New to the group

April 29, 2003

We've all be FOGged in. FOG (fear, obligation, and guilt) is how our nada's

manipulate us. If you haven't read it yet get Stop Walking on Eggshells. It

discusses FOG. I agree with Colleen to take time and decide what is best for

YOU. This is a slow process. I've been on this list for 2 (?) years.

It hasn't been easy because even though I know I

am doing the right thing I lost what family I had with my decision.

So here I am hoping to connect with others who understand. Any

suggestions on staying focused on one's decision and not allowing

guilt and feelings of responsibility destroy my new found freedom?

Apologies for the lengthiness here, I have a lot inside right now.

Thanks for listening.

April 29, 2003

Hi ! Thanks for the comments and also for clarifying FOG. My

mother uses it almost exclusively as a way to get what she wants. I

really don't feel that her behavior leaves me much choice but to walk

away (for how long? I don't know). I feel her abusive behavior

prevents me from having a relationship with her. So while it is my

choice, the only other choice would be to continue to be abused. I

guess what I'm saying is her abusive behavior leaves me with no other

choice. I laugh when imagining trying to explain that one. I can hear

her response now: " How can you say that after all I sacrificed for

you? (never understood that one) Noboby had a childhood like mine.

You should feel lucky you didn't live my childhood, etc. " My mother

has NEVER listened to me and her version of my childhood makes me

think she's from another planet.

I really get angry that I had to make a hard decision like this and

that my sister isn't talking to me either (I am NOT angry with her).

I didn't cause this situation but I have to deal with it and make

these hard decisions. I am really angry over the fact that I have no

family support, that I've never had supportive parents who were there

for me or any of us. I guess this is part of acceptance. I see people

at family gatherings and involved in each others lives and I feel

cheated. Lots of anger and sadness and grief for what was and/or

wasn't and for what was taken from me. Actually my anger keeps me

grounded in my decision right now.

Thanks for listening.

> We've all be FOGged in. FOG (fear, obligation, and guilt) is how

our nada's manipulate us. If you haven't read it yet get Stop

Walking on Eggshells. It discusses FOG. I agree with Colleen to

take time and decide what is best for YOU. This is a slow process.

I've been on this list for 2 (?) years.

>

> It hasn't been easy because even though I know I

> am doing the right thing I lost what family I had with my

decision.

> So here I am hoping to connect with others who understand. Any

> suggestions on staying focused on one's decision and not allowing

> guilt and feelings of responsibility destroy my new found freedom?

> Apologies for the lengthiness here, I have a lot inside right now.

> Thanks for listening.

>

July 18, 2006

I recently started taking W-Zymes (proteolytic) by s that I

bought at the Health food store.

Kady

> > >

> > > Hi Ally,

> > >

> > > I am one of those who can gain weight at the drop of a hat but

has

> >a terrible time losing. I had gained 25 pounds since Christmas

and

> >so I really had to look at what I was eating and of course, at my

> >amount of exercise. I was tired and hungry all the time and spent

> >most of the afternoon and evening doing a kitchen inventory in my

> >head and fighting off the urge to ram food into my mouth. I am

> >typically a healthy eater, so the food cravings were what I needed

> >to focus on most. My overall energy levels also needed a huge

> >boost. Over the past few weeks I have finally started losing

> >weight. I am not counting or weighing anything and I have lost 10

> >pounds in about 3 weeks and I am convinced that there is much more

> >to come. I no longer thinking about food until my body tells me

> >that I'm truly hungry and then I eat from my new selection of

> >foods. My energy levels are far from optimum, but there has been

> >great improvement. My tiny husband has also lost 3 pounds. I am

a

> > > career dieter and I had to look for something different. As

> >always, it's a long-winded response, but I was documenting it for

my

> >daughter anyway. My changes may or may not work for you, but here

> >they are…

> > >

> > > 1. I totally eliminated High Fructose Corn Syrup from my

diet. I

> >had to spend a couple of hours in each grocery store, just once

for

> >each store, while I found the brands for each of the things that I

> >was replacing such as cranberry, apple sauce, salad dressing,

mayo,

> >bbq sauce, baked goods, bread etc. I still have a sweet tooth,

and

> >I always will, but the urge to ram food in my mouth was

> >diminishing. This elimination also frees up the liver to do other

> >more useful things.

> > >

> > > 2. I started baking with stevia and using it in my decaf

coffee.

> >Switching to stevia allows me to satisfy my sweet tooth without

> >getting the body response to sugar. Since my sweet tooth comes

out

> >at night, it also helps me sleep better and I no longer have the

> >truly bizarre 'sugar dreams' in the morning. My night sweats have

> >been drastically reduced as well to where I only have zero or one

> >each night. I've made muffins, cookies and banana bread so far

and

> >they all taste great. My afternoon and evening snacks consist of

> >fresh fruit and a stevia muffin or 2 stevia cookies. I have to be

> >careful not to have my afternoon snack too late or I have no

> >appetite for supper! There are a few articles that suggest that

> >stevia may lower testosterone levels, just so you know.

> > >

> > > 3. I stopped buying lite/light products! After I started

reading

> >all of the labels for the high fructose corn syrup, I noticed that

> >many whole products have about 1/2 of the ingredients of the

> >lite/light ones and about 1/2 again of the fat free ones. This is

> >particularly true of mayo and salad dressings. They all have the

> >same whole ingredients, but the lite/light and fat free ones are

> >filled with things that you can barely pronounce to make them

taste

> >similar without the calories and fat. What I do now is buy and

> >organic regular full fate product that just has normal ingredients

> >like milk and eggs, and then cut it about 40/60 with plain fat

free

> >yogurt. It tastes just fine, plus you don't have to use as much

> >because it's thinner and gives you more coverage with a smaller

> >amount. Plus the yogurt gives me the active cultures to keep the

> >yeast in check.

> > >

> > > 4. I nixed most of the potatoes/rice/pasta at lunch and dinner

> >from Mon-Fri and have a salad and vegetables with meat. I also

> >switched to multi grain bread without any kind of sweetener and

use

> >it sparingly. It's a modified Broda diet.

> > >

> > > 5. I started drinking lemon water with lunch and dinner. I

read

> >that the acid in it makes the food enter your system at a slower

> >rate so that you stay full longer. I'm not sure if this is

working

> >because I haven't really been paying attention, but the vitamin C

in

> >it will also help me absorb the iron from the meal and it

supposedly

> >helps to clean out the liver. To make the lemon water, I squeeze

> >one lemon and one lime for juice and mix it in a glass quart

> >bottle. I then mix it half & half (8oz & 8oz) with plain water to

> >have with lunch and/or dinner.

> > >

> > > It sounds like a lot of changes, but it's really not. My

> >objective was to eliminate the cravings and I have done that.

I've

> >just made substitutions of what I was already eating and so I

never

> >have to go hungry and I'm not counting anything. As always, I've

> >done too many things at once to know which are really doing the

> >trick, but I think the changes are all working together to clean

up

> >my system. My energy levels are to the point where I think I'll

be

> >able to start exercising this week. That's the plan anyway.

> > >

> > > Judy

> > >

> > > aka - I'm not lazy, I'm hypoactive

> > >

> > > ---------------------------------

> > > Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US

(and

> >30+ countries) for 2¢/min or less.

> > >

> >

August 10, 2006

Welcome ! Congratulations on your beginning journey toward health and a

whole new life. You are right... it is a LOT of work to get approved for the

surgery. Some never get approval and like me, have ended up having to self-pay.

I will be sending my very best wishes your way with some prayers sent heavenward

that your path to approval is quick and that your surgery date comes soon!

Elle * ^_^ *

new to the group

Hello,

My name is and I am from Los Molinos CA. If nobody knows

were that is it is by Chico . I am posting my first email to the

group just to say hi. I am just starting the process for the ds

surgery with DR. K and I am waiting on approval for medi-cal. I guess

you really have to do a lot to get approved so I am jumping through

all the hoops so I can make my life better. My health has really

gotten bad in the last three years and I am afraid I might die if I do

not get surgery. I weigh 273 lbs. I have Hypothyroidism and

Hypertension and some of the other bells and whistles that everyone

basically has. please feel free to e-mail me at any time and i will

try answer quickly.

P.s. It is nice to join your group thanx

August 10, 2006

,

Welcome to the group. It's an exciting journey. Feel free to ask any questions

you may have. We all love to answer them, lol. Take care.

--

**Wake me up from the nothing

that I've become**

-------------- Original message --------------

Hello,

My name is and I am from Los Molinos CA. If nobody knows

were that is it is by Chico . I am posting my first email to the

group just to say hi. I am just starting the process for the ds

surgery with DR. K and I am waiting on approval for medi-cal. I guess

you really have to do a lot to get approved so I am jumping through

all the hoops so I can make my life better. My health has really

gotten bad in the last three years and I am afraid I might die if I do

not get surgery. I weigh 273 lbs. I have Hypothyroidism and

Hypertension and some of the other bells and whistles that everyone

basically has. please feel free to e-mail me at any time and i will

try answer quickly.

P.s. It is nice to join your group thanx

August 10, 2006

Hey ,

Welcome to the Group!!!! I'm le, however, everyone calls me Dani. I'm

not very familur with Chico but I do know where it's at. Your going with the

right doctor and I wish you all the luck. I'm fixing to start with Dr. K as well

to try with a revision on a RNY. I think if I heard correctly Medi-Cal takes a

while. Yeah everything takes a lot of hoops. My health isn't good either. I'm

glad that you are making the right decision to take the chance to make a better

life for yourself it's a big decision. How old are you if I might ask? If you

need anything or if there is anything that I might be able to help you don't

hesitate to ask. I hope to talk to you soon.

Dani

P.S. I have Yahoo Messenger if you'd like to add me on there

Rdhdblueydcwgl02@....

" Ask me " wrote:

Hello,

My name is and I am from Los Molinos CA. If nobody knows

were that is it is by Chico . I am posting my first email to the

group just to say hi. I am just starting the process for the ds

surgery with DR. K and I am waiting on approval for medi-cal. I guess

you really have to do a lot to get approved so I am jumping through

all the hoops so I can make my life better. My health has really

gotten bad in the last three years and I am afraid I might die if I do

not get surgery. I weigh 273 lbs. I have Hypothyroidism and

Hypertension and some of the other bells and whistles that everyone

basically has. please feel free to e-mail me at any time and i will

try answer quickly.

P.s. It is nice to join your group thanx

~ I'm Surrounded By ANGELS, I Call Them My *Friends* ~

January 17, 2007

Hello all,

First, I must apologize for my delay in introducing myself. My name is

Jodi, I was diagnosed with Still's in 2000 at age 25 after a lengthly

hospitalization/episode wherein they could not figure out what was wrong

with me. I was tested for everything under the sun. While in the hosptial,

I developed a fever of 105 plus and ended up in Intensive Care with

pneumonia and pleurisy on my lungs. They called my mother in from Seattle

(I live in MN) and told her that I was not going to make it through the

night. After about a month in the hospital, they sent me home, undiagnosed,

on prednisone. A few weeks later, I went to see the Rheaumatologist that

saw me in the hospital for a follow-up appointment. At that time, he told

me that he had been doing his research and that every symptom I had was

textbook Stills Disease. I continued treatement for the next few years on

prednisone and methotrexate. I moved out to Seattle to stay with my mom in

an effort to " get healthy " and dropped 100 pounds. Eventually I was able to

get off of all of my medications. I got married and got pregnant with my

second child with no problems, no symptoms (however, put all the weight I

lost back on). I was foolish enough to believe that my Stills was gone,

despite everything I knew and had learned about the disease. Well, here I

am 4 years since getting off of my meds and I am experiencing another flare

up. I am meeting with my doctor today to discuss treatment again as my body

seems to be moving downhill fast and I want to avoid hospitalization at all

costs. I am working full-time and cannot afford to have Still's take over

again. I am hoping we can stabilize most of my symptoms soon. My husband

is new to all of this Still's stuff, so I have been trying to educate him

some so he understands. Now I am trying to live a healthier lifestyle and

eat right so I can take this weight back off as to avoid the added stress on

my joints and trying to slow down as much as possible so I can continue to

work. I am so thankful that there is a group like this out here. So many

people, doctors even, don't know what Still's is, and many have never even

heard of it. I look forward to getting to know you all more. It give me

hope that I am not alone. Neither are you.

God Bless,

Jodi

January 17, 2007

welcome jodi, new to the group but not new to stills, i hope you feel better

soon.

very nice to read your message.

Mumta (uk)

Jodi Braun wrote: