Once A Month Regular Food Day!

Yesterday, was my 36th anniversary! So, I was looking forward to having my once a month regular food day. Since we had a gift card for Olive Garden and they were having endless pasta night, we decided to go there. I was looking so forward to it, I had already been on their website and decided exactly what I was going to eat a week ahead of time.

The soup and salad were great as usual. Andy decided he didn't want to eat bread, but I did. Then, the appetizer came; smoked mozzarella with bread slices. I took one bite and got a mouthful of mold!!! I had to drink lots of water and eat more bread to get the taste out of my mouth!!! Yuck!!!

The the main course, roasted mushroom in a Parmesan sauce with sun-dried tomatoes. It wasn't bad, but not great either. The sun-dried tomatoes should have been soaked. Instead they were hard as a rock sprinkled on top. I was also surprised, I could only eat 1/4 of it. With other endless pasta nights, I've been able to eat two plates of pasta. Now, I think my stomach just isn't used to that any more!

I wasn't going to have any dessert, but they had pumpkin cheesecake! My weakness! It was fantastic!!! With a crunchy gingerbread cookie sprinkled on top.

Then we went to a movie; Abduction with Taylor Launter. Andy thought it was going to be a chick flick because of the Twilight star. But, it had a lot of action in it. He really liked it.

We had a small popcorn during the movie, which we agreed just didn't taste that great.

On our way home we both agreed that, we liked our raw vegan spaghetti dishes way better than the cooked, bland Olive Garden meals. Not only did they not taste that great, they left our mouths dry and thirsty. I was so thirsty by the time we got home, I drink 3 tall glasses of water!!! I also noticed mucus gathering in my throat and I had a sore on my tongue .

When I got home, I took my blood pressure, it was still normal; 129/71. But, my blood sugar was 293!!! I could of guessed that would have happened!

In the morning, I had another attack of the right eye allergy; Swollen, itchy! Still salty, dry, thirsty mouth! I snored again last night! I haven't snored since starting raw vegan. Gain 2 lbs!

Conclusion: Regular food just isn't as good anymore. When you get used to super fresh live food, dead food tastes bland! And it caused inflammation, mucus and snoring! So, I got to ask myself, Was it worth it! NOOO!

I'm really not craving sweets anymore, so I shouldn't have caved into the pumpkin cheesecake. It wasn't worth the spike in my blood sugar. I need to work on a raw vegan pumpkin cheesecake for thanksgiving, because my daughter is bringing her famous pumpkin cheesecake with caramel pecan topping. We'll have to see how next month's regular food day works out! It's going to be Thanksgiving!

Indoor Winter Garden

Is it possible to have fresh veggies all winter long? Well, This year I'm going to find out!

I just transplanted my outdoor herbs; rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, sage, and celery into their new indoor home.

I used a portable clothes rack on wheels and hung shoe holders on the rack with shower curtain hooks. I put a long planter on the bottom rack to catch drainage from watering. This works really well when it's a sunny day, I can wheel it outside. And it's easy access to my herbs when I'm cooking; just walk a few steps, snip, snip, snip and wonderful flavors in every dish!!!

Now, if I can find a way to get my tomatoes and zucchini in here before the frost gets them!

Two Week Update:

Start Raw Vegan Vitals:

09-21-11 Blood Pressure 149/99, Pulse 82, Blood Sugar 271, Weight 224

10-05-11 Blood Pressure 119/72, Pulse 68, Blood Sugar 176, Weight 217

Blood Pressure normalized in two days!

Blood Sugar still gradually coming down, not normal yet. But, really good for not taking insulin in 19 days!

Weight Loss 7 lbs in 14 days! Not hungry and eating well! Total of 15 lbs lost in one month. 9 more lbs to go to be back where I was before I started taking insulin.

Tips:

1. I make a big batch of Green Soup Smoothie in the morning and divide it up for each meal throughout the day.

2. I drink a Green Soup Smoothie before I eat each meal to fill up.

3. I prepare two days of meals at a time, so I get a break every other day. That seems to help me stay on track, because it's easier to eat the raw vegan food waiting for me in the refrigerator, than to make something else.

4. Have good snacks on hand and when out on errands to stay away from junk and fast food. (usually nuts and veggie seed crackers)

High Blood Pressure Cured!!!

I think I can safely say, “My High Blood Pressure is Cured!!!” Every time I take my blood pressure, I am surprised at how “normal it is!!! “118/73” Without my medication!!!! Go Raw Vegan!!!! Now for my diabetes!!! It’s in the very low 200’s now. About the same as when I was on insulin!

I don’t know if it’s just my taste buds adjusting, but I’m really starting to like the unsweetened “soup smoothies”. The first two days, I just drank the smoothies and ate some raw nuts. Then I started making raw vegan food. Walnut Crunch Thai Wraps, Mock Tuna wraps with a dill sauce, Pumpkin Seed Cilantro Pesto over zucchini spaghetti, Mock Tuna Sushi. Yum, Yum!!!

I've gone back and forth eating SAD (Standard American Diet)over the past 5 years. If I would have only stayed with it, I wouldn't have been in the dire shape I'm in now! I need to stay on this forever!!! I can’t understand myself sometimes!!! The food tastes great!!! I lose weight, my blood pressure goes to normal, and my blood sugar goes to normal! So, why do I go back to eating the SAD food? It’s killing me!!! Literally!!! So, why do I go back to SAD?

Yeah, I know it’s easier to eat SAD! Because, there’s nowhere nearby to buy prepared raw vegan food. SAD food is more socially acceptable. I try to please everyone else on what they want to eat because they constantly turn their noses up to raw vegan food, without even trying it! “Oh, Raw Vegan! Don’t we have any real food to eat?” They have literally gotten mad at me for having some raw vegan choices with the regular Thanksgiving meal. I’m not trying to force anyone to eat the same way as me. I provide the food they want for themselves, so why the hostility? Especially, since this is a life threatening choice I’m dealing with here!!!

I’ve been providing them with their needs all their life; it’s time to take care of myself! Sometimes, I feel guilty, but I need to keep remembering, if I don’t take care of myself, I won’t be around to take care of anyone! I want to live to see my grandchildren grow up. I want to be alive to see my great grandchildren.
But, not only live, but, living a quality life!

I've decided I will allow myself 1 day a month to eat socially. But, I have to go directly back to raw the next day. I still have to be careful on what I eat; low glycemic, so I don't have to take insulin for the diabetes. Hopefully, this will satisfy my family, especially through the coming holidays.

SICK AND TIRED OF BEING SICK AND TIRED!!!

I am so sick and tired of being sick and Tired!!!!
I have done everything the doctors have told me to do for 7 months now!!!
I feel like my body is slowly closing down. Too many medications!!! No progress!!!
Just sicker and sicker!!! Too many drug side effects and no positive Results!!!
Why should I be taking a blood pressure medication that hasn’t lowered my blood pressure
in 7 months? And causes so many side effects?
Why should I take insulin that causes me to gain so much weight?
Doesn’t more weight cause more insulin problems?
I feel like I’m a vicious cycle of no return!!!
Most days I can’t function! I’m always in bed!
And when I do get up and do something, I feel like I’m pushing myself to my limits!
I don’t want to just live longer. I want quality of live, not just life.
Being alive in bed and not being able to do anything is not living!

Ok, the radical, rebellious person inside me is ready to come out and fight!!!
I stopped taking all my meds!!!
I went to Atkins Diet with no carbs, because I know it will help me lose weight fast and keep my numbers down. But, I also know that it only helps me for about 1 week and then I need to go to Raw Vegan. For life, this time! I wish I could afford Dr. Cousens program for Diabetes Cure. But, $12,000 isn’t in my hands right now! So, I’m going to be studying what others on Raw Vegan have done to help their Diabetes.

On 9-8-11 I started the Aktin’s Diet with no meds!!! My blood sugar was 190 and my blood pressure was 149/97 (Average numbers, even with all my meds!) My weight had climbed up to 232 lbs.
During the week of the Aktin’s Diet, I lost 8 lbs. And I felt great! Lots on energy and getting things done! But, then after the week, my blood sugar and blood pressure stated going up every day, until one day, my blood sugar was 535 and my blood pressure was 159/117. STROKE LEVEL!!!! Ok, I had to do something fast!!! I broke down and took 1 insulin shot! I didn’t want to go back on my non-working blood pressure meds so; I went online to see a natural way to bring down my blood pressure. I found Epson Salt Baths! An hour later and my blood pressure was 130/76. WOW! That really works!

The next day I got Vertigo (dizziness) really bad!!! I was awakened at 4:45 am to the room spinning!!!
I could only lie on my back in bed. If I turned my head slightly to get my water cup off my night stand, the whole room would spin!!! So, I had to lay still!!! For 8 days!!! Now, I can get up, but if I look down or up, the room spins again. What is the cause of this??? I believe it is from the withdrawal of my blood pressure med, because when I first started on that med, I got vertigo for a whole month!!! And I have never had vertigo before in my life! Well, I continued this way, in bed with my dear husband bringing me Atkin’s meals and taking Epson Salt baths.

My blood sugar was still in the high 200’s to mid 300’s. So on 9-21-11, as soon as I was able to get up, I made me a green smoothie. But, not the sweet banana kind like I used to have. I had to stay away from sweet carbs to bring down my blood sugar. It was more like a soup smoothie. Not, bad, but not real good either! But, Boy it was like my cells opened up for nourishment and started dancing around in joy! “She’s feeding us real food!!! Something we can work with!!!” And I guess it helped them go to work because my numbers have been steadily going down!!!

Salty Foods Still A Problem

Today, I was busy getting ready to drive 2 hours to my grandson's birthday. I had no problem avoiding the cake and ice cream. It didn't look good to me at all. But, I did get into some chips again. It was the Terra chips with taro, ruby taro, sweet potato, yuca, batata, and parsnips with sea salt but I ate too much of them.

6th Day: Phase 2, Friday, 3-12-10
Weight: 199.2 lbs, -.8 lbs, -4.8 total, BMI 31.04
8:30 am, BP: 111/93, P:81, BS: 213
12:oo noon HCG 10 drops
3:00 pm 1 quart Energy Soup, Garlic Flax crackers, calories 232
8:30 pm Hcg 10 drops
8:45 pm Raw Vegan Chili, Garlic flax crackers, Terra vegetable chips calories 985
Totals: calories 1217

Let's Talk Poop

I know it's not a pleasant subject. But, when you're talking about weight, poop is a big factor. People carry a lot of poop around in their colon. One time I weighed myself before and after I eliminated and I lost 6 lbs! So, I do try to weigh myself after my bowel movement in the morning. Now, for some people who don't poop but once a week, this would be a disadvantage. But for me, especially when eating lots of raw food, poop happens 2 times a day and if I get a bonus round, 3 times a day! I've noticed I can weight myself pre-poop and then post-poop and I have lost several pounds. So, this is big when it comes to weight loss. The more fiber (raw food) you eat the more you will keep things moving along.

The main job of the colon is to reabsorb the liquid nutrients. When it gets into the large intestines, the liquids are absorbed enough so you should have firm soft poop. If it stays inside too long, the environment will change and toxins will form. This will be absorbed back into your body and cause problems. So, it's best to get it out on time.

Did you know meat and dairy have no fiber? That could be why they are known to be constipating. The best fiber sources are greens. So, remember... If you're eating green, you're getting lean!

5th Day: Phase 2, Thursday, 3-11-10
Weight: 197.8 lbs, - .4 lbs, -5.2 lbs total, BMI 31.0
11:00 am, BP: 133/93, P:72, BS: 198
12:oo noon BP: 119/90, P: 82, BS: 158, HCG 10 drops
4:00 pm sm. amt. kelp noodles & Alfredo, Garlic Flax crackers, calories 327
9:30 pm Raw Vegan Chili, Garlic flax crackers, calories 559
11:30 pm Hcg 10 drops
Totals: calories 886, carbs 56, fat 61, Proteins 35

Back on the Hcg Raw Vegan Diet

I got some more Hcg, so I'm restarting the Hcg Raw Vegan Diet Today. This time I will be experimenting and adjusting this diet to my specific Diabetic needs. I'm not going to be eating any fruit. Just vegetables, mostly greens. Because I noticed my blood sugar does alot better when I eat lots of greens. I'm going to try to eat a regular Raw Vegan diet, minus fruits. That means I'll be eating nuts and avacados. So, instead of just 500 calories, I'll be counting my calories but not limiting them. If I don't progress, I'll adjust in these areas.
I am using a different brand of Hcg homepathic called Mediral. So, this time I'll be doing 10 to 20 drops 3 times a day. I'm also not doing the phase 1, 2 loading days, because I've not been counting calories for a while and have been eating avacados and nuts until full.

1st Day: Phase 2, Sunday 3-07-10
Weight: 203.0 lbs, BMI: 31.8
7:45 am, BP: 145/97, P: 80, BS: 203
8:00 am Hcg, 10 drops
12:30 pm Hcg, 10 drops
Lunch: 1:00 pm Creamy Tomato Basil Soup 540 calories
8:00 pm hcg, 10 drops
Dinner: 8:30 pm Avacado, salsa 304 calories
Totals: 844 Calories, 86 Carbs, 53 fat, 21 protein

Is Inflammation The Cause of All Diseases?

I’ve been reading a lot of articles today stating all disease is caused by chronic low grade inflammation. The articles listed every disease & disorder you could think of including diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and stroke. As we go through life our body fights one infection after another causing inflammation. And when we eat the wrong types of food it causes low grade inflammation. This chronic low grade inflammation can also be inherited or have genetic factors. The body responds by increasing inflammatory cytokines which leads to increased levels of insulin resistance. This interrupts the digestive process of glucose. The body then converts the excess glucose into fat storage. Fat storage in turn increases the inflammatory cytokines and a vicious cycle is created. This is why a lot of people have trouble losing weight and develop degenerative health.

What’s the solution?
Eating healthy foods will increase our immunity and protect us from both inflammation from infections and inflammation from eating the wrong types of food. The wrong types of food include processed and highly refined foods like; white sugar, white flour, hydrogenated oils and other bad fats including deep fried and rancid oils and other foods that cause an acidic condition.

What kinds of foods are anti-inflammatory?
Anti-inflammatory foods include high levels of vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E. Choose dark green leafy vegetables, green and brightly colored fresh vegetables and fruit like these:
Spinach, kale, collard greens, broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, cabbage, brussels sprouts, cayenne peppers, winter squash, carrots, shitake mushroom, sweet potato, avocado, olives.
Blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, kiwi, peaches, mangoes, cantaloupe, apples, tart cherries, papaya.
Turmeric, ginger, oregano, rosemary, green tea, red onions, garlic, flaxseeds, hemp seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, kelp, almonds, almond butter, hazelnuts, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, evening primrose oil.
Extra Virgin olive oil, coconut oil, omega- 3 fatty acids.

What I find very interesting is these foods are the exact foods I have been using to cure my diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

11th day: Phase 2, Day 9: Wednesday 2-10-10,
Weight: 198.0 lbs, -0 / - 16.0 total, BMI: 31.01
8:20 am, BP: 122/92, P: 94, BS: 192
Breakfast: None
11:00 am Hcg
2:05 pm: BP: 134/93, P: 95, BS: 176
Lunch: 2:05 pm: ½ glass green smoothie (Pineapple, Banana, apple, grapes, spinach, kale)
7:00 pm, BP: 125/93, P: 87, BS: 173
Dinner: Broccoli Mushroom Salad (Broccoli, mushroom, red onion, raisins, sunflower seeds, Balsamic vinegar, olive oil, paprika, salt, pepper)
12:30 am BP:135/85, P:87, BS: 184

15 lbs lost in 7 days. I’m Now Under 200 lbs!!!

Can I say this out loud? I’m now under 200 lbs! I haven’t seen under 200 in 20 years! It’s going to be great when I go to the doctors and the nurse weighs me. She’ll be sliding that big weight marker down to the 200 mark and I’ll say, “No, you’ll have to slide it to the lower notch now!”
I have 18 more days of weight loss before I go back to the doctors. I really want to show him I made a great choice of canceling my meds. Well, OK, Maybe I’m asking too much. I hope he’ll just not be mad and start lecturing me and maybe even cancel me as a patient because I want to still monitor myself by tests. My numbers are just as good, if not better than when I was on the meds, but, with no side effects and depression. I just know if I get this weight off, my diabetes will be in control.
My husband just informed me that I didn’t snore last night. In fact, he had to lean over to see if I was still breathing, because he said I usually breathe hard! Me! I don’t snore! Do I? Well, I guess I don’t anymore!

9th day: Phase 2, Day 7: Monday 2-08-10,
Weight: 199.0 lbs, -1.4 / - 15.0 total, BMI: 31.16
9:45 am, BP: 132/98, P: 77, BS: 191
Breakfast: None
Hcg 5:00 pm
5:30 pm: BP: 126/87, P: 89, BS: 150
Lunch: 5:30 pm: 1 glass green smoothie (Pineapple, Banana, apple, orange, beet, spinach, kale)
Dinner: None - Not hungry and to late
9:50 pm, BP: 132/95, P: 85, BS: 157

Stroke! Big Wake Up Call!

Time for a big change! A stroke will kinda do that to ya. I'm lucky it was a mild stroke. I still have numbness in my upper left lip, three left fingers and weakness in my left leg. The worst part is my mind isn't sharp anymore. I'm fine talking, but if someone asked me a question, the retrieval is slow or not at all. Can't seem to connect. I am determined to change my life for the better and lower my risk factors by losing weight.

I decided to start this blog to help me commit to this lifestyle change and to help others that might need encouragement on their journey. And if I record things, it might help me exercise my brain and remember things.

To sum up how I got to this point, I noticed I was having problems with my blood sugar and blood pressure probably about 10 years ago. I started monitoring my blood sugar and blood pressure on and off. And decided to go the natural route by losing weight and eating better to correct this. I went on several diets:

Atkins
1200 calories
200 calories
Fit for Life
Weightlifting
Personal Trainer
Exercise videos
Diet Pills
Hypnosis
Guided Imagery
Blood Type
Alkaline
Juicing
Hcg
Vegan
Raw Vegan

Most diets I would lose the first week, then plateau. My doctor said I must be eating too much, so that's when I ate only one 200 calorie frozen diet meal a day. I gained 10 lbs that week! The only success I had was with raw vegan. But it was hard to stick to it because of no support system and my family eating differently. (The smells of Pizza and other cooked foods in the kitchen were hard to resist) But, I did managed to go from 258 lbs in 2000 to 225 in 2009.

This was just too slow for me, so I went on the hcg homeopathic diet in October 2000. I went down to 200 lbs. I took a break during the holidays and was going to start on Hcg again in January.

Well, January 3rd, 2010, I had a stroke. My blood sugar went up to 464 and my blood pressure was 149/111. It scared me so bad I did everything the doctor said: I checked my blood sugar at least 5 times a day, injected insulin 3+ times a day, I took 2 Blood sugar pills, 1 Blood Pressure Pill and an adult aspirin every day. This was hard for me because I'm the type of person that doesn't even take a Tylenol for a headache. But, I was determined not to have another stroke.


My weight started climbing fast. So, I went on a Vegan diet. My numbers started dropping, but my weight was still climbing. I had gained 16 lbs in a matter of weeks. I started to have burning when I peed. I started drinking more water and drinking cranberry juice. One day it got so severe, I just sat on the toilet crying for hours. I looked up my meds on the Internet and every one of them had uti as a side effect! Sure it was a low and uncommon side effect, but I was the lucky one in the low percentage to get this side effect. I decided I can't keep going on like this. How can I get healthier with fast weight gain and severe side effects?