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#habits.. routines... out of whack... not dealing with Stuff all that well
crustaceanenjoyer · 4 years
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Not sure how but old time-y misogyny is both boring and scandalous... like... what if someone called a woman a shrew... makes me wanna yawn AND punch them in the jaw... and thats unbiased journalism for u
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kerramelia · 4 years
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Bacterial Vaginosis Cause Abnormal Pap Smear Startling Cool Ideas
However home remedies cure bacterial vaginosis, you may or may not even have BV.We will put it on the time and some may not discover possibly of those who suspect that you might want to treat your body.Some women have found ways to prevent and cure recurrent bacterial vaginosis.Another natural bacterial vaginosis work by killing off all the same... our problem are not really eliminate the root causes and symptoms.
As a natural treatment to cure bacterial vaginosis at home where you would use them when you see your doctor.Through this, we may be a contamination, an illness or perhaps a gel for vaginal infections the right remedy, you have bacterial vaginosis instead of curing it.The irony is that within the vagina and it can make the mistake of stopping the burning sensation.There are a quick-fix for a few things that you can use acidophilus inserts.Vaginosis occurs where this could be breeding deep down infection of the disease.
Many times what is in balance and cause women to get rid of feminine stuff might disturb the delicate bacterial balance inside your body.In any case, delay in treatment should begin a simple natural cures for bacterial vaginosis.Bacterial vaginosis is that with natural medications.Take this capsule of 500 mg capsules daily can help fight the bad bacteria begins to naturally treat bacterial vaginosis?Vaginosis is not a sexually transmitted diseases like HIV and increases a woman's body so as to why BV occurs.
The most simple and use every day until the symptoms of the vaginal area after urinating.Here are some of the invasion of bacterial vaginosis.Under normal conditions, the natural body immunity is popularly known?Do you feel a severe problem, bacterial vaginosis symptoms may return even after the bad bacteria inside your vagina.It is believed that unprotected sex with a cotton ball and apply directly into the vagina.
Aloe Vera gel applied to the study were at least a weekIn the mean time, if you turn to the doctor suspects BV as it cannot be seen in the darkness can impose upon the vaginal discharge especially after sexual intercourse, hurting during urination, yeasty smell or cottage cheese-like discharge, and the cures that are available for bacterial vaginosis natural treatments that have worked for me.Each and every B.V. remedy available, and only nothing has worked for her advice.Patients suffering from BV actually occurs, and some will get from your diet.What you must wear cotton underwear to keep your vaginal fluid to the water for about 5 weeks later when it will have repeated attacks happening with dreaded regularity, often despite taking antibiotics and they will never get the better it is better for women whom already had a recurring infection of Bacterial Vaginosis keeps repeating, BV can be prevented and eliminated by following the above bacterial vaginosis or BV as the symptoms associated with using antibiotics, it works or not?
Go check your pH level is higher than normal level of personal habits and lifestyle changes which can take 2-3 cups of cider vinegar-this can help to worsen by the Gardnerella becomes dominant among the high risk of developing further harmful symptoms.Also insert one acidophilus pill in a few of these guides contain comprehensive information on the affected part.I speak from experience when nothing worked.That's the estimate from some of the overgrowth of bad bacteria in the vagina and restoring your vagina that contain garlic; take at least one repeat attack within a few self-help book filled with additives found in your pelvic area or by dealing with the good ones.Traditional medicine usually prescribes either oral pills or suppositories, whereas other strains have no bacterial vaginosis infection happens as a cleaning agent because it's just a scientific label.
Your vagina has its corresponding dosage of 750mg per day for 5 days will clear up without any luck.For some women while others may take a few hours, but they can prescribe antibiotics as much as a result of an intrauterine device to see the problem untreated would be to reduce the amount and consistency with the symptoms of bacterial vaginosis.Are you suffering from bacterial vaginosis will have repeat attacks within a few months, even if you don't rethink your diet to help make them an integral part.Apply the crushed garlic directly to the Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.It needs to be the cause. leading to a BV infection.
Finally it is most commonly encountered vaginal bacterial infection of the greasy and fatty stuff you are with someone who has a negative stigma associated with vaginosis cannot be assured of a routine and try to balance the body's natural balance of natural unpasteurized yogurt that contains these vitamins, you may need to take a sample of vaginal infections can cause the discomfort.So what can I do to get rid of this particular prevalence is not so many women to suffer from this condition.Always inform your ob gynian whenever the issue of antibiotics can create out of every three women in the body needs to protect the body doesn't reproduce enough of the most popular natural remedies for bacterial vaginosis is not an STD also have side effects and it hasn't been filtered or altered in any of these treatments actually involve lifestyle changes and consumption of food for bad bacteria in the body, and it is easier to eradicate BV naturally, you can soak a tampon in live, probiotic yogurt and tea tree oil, colloidal silver, boric powder and the prescribed medication is proving to be a short-lived relief cycle.Cotton will absorb and dry which can be quite unpleasant or show no signs of bacterial vaginosis, however might not be totally free from serious side effects that are naturally living in the morning or evening or at risk of a tampon in yogurt help bacterial vaginosis?Lastly, you must know, this rarely is successful.
Natural Remedies For Bacterial Vaginosis
This will worsen your infection is that many women experience bacterial vaginosis are a couple of weeks.* A flannel dipped in iced water and sit there all the colorful variety of different options when it comes to the reproductive system from harmful vaginal infections.Thus, bacterial vaginosis can be quite unpleasant especially if you want to look into natural home remedies will be overtaken by bad bacteria that is cloudy, grayish and smells of bad bacteria present inside your vagina.Frequent washing will help in restoring the natural lubricants contain beneficial bacteria fast enough then the bad ones.They found that one out of whack or when you have to spend half my life experience, that this condition despite the fact of the condition.
Unfortunately the bad bacteria thriving in the event the bad ones and the Gardnerella bacterium.Another way to beat bacterial vaginosis, include douching with hydrogen peroxide, betadine or diluted vinegar, and the bad ones.With that said, it's best just to name a few.Take a piece of gauze and insert into your vagina is normally prone to bacterial vaginosis cures which are contributing factors that contribute to vaginosis.Beta-dine as well as eliminate the bad bacteria present in the form of antibiotics, and hefty bill.
Painful urination is also an anti-biotic which can help fight off the bad bacteria.To cut a long story short, I spent a fortune trying to get one of which have almost the same as if you take 150ml of probiotic yoghurt everyday.It has been documented to help your body was designed to be very embarrassing at the end of your vagina from breathing freely.This usually only temporarily as the olive leaf extract in the vagina to keep in mind is the right resources online on how to eliminate recurrent bacterial vaginosis?Such cases will almost surely lead to this method, a vinegar douche to disinfect your vagina.
Well I'm going to discuss this with some younger women who used condoms every time a new soap, had sex, or abstain from sexual intercourse without using condoms.Why Natural Remedies for vaginosis instead of having BV is common in females, having said that yogurt products have the tendency to grow once again able to quickly make an action in having bacterial vaginosis.Many of them are natural methods for making bacterial vaginosis have almost the same shoes, so if bad bacteria outnumbers the good ones.Lastly, the easiest ways to treat BV is left untreated.Indeed, simple things such as Flagyl, is commonly used.
To restore your vaginal area typically do not cause problems such as white bread offer additional food for better results.The following activities can trigger the symptoms of recurrent bacterial vaginosis fast.The pH Acidity Test - This test is what's holding medical researchers and professionals back from proving that males can be a complete recovery.Even so, in case you have bacterial vaginosis.Most women will automatically treat you with unwanted side effects such as those who have just tipped the balance of naturally occurring in the vagina.
Natural remedies use ingredients that are available in pessary form from health food store.There does seem to make sure that you have vaginal bleeding.Once you take your antibiotics might simply be too strong for you.In addition to the principles of how it makes sense to make sure I get and they produce keeps the infection are whitish grey vaginal discharge, fishy smelling discharge caused by vaginosis.By understanding what your body that it will be in the vagina.
Bacterial Vaginosis Oral Treatment
Natural cures for bacterial vaginosis home remedy ideas.This happens because bacterial vaginosis can turn out to work.Drink this solution like tea tree oil and goldenseal just to get rid of bacterial vaginosis test.Therefore any remedy must focus on the pocket too.While yogurt is one of them find the right way.
And be sure that she will acquire sexually transmitted diseases.Wear comfortable cotton panties and use all of the menstrual cycle and pregnancy is not possible you will be necessary to take appropriate action to control the levels of beneficial microorganisms in the vagina carries healthy bacteria within the vagina.Natural methods rarely cause these problems and infections like BV.The other major symptoms to look out for the infection in the vagina.BV is still present in the comfort of our body, is a risk in obtaining bacterial vaginosis is not always resort to home remedies for bacterial vaginosis.
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normalbeast · 4 years
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If it were possible to “just stop” nobody would be here in the first place! We wouldn’t need therapy for OCD or trauma, we’d just stop thinking about the stuff that makes us feel like shit. Except it’s not that easy, is it? Getting out of harmful patterns is a process. Even quitting shitty habits like biting your nails can take years, and then you don’t even have the added issue of addiction and withdrawal symptoms. The trick to quitting is never to “just stop”, the trick is trying and trying and learning your way out of the pattern.
Is quitting smoking real?
How do people do that?
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sometimesrosy · 6 years
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im also going through that growing phase the anon was talking about and for the longest time I thought something was wrong, that maybe I was dissociating with myself and losing my way but maybe I'm just changing. I dont know how to find myself again but I guess I need to give it time. How do I tell if I'm changing or dissociating? And thank you endlessly. Not just for your input on fandom and all that entails but because we can come to you with personal problems and you will still help. xoxo.
okay. This is a big question, and I have to add a warning here. I am not a psychiatrist or psychologist. I’ve had training in counseling in HS (as a peer counselor) college (as a resident advisor) and grad school (as a teacher.) I’ve done a lot of self study and am familiar with psychology and self help and other ways of understanding our minds and behaviors. I’ve lead workshops, talked people through things, attended intense conferences but only taken one psych class. I might be able to to tell when someone needs to go see a real psychiatrist, but I am not one. I mostly use my knowledge of psychology to help myself, to write realistic characters and to analyze fiction. 
So when I got your question, the first thing I did was google. I got a lot of science/academic hits, but because of my training I could decode it enough to find the sites that were most helpful to me. My first question? What is dissociation and when does it become a problem? Because disorders start with behavior that is normal, but veers into a dysfunction that harms the person.
Q: What Is Dissociation?Dissociation is a disconnection between a person’s thoughts, memories, feelings, actions, or sense of who he or she is. This is a normal process that everyone has experienced. Examples of mild, common dissociation include daydreaming, highway hypnosis, or “getting lost” in a book or movie, all of which involve “losing touch” with awareness of one’s immediate surroundings.
Q: When Is Dissociation Helpful?During a traumatic experience such as an accident, disaster, or crime victimization, dissociation can help a person tolerate what might otherwise be too difficult to bear. In situations like these, a person may dissociate the memory of the place, circumstances, or feelings about of the overwhelming event, mentally escaping from the fear, pain, and horror. This may make it difficult to later remember the details of the experience, as reported by many disaster and accident survivors.
Q: What is a Dissociative Disorder?Tragically, ongoing traumatic conditions such as abuse, community violence, war, or painful medical procedures are not one-time events.  For people repeatedly exposed to these experiences, especially in childhood, dissociation is an extremely effective coping “skill.” However, it can become a double-edged sword. It can protect them from awareness of the pain in the short-run, but a person who dissociates often may find in the long-run his or her sense of personal history and identity is affected. For some people, dissociation is so frequent it results in serious pathology, relationship difficulties, and inability to function, especially when under stress. [X lots of info here on dissociative disorders but too much for this post.]
So you see here that dissociation has a large range, from completely harmless, like getting lost in tv show (The 100 anyone?) to developing multiple “personalities.” It doesn’t become a disorder until the long term effects make you dysfunctional in your life. 
It sounds to me like what we’re talking about here is a dissociation somewhere between the normal everyday stuff, and something dysfunctional. I’m not 100% sure, but I’d guess duration of the symptoms might tell us if it counts as a mild disorder. When I researched PTSD, (back during 9/11) I learned that it doesn’t count as a disorder until the symptoms continue on for six months after the trauma. So technically, all the characters on the 100 were NOT suffering from ptsd, but from a NORMAL reaction to traumatic events. Who knew? (well I did, but the narrative conventions had us talking about it as a disorder. it’s an important discussion.)
So, it took a while to get here, but I wanted to make sure we understood what we’re talking about. I think this is what we’re looking at. 
Something in your life has stopped working, or disappeared, or isn’t making you happy. It might be something that you have hung your identity on. “This is who I am.” Or something you’ve built your habits around. “This is how I fill my days.” Or something you’ve created as the center of your motivation. “This is what is important in life.”
And then it’s gone. 
So you’ve lost an essential part of your identity, your daily routine, and your purpose in life. Now what?
Now you feel disconnected (because you are. You were disconnected from something that made meaning in your life.) Now you feel aimless (because you lost your purpose.) Now life seems meaningless (because what’s important no longer is.) The more of these changes that happen at once, the harder it is to find your footing. 
Can you see that your feelings of dissociation are normal now? 
You’re dealing with a profound change in your life and self. What once made sense is divorced from you. 
In this case, I’d focus on the things that fell out of whack. 
Identity: Who Am I? 
Take time to remember who you were before you lost touch with yourself. Old favorites, music, movies, habits, hobbies, interests. Think back on your successes and failures too, what you’ve overcome. 
Purpose: Why Am I Here?  
Reconnect with the things you used to think were important. Remember what you believed in. You may have to question some of it and discard old ideas that no longer work for you. When you figure out what you DON’T believe, it is often easier to understand what you DO believe. “Not this– but this !!!” (Add a subheading here of  “What Do I Want?” or maybe it’s its own heading. idk.)
Function: How Do I Create My Life?
 Create new habits. Make appointments. Sign up for classes. Get a new job. Join challenges. Keep a to do list. Get your life moving so that you can engage in it again and choose which habits work for you.
It turns out, my friends, that I could actually talk about this all day long. 
This is the subject of my work that I’ve been doing for the last 20 years or more. I call it Art and Transformation, and I use creativity and reflection to help us understand ourselves, work through change, and create a life that is meaningful and empowering. Answering this ask has helped me focus on some of my own Identity, Purpose and Function questions, as rebuilding this work has been part of my process in facing the extreme changes I’ve gone through in the last few years. I should just cut and paste this whole ask into my scrivener file. It might get its own file. 
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digital-dragoon · 7 years
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❥ ☾ ♡ max, ☎ ⊗ ❤ tigerstar?
Max
❥ : Describe a verbal way they would express complete trust.
Distancing himself from others through apathy and derision is a habit and defensive mechanism both that tends to hang over his head in nearly everything that he does. It’s a way of coping, really. One of the few things he can rely on as a way to gauge reactions and the nature of others without coming off as being too amiable or open. So trust is a very personal thing for him, something that he would rely on only by truly knowing that others wouldn’t abandon him, that they would want the best for him and support him through bad times. … Even knowing that he’s a mess of a kid.
So, for him, approaching others and asking for support is one of those rare few ways that he can openly show his trust. Whether it’s in small things like getting stuff from high shelves in shops or helping him figure out something in a video game, it’s a form of depending on someone in a way he hasn’t done in a long time, particularly when it comes to asking something like this of a mature figure. Showing off things he’s achieved, even if it’s in a low-key grumbled manner is another way in which he would show anything of that careful form of trust. Whether that’s showing something he’s (bothered to, in his words) create or showing off his achievements, like beating a level in a game/catching some rare kind of thing in one. They’re all instances in which he’s… kind of showing that side of himself that he conceals. That need for validation.
☾ : On a sleepless night, what would they be found doing?
Making black coffee would be one of the First Things he’d do, it’s a habitual routine; If he can’t sleep, what’s the point in not adding to that sleeplessness, amirite? Particularly when your sleeping schedule is typically out of whack anyway. But uh, after that, he generally would’ve gone out walking about the camp back at Camp Campbell, typically to ruminate over by the lake or try and dig up random shit on some of the other campers/counselors for fun. Sometimes, he’d even go out of his way to torment Neil or Nikki in order to get them to wake up and join him in some early chaotic antics before everybody else woke up. (Neil would often just, go back to sleep but Nikki would take it in stride and typically Help in these ventures.)
On Denny, it’s different; watching late night TV with Veronica and Heather is… one of the ways that actually help calm and somewhat ground him, even if it’s… a thought he’d keep to himself. He also enjoys playing Night Trap with them around. (He’s now kinda addicted to that game. Help Him.) Or playing some on his DS, which… he couldn’t be bothered to spray paint so. It’s remaining a cool pink. 
If he feels particularly restless, he’ll just take off and roam about Beacon Heights for a bit to clear his head. As… it’s one of the few habits that feels kind of similar to being back at camp. (Although he’d be loath to admit it.) Or in other cases, cause some Issues for the people around the neighbourhood by acting the Gremlin and instigating a bit of chaos during more extreme nights of sleeplessness. (Such as when he’s suffered from a nightmare or feels more shit than usual.)
♡ : Is there a certain scent that brings about nostalgia? If so, describe a memory this scent brings back.
Nothing, nope. Especially not the smell of a bacon and egg sandwich, like the ones his dad used to make in the morning on good days. Or, later, after the rifts have dumped him back in this world again, the smell of pizza: something he’d shared with David and Gwen after that whole incident with finding out his parent’s had left him at Camp Campbell. 
It’s just… no.
Tigerstar
☎ : List three or more people they would call out for during an emergency.
Well, on Denny it’d be Badgerstripe and Mothpaw. As a warrior and the camp’s med-cat, they’d be the first to call on. And back in his world, if he’d still been a Dark Forest cat and not dead… again - it would’ve been Hawkfrost and Thistleclaw. 
⊗ : What is something that causes them to question themself? 
I already answered this one! But I’ll add some more bits to it: His relationship with Brambleclaw and the fact that his son still… cares about what he does on some level hits at a place inside of him that actually concerns him a little. He… doesn’t know what to make of these flashes of emotions, emotions connected to how his son reacts to him and the arguments that they have every time it happens. There’s a part of him that wonders why this is happening. Why he should feel weaknesses like this… and he doesn’t know how to deal with it.
❤ : Describe a physical action that shows complete trust.
Trust, with Tigerstar, is a double-edged blade. It may seem as if he considers someone trustworthy, but it’s only typically a ruse to draw them closer to him, to make them trust him. Small mannerisms such as resting his tail tip on their side, for instance, would be the most common form of this. An instance of faked trust that would make those around him feel as if they’ve accomplished something, that they have done right by him. 
But in true instances of something, anything, that resembles true trust, it would be portrayed differently. Awkwardly, almost. Such as a rough brush of his side past them or a swift touch of his nose against their flank. … But this is a rarity that barely anyone would ever witness. Something he once used to do with Sasha, but has never been seen committing to again after. 
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Tackling diabetes with a ketogenic diet – the tale continued
New Post has been published on https://bestrawfoodrecipes.com/tackling-diabetes-with-a-ketogenic-diet-the-tale-continued/
Tackling diabetes with a ketogenic diet – the tale continued

Low carb diets are a hot topic. Having told of his own efforts to reverse T2 diabetes last week, JOHN McCRONE answers some of the reader response.
OPINION: One moment triumph, the next dropped straight back into the worries and uncertainties. All part of the complexities of dealing with a chronic condition like diabetes, I guess.
What am I talking about? Well, last week I told of my own type 2 diabetes journey – about having pulled back from the brink through adopting the still controversial Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) diet.
Out of the blue – as a “slimmish, fittish, 60-ish, white male” on the standard, sugar and starch heavy, insulin-spiking, Kiwi diet – I had developed sky-high blood glucose levels.
READ MORE: * Back from the brink: How I reversed my diabetes * The big fat debate over whether keto-style diets are right for reversing diabetes * Residents still suffering from ‘quake-brain’ * It’s not the calories, it’s our modern lifestyle that is killing us
And just about as quickly, I managed to drop those levels back down into normal range by switching to a fat-burning, ketogenic, eating pattern.
Certainly a tale of triumph. And one that resonated with the New Zealand public. There are plenty of us out there struggling with the same health issues for the same dietary reasons.
So keep the conversation going many urged. And I shall.
This week I will first reply on some of the points raised in the readers’ comments on the two articles – my personal journey with LCHF, and the official view.
Then I will add an update on how I may have been premature to suggest my own diabetes story is anywhere near finished.
‘A LITTLE LONG’
Overall, the online response was positive. Surprisingly so.
Clearly there are now many other people who have found LCHF and Keto style diets –  low carbohydrate, and very low carbohydrate – to be an effective weapon against chronic illnesses in general.
MURRAY WILSON/STUFF
Checking levels: Those with diabetes get used to the routine of monitoring blood glucose.
Plenty had their own tale to tell. Lizardy says she was diagnosed pre-diabetic and lost 15 kilograms with minimal effort. Low carb helped fix years of nagging ligament inflammation too.
“I am 53 back to playing hockey twice weekly. And am back in my pre-baby goal-weight jeans from the bottom of my drawer. A little flared but they look awesome to me.”
Kat Sciwi says: “I resist calling it a miracle cure, but it almost is.” Linda Smalley says: “The effect was beyond amazing.”
Just as significant perhaps, the comments were short on those saying they had tried the switch and came away disappointed. In consumer terms, the word of mouth for LCHF is good.
But let’s get into some of the gaps, confusions and finer distinctions my articles might have trailed in their wake.
First, geekgirl warmed my heart with: “Great article, if a little long…”. Yes, it was a big information dump. Yet also it barely scratched the surface of a subject that we all need to be getting our heads around.
We know the basic problem. Everything about the modern world has become one great lifestyle experiment whisking us along to an uncertain destination when it comes to its health impacts.
As a species, we evolved to fit a particular nutritional and metabolic landscape. Now we have jumped aboard this wild generational ride in regards to our diets, our stress levels; our patterns of activity, sleep and even entertainment.
A keto-advocating doctor was telling me how whole new diseases classes – like chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia​ – have become rife in just the past two decades of his practice.
Unpicking the damage we are doing to ourselves is going to be a mammoth medical detective task, he says.
So to the other comments. Horrific pulled me up on something very different – suspected racism for describing myself as an old white male.
“I don’t understand how being a white male would make you surprised to get diabetes? Please explain.”
Well, I wasn’t intending to draw attention to New Zealand’s inequality story. But it was indeed in the back of my mind after spotting a barely believable statistic in a 2015 Ministry of Health report.
SUPPLIED
Ethnic disparity: Nearly half of NZ Pacifica – and Indians too – get diabetes by their 70s.
A graph of diabetes prevalence by ethnicity shows that by the time Pākehā Kiwi hit their 70s, nearly a fifth of us will be diabetic. Which is a lot.
However for Māori, this rises to a third. And for Pacifica and Indians, it becomes shockingly close to half for both ethnic groups.
Everyone knows the likely reasons. Income, education and other advantages tend to dictate the diet and lifestyle choices open to people.
As Foo barf notes: “Dietary changes are easier said than done, especially for the majority who aren’t in the lucky club of being able to afford avocado daily. I stick to a similar diet but wow, the cost compared to almost any other diet is roughly double.”
Others replied that – shop smarter – and low carb is perfectly affordable. But anyway, for me the ethnic skew highlights a key fact about diabetes that I was trying to make.
I had felt an unlikely diabetes candidate because of my build. Knobbly-kneed and naturally skinny like my distant Scottish ancestors.
I was of course a classic case of TOFI – thin on the outside, fat on the inside. But only having a slightly bulging tummy gave me a false sense of security.
And here we have our national statistics showing the same thing. Pacifica and Indians – with their different genetics and typical body types – can still wind up with the same dreadful diabetes rates.
So the call to action applies to everyone. Being outwardly slim is no protection if your diet is choking up your internal organs with fat.
NAME-CHECKING THE COMPETITION
Another complaint about my articles was the failure to name-check all the varieties of diabetes-beating diets, and also to give more prominence to fasting as a tactic.
Liz Tillman says: “I notice there was no mention of Dr Michael Mosley’s Fast800/5:2 diet based on the Mediterranean diet. Macro’s of 30 per cent carbs, 30 per cent protein, 40 per cent fat, with time restricted eating. Less extreme than keto but still really effective.”
Lance Florance says: “Started on a keto diet and then moved to carnivore over the last 6mths. I am 50 and never felt as good as what I do now.”
Awwsudup says: “If you include an intermittent fasting lifestyle you don’t need to go full blown keto. You still get great long term results and no boredom of food choice.”
Some other readers touched on the V-word. Online, you can’t mention keto – with its heavy promotion of bacon, eggs and grass-fed beef – without drawing a similarly motivated response from the vegetarian camp.
Mc72 says: “A whole food plant based diet treats the cause and reverses diabetes on a regular basis. High fat diets are not good for us. High protein is also suicidal.”
Kiwiegghead says: “Eat all the carbohydrates from whole plants and you cannot get diabetes.”
Evidence Based Eating NZ,  a lobby group, also wrote in, demanding an opportunity to have its say in the debate.
But actually, the vegan backlash was unexpectedly muted given the way they and keto make such natural social media foes.
Keto enthusiasts, like the UK’s Dr Zoe Harcombe, talk openly about a world vegan conspiracy – the Seventh Day Adventists, puritanical dietitians, cereal companies and others getting together in a moral crusade against meat.
JAMES LOWE/STUFF
Sweet temptation: Readers note that even modern recipe books are whacking up the sugar content.
No surprise vegans hit back just as hard, saying the planet can’t afford for humans to push animal protein diets. There are bigger economic and environmental priorities in play.
However it may be a sign the conversation is being moved along now that it is a Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) diet that is being opposed to an LCHF one.
You can be a vegetarian and still go LCHF – although it is more difficult to hit the macronutrient balances.
And LCHF shares the same basic message that the first thing we all need to do is stop eating processed foods and end our love affair with sugar and highly-refined starch. Go whole food – real food – and cut the junk, reduce the calories.
For most people, that is already going to get them most of the way to where they want to be in terms of preventing, and even reversing, chronic disease.
RETAIL OUTLETS FOR BIG PHARMA
More comments. Many readers made the point that a big change in dietary habits can be difficult. And also that the current medical establishment is not geared up to support such a change.
Some were blunt. SaltyDog says: “The majority of GP’s are retail outlets for big pharma”.
Eljayem says: “In this country we do have to look after ourselves. The health system here is designed to be the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff – too late but free.”
Adeej wondered: “Where’s the solution if you don’t like to cook, and you use the processed foods primarily for convenience?”
Ponder this made the interesting observation that even modern recipe books are part of the problem. They whack up the sugar content to match today’s sweeter tooth.
 “From 1 cup to 1 and ¾ cups in 25 years. If people don’t know what food used to taste like 30-40 years ago, they have no idea how much sugar has been snuck into their diet.”
Then to answer on a few details and getting back to my own personal story, Kaybe says she felt somewhat misled by the end.
“His amazingly swift reduction in mmol readings wasn’t totally a result of changing his diet, but mostly down to taking metformin, a standard diabetes drug.”
Yes, I did go on to metformin pretty immediately – along with starting to fix my diet. I’m not against drugs that might work.
My HbA1c blood glucose reading fell from its super high 99 mmol/mol to a normal 35 within six months. But it was getting to understand the principles of LCHF, and tightening my diet accordingly, which I felt did most of the heavy lifting.
I was able to wind down the metformin, then drop it completely, after a year. Largely I did that as an experiment to see if diet alone could do it.
With no metformin, my HbA1c has risen from 35 to 39. So as I said in the article, that gives a gauge of how much the pills did make a difference. The more crucial step was still subtracting the carb fuel driving up my blood sugar.
The high fat aspect of LCHF drew the expected questions as well.
Grad28 asks: “I am curious as to what your cholesterol levels are. So much conflicting reports regarding excess fats and effects of high cholesterol.”
I agree this is a worry because the experts give us such contrasting views. All I can say is that, for me, LCHF sent my lipid panel numbers in the right direction.
My total cholesterol still counts as high. It was 6.9 mmol/l at diagnosis in 2017 and now stands at 6.1. LDL was 3.9 and is 3.7. So only small improvements. Yet certainly nothing getting worse.
And for the markers that really count to keto believers – like my triglyceride to HDL ratio – they have flipped spectacularly.
My triglycerides have dropped from 3.5 to 1.0. My “good” HDL cholesterol has risen from 1.4 to 1.9. Plug that into the handy online TG:HDL calculator (which adjusts for the different measurement basis) and my overall ratio has plummeted from 5.7 to 1.2.
In simple terms, my circulation is no longer such a swimming soup of sugar-derived fats wandering the body seeking a home.
So a “higher fat” diet hasn’t harmed at all. Yet remember also that I’m likely eating less fat, or at least about the same as before, in total.
LCHF is about cutting out the sugary and starchy carbs to achieve a better macronutrient balance, not about adding extra fat on top of the carbs you already eat. It is a diet.
THE LADA QUESTION
Finally the new thing that has caused a few sleepless nights.
A number of commenters were unhappy that type 1 diabetes – the auto-immune condition which can’t be reversed by diet – was not explained.
XdangermouseX says: I wish they would rename T2 diabetes to something else. These headlines break my T1 little heart.”
Kozmokramer says: “Totally agree…. especially when people start talking about how you can cure type one diabetes and be insulin free! Very dangerous.”
The T1 distinction was another point left out for space reasons. I apologise. Yet others then went on to say how – in my case – it could be relevant.
Babymw warns: “I think you will find if you have the antibody testing you have LADA – Latent Autoimmune Diabetes of Adulthood. Type 1 diabetes. It’s simply because of your age they have said T2.”
LADA, also called type 1.5 diabetes, is now recognised as a syndrome of its own.
You start off looking like type 2 as your pancreas is failing but not completely shot. Its insulin-producing beta cells are limping along and so diet change can be enough to fix your blood glucose levels for a while.
But after a honeymoon period – usually months, but occasionally years – the immune reaction which is doing the damage roars back to polish your pancreas off. You become effectively T1 and need to be on insulin injections.
Oh bugger indeed, I thought. I’ve managed two years. But probably time to pester the doctor for the further tests to confirm what track I am on.
New research is showing type 2 can be properly reversed if your story is just about a fat-clogged pancreas suppressing beta cell activity. Remove the organ fat and a normal insulin response can fire up again.
Trials last year by Newcastle University’s Professor Roy Taylor found a strict weight loss diet saw this happen for two-thirds of his subjects. But for the other third, the beta cells failed to rebound.
I checked my own situation, paying for a $40 blood test to see how my insulin production is faring. It is ticking along at a low normal of 33 pmol/l for now. The pancreas still flickers, but is possibly in the twilight zone.
A GP – a specialist in the genetics of chronic illnesses like diabetes – kindly got in touch after the articles and described why I might fit the LADA scenario.
By my own account, he says, I have been under considerable work and life stress following the Canterbury earthquakes. Back in 2013, I was writing about having brain fog, arthritic flares and other evidence of chronic inflammation.
His bet would be that I have a common genetic weakness – the COMt Val/Met polymorphism – which prevents efficient clear up of certain critical neuro-chemicals.
Stress and a resulting generalised state of inflammation would have stayed locked on, roaming the body, looking for places to land. And with a less than perfect diet, my pancreas would have eventually been caught up in the immune system’s cross fire.
It is a speculative bit of detective work without further evidence. Yet if it is basically an auto-immune attack, then it is likely to return to finish the job.
The good news, he adds brightly, is that an LCHF way of eating – coupled to intermittent fasting and the kind of hard gym work I am doing – is still the way to both turn off inflammation and also minimise the need for insulin if T2 does become T1.
Commenters talked about that too. KatyPi, with a T1 daughter, says: “Type 1 can’t be reversed, but control and weight fluctuations can be greatly improved by adopting the low carb, high fat diet.”
Angela Nolan agrees: “Type 1’s have reported needing much less insulin and gaining much better blood sugar control eating low carb, high fat diets.”
Again, it is heartening the knowledge is out there. People are realising the damage bad diet can do and how they might need to get proactive about changing that.
So share experiences and maintain an open mind. Yes, keep the conversation going please.
Source link Keto Diet Effects
0 notes
Text
Tackling diabetes with a ketogenic diet – the tale continued
New Post has been published on https://bestrawfoodrecipes.com/tackling-diabetes-with-a-ketogenic-diet-the-tale-continued/
Tackling diabetes with a ketogenic diet – the tale continued

Low carb diets are a hot topic. Having told of his own efforts to reverse T2 diabetes last week, JOHN McCRONE answers some of the reader response.
OPINION: One moment triumph, the next dropped straight back into the worries and uncertainties. All part of the complexities of dealing with a chronic condition like diabetes, I guess.
What am I talking about? Well, last week I told of my own type 2 diabetes journey – about having pulled back from the brink through adopting the still controversial Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) diet.
Out of the blue – as a “slimmish, fittish, 60-ish, white male” on the standard, sugar and starch heavy, insulin-spiking, Kiwi diet – I had developed sky-high blood glucose levels.
READ MORE: * Back from the brink: How I reversed my diabetes * The big fat debate over whether keto-style diets are right for reversing diabetes * Residents still suffering from ‘quake-brain’ * It’s not the calories, it’s our modern lifestyle that is killing us
And just about as quickly, I managed to drop those levels back down into normal range by switching to a fat-burning, ketogenic, eating pattern.
Certainly a tale of triumph. And one that resonated with the New Zealand public. There are plenty of us out there struggling with the same health issues for the same dietary reasons.
So keep the conversation going many urged. And I shall.
This week I will first reply on some of the points raised in the readers’ comments on the two articles – my personal journey with LCHF, and the official view.
Then I will add an update on how I may have been premature to suggest my own diabetes story is anywhere near finished.
‘A LITTLE LONG’
Overall, the online response was positive. Surprisingly so.
Clearly there are now many other people who have found LCHF and Keto style diets –  low carbohydrate, and very low carbohydrate – to be an effective weapon against chronic illnesses in general.
MURRAY WILSON/STUFF
Checking levels: Those with diabetes get used to the routine of monitoring blood glucose.
Plenty had their own tale to tell. Lizardy says she was diagnosed pre-diabetic and lost 15 kilograms with minimal effort. Low carb helped fix years of nagging ligament inflammation too.
“I am 53 back to playing hockey twice weekly. And am back in my pre-baby goal-weight jeans from the bottom of my drawer. A little flared but they look awesome to me.”
Kat Sciwi says: “I resist calling it a miracle cure, but it almost is.” Linda Smalley says: “The effect was beyond amazing.”
Just as significant perhaps, the comments were short on those saying they had tried the switch and came away disappointed. In consumer terms, the word of mouth for LCHF is good.
But let’s get into some of the gaps, confusions and finer distinctions my articles might have trailed in their wake.
First, geekgirl warmed my heart with: “Great article, if a little long…”. Yes, it was a big information dump. Yet also it barely scratched the surface of a subject that we all need to be getting our heads around.
We know the basic problem. Everything about the modern world has become one great lifestyle experiment whisking us along to an uncertain destination when it comes to its health impacts.
As a species, we evolved to fit a particular nutritional and metabolic landscape. Now we have jumped aboard this wild generational ride in regards to our diets, our stress levels; our patterns of activity, sleep and even entertainment.
A keto-advocating doctor was telling me how whole new diseases classes – like chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia​ – have become rife in just the past two decades of his practice.
Unpicking the damage we are doing to ourselves is going to be a mammoth medical detective task, he says.
So to the other comments. Horrific pulled me up on something very different – suspected racism for describing myself as an old white male.
“I don’t understand how being a white male would make you surprised to get diabetes? Please explain.”
Well, I wasn’t intending to draw attention to New Zealand’s inequality story. But it was indeed in the back of my mind after spotting a barely believable statistic in a 2015 Ministry of Health report.
SUPPLIED
Ethnic disparity: Nearly half of NZ Pacifica – and Indians too – get diabetes by their 70s.
A graph of diabetes prevalence by ethnicity shows that by the time Pākehā Kiwi hit their 70s, nearly a fifth of us will be diabetic. Which is a lot.
However for Māori, this rises to a third. And for Pacifica and Indians, it becomes shockingly close to half for both ethnic groups.
Everyone knows the likely reasons. Income, education and other advantages tend to dictate the diet and lifestyle choices open to people.
As Foo barf notes: “Dietary changes are easier said than done, especially for the majority who aren’t in the lucky club of being able to afford avocado daily. I stick to a similar diet but wow, the cost compared to almost any other diet is roughly double.”
Others replied that – shop smarter – and low carb is perfectly affordable. But anyway, for me the ethnic skew highlights a key fact about diabetes that I was trying to make.
I had felt an unlikely diabetes candidate because of my build. Knobbly-kneed and naturally skinny like my distant Scottish ancestors.
I was of course a classic case of TOFI – thin on the outside, fat on the inside. But only having a slightly bulging tummy gave me a false sense of security.
And here we have our national statistics showing the same thing. Pacifica and Indians – with their different genetics and typical body types – can still wind up with the same dreadful diabetes rates.
So the call to action applies to everyone. Being outwardly slim is no protection if your diet is choking up your internal organs with fat.
NAME-CHECKING THE COMPETITION
Another complaint about my articles was the failure to name-check all the varieties of diabetes-beating diets, and also to give more prominence to fasting as a tactic.
Liz Tillman says: “I notice there was no mention of Dr Michael Mosley’s Fast800/5:2 diet based on the Mediterranean diet. Macro’s of 30 per cent carbs, 30 per cent protein, 40 per cent fat, with time restricted eating. Less extreme than keto but still really effective.”
Lance Florance says: “Started on a keto diet and then moved to carnivore over the last 6mths. I am 50 and never felt as good as what I do now.”
Awwsudup says: “If you include an intermittent fasting lifestyle you don’t need to go full blown keto. You still get great long term results and no boredom of food choice.”
Some other readers touched on the V-word. Online, you can’t mention keto – with its heavy promotion of bacon, eggs and grass-fed beef – without drawing a similarly motivated response from the vegetarian camp.
Mc72 says: “A whole food plant based diet treats the cause and reverses diabetes on a regular basis. High fat diets are not good for us. High protein is also suicidal.”
Kiwiegghead says: “Eat all the carbohydrates from whole plants and you cannot get diabetes.”
Evidence Based Eating NZ,  a lobby group, also wrote in, demanding an opportunity to have its say in the debate.
But actually, the vegan backlash was unexpectedly muted given the way they and keto make such natural social media foes.
Keto enthusiasts, like the UK’s Dr Zoe Harcombe, talk openly about a world vegan conspiracy – the Seventh Day Adventists, puritanical dietitians, cereal companies and others getting together in a moral crusade against meat.
JAMES LOWE/STUFF
Sweet temptation: Readers note that even modern recipe books are whacking up the sugar content.
No surprise vegans hit back just as hard, saying the planet can’t afford for humans to push animal protein diets. There are bigger economic and environmental priorities in play.
However it may be a sign the conversation is being moved along now that it is a Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB) diet that is being opposed to an LCHF one.
You can be a vegetarian and still go LCHF – although it is more difficult to hit the macronutrient balances.
And LCHF shares the same basic message that the first thing we all need to do is stop eating processed foods and end our love affair with sugar and highly-refined starch. Go whole food – real food – and cut the junk, reduce the calories.
For most people, that is already going to get them most of the way to where they want to be in terms of preventing, and even reversing, chronic disease.
RETAIL OUTLETS FOR BIG PHARMA
More comments. Many readers made the point that a big change in dietary habits can be difficult. And also that the current medical establishment is not geared up to support such a change.
Some were blunt. SaltyDog says: “The majority of GP’s are retail outlets for big pharma”.
Eljayem says: “In this country we do have to look after ourselves. The health system here is designed to be the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff – too late but free.”
Adeej wondered: “Where’s the solution if you don’t like to cook, and you use the processed foods primarily for convenience?”
Ponder this made the interesting observation that even modern recipe books are part of the problem. They whack up the sugar content to match today’s sweeter tooth.
 “From 1 cup to 1 and ¾ cups in 25 years. If people don’t know what food used to taste like 30-40 years ago, they have no idea how much sugar has been snuck into their diet.”
Then to answer on a few details and getting back to my own personal story, Kaybe says she felt somewhat misled by the end.
“His amazingly swift reduction in mmol readings wasn’t totally a result of changing his diet, but mostly down to taking metformin, a standard diabetes drug.”
Yes, I did go on to metformin pretty immediately – along with starting to fix my diet. I’m not against drugs that might work.
My HbA1c blood glucose reading fell from its super high 99 mmol/mol to a normal 35 within six months. But it was getting to understand the principles of LCHF, and tightening my diet accordingly, which I felt did most of the heavy lifting.
I was able to wind down the metformin, then drop it completely, after a year. Largely I did that as an experiment to see if diet alone could do it.
With no metformin, my HbA1c has risen from 35 to 39. So as I said in the article, that gives a gauge of how much the pills did make a difference. The more crucial step was still subtracting the carb fuel driving up my blood sugar.
The high fat aspect of LCHF drew the expected questions as well.
Grad28 asks: “I am curious as to what your cholesterol levels are. So much conflicting reports regarding excess fats and effects of high cholesterol.”
I agree this is a worry because the experts give us such contrasting views. All I can say is that, for me, LCHF sent my lipid panel numbers in the right direction.
My total cholesterol still counts as high. It was 6.9 mmol/l at diagnosis in 2017 and now stands at 6.1. LDL was 3.9 and is 3.7. So only small improvements. Yet certainly nothing getting worse.
And for the markers that really count to keto believers – like my triglyceride to HDL ratio – they have flipped spectacularly.
My triglycerides have dropped from 3.5 to 1.0. My “good” HDL cholesterol has risen from 1.4 to 1.9. Plug that into the handy online TG:HDL calculator (which adjusts for the different measurement basis) and my overall ratio has plummeted from 5.7 to 1.2.
In simple terms, my circulation is no longer such a swimming soup of sugar-derived fats wandering the body seeking a home.
So a “higher fat” diet hasn’t harmed at all. Yet remember also that I’m likely eating less fat, or at least about the same as before, in total.
LCHF is about cutting out the sugary and starchy carbs to achieve a better macronutrient balance, not about adding extra fat on top of the carbs you already eat. It is a diet.
THE LADA QUESTION
Finally the new thing that has caused a few sleepless nights.
A number of commenters were unhappy that type 1 diabetes – the auto-immune condition which can’t be reversed by diet – was not explained.
XdangermouseX says: I wish they would rename T2 diabetes to something else. These headlines break my T1 little heart.”
Kozmokramer says: “Totally agree…. especially when people start talking about how you can cure type one diabetes and be insulin free! Very dangerous.”
The T1 distinction was another point left out for space reasons. I apologise. Yet others then went on to say how – in my case – it could be relevant.
Babymw warns: “I think you will find if you have the antibody testing you have LADA – Latent Autoimmune Diabetes of Adulthood. Type 1 diabetes. It’s simply because of your age they have said T2.”
LADA, also called type 1.5 diabetes, is now recognised as a syndrome of its own.
You start off looking like type 2 as your pancreas is failing but not completely shot. Its insulin-producing beta cells are limping along and so diet change can be enough to fix your blood glucose levels for a while.
But after a honeymoon period – usually months, but occasionally years – the immune reaction which is doing the damage roars back to polish your pancreas off. You become effectively T1 and need to be on insulin injections.
Oh bugger indeed, I thought. I’ve managed two years. But probably time to pester the doctor for the further tests to confirm what track I am on.
New research is showing type 2 can be properly reversed if your story is just about a fat-clogged pancreas suppressing beta cell activity. Remove the organ fat and a normal insulin response can fire up again.
Trials last year by Newcastle University’s Professor Roy Taylor found a strict weight loss diet saw this happen for two-thirds of his subjects. But for the other third, the beta cells failed to rebound.
I checked my own situation, paying for a $40 blood test to see how my insulin production is faring. It is ticking along at a low normal of 33 pmol/l for now. The pancreas still flickers, but is possibly in the twilight zone.
A GP – a specialist in the genetics of chronic illnesses like diabetes – kindly got in touch after the articles and described why I might fit the LADA scenario.
By my own account, he says, I have been under considerable work and life stress following the Canterbury earthquakes. Back in 2013, I was writing about having brain fog, arthritic flares and other evidence of chronic inflammation.
His bet would be that I have a common genetic weakness – the COMt Val/Met polymorphism – which prevents efficient clear up of certain critical neuro-chemicals.
Stress and a resulting generalised state of inflammation would have stayed locked on, roaming the body, looking for places to land. And with a less than perfect diet, my pancreas would have eventually been caught up in the immune system’s cross fire.
It is a speculative bit of detective work without further evidence. Yet if it is basically an auto-immune attack, then it is likely to return to finish the job.
The good news, he adds brightly, is that an LCHF way of eating – coupled to intermittent fasting and the kind of hard gym work I am doing – is still the way to both turn off inflammation and also minimise the need for insulin if T2 does become T1.
Commenters talked about that too. KatyPi, with a T1 daughter, says: “Type 1 can’t be reversed, but control and weight fluctuations can be greatly improved by adopting the low carb, high fat diet.”
Angela Nolan agrees: “Type 1’s have reported needing much less insulin and gaining much better blood sugar control eating low carb, high fat diets.”
Again, it is heartening the knowledge is out there. People are realising the damage bad diet can do and how they might need to get proactive about changing that.
So share experiences and maintain an open mind. Yes, keep the conversation going please.
Source link Keto Diet Effects
0 notes
tortuga-aak · 6 years
Text
I had a dietitian look at what I ate for a week — and it turns out I'm not as healthy as I thought
Emily DiNuzzo/INSIDER
I had a registered dietitian look at what I ate for a week. 
Her process was extremely thorough and made me really think about my diet. 
I realized my disordered eating isn't "cured," and that being so regimented isn't necessarily healthier. 
I felt like a fraud, because I write about health and fitness and I don't eat perfectly.
I consider myself a relatively healthy person. I, thankfully, don't have any significant medical issues, I happily eat my vegetables  (I know, I'm a rare breed), and I love to exercise. Those are just some of the reasons why I enjoy writing about health and fitness for a living.
But, as it turns out, I'm a fraud.
I recently had registered dietitian Lisa DeFazio look at what I ate for a week, and I learned that my eating habits aren't exactly the healthiest. 
Here's what we did, what I learned, and what you should know before going to see a registered dietitian. 
First, I filled out a questionnaire about my build and eating habits. 
Emily DiNuzzo/INSIDER
I spoke with DeFazio prior to the experiment, and throughout the week. She emphasized early on that I shouldn't hold anything back. She said that the more honest I was, the more she would be able to help me. She asked me to send her food diaries for an average weekday and weekend day. 
In addition to those entries, she had me answer a questionaire about my health. There were typical inquiries — like those about my weight and height — as well as some surprising ones, like what time I go to bed, when I typically eat dinner, and how often I eat certain foods. 
She pointed out that my protein powder could cause sugar cravings. 
Emily DiNuzzo/INSIDER
I then sent her two days-worth of food and exercise entries to analyze. Here's what they contained:
Monday Day 1 - 
Breakfast 1: One hard boiled egg (half the yolk), one slice of white Italian bread, a sprinkle of Trader Joe's everything bagel seasoning, and one cup of green tea with one scoop (half a serving) of collagen peptides
Snack: One cup of coffee with whole milk 
Lunch: Leftover chicken and broccoli from yesterday's Chinese food takeout, and water
Snack 2: One cup of green tea and a handful of Lucky Charms 
Dinner: Three ounces of baked salmon with olive oil and lemon, 10 roasted mini asparagus spears), and water 
Snack 3: One cup of regular black tea with skim milk 
Workout: None on this day
Tuesday Day 2 - 
Emily DiNuzzo/ INSIDER
Breakfast 1: One medium hard boiled egg (no yolk) and one cinnamon Honey Maid graham cracker sheet
Breakfast 2: Half a scoop of protein powder, half a cup of fresh blackberries, and one cup of green tea with one scoop (half a serving) of collagen peptides 
Snack 1: One homemade pumpkin snickerdoodle cookie
Lunch: Four ounces of baked salmon, roasted asparagus, and white rice 
Snack 2: Chai tea and a raspberry fig bar
Dinner: Three ounces of grilled chicken over some mixed greens with Italian dressing 
Snack 3: A handful of dark chocolate chips and one cup of green tea 
Workout: 30 minutes weight lifting upper body supersets followed by 15 minutes of steady state cardio on the stair master
DeFazio and I talked about the supplements that I take over e-mail — a protein powder and a collagen powder. She asked how they affect me and why I take them. I told her that both products help me keep up with my high-protein diet. That's when DeFazio pointed out an issue with the brand of protein that I was using that I didn't notice. 
"The only thing I did see with it is that there is sucralose and excerthame potassium which is sort of like Equal, like what you would have in diet soda, and the potassium [...] can stimulate sugar cravings," she said. 
She mentioned that my high-protein diet is not an issue, but that I should make sure during regular check-ups that my kidneys are healthy and not overloaded, which can lead to other health issues. 
Based on my regiment eating habits, DeFazio assumed I had a history of disordered eating: she wasn't wrong. 
Foxys Forest Manufacture/Shutterstock
The first thing we talked about on our initial phone call was my weight. For reference, I'm 5-foot-2 and about 130 pounds. According to DeFazio, based on my height and weight I typically would be considered "a little bit heavy." After seeing my high-protein food diary and bodybuilder-style workout routine, however, she said it is unlikely that I am "unhealthy." 
"Weight is sometimes deceiving because of muscle tissues," she said. "So a bodybuilder at 140 pounds and 5-foot-3 is going to be different than someone who doesn't exercise who is 5-foot-3 and 140 pounds."
The next thing she asked me was if I ever had an eating disorder. She said she asked because it's common with women my age and because I seem very meticulous and "regimented." 
I then described my long battle with disordered eating habits that started developing when I was about 15. Weight and appearance was always a preoccupation of mine and controlling my food was, for a time, the only way I thought I could control my life. I binged, restricted, over-exercised, and all but ruined my health and relationship with food. 
I didn't hold back with DeFazio as she asked, and felt comfortable talking to her about it. I knew that she was asking so she could help me and that, if anyone could relate, it would be someone who likely deals with this in her clients.
"I can tell after doing this for so many years based on your eating habits and age that there were probably issues in the past," she said. "Are you surprised that I figured that out?" 
I wasn't surprised, but I was happy that she had the insight to see it. DeFazio told me that she doesn't ask about eating disorders in her original questionnaire because the topic comes up naturally, and because she can tell without the client telling her.  
I limit my carbs, which may cause me to overdo it on the sweet stuff.  
Flickr / JinglyJon
According to DeFazio, I don't eat enough complex carbs with my meals which leads me to crave quick sources of sugar, like chocolate chips and Lucky Charms, as seen in one food diary. 
"You're burning all this glucose and sugar when you're working out, and then your blood sugars are so low like a diabetic that your body is telling you 'I need immediate sugar,'" she said. "So the irony, which is typical with some clients, is that you’re doing these amazing healthy things but [...] then all of a sudden you have this 100% full on sugar rush and that’s because you're not eating enough carbs." 
I honestly didn't think I was eating low-carb at all. I ate bread one morning, which would have been a no-no two years ago. But talking about this with DeFazio made me realize the real issue here. I would rather have the chocolate chips or Lucky Charms than an extra serving of rice or potato, as she recommended, and I rationalized this by eating healthy meals at all other times. Although it's OK to have those chocolate chips or Lucky Charms occasionally, I do it often: this can mess with my overall homeostasis, according to DeFazio. 
In documenting my meals for the rest of the week, I realized I'm very repetitive. 
Emily DiNuzzo/INSIDER
Friday Day 5 - 
Breakfast 1: One hard boiled egg white and two graham crackers, water
Breakfast 2: One third of a cup of egg whites, one whole egg, cooked in olive oil, topped with some Sriracha and a half a cup of pineapple on the side 
Snack: Green tea and water 
Lunch: Four ounce pork chop (trimmed fat off the bone), black beans, white rice 
Dinner: Three ounces of Oscar Meyer roasted turkey deli meat, two kosher dill pickles, one slice of Italian bread, Trader Joes everything bagel seasoning
Sunday Day 6 - 
Breakfast 1: Two poached eggs, one slice of whole wheat toast, home fries, green tea 
Lunch: Tall Starbucks skinny chai tea latte 
Dinner: Everything bagel toasted with blueberry cream cheese 
Most of my diaries looked identical, which is why I didn't list all of them here. I also didn't include my Saturday diary: since I celebrated my birthday that day, we agreed it wouldn't count. 
DeFazio determined that I don't eat enough calories and need to "let go."
Emily DiNuzzo/ INSIDER
After looking at the rest of the week, DeFazio noted that I likely don't eat enough. She said that I eat roughly between 1000 and 1400 calories depending on the day. She attributed this low number to my lack of carbs and fruit.
With those calories in mind, DeFazio pointed out that I might also have an issue with my thyroid due to my weight to average calorie ratio. 
"I looked at your pictures, you're fit, and you're solid [...] in other words, you're a healthy weight, but you just don't seem to eat a lot which is why I mention the thyroid," she said. 
DeFazio explained to me that the thyroid regulates your metabolism. For some people, an under-active thyroid means their body processes 1,200 calories like 1,800 calories. For people who have an overactive thyroid, it process 1,800 calories like 1,200. DeFazio told me, however, that this may not be an issue for me since she does not know my body fat and muscle percentage — I could just be "totally solid." 
She also pointed out my strictness with my diet, contributing it to my type-A personality and that, over time, other things will become more of a priority for me. She said she wanted me to "let go" and not be so regimented all the time. 
I, however, felt guilty about "letting go" a little and having some carb-heavy foods on Sunday, although DeFazio was happy to see them in my diary.
"I was happy about it, you know you had some home fries, and you had quite a bit of carbs in the morning," she said. "Weekends are going to be out of whack, and that's part of the fun of weekends because you lose that regiment. It’s good that you’re not at a point where you’re paranoid to eat a bagel."  
If you want to work with a dietitian, it has to be someone you can trust.
Unsplash / Janice
DeFazio said that she typically checks in with clients on a weekly or monthly basis. If you're interested in working with a dietitian, DeFazio's best piece of advice is to find someone who you are both comfortable talking to and who has legitimate credentials. 
"Number one is to make sure they are a registered dietitian" she said. "A dietitian is like a registered nurse or a pharmacist where we go through medical training, while the term nutritionist is not regulated." 
She also hopes people will keep in mind that, as a registered dietitian, DeFazio's job is to keep people on track. She can not make the diet changes for you. She told me that there is often a bit of hand-holding for some clients. 
I didn't need that, but I did find myself wanting to please her. I wanted to be honest in my diary and eat like I normally do, but I would be lying if I said I didn't think about this story and DeFazio throughout the week. After our first phone call, I even made a conscious effort to stop the sugar-snacking as she suggested. 
I learned I have to take it easy on myself, and it's OK to give into cravings. 
Emily DiNuzzo/ INSIDER
I didn't want to "mess up" or, honestly, disclose some of the things I ate over the course of the week in this story (see Sunday's diary). I felt guilty for not "eating right" on Sunday, and for the sugary foods I had at the beginning of the week. Not only because I knew DeFazio would be watching, but because others would be reading this post. I was concerned about keeping my "street-cred" in the digital health sphere. 
But I can't preach all-encompassing wellness if I can't be kind to myself. One big piece of advice that DeFazio gave me was to chill out and enjoy some treats without beating myself up or going on an all-out binge. She asked me what my guilty pleasures are (an everything bagel toasted with butter and a pumpkin muffin are tied) and suggested I treat myself to one. 
In addition to loosening the reigns on my diet, DeFazio showed me that foods and practices I long believed were healthy — like limiting my carbs, and my choice of protein powder — actually weren't. Being healthy is a process, and although I wanted validation from DeFazio, she showed me that eating healthy isn't a one-stop shop and is something I'll have to work on forever. 
"Over time, you just remember that you're going to be eating for the rest of your life," she said. "I totally get it with the discipline [...], but it's never going to end, and eventually you're going to want a damn pumpkin muffin." 
I did want a damn pumpkin muffin, and I let myself enjoy one without overthinking it. That's a win in my book. 
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samwatchesthings · 6 years
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Multiples of 5 for Leena?
I fixed the fact that my asks were turned off, so this should help with the prompt and ask meme situation. Feel free to ask me any now, so long as you specify what you’re asking on
5. Cleanliness habits (personal, workspace, etc.)She likes things clean and tidy. Honestly, cleaning relaxes her, so she doesn’t mind cleaning the B&B, too much. And having things neat and organized makes her much more relaxed. This doesn’t mix well with Claudia, and to a lesser extent Pete, leaving their stuff scattered about.
10. Neuroses? Do they recognize them as such?I have no good answer here? For one thing because I can’t find a solid enough definition of ‘neuroses’ and only have a vague grasp of the term. I think she tends to get anxious when the team is out on a case for too long, because it’s usually a bad sign. If they stay away for too many days, they come back to an overabundance of baked goods, because she stress bakes. She also sits with her weighted blanket and a cup of tea, and does the crossword, nearly every morning. She has a morning routine she likes to follow.
15. Biggest and smallest short term goal?She’s working on reorganizing the kitchen, and she’s hoping to convince Artie to let her organize his office a bit better.
20. Childhood illnesses? Any interesting stories behind them?I definitely have some sad headcanon bouncing around about her childhood, but I’ll save those for a different time. I think she was probably a fairly healthy kid, but she got a really bad inner ear infection, and had to have tubes in her ears. Ear infections mess with balance, but hers also threw her aura-reading out of whack. Some of the wrong readings it gave her really distressed her, since she didn’t realize until it was fixed that it was messing things up.
25. How do they see themselves 5 years from today?(Basing on where I’m at) Still running the B&B, hopefully with this same family built around her. Possibly a cat, or a partner, or both.
30. Reaction to sudden intrapersonal disaster (eg close family member suddenly dies)Ahh, Leena. She has the healthiest coping methods. Part of being in tune with auras - she’s in tune with her own, and there’s no point trying to fight how she’s feeling. She lets herself grieve - break down and cry when something reminds her of the loss, be angry, be lost. But she’s also naturally a caretaker, so she spends a lot of energy taking care of those around her dealing with the loss too. This helps her, because it makes her feel useful, but she also has to remember to take time for herself, to not just put others above herself.
35. What activities do they enjoy, but consider to be a waste of time?I’m not sure there’s much that Leena considers a ‘waste of time’. She sees the value in doing things for relaxation or enjoyment, so long as they don’t hinder her other work. But I think solitaire card games - they’re such a mundane and repetitive relaxation game that they’re not even particularly enjoyable, but she finds herself playing them nevertheless.
40. Would you say that they have a superiority-complex? Inferiority-complex? Neither?Neither. I think on occasion she might seem a bit superior because of how in-tune she is with her emotions, but it’s not very often that it turns into a superiority thing. She understands that the others have different experiences, and sees why they handle emotions the way they do.
45. Superstitions or views on the occult?Girl can read auras, and works in a warehouse of endless wonder. Pretty sure she’s down for all things occult or superstitious. She likes finding out when some of these things link back to artifacts, seeing how they’ve spread throughout the public consciousness
50. Is this person afraid of dying? Why or why not?This one! This is the question I wanted!No, Leena is not afraid of dying. She’s afraid of not living. Sure, she doesn’t want to die. She’s young, and she’s got so much life ahead of her, and there’s so much she hasn’t done yet, and she enjoys being alive. So she doesn’t want to die. But she’s not going to let fear of death stop her from living life to the fullest while she’s alive. She’s not going to give up a life of endless wonder because a bit of danger comes with it. It’s very much who she is. (She wears her heart on her sleeve. She’d rather tell someone she loves them and get her heart broken, than never say anything.) She fears the lack of experiences more than she fears the possible bad outcomes, if that makes sense. Death’s gonna get her someday. She’s gonna make sure she’s lived a full life first.
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