Annisworkingonit's Journal, 11 December 2023

If you are losing weight you are on plan in my opinion.  

ANNI-you are where i was at weight wise about this time last year. I think i was mid 170’s at Xmas. You can definitely be there by then!!!! Look at all you have accomplished! Im excited for you and so proud of you. Keep it up my friend💕 

I don't put a lot of stock in FS's assessment of how I'm doing. I'm not good at sticking to plans exactly, anyway. My acid test is whether I'm doing better today than yesterday. You're doing great 👍 

Congratulations on your weight loss. You are doing very well. I hope you are enjoying the health benefits. I saw in your bio that you are using Ozempic to help with weight loss. I have a son with an eating disorder who is morbidly obese. I will discuss the Ozempic option with his doctor, but for now, I wonder if you can share your experience using it. Is Ozempic something to be taken forever or as needed? Side effects? Thank you. 

Your graph shows a steady drop, you are doing great. 

Hey Diddly. As one who was morbidly obese at the beginning of this year, I was lucky that my PCP referred me to a bariatric clinic in Toronto ON. I was surgery and medication resistant so worked with their nutritionist to totally change what I ate (no simple carbs, higher protein and lots of fruit and veg and how I ate (slow down bigtime). I was doing well but also was living with constant obsessive food thoughts, so the probability that I would cave into food noise was very high as this is what has scuttled every previous attempt during the course of 50 years. I have regular followups with the endocrinologist at the clinic, and mentioned that I was starting to struggle. So he again suggested that I try Ozempic. I finally elected to try it. I was incredibly lucky as it turns out I was a hyperresponder - started to feel the effects the same day on the lowest dose. The silence with the food noise gone was truly a revelation. Unlike some Oz users who rely entirely on the medication to do the work by constantly increasing their dose and relying on nausea to limit their caloric intake, and change nothing about their way of eating and movement, I am carrying on with the plan from March. Only now, with food noise gone and my sugar/junk food addiction broken in the first few months, it is infinitely easier to eat well. Before Oz, I "volume ate" vegetables and soups to appease my imbalanced hunger cues. Now I feel satiated (which again has never been the case since childhood). The other part of this journey is the mental one. To that end, aside from what was a biochemical imbalance which Oz addressed, I needed to tackle the emotional side of eating - i.e. to handle stress, sorrow, disappointment, boredom, tiredness. So I enrolled in a 90 day food addiction course which has also been a revelation in that I've been able to analyse why I have certain trigger foods, how to mitigate cravings and a whole bunch more. Will I be on Oz or one of the newer developments that target my issue (leptin/ghrelin signalling not properly functional) for life? I don't know yet, although I suspect the answer will be yes.  

Wow! Thanks for your thoughtful reply. There are many things to consider. One worry is that Oz may not be recommended for people with kidney problems. My son has reduced kidney function, probably due to his eating disorder. We'll need to manage his condition carefully. I never knew such a thing as a food addiction course; that may be useful. Thanks again.  

Hi Diddly, Your son's PCP would be best positioned to answer the CKD issue. The food addiction course I joined was recommended by the bariatric clinic I attend. It is run by Sandra Elia and is called 'Why Love Matters...In food addiction recovery" Totally online and also cost effective (~120CAD for the 90 day program) Includes two videos a day, handouts (you print), 3 zoom group meetings a week as well as a private facebook group.