Welcome back Snoop. We’ve all been off the wagon to varying degrees….climb back on!

Hope things are improving for you xx

Hey Peeps, well my bags are packed and I am ready to go….off tomorrow for a few days. I intend to stay on this way of life even whilst I am away. We are self catering so I don’t foresee any problems. I will try to read your posts and if I can I will join in, but I am against overuse of technology in others so have to set an example lol.

Snoop, I am sure my daughter is feeling a little overwhelmed since the birth and because of that I have offered no criticism, only saying it’s very difficult and nothing prepares you. However, if I said the weather was fine she would snap my head off. As I say, as long as I am completely neutral and give no opinion on anything, we are fine. She phoned today to ask for advice on something, so we are improving! I told her she was doing everything correctly and to trust her instincts which are good!

Hello66, I hope you are feeling better or that the tablets are working.

Allie, I hope you have slept! As I keep telling my Grandson, sleep is good for you.

I will take my leave now. Have a good week and remember, just because I am not on here, it is not an excuse to falter. Noses to the grindstone peoples! Lol.

Sorry if I have forgotten anyone. Take care.

Lots of love,
Nonna Mary
xxxx

Happy Sunday to All:

I’ve had spotty, unreliable internet access today, so I’ll try to get in this entry before I’m plunged into darkness
again!

LeeLee, I think that you have a much more relaxed and sensible view of maintenance than I do, I appreciate
your advice and will attempt to be a little less rigid in the way I approach it going forward. Toward that end,
I’ve been batch cooking ratatouille for the freezer, as it is high harvest time here. There are gorgeous heirloom
tomatoes and eggplant available at the local farmer’s markets, and I even picked up a beautiful fragrant canteloupe
melon for dessert. You’ve helped a lot, thanks so much! 🙂

Allie

Evening all

Fell off the wagon in style. Friday pm started ok, few rum and diets in the pub then came home and opened a bottle of red to wash down some chorizo and cheese snacks. Paced myself well on Saturday, started with a diet lemonade summer cup (lidle’s version of pimms) around 4.00 ish and slowly drank cava with breaks for diet Fanta and tea. Unfortunately most of the food was high carb – pastry, quiche, sausage rolls and cake (was my birthday and I enjoyed everything). Today I had bread, red wine, couple of pisco sours and half a lager. I’ll start low carb no alcohol again tomorrow.

Hope your weekends were better.

Hi Shanik, first let me say…HAPPY BIRTHDAY…you kept that quiet!

Most of us give ourselves a few days or a week during birthday celebrations, although it is always someones birthday somewhere!

Climb back on board the wagon and off we go. You can do it!

Nonna Mary
xxxx

Hello All, I am wondering if it is OK to join you here. I stumbled upon Canada Liz’s original post, the title actually led me here. I’ve decided to start getting truly honest with myself, and here I am, I hope to be able to lay it out/ bare my soul, so to speak. I am an addict, food, alcohol, cigarettes in the past…
I spent my Sunday reading through all the posts yesterday. It was a beautiful Spring day down under. But I felt a strong connection to the people posting in this forum, I hope it is ok if I come along with you. I started the 800 BSD 2 weeks ago.
All well and good during the day, maybe 900 cals, yesterday 800. But yesterday is the first day I have done it WITHOUT wine. I’m proud of me.
I have decided I need to write to myself about the Whiney selfish bitch as Liz calls the selfish so called bestie that was what I thought was my friend -alcohol.

I just have to write myself a sticky note inside the car, inside the front door, in my wallet.” Liz says NO!”
I hope I can proceed as I have started cleanly yesterday.
I’m not all high and mighty. just humbly hoping that perhaps I can join this forum, so I can keep myself accountable. Anyway I wish you each and every one of you a great day, week etc.
Warmest regards Searchingrockpools

Searchingrockpools: So happy that you found us! I can relate to everything you’ve written, on so many levels.
When I came across the earlier posts on this thread, they affected me deeply. Reading thru all the previous
contributions here is an excellent way to get to know us. Let me be the first of many to welcome you
here!. I’ve only been here myself a little less than 3 weeks, and already believe that the decision to join may
be the healthiest thing I’ve done for myself in quite a long time. I hope that you will soon feel the same.
I will be keeping an eye out for your posts. Jump right in. The water is fine!
Allie

Love your username, by the way.

Thanks Alliecat
Well, so far so good, drove home from work past the (nearest) bottleo.
Yay me (cheering myself on), unfortunately it is only mid afternoon so after school pick up I might have to get into my pj’s so I am not tempted to leave the house again… to ‘pop out for some bits at the shop”, and find myself returning home with wine. Lame!
I like the idea of putting the money I don’t spend on the Devils poison each week into a jar. This is going to be day 2 sans devils sauce. Might get some mint to pop in a jug (pitcher) with some lemon etc.

Well off to do school pickup, oops forgot the snacks for the park in my rush to get past the devils lure.
Wading in here, not dipping my toes in, gotta just walk in, ankle deep heading in!
School siren calls
Searching rockpools

Just a quickie before I travel. Welcome home Searchingrockpools. We are a family here and you have become our latest relative. You don’t need Al K Hole to live your life. You lived before Satans Piss and you can live again. We all enjoy a tipple, but when it becomes a habit it needs kicking to the kerb. We all fall over, but get up again with the help of our friends.

Our Divine Leader, CanadaLiz is our inspiration and will no doubt be back presently to offer a cup of tea. Once again we will link arms and sing as we march together. Wow….getting all whimsical here. Lol

Nonna Mary
xxxx

Welcome newbies.

************************************************************************************************************************************

Food and mood are a bit hit and miss at the moment so I am struggling. It is my own doing but whilst I am sorting out my head I won’t be posting as much. Though I will still be logging my food on F.S I need to get my focus on other things so that food/alcohol is not constantly on my mind. I need a time out to get back on an even keel. xx

FFBB Out (for now)

Hi all, since this seems to be the most active thread on here (and the one with posts that have resonated with me, made me laugh and made me cry) I thought I might chip in my tuppence worth and sidle my way in! I haven’t yet actually started on the BSD but came across a mention of it on a Facebook post of all places. Ordered the book, read it from cover to cover and am reading it a second time. The next step will be to meal plan, shop and then begin! Nervous obviously- my brain craves wine, chocolate, carbs and sugar of all kinds. Think I have a very problematic sugar addiction which means that previously I’ve gone happily for about three weeks eating well and cutting back only to get terrible cravings in week 4 then stuff myself with everything poisonous. Of course all that makes sense after reading Dr MM. While I don’t have blood sugar problems (as far as I know) I’m sure it cannot be far away as a 44 year old who is 5′ 1″ and weighing in at 16 stones and 8 lbs (or 232lbs or 105kg- this is a very international thread!) I also have hormonal problems which cause palpitations and am sure can only be made worse by my excessive sugar consumption! You would think that gasping for breath during the night would be enough to get me to stop but months later it seems to have taken a long time to get to that point!

Anyway enough- another few days and I’ll be a true BSD-er. I’ll really need the support then I’m guessing!

Oh forgot to mention- just to exacerbate things, I’m stuck at home and more or less housebound with a broken ankle and torn major knee ligament after a fall at a wedding (sober and in flat shoes!!) over 5 months ago. So boredom is an issue and exercise VERY limited. Help!!!!

Thanks Nonna Mary, safe travels.
I didn’t put my pjs on INSTEAD… I put my joggers on and took mine and the neighbour’s kid, and we went for a quick drive to walk along the river for a good 45 mins. We spent the time walking in the last of the glorious warm spring evening sunshine. We saw fluffy ducklings, and cygnets being shepherded by their anxious parents. The kids tried to get the male swan to chase them, he hissed and they were in hysterics and running at the same time. The sun set over the river behind the city, and it was beautiful, and we were outside exercising and laughing. Meanwhile I drove past the bottle shop TWICE more after my initial trip home this arv.
Came home feeling smug cooked zucchini spaghetti (zucchetti) with 1/2 pan fried chicken breast. Oh wow yum, winner, winner, chicken dinner kid loved it too! AND left overs to freeze. I’m still in under 800cal. But I’m thinking my dull thudding headache may mean I should drink more water, eat some fruit or something in addition to a nice cuppa as I guess… I withdraw from the sugary shite!
I must say I’m feeling kinda pumped , despite the thudding head. Hopeful here.

Hi Heather44 – Welcome aboard!

Don’t be nervous! And don’t be discouraged by the amount of weight you’d like to lose. When I began I had a BMI
equivalent to yours, was too disabled to think about 10,000 steps a day, and I couldn’t even stand for more than
10 minutes without severe muscle spasms in my back. A year later and 144 lbs lighter, I’m actually thin! My idea
of a nightmare would be to wake up and find that it’s all been a dream! It might be helpful to set short term
goals for yourself, i.e, first 10%, getting under the 200lb mark, you get the idea….There are a lot of you tube
videos out there for disabled people, too. Above all, stay with us! There is nothing new under the sun that one
of us hasn’t already experienced. Call on me, any time!
Best wishes,
Allie

Thanks Allie! I’m very touched and grateful for that level of support. I’m nervous but also excited. I did it once before- went from 266lbs to 120. That was on a standard LF diet. Kept it off for about 8 years but it slowly crept back on. I’m mad at myself for allowing it but turns out that doesn’t help! And to be honest, I know that diet is 95% of it and not exercise but I need to believe that I can do it without exercising like crazy!

I’ll update once I actually start- and hopefully start seeing some results!

Good afternoon, everyone!

FFBB, take all the time you need, we’ll all be here when you return. Good luck getting your house in order.

KazzUK, how are you doing?

NonnaMary, hope you are enjoying your holiday!

Hello66, I hope your starting to feel a little better? I’m thinking of you! 🙂

Searchingrockpools: You have painted such a lovely picture of your evening along the river! As a fellow nature
lover, I can become giddy in October, walking about in the riot of color that the trees provide. Nothing that a
glass of wine can offer comes close to that natural high. Good work on succeeding so brilliantly on day 1.
If you can, try to think of that headache as a good thing. It means that the carb flu may be approaching. It
only lasts for about a week for most, and you will feel fantastic when it passes. You won’t know what to do
with all the energy. Definitely up the water, at least 3 litres if possible. I used to get somewhat dizzy at this
stage, but adding a little sea salt to my food helped a lot. Let us know how you get on. You’re off to s great
start.

To everyone who is dealing with other life/health issues, be well. I’m thinking of you all.

Allie

HI all, Ive just been reading all these inspiring posts, and decided(again) that I need to get myself in hand. The weight has crept back on after successfully getting to 70Kg a couple of years ago. My lowest weight of my adult life! then needed cortisone and weight piled back on, and I got so fed up with myself, so the booze beckoned. Thats been for over a year now and Ive got down to 80 from 86Kg. I don't eat too unhealthily, but its the sugary booze that kills it . Plus the damage you don't know about till its too late. Its like others have said, its so easy just to pop and buy some. Serious willpower shortage, rosie.

Good morning all/evening all.
Well slugged water and wee ed like a champion all night as a result.
Heather you can do it! Don’t stress about the exercise bit yet.
inadvertently feeding almost 10year old Med BSD eating too. not worried about kids calories clearly, kid has not missed but not noticed has not had any sugar added food, white carbs for about a month, not that kid realises. Well that’s at my place different story at the fast food prepackaged meals/ snacks. muesli /granola ( candy really) bars “other parent’s house”.

So today is a big test
I go with my friends to tight arse Tuesday steak night/quiz night at a local pub.
Yep… Steak 300g sirloin, smothered in peppercorn sauce, and a wadge of hot chips and salad. So the night goes like this …fortnightly!!! For the past 4 yrs…
Meet and greet the mates, buy a glass of wine, down the wine while making small talk and catching up on everyone’s news. Go to bar get another wine, go to table, more banter, order steak…that is why we are here! Eat steak and chips etc in record time, we all do…male and female aged 33- 62.

Finish quiz, say goodbyes, go home fall into bed.
So I’m strategizing how I will go about this… plan is, I’m going straight to the guts of the matter, going to tell an almost fib, I’m saying I’m prediabetic and need to sort my shit out, I have to take drastic action, including quiz night eating. Ok I’m not tested, I had a 34 BMI 5 months ago, I’ve got it to 29.2 yesterday.
So I’m telling a white lie, the drinking bit will be hardest to get around… it’s just one!

They are a good bunch, so hopefully it won;t be that bad. More me over thinking no doubt. I plan to have zero alcohol. I might check in later to keep me honest. Running late for work now, oops.

FFBB, go gently, be kind to yourself. To other newbies, yay, I’m not alone. To the family of Liz’ thread wishing you all health and strength.
To CanadaLiz, whose cries beckoned me like spiritual call through the mountain ranges and forests, across oceans and floating through the clouds from the Northern Hemisphere, sweeping around the globe and somehow tapping into my psyche down here in the land down under. I hope your struggle is becoming more bearable. I offer my kettle and a pot of tea, to you; offering up a great big warm strong brew, like a hug to your soul from the inside. I wish you strength we are all here, thankful, grateful, and honoured to have come upon your forum.
Thanks also to Alliecat, everyone else, bear with me while I get used to the politics of posting.

Off to work even later… I’ll let you know how I get on with the Quiz night feeding frenzy…Have a great day all. Sorry boss. i was blogging…
Searching (for strength in)
rockpools

Hello friends old and new ….from your slightly limping (metaphorically) most southerly mate.

After my mostly great start in June/July…late July and August went to pot due to renos/family needing assistance etc etc and both alcohol and poor WOE habits crept (or sometimes more like catapulted) back in.

Amazingly, I only gained app 1.5 of the initial 6k loss, so pretty fortunate there. (not deservedly!)

I now have a kitchen (including a beautiful new floor) ….no tiles yet…but they’re on order!!…so will be cooking the best BSD meals and continual cups of tea as per the normative behaviour of this amazing group

I have also rejoined my “old” gym….enjoying my solitary workouts though a little in trepidation of my free PT session next week!!!

Spring is here downunder…though you’d barely know it but for the blossom….4 degrees on my beautiful morning walk and snow on the mountain!!

love to you all….now far too numerous to name individually!

Morning everyone

It was a rather busy end to my week off but managed to get a lot of “life laundry” done!

After my fall off the wagon, I weighed on Saturday and had gained 3 lbs! The good news is that I’m now back on track and hope the damage is reversed by the end of the week! I will let you know. I had to take cakes in to work yesterday as is the tradition of birthdays (or any other reason really!), but I also took a punnet of raspberries and strawberries! Apart from a weekend away in a couple of weeks time, I have a fairly clear stretch ahead so I can really concentrate on getting absorbed into this new way of life. After the bread and alcohol the creaks, aches, IBS symptoms were back! It’s just not worth it.

Welcome to our newbies – good to see you linking arms with us.

I hope Liz is ok – thinking of you alot, Liz and Kev also. xxx

NonnaMary – have a lovely holiday!

I’ll have a proper catch up with you all later.

Have a lovely day, all.

Kazz xx

Morning all

Just reading through the new entries and realising that this this is where I needed to be all along! Y’all are honest and inspirational and fall off the wagon and have struggles- and tell us about it and how you managed to cope! I spent years in slimming clubs and certainly spoke to others but never for very long or in depth, so the support tended to come from the class leader telling me how to do it. Given that we did not have the same struggles- it never worked out very helpful!

E, did I read in earlier posts that you live in Tasmania?! If so you live in one of my favourite places in the world. I haven’t been in a long time but loved loved loved it. Tell me, how did you cope with your kitchen renovation? Ours starts next week and I’m worried about not having a stove for a few days. Or easy access to the kitchen generally.

Rosie, sorry you are having such a tough time. I haven’t experienced that yet on the BSD but have on every other eating plan I have ever been on. And I can empathise with the weight regain- I got down to 135lbs (9 stone 9 lbs, or 61kg) a number of years ago and managed to gain 84 lbs back in the last few years. Definitely annoyed at myself.

Rockpools you are right- the exercise isn’t the issue yet. Get the eating under control first.

Kazz thanks for the welcome! The most welcoming place I have been in a long time!

I’m lucky to have a very supportive partner (actually wife- we have been married 9 months but I still forget!) but she doesn’t really understand the whole addiction to sugar, whether that comes in wine or in chocolate. She has never had weight issues in her life! She also really likes to drink and doesn’t always enjoy it if I say no to the wine. She understands how food contributes to weight gain but has less understanding of how alcohol does it too. So one of the battles to face will be saying no to many glasses of wine- when someone else is indulging heavily. To give you an example of how that goes, I was completely teetotal when I met her and had been for three years. Six months later I was drinking agin. Sad face. This forum really needs like buttons and emojis!

Anyway, that’s all from me. Even though I cant get around easily I am taking the advice of MM and getting up and moving around every 30 minutes which is a whole lot better than nothing!

Have a great one peeps,

Heather

Short PS- I have read most of this forum but couldn’t figure out where Liz was. Having started from this end and worked back I’ve worked it out. Liz we haven’t been “introduced” as I’m new here, but I wanted to send my love and strength to you. I haven’t joined the lost mother club yet but it will happen to all of us so we should feel for each other. The reason I started reading this forum was because of your witty, hilarious and on point posts. Well done for staying off the booze- that is the waaaaay hard part. The food will come later. Hope you and your lovely husband are doing ok.

Hi Heather44
was just having a last minute read before I leave the bloody computer for the night (have been working on a grant app all day!!) and go sit by the fire for a while….
yes, I am in Tasmania…moved here app 25 years ago and still love it to bits!!….come visit!!

Re surviving kitchen renos: (ours went on for 7weeks!!!..was meant to be three!) the first two weeks were fine as I pre-cooked lots of soups and dishes that I could freeze and microwave (never used on much before…but its well used now!)

Small frittatas and baked ricotta in muffin trays are good and I do a mean spicy aubergine dish or chinese spiced cabbage in a slow cooker …and lots of miso soup…pre-prepared broth and just heated and add miso at the end

BUT I admit 7 weeks almost undid me!!! (wine was a frequent feature!)

Oh good grief! 7 weeks would finish me off for sure. Ours is only meant to be two weeks but we will see. The guy doing it is very good- he has done renovations for us before- but he is slooooow! So its in the lap of the gods how long it will actually take! Thanks for the food ideas- I particularly like the idea of broth with miso added. Yum! I’m also thinking of doing two meals a day instead of three which will limit prep and the amount of time I actually need access to the damn kitchen.

Only visited Tassie once and thought it was just breathtaking. I may have to visit!

Good afternoon/evening everyone. I’m going to have to start posting in the middle of the night to be able to talk to
some of you in real time. It’s exciting to see how international our group has become!

EC – Nice to have you back. Just had to have a bit of a google to look at Tasmania. Wow! It looks to be a slice
of heaven. My thoughts do wander to a “destination” trip. You must be thrilled to get back to a functioning kitchen.
Enjoy it!. Everyone who does a major renovation has a horror story to tell. Some decades back we decided to pull
the entire back of the house off, add a vaulted family room, breakfast room, and extended the kitchen. I was a newly
minted “Interior Designer” at the time, and I dispensed with the services of an architect, drawing up the plans myself.
After all, I’m a PROFESSIONAL now 🙂 I lived in sweatpants and a flannel shirt for 5 months, on site all day, and ready
to kill my husband when he got home at night because he got to walk away from all the chaos, dust and constant
decision making. He wasn’t too happy with how the budget was handled either! All worth it in the end, of course.
When I finally was able to get rid of my sweatpants/flannel shirt, I’d gained 35 lbs. I don’t even remember what I
was drinking at the time, but I’m sure it was something!

Heather44 -, best of luck with your reno project. EC has made some great suggestions for pre-planned BSD friendly
food. I don’t think you can do too much damage in 2 weeks, though. Let us know how you get along!

Be back later…
Allie

Thanks Allie! Fingers crossed it goes well. Not doing too much damage- don’t know about that. I have previously (while under the stress of a nasty breakup) gained 10lbs in one week! When I go for it I believe in doing it right 🙂

Hi, Kazz! It was ultimately your very honest post that tipped me over the edge, and allowed me to summon up
the courage to join this fantastic group. I’ll always be grateful to you for that. I do keep an eye out for you, so
it’s great to hear how you’re doing.

Confession time, my friends…Monday was the last hurrah in terms of federal U.S. holidays, “Labor Day Weekend”
for the summer. Friends dropped by unexpectedly, wine bottles in hand. I went on autopilot, automatically pulled
4 wine glasses out of the cupboard, then mindlessly consumed 2 (large) glasses myself. What was I thinking?
I wasn’t! My reward was to see the scale this morning up by 2 lbs. I’m sure its mostly water retention, so Ill be
chasing it with 4 litres of water today. I’m feeling very disappointed with myself. What bothers me the
most is that I didn’t even think about it before I did it. This maintenance thing is very tricky! I’m glad to see
you back on track, Kazz.

Feeling a little low today!

Allie

Evening/ morning/ afternoon all,
reflecting on my day I’ve had three big tests of my will /won’t power today.
I’d written myself off as a fraud and failure, but on closer examination of my over thought, self deprecating, hyper critical thoughts of completely stuffing up my 800 bsd day it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as I thought… hindsight they say…

I’d spent a couple of days worrying about the Tuesday night quiz binge on food and wine.

I’d forgotten about the mammoth Tuesday morning teas at work, I failed to plan, failed to walk away from the table, laden with cheeses, crackers, nuts, cakes, chocolates etc. But instead of giving in to the temptation of cakes and sweet biscuits (cookies) and fancy chocolates. I hoovered hommus, carrot n celery sticks, cheeses, I passed up the sweet treats .Loserrr.. caloric blow out… but hey actually a win I did not eat ANY non BSD foods.
Test 2
Colleague returned from an outing that resulted in charitable donation of about 20 family sized approx 200g chocolate bars, he was walking around asking us all to choose which ones we would like. I resisted, declined politely, 3 times he came back. My resolve was strong. But oh wow by 5pm I was flagging, and wishing I had taken one. I didn’t, and now smug bitch win number 2

So I’ve already told you about my trepidation of the quiz binge..

I had a stern talking to myself on the way home from work.

Zero alcohol at the pub, which I freakishly somehow managed… with soda water and a slice of lime ( my brain receptors…”what no vodka, no gin, no rum??”). Then water during dinner.
I inhaled the steak chips salad. But you know what.. I’m ok with that…apart from the 8 million calories I gutsed myself with and inhaled today, none were grog!. I’d made a bargain with myself, if I don’t drink i can have the dinner as a treat today.
So that said Not a single drop of alcohol passed my lips. I thought that was the last test … NO..
Dinner finished, all about to leave…Frigg’n heck our table won the Quiz, then as a team in addition to the money prize …we won 2 bottles of wine. After 1 round of Rock , paper, scissors,between the 8 of us… I won a bottle of nice white wine.

So every which way today I had grog, chocolates, cakes, cheeses, crisps all my weaknesses and vices put before me…
You know I’m half expecting to hear a knock on the door and maybe a very good looking someone will be standing there inviting themselves in for a booty call/ coffee ” wink, wink” with a carton of goddamned cigarettes in their hands, and that is me and all my vices thrown at me in one day…
Well the second last one…maybe not so bad??? Exercise right!

I swear the bloke upstairs is having a good crack at testing my will/ won’t power today.

Sorry if, I’m seeming so self absorbed.If I wasn’t so tired, I’d be more amused at the irony of this day. Anyway I’m off to bed to wait for the knock on my door.
SearchingRockpools in disbelief!

Alliecat I get what happened with you and the wine, and others and our wagon falling escapades.If I had not been seriously on my case these last 3 days (wine wise) , and this was not such a new way of being, keeping my everything under control…funny that, how I need to be in control, when I was clearly right the way hell outa control with eating, drinking, no exercise etc…

So I reckon the maintenance bit must be a massive challenge, if the whole “keep it in mind, when you are getting on with life”, well we are only human.
Man talking for myself, as that’s the only person’s experience I can talk of…really.
I took decades cultivating these “non coping maladaptive, self sabotaging methods” habituated in fact.
It must take a while to subconsciously unlearn what we have reinforced in ourselves over years and years. Well that’s my take on it, so I reckon be kind to yourselves , and love yourself for all the good bits, and gains you have all made so far. I’m just hoping I can get through another day better than I did today, so you guys here ahead of are already my idols! Searching( for my why, in) rockpools

Hello, lovely people.

I feel like I’ve been reading through an epic saga of life, love, loss, hope, triumph and solidarity – I found this thread at the weekend and have been reading it, off and on, over the last few days and you’ll probably laugh at this, but I’ve had tears in my eyes at several moments. There’s an amazing community here, and it’s been a pleasure reading your stories.

So, here I am adding one of my own, and you’re not going to hear anything novel here, but hey ho. I’m having a rubbish year, with work-related stress in a job I used to love but have come to hate, the loss of a beloved family pet, one parent-in-law in hospital and concerns about my mum’s health, and dealing with long-standing depression and anxiety. I’ve been miserable as sin for the last few years, but this one is worse than ever and I can’t see any way for it to get better.

So, seeing as I can’t fix any of these things and wine is such a nice easy way to stop worrying, at least for a little while, lo and behold, more of my calories come from wine than they do from food and I’m running at 50lbs over a healthy weight. At 5’2″ and 40 y/o, I’m well aware how dangerous that is, how I’m probably doing untold damage to myself and I need to do something soon. I was giving serious thought to the BSD anyway, but reading this has kicked off my determination in a big way.

I can’t fix the things that are happening around me, but I can do better by myself than I am at the moment.

Thank you for the inspiration. I’ll be back.

Asecondatumn, Oh my dear, I’m feeling your pain. When we suffer from depression and anxiety, it is so easy to feel
that not one aspect of our lives is within our control. You clearly have a lot of worries to overwhelm you. Let us help you
to sort out a better way of dealing with them. We have all manner of life experience here, and we will push and pull
you and carry you on our back when necessary to help you to a better place. You’ve already taken the first step. It
can only get better from here!

Love,

Allie

(Aus) Morning all!!
may I say, it feels great to be back on track and back in touch with such a great team (and you are each and every one free to use my house…and the aforementioned kitchen) as your launching pad for a Tasmanian holiday!!…I will be the svelte and active tour guide!! 🙂
mind you at 6.30am taking son no 5 to the airport…it was 5 degrees and WAY too “fresh” to walk the dog on the beach near the airport!!!…so bring your thermals!

Liz…I add mine to the multitude of good thoughts and wishes for you and Kev….some years we look back on and the resilience of human beings is simply astounding…but at the time it just feels like a shitty blur…love to you both

Nonna Mary..hope you are reading this and enjoying your break

Searchingrockpools…well done for picking yourself up and starting each day as new….seems it IS the solution…and the group accountability and honesty really helps!!

Asecondautumn….I second Alliecat’s words…we can and will hold one another up!!

I’ve had a good start to the week….back on good food, no wine (BUCKETS of tea) and coffee to get me to work deadlines
…and my gym now has 24hour access so the other night when I feltlikeawine…I went to the gym at 7.30pm (but I did forget to put the rubbish out last night: bugger!)

A little warmer now, so off for that dog walk then back at the desk to get that grant deadline met!

go well my lovelies

Good morning, my lovely new friends down under!
Thank you Seachingrockpools. It’s really comforting to know that someone out there , in my moments of
self-excoriation, can remind me to treat myself with the kindness that I reserve for everyone else but myself.
Being a lifelong, card carrying (sometimes annoying) perfectionist, I can lose my perspective sometimes.
It’s not like I rolled madly off the back of the wagon, simply descended the step onto solid ground. Back up
in the wagon today! It sounds like you gave considerable thought to the decisions you made yesterday, and
I’m sure that you’ll be better prepared in the future for the landmines and quicksand that we all try to
navigate each and every day. With each glorious sunset comes the promise of a fresh new day, and sometimes
it’s not the destination, but the journey itself that is the most rewarding aspect of it all. I’ll spare you anymore
of my introspective ramblings.. :).Have a wonderful day!

Allie

Thank you to Alliecat and EC for the kind thoughts and welcome 🙂

Something’s different as I’ve started the day off well with half an hour on the dusty elliptical in the garage – first time I’ve done that in months and I feel better for it. Now to stick to my 800 for the day, and I’ll feel pleased with myself for once!

Wishing you all well for a good day ahead.

Good morning friends

Alliecat – I hope you are feeling better today? – it’s another day and yesterday is history already my lovely. Put the kettle on!
Well done Rockpools, staying off the grog… makes you feel so good when you wake up in the morning and you’ve not had any devil’s piss the night before. Be proud of yourself!

Welcome back EC. That’s a remarkably tiny gain in 7 weeks. fabulous achievement and now you have to die for kitchen! Nice to get back in the groove, I bet?

Heather – sorry to hear you’re incapacitated right now – I’d just concentrate on the food for now until you are up and about better.

Everyone else, it’s so good to be back in control, I can feel the stress levels dropping already! I have a coat I want to get into by October. A mini goal to keep me on track.

FFBB – we’ll be here waiting with the kettle on when you are ready to return.

NonaMary – hope you are enjoying your much needed break. See you soon.

Have a lovely day/afternoon/evening my friends.

Kazzie xxx

Hello everyone, Just a quickie from sunny Christchurch in Dorset. I have had to jump on to say welcome, welcome, welcome to our newbies. More for our army!

Just one point….I am also a depressive personality which comes as a shock to a lot of people! “But you are always so upbeat” is a regular comment. However, since kicking old Al. K. Hole to the kerb and not drinking Satan’s Piss, being in control…the black dog has not visited so often or for as long. Al K Hole is a depressive! The more we have the worse we feel. I know you can all resist the temptation. One day you may be able to drink in moderation on your own terms. For now….one day at a time…think of yeuky puke in a glass, or bath plug hair…it’s making me feel sick now.

Anyway, keep the faith people. I may be away but I am with you in my heart.

Lots of love,
Nonna Mary
xxxx

Nonna Mary, my love, so glad you found a moment to look in on us! I knew you’d be amazed by the number of
newbies here. You will have a lot of catching up to do when you get back! Your comments are always
insightful, kind and funny, and I can tell that you give a lot of thought to them. I’m really looking forward to
your return. Hope this will make you laugh…When I first came across your reference to the black dog, I
thought it meant some brand of whiskey! Allie, culturally challenged once again. 🙂
Enjoy the remainder of your holiday. See you soon!

Love,

Allie

Hi, LeeLee. I just remembered that you are off to Galway soon. I’m thinking of your cougar encounter with 24 yr old
persistent Barry. Such a delightful tale that you shared. With your cute new hair style, you’ll be simply too much to
resist. Better stock up on the pepper spray! 🙂 I’ll be looking forward to hearing about your evasionary (?) tactics
this time around, when visiting the family watering hole (pub). Have a great holiday!

Allie

morning all
I’ve given myself the morning off after yesterday’s mammoth grant deadline (got it in 4 hours before!!)
Lee..I just peeked at all your before and after pics on fb….you must be so thrilled…well done ! totally inspiring!!

Mary re the black dog…our (black and white) border is nicknamed prozac…….you can’t help but smile or laugh at the antics of such a delightful being….and I’m sure (or at least hopeful) that the support you receive here on this forum of amazing humans helps as well. I do know what you mean about the alcohol. …Alliecat…love the whiskey image….maybe from those two little scotties on the other one!!
I’m not prone to depression, but certainly anxiety, esp socially…(though like you, no one would guess) and a definite inability to wind down at the end of the day. I think that while there are definitely the true Eeyore types, many people are good at hiding their true selves to fit in socially

I’m also getting back (VERY gradually) into doing yoga,…OMG have I lost all flexibility!! (I blame sitting at computers….what am I doing now????) BUT I have a great DVD called 15 minute gentle yoga (by Louise Grimes)..divides the practice into 4 very manageable 15 minute segments. I highly recommend …I got it once in a bookshop but when I lost that, replaced from amazon…KazzUK you kinda nailed it…back in the groove
here’s to a great Sept groove for all of us
xxx

Hello friends

Well i don’t know if it’s my age but the weight is very slow to come off this time around! When I was younger, like early 40’s, it used to drop off me to begin with! Having said that, I know I’m not drinking enough water. Getting up 4 times in the night for the bathroom is not very welcome, I have to say! Do you think it makes a difference drinking 2 to 3 litres of water a day? 13 years ago, I lost 90 lbs with WW counting points. The first 2 months I lost 12 lbs then roughly 7 lbs a month after that. I was including daily points for wine back then!! I guess I need to do some form of exercise, even if it’s just going for a walk at lunchtime. Sat at a desk all day is not good for you at all but I am trying to stand up every 30 mins and do a lap of the floor!

Alliecat – I’d be interested to know, when you lost your huge amount of weight, were you counting calories? I know you were following the BSD way.

Skipping breakfast and having 2 meals a day seem to work best for me. Soup for lunch or salad and green veg and either chicken or salmon for dinner. An apple or pear in the afternoon.

I’d love to hear people’s thoughts.

A good day to all.

Kazzzzz xxx

It does make a difference drinking more, many people on the forum have reported weightloss increasing after they increase the amount they drink, up to a maximum I have seen of 4 litres. Don’t forget to count all water though, including that in your food in the total, the body doesn’t see a difference.

Mixnmatch – I have lost 2.25lbs this week and I am wondering if it is because I have just increased water intake after drinking almost zero water during August. I have only cut calories to 1200 and carbs to 25 from 30 so am surprised to be losing so fast.

Hey, Kazzie – Thanks for the kind words yesterday. I would be honored to share any and all aspects of how I’ve
made my individual journey with you or anyone else who might be interested. I’m passionate about this way of
life, but I don’t talk about it much because we are about so much more on this thread. To answer your specific
questions though…I did count calories, net carbs and protein grams every day. I still do, in fact. I also upped
the water from 2 to 3 liters, and it seemed to help with weight loss whenever it slowed a bit. For me, exercise
had absolutely no impact on the results on the scale, and I didn’t even begin walking until 9 months in. I admire
those who hit the gym, etc. When the weather cools down, I hope to commit to the walking, at least. Others may
have a different experience. It IS annoying, nightly trips to the loo! The best I can do is start drinking water
as early in the day as possible, and try to be done with it by 9 p.m. All I can usually manage in terms
of sleep is 4-5 hours per night (sleep disorder) so getting up hasn’t been too much of an issue for me. With
respect to the age question…At 68 (now feel 40!) I also wondered if it would be slower going for me. I was
thrilled to discover that not to be the case. Good grief, I just realized I’m the most senior one here 🙂 Please
let me know if I can be of any help!

Allie

Hi all been busy but keeping myself accountable, heading into night 5 with zero devils pissing poison!
This means I’ve been keeping my eating good and clean, no binges that happen after vino.And calorically speaking I’m doing better now. Been distractable, headachey, hoping it is just dehydration, not the dreaded flu going through my work for the third time in the past 9 weeks. I think I’ve had so much devils piss running through my veins the virus just fell over drunk, and forgot to infect me! Ha so hopefully it is not that! oops interupted, back later

Been summoned by kid gotta go organise shower etc…
Searchingrockpools

Hi Liz,
I was reading your first entries from June. I wanted to read them all but realized that there were over 900! I skipped to August and saw the sad news about your Mum. I’m so sorry. Only child, and alchy here too. I hope each day gets better for you and hubby. Hugs. xx

Hello – just a quick visit in my lunch break…

Mixnmatch, Allie and KrysiaD – thanks so much for your information and experience. I do drink 8 large mugs of tea a day but will add 2 litres of water to that as it certainly looks like water does make a big difference. So, I must bite the bullet and will start early and finish early and hopefully minimize the nightly bathroom trips!

Rockpools – That’s fabulous! Well done and keep up the good work 🙂 It could be the carb flu and will pass after a few days.

Allie – age is but a number – I am so glad you feel 40 again! You are so inspiring along with many others on this thread.

I am mindful that the majority of my 100 lb excess is mostly carried around my torso and so that is a very scary prospect in terms of the visceral fat thing and clogging organs. I’ve made a start… some times I feel overwhelmed and slightly panicked, like it’s a race against the clock – but every morning I wake up with another day under my belt, I feel so good! 🙂

Cyber hugs to us all xx

See you soon
Kazzums

Thank you, Kazz! It’s humbling to me that I might be an inspiration to anyone!

May I share something very personal with all of you? I’ve been listening to a lot of music lately, usually at
very high volume, and this song represents how I feel about the BSD and all of you. Whitney Houston has an
incredibly powerful voice, and I’ve taken this song as my theme song these days. I’m too much a luddite to be
able to post a link, but if you have the time to google “you tube Whitney Houston One Moment In Time” , I’d like
to share it with all of you.!
Wishing everyone a wonderful day!
Allie

Good morning my lovelies

Allie – yes I know that song well. It’s an excellent anthem for this BSD journey.

As suggested, I’ve gone back to having my groceries delivered. I’ve ordered so much veg, herbs, salad my fridge is bursting. Just have to make sure i don’t waste any of it. I’m planning on batch cooking for the freezer this weekend. Planning on making a thai veggie broth. Also, there was a Jamie Oliver recipe for salmon fishcakes but no potato, just salmon, lemongrass and herbs, possibly some spring onions, can’t quite remember off the top of my head, just 5 ingredients, but I’m looking forward to some tasty food!

Anyone else got a quite, favourite meal they like to knock up?

Ok, best get ready for work, have a good day peeps!

Kazzzzzzzz xx

Gained 5 lbs since last Tuesday.

Que sera, sera.

Attending a memorial party later which will be really emotional and difficult so tomorrow is day #1 restart.

FFBB X

Hi FFBB,
Sorry to hear, hope it goes ok, sending good thoughts your way! Xx

Hello my friends.

I am back. I survived two toddlers and a forty year old mumpty who sulked and bickered! Had a wonderful time with my lovely babies. My daughter relaxed as Nonna could pick up the slack, husband his usual arsey miserable self….ask him what is wrong, and get “nothing, I am fine.” So I ignore his silly moods and rudeness. One night (we were playing scrabble he was watching TV). He turned to a music channel….left it on loud….and went to bed! No goodnight, kiss my arse or anything! I knew it upset my DD so I said nothing.

I could go on, but I won’t.

Now back to basics. I have been successful in continuing the way of life while away, except for one night when we ate at a restaurant (we paid). I had steak and salad (yay me!) but I did relax and have 3 glasses of wine. That was my ONLY indiscretion. Walked loads and loads, carried a very heavy one year old and a heavy 3 year old…my legs know I have worked them, my back is killing me and I couldn’t wait to get on the scales this afternoon. Only to find I have lost no weight at all. Same old story for me. So I am having tonight off. Jovis and I are going to have a take out and a glass or two….then back on course tomorrow. There seems to be so many tomorrows being talked about!

Great to see so many new people and well done to all of you with your hard work. FFBB I am so sorry you have gained….do you know why? Back to basics ?

So well done if you have abstained and get back on board if you haven’t. While our lovely Liz is unavailable, we can pop into ECs kitchen (I love a good kitchen), put the kettle on love, but I think we had better bring our own mugs, there are so many of us now you won’t have enough! (Welcome back by the way, you have been missed).

Off for a long shower now (My grandson kept finding me while away), I want to luxuriate a little before an indulgent night. No screaming baby at 5;30 tomorrow morning for me…love her so much, but I need my sleep!

Night night for now…

Lots of love
Nonna Mary
xxx