Starting My Low-carb Diet Today

[Jacqueline]

Today I'm starting back on the low-carb WOL. I've been off of it way too long and have gained back all the weight I lost, plus two pounds.

I'm not doing a strict Atkins diet this time as the years I was on it I really learned what my body can and cannot handle with carbs.

I started this morning making a crustless quiche for breakfast. It turned out very good! For lunch I had a burger patty with a side salad. Dinner is another question - I don't really have much. I think I'll just rollup some deli ham with some good cheese and have some cream cheese stuffed celery. Tomorrow I go grocery shopping for more low carb food. :yummy:

[Laura]

Good luck, Jackye. I'm having my wisdom teeth out tomorrow, then going back on a modified Atkins. Like you, I know what I can eat from the last time, but Induction is too restrictive for my limited cooking skills, so I'll do OWL at lower carb levels.

Thinking about getting the book Jamie was talking about a few months ago, for a few ideas on new things I can introduce. My blood sugar isn't stable, so I think I can work with anything that doesn't cause a swing.

I'm also sharing lunches with a friend, which is a huge, huge motivator. When I don't feel like shopping or making something, I do it anyway because she's counting on me. We only live a few miles apart now, so it's even easier.

[Jacqueline]

OOoohhh!!! Be very careful after they get pulled so you don't get a dry socket. Step-daughter just had hers pulled.

I hear ya on the limited cooking skills. That is a challenge for me too. Not just the skills but the time. I have to find a way to make things quick, easy, and low-carb. Sometimes it works well and sometimes it doesn't. You should do fine on OWL at the lower carb levels since you know which foods will impact your blood sugar and which will not.

Jamie's book sounded very good. Atkins follows the principles of a low-glycemic diet, and that is really the key to staying healthy and controlling your blood sugar.

That's pretty cool that your friend is dieting with you! My mom started on low-carb at the first of the year too, and it definately helps. Of course, having you and the others here at LCL is a great motivator. What's really helping me out right now too is seeing the scale move down every day. :)

[Laura]

Pretty much the only thing they definitively said on not getting a dry socket was not smoking. So, I'll take any ideas... lol

My chin and lip are still numb, but they said it was possible and usually resided within a few months (!!!!) and is only rarely permanent. Eating and speaking are a challenge.

But on a positive note, I am down 2 lbs. Had egg drop soup, cheese, and tea yesterday. Scrambled eggs and tea today. I'm ok chewing, but my lip is so swollen I'm afraid I'm going to bite it (since I can't feel it), so I think I'm going to go back to the soup for dinner.

James likes to cook, and is good at it, but doesn't keep the carbs low enough for me. Once I can walk in a straight line again, I'll start taking the dogs for a walk, and maybe that will be enough to make up for the higher carbs. I think he finds Atkins too restrictive and was thinking there might be more options in Jamie's book.

I got a quick and easy low carb to go book for Christmas. And of course, there are standbys like chili, salad, and pizza. I'm excited to get started again, although the Lortab takes the edge off ;)

[Jacqueline]

I can't imagine trying to eat with numb lips. Hopefully the feeling will come back much sooner than a few months!

No smoking or anything that's a sucking motion - so no straws or tootsie pops. Make sure when you drink or eat your soup that you do your best to just have it go through without sucking it through.

[Laura]

Yeah, a straw's out now anyway. I have to carry a tissue around because I can't tell if my mouth is even closed. I'll be quite put out if it lasts a few months. I'm not sure I can do more than a few days of that!

One good thing is that if I'm going through Induction flu, I can't separate it from everything else. I should be over that by the time I run out of meds. :)

[Jacqueline]

I completely forgot about induction flu! I haven't had a problem with it, though.

I forgot to say above - congrats on 2 lbs down! You know, pulling your teeth is an excellent way to lose weight. Of course, if you keep that kind of diet going, eventually you run out of teeth to pull, but on the plus side you can't eat, so you continue to lose weight. Hey - maybe you can sell that as your own diet plan - a way to lose weight without having to exercise. LOL!!!

[Bob]

Glad to see I'm not alone. Jackye, you were my inspiration when I first started low carb a few years ago. You know this woe so well. I'm interested in knowing how your first few weeks go now that you're starting out near the OWL stage. I went hard-core this time around but really struggled with constipation the second week.

Laura, I can think of better ways of starting the New Year (and diet) than getting teeth pulled but whatever works, right? :D

[Laura]

4lbs down this morning. All I could eat yesterday was egg drop soup and tea, and today is starting to look like more of the same. I think is what people who wired their jaws shut feel like...

I did think about writing Surgery for Weight Loss after my brother's colon ruptured. He lost 35 lbs in a couple of months. And, exercising was not allowed!

Bob, my dentist has been on my case since I started seeing her about having my wisdom teeth out. I kept planning to do a consult before we picked our insurance, but kept putting it off. It actually worked out better this time, and I have someone here to take care of me (although I guess cleaning the kitchen is still my responsibility... lol)

[Jacqueline]

Glad to see I'm not alone. Jackye, you were my inspiration when I first started low carb a few years ago. You know this woe so well. I'm interested in knowing how your first few weeks go now that you're starting out near the OWL stage. I went hard-core this time around but really struggled with constipation the second week.

Laura, I can think of better ways of starting the New Year (and diet) than getting teeth pulled but whatever works, right? :D

Thanks, Bob. :o You know that you were my inspiration the first time around. You helped me out a lot as we went through OWL together. I haven't had constipation as a problem this time. I actually bought some flaxmeal yesterday and will be making some muffins tomorrow, so hopefully that will stop it from being a problem next week. I have some powdered protein that I'll be adding to it so I can make more muffins with less flax. I found that I really liked them a lot when I made them before, but too much flax is not a good thing. Remember the SNL commercials for cereal and they called it Colon Blow? That's what I made: Colon Blow Muffins. :hysterical:

4lbs down this morning. All I could eat yesterday was egg drop soup and tea, and today is starting to look like more of the same. I think is what people who wired their jaws shut feel like...

I did think about writing Surgery for Weight Loss after my brother's colon ruptured. He lost 35 lbs in a couple of months. And, exercising was not allowed!

Bob, my dentist has been on my case since I started seeing her about having my wisdom teeth out. I kept planning to do a consult before we picked our insurance, but kept putting it off. It actually worked out better this time, and I have someone here to take care of me (although I guess cleaning the kitchen is still my responsibility... lol)

Congrats on the 4 lbs down! That's where I'm at too. Have you got any feeling back in your lips?

[Laura]

Still at 4 pounds down today. James picked up some broccoli cheese soup at Panera bread and it's fairly high carb (in the 20s, I think). Only had 2 cups of that and tea yesterday. One cup today. Face is still swollen and stiff, and now I can't feel my ears or cheeks. The third day is supposed to be the worst, in terms of swelling, so hopefully it will be better tomorrow.

Going to go back to the egg drop soup (mostly since I ate all the broccoli cheese...) and that will help. It's also *that time*, which is always a little slower for me. Probably lose 5lbs from my face, too.

[Jacqueline]

That's a lot of carbs for broccoli and cheese. They must be adding some flour or sugar in there somewhere. With you unable to eat anything else though, it should be ok. Has it impacted your blood sugar any?
I can't believe the numbness spread rather than started dissipating. Hopefully once the swelling goes down the feeling will be back.

[Laura]

Sorry, it was 12 carbs per 8 oz. Milk, flour, cornstarch, potato starch, etc. I have had some cravings, but I'm not sure if it was from that or the whole not eating thing. ;) And actually, it hasn't been bad. I was up the wall before, wanting something to snack on. Don't really have the urge now...

I did have some oatmeal last night because I was starting to get dizzy. I had planned on eating a lot of cheese, but haven't been able to move past liquids yet and I don't really want to make myself sick. Down another pound this morning, though, so it doesn't seem to be causing too much of a problem.

From reading, it appears that the swelling is not too unusual and should start subsiding tomorrow. I imagine that when the pressure on the nerves go down, the feeling will come back. I believe I can start hot packs tomorrow. May give them a call, but talking is still a challenge. (Yeah, James is *thrilled* about that one ;))

[Laura]

The stiffness is mostly gone this morning, but my chin and lip are still numb. One of my aunts told me last night that when she had her wisdom teeth out the numbness did last for a few months. Totally not happy to hear that.

I'm down another pound, for a total of 6. A dear sweet friend of mine brought some SF jello and pudding over last night. James stocked up on *pasta* for some reason and I was getting a bit tired of the egg drop soup. I may try to make some deviled eggs today, though.

[Jacqueline]

Congrats on six pounds down! If you have a food processor, you might be able to chop up food to make it a little easier to eat while you're healing. Stews might be a good idea too if you can find them without potatoes and flour. The food in the stew gets real soft and it is easier to eat.

[Laura]

Unfortunately, I didn't go shopping before the surgery and when James did, he picked up all high carb stuff. He's out of town for work and I can't drive (because of the meds) so I'm pretty much stuck with what's in the house.

I guess I'm not doing too badly, but it's a bit frustrating. Plus, I'm a horrible patient.

I may raid the fridge this afternoon to see what I can scrounge up. There's plenty of meat in there, just gotta find a way to make it. :)

[totally4given]

Just wanted to drop by and thank you for your helpful information. Jacqueline, sounds like you're doing great.

Laura, hope you're feeling better soon. I had wisdom teeth out several years ago and was much better after 5 or 6 days. Best wishes!

[Laura]

TFG, thanks. The stiffness was pretty much gone when I woke up yesterday and I only took two pain pills all day (had been taking one every 3 hours until then). The nerve on the left side was damaged or disturbed or whatever, so my chin and lip are still numb. It's a "slow healing" nerve, which means up to 6 months or longer to resolve. I'm doing hot packs now because it's still a little swollen on that side.

Sinuses are still draining, so I have a sore throat on top of everything else. For that reason, I think I'll stay with the soup for one more day...

[Laura]

Bleh, even cheese causes my jaw to hurt after I'm done eating. So, I can eat it, but then be in pain for the next ... well until I take more pain meds. Starting to cave and have higher carb stuff, but still down 7 lbs.

I tried out the mock danish and it was ... interesting. I guess it's a good way to have something different, though.

[Bob]

Don't fret, Laura. I went through 2 week induction OK and then had a carb overload day. Didn't affect me. One day at a time! :icon_hug:

[Jacqueline]

Congrats Laura and Bob! Step-daughter had her surgery on Thursday. She's doing ok - got lucky there is no numbness, but they had to cut her lip to get to one of her teeth. It was something about the angle of it and that it was actually going into her cheek.

I still haven't made those muffins yet. I had to go back to work this week and all my time went bye-bye. I can't wait until I can retire!

[Laura]

Thanks, Bob. I gave myself until the end of April for 30 pounds. Probably don't need to do it all in one week anyway. ;)

Jackye, omg, cut her lip? I'd heard about the potential of cracking the skin in the corners (so I used some heavy duty eye cream to keep it as supple as possible) but not having to actually cut anything open.

I thought I was feeling all better yesterday, then almost passed out at Target. Went for 4 things, and only ended up with two of them because I totally spaced. I am eating real food today, though, so hopefully that won't happen again.

Back up one pound this morning. I think I can start on solid foods without a problem now, so I can get back on track. Very hard to find soft/liquid Induction-friendly foods...

[Jacqueline]

She said they told her in advance they might have to do it. I feel so bad for both of you having to go through this!

The first few times you go out, make sure someone is with you who can catch you and take care of you if your energy goes like that again. Solid foods will be a lot better!

[Laura]

I'm just a big baby about the whole thing. Don't like pain...

I feel tons better today, but still not well enough do laundry ;)

[Jacqueline]

I hope you're doing better now.

[Laura]

Thanks, Jackye. Pain is gone. I have some lingering sinus drainage, but James said that his allergies are acting up, so it may be due to that. Chin and lip are still numb, which makes certain types of foods challenging.

Still haven't done laundry though... :D