celebrate!
 

Hi Dave,

You are doing an outstanding job, truly!:D

Show yourself the love and compassion you show toward others.;)

You are one heck of a guy!:hug:

We all love you! :grouphug:

DejaVu

I hope you are feeling better. Just back from new york with my parents.
It was quite a trip.
bizi

Hi bizi,

How was the New York trip? That many people would send my Anxiety into overdrive:eek:

Dave.

It was a lot of people dave. why do you feel dead on your avatar?
I am sorry if you are not well.
((((HUGS))))
bizi

Hi bizi,

My Mood reflects my plunging Depression, driven by the excessive additional pain and some bad Bloods levels. My Depressive Disorder drives me very, very Low a fair proportion of the time.

Now, only getting relief from my neck and arm by laying flat is not helping my mind.

I do not like not being able to contribute properly here.

There may be an upswing with my PM appt, I hope I am not stuck like this.

Dave.

I have been away so am not sure what all you have experienced, I need to reread. Don't worry about not contributing here, just pop in and say hi!
bizi

((((( Dave )))))

Offering supportive, healing energy

You are on my mind so often. I hope, so very much, you will feel improvement.

Warmly,
DejaVu