Revelations

Ok, I'm a slacker. Focused, dedicated, hard-working...but still a slacker. My intention was to post every few days and keep tabs on my attempts at turning my life around. But I found it hard to find time to post, even though it only takes a few minutes. But I haven't given up! I've just not been sharing it with anyone.

Last time, I was talking about tea and how it helped me realize soda was dulling my brain and giving me stomach issues galore. I also realized during that 2-week period that I eat fairly well while traveling, but I eat like crap while at home. I've got to work on that.

When I'm traveling, I'm more focused on what I'm doing instead of what I'm eating. Everything I do is fun. When I'm home, I'm more focused on what I should be doing. Everything I do is work. While traveling, I eat local foods and try to keep portions small so I don't feel ill. While home, I go for hours without eating and then gorge on huge portions quickly so I can get back to work faster. It doesn't matter if I feel ill because I don't need to move. There's a lesson here...I need to add more fun to my home life. Guess that'll be another 2-week goal!

For now, I have a few in the hopper, so I'll finish up my tea experiment and move on. At the end of Day 14, I had a net gain of .5 pounds. Although this is in the wrong direction, I also experienced less stomach pain, bloating, fatigue, mood swings, brain fog, bad breath, tooth scum (is there a word for that?), fuzzy tongue, and headaches. The verdict? Keep drinking tea and avoid soda like the plague.

Experiment #1 Grade: A

On to experiment #2. I was going to do Chinese herbs as my second test, but I think adhering to my Western medicine regimen is more important at the moment. I despise taking pills, so I don't. Unfortunately, all of my medications are designed for long-term results. Every time I stop taking them, I screw up my progress and it takes longer for me to see any change. The challenge here is to figure out how to convince myself to take my pills daily even though there is no obvious benefit. Hmmmm...

For reference, my drug cocktail consists of:

• 200 mg Spironolactone - this horrible tasting pill does wonders for my blood pressure and has an incredible side effect of reducing hirsutism in women. But it takes 6 months to show results, and it makes me dizzy.
• 2000 mg Metformin - these horse pills supposedly keep my blood sugar levels in check, resulting in fewer cravings and providing a slight hope for weight loss. It also makes me feel quite ill.
• 25 mg Hydrochlorothiazide (holy crap, that's a big word!) - this little guy does a great job getting rid of the pitting edema in my legs (that's the fun water retention that allows you to mold your skin like clay...at least temporarily). This is the only instant gratification pill in my whole collection. Unfortunately, it makes me dizzy and sometimes I break out in a rash from sun exposure.
• 300-600 mg Gabapentin - these capsules help relieve my Restless Leg Syndrome, helping me get at least 5 hours of good sleep per night. Studies have shown a link between sleep deprivation and obesity, so maybe lack of sleep has been contributing to my problem. The problem? It makes me very nauseous within 20 minutes of taking it, so I can't take it until I am in bed. If I wait too long, I can't fall asleep. Go figure.
• 1 tab Femcon - regulates my hormone levels so my husband doesn't leave me. Probably the most useful pill I take. :)

And don't forget the handy-dandy multivitamin! That's a must-have, since some of these medications leach stuff out of my system. Seems like a pretty crappy way to live, taking all these pills every day. Which is why I don't take them. But without them, I'm in pretty crappy shape.

So, long story very, very short: I vow to take my pills religiously for 2 weeks. I almost succeed, and in that time, my weight drops .5 pounds. A step in the right direction, and I am now right back to where I started from when I began this blog. Fabulous.

Verdict? Keep taking the damn pills and hoping for a .5 pound loss every 2 weeks. Maybe with prolonged use, they really will start to work. (Something to keep in mind: the only time I successfully lost more than 5 pounds and kept it off for more than a week was while taking Metformin, Femcon, and Spironolactone on a daily basis. I lost 40 pounds and kept it off for a year.)

Experiment #2 Grade: B-

Coming up: The Chinese Herbalist

Tea Time

Wow, it's been a little while since I posted. I had intended to have each experiment last about a week and report on how well it is working for me. Things don't always work the same for women with PCOS, and there are few resources out there for women whose primary goal is not to have a baby, but instead just to get healthy. So, since I can't find one, I figured I'd make one.

Anyway, I had to go to New York unexpectedly for business, and didn't have time to post my tea experiment results. So I decided two weeks might make more sense - gives me more time to see results, and I don't have to be upset if I miss my deadline by a day or two. This post is a long one; it covers 11 days of activity. Enjoy!

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So, I started out the tea experiment with very high hopes. The tea had smelled and tasted phenomenal, and I dropped a lot of money on it, which is a very good motivator. Tea works into the recommended food plan for women with PCOS, and provides caffeine, which I feel I need to function (at least for now). The recap:

Day 1: I spent a lot of time getting set up for tea - I had to find a spot on my desk and figure out the best timing for going to the break room for water. I don't generally leave my desk very often, so I felt like I was slacking off all day. But the tea was incredible, and I didn't miss the soda. I drank too much Mate Vana (4 cups!) and got the shakes around noon. In the afternoon, I experimented with their recommended iced tea method with the Rooibos Tropica/Jasmine Green blend, and loved every sip. Shortly after drinking the iced tea, I noticed that everything at work seemed to be very clear and sharply defined - as though I had been wearing a veil, and that veil was removed. Interesting.

Day 2: More of the same, but I stopped at 2 cups of Mate Vana. No shakes, no caffeine withdrawal headache. Nice. I realized today that I did not have any stomach pain, cramps, or diarrhea. Was it the soda?

Days 3-5: I am waking up earlier and more refreshed, even though I am not going to bed earlier. I am also not taking my Restless Leg Syndrome medication (naughty girl), but for some reason, I must be sleeping better than usual.

Days 6 & 7: Went on a trip to Chicago and worried about how to maintain my newfound tea-drinking habit while on the road. Found out it's much easier to locate tea and sugar with hot water than soda (at least in the morning)! And traveling is easier when you are not sick all the time.

Day 8: First week weigh-in! Whoa, up 3.5 pounds...not good. What happened, I wonder? I presume I'm taking in fewer calories from less sugar. But I just got back from vacation, and we had been drinking, eating in restaurants, and getting dessert. Plus, I did not exercise at all last week. I did the Danskin Triathlon earlier this month, and I took a short break to decide what to do next. I decided tea was not the likely culprit for my weight gain. I pack my bag and fly to New York.

Day 9: While in New York, I continue drinking tea and avoiding soda. It's honestly very easy to do. If I feel like having a soda, I just get a sweet iced green tea. I'm still getting sugar, but it's sugar, not corn syrup, and it's one teaspoon, not ten (http://www.marshallbrain.com/science/sugar-in-soda.htm). I realize as I write this that I have cut out 27 teaspoons of sugar each and every day. At 15 calories a teaspoon, that's 405 calories per day...gone. Assuming I don't add something to fill the caloric gap, that's a pound every 8.6 days!

Day 10: It dawns on me that I am experiencing increased clarity in thought. I've never had too much trouble with my brain - it's gotten me to where I am today, and I am in a wonderful place. But lately I'd been having trouble remembering things, and simple math calculations began to require paper and pencil or worse, fingers and toes. I'm excited to have my brain back...I sure did miss it!

Day 11: Back home. Can't wait to get to work to have the teas I love! I can definitely tell the difference between loose leaf teas and bag teas, and there is no contest. Back in my comfort zone, I realize there are major differences between my eating habits on the road and my eating habits at my desk. And the differences don't bode well for me.

Up next: Revelations