Thursday, May 21, 2015

Health and Weight Stuff

As you may or may not know I have struggled with my weight my entire adult life.  I have tried so many products, programs, plans—some with great temporary success, others with little to no results. I’ve never been a huge fan of exercise, but for a period of time (about 2 years several years ago) I was very faithful to workout daily. While I had marginal success with it, I also had a lot of joint pain in my hip that finally drove me from it.

The last serious weight loss program I did was injecting hCG combined with a very low calorie diet (VLCD). I lost weight—over 100 lbs—but the program required on for 6 weeks, off for 6, then on again for six and off again for 12, with each interim period doubling from the previous.  During the interim periods, carb and fat intake was strictly limited, and frankly, after only eating 500 calories for six weeks, I was not all that excited about continuing on that path. I did several cycles of the injections/VLCD, with less and less loss each round and eventually was only managing to take off the weight during the injection period that I piled back on in the interim.

It wasn’t a sustainable lifestyle for me.  It was costly, difficult to maintain (the food choices were so limited that eating out or socializing around food was impossible), and required a lot of other lifestyle changes. I did not cheat during the program, but in the interim I couldn’t seem to follow the plan. I was really weak when I was eating so little, and that was a new experience for me. In addition to the issues with the weight gain between rounds, I had severe muscle cramps in my legs and passed out twice from them, and it messed up my hormones.

I decided I didn’t want to be thin badly enough to put my body through that kind of torture, so I gave up. And when I gave up, I mean I really lost hope. The next couple of years the weight piled on. At my lowest weight I was around 225 lbs. I almost doubled that over the next three years. I could hardly walk from one end of the house to the other, had no energy, my ankles practically disappeared from the swelling, and I became a recluse. I quit driving and Dave took over all the grocery shopping and errands I had done for years.

Dave, who had also lost a fair amount of weight on hCG/VLCD, piled on the pounds, mostly around his middle—the place they say is the most dangerous. He made desultory attempts to lose various times, but he hit an all-time high for his body (225 lbs.) around the same time I hit my high. He was aggravated with himself for allowing his body to get into that state, but I was sinking fast into a deepening state of depression.  Many days I just prayed for God to take me home.

In October of 2013 I told Dave I was done. I didn’t care if I lived or not, but what I was doing was NOT living, merely existing. We had a heart-to-heart discussion about the situation and decided to try once again with the chiropractor/applied kenisiologist we had worked with successfully before. It was an expensive option, around $400 per month including visits, adjustments and supplements, and not covered under health insurance. The only option really covered was surgery, which I knew was not an option for me.

Dave took time off from work to drive me to the appointments, and really helped me a lot to overcome that sense of hopelessness.  I made slight progress, but the doctor wanted me to give up sugar, dairy, yeast, nightshades, and at various times other foods as well. He joked that it may come to the point where I could have ice cubes and toothpicks. I didn’t laugh.  I could sustain that limited diet for a few weeks, but not long term. If it had been one or two foods at a time, I would have had no problem, but soon I sensed that the doctor was frustrated with me, and I was not happy either.  I had made enough progress, however, to move beyond my deep despair, and began to get interested in life again.

I joined a swap group online, got interested in doing art and writing letters to pen pals, and slowly came out of my emotional slump.

After almost exactly a year, I quit going to the chiropractor, and haven’t been back since last October. I found sources online to order the supplements he had me taking, and on the last visit he prescribed something for my hip that really helped a lot. With the pain lessened, I was able to do more activities, not a lot, but more than I had done. Week by week I have made some small improvements (I even drove a couple of times this month!), but still no weight loss.

In March of this year, we decided to take wheat out of our diet.  Dave lost a pound or two; I didn’t lose much if any. However, we both felt better not eating it, and decided it wasn’t anything we really missed. We had purchased a used recumbent exercise bike we hadn’t really used much, but decided to incorporate some exercise into our days. Again, Dave lost a pound or so, but I didn’t have the stamina to stick with it long enough to make any difference for me.

It sounds like we just didn’t want it badly enough, doesn’t it? That may be part of it, but after trying so many things with limited or no success, I had once again decided I was destined to live the rest of my days in this massive body, embarrassed to be in public, refusing to have my photo taken, and limited to staying close to home.

In April, one of the pen pals I met last year posted pictures of herself on her Instagram account showing some pretty remarkable weight loss in just two weeks using a product someone at her church had shown her.  I asked her about it, and after a couple of weeks decided to try it. She didn’t give much information on her post, but I did a Google search and found some more information. The product is by a company called TruVision Health.

I researched a bit about the ingredients in the products, looked at the videos on their site for results, and was really encouraged by what I saw.  Rather than primarily address the weight loss issue like most diet products, these supplements are designed to work on rebuilding health, to balance blood chemistry and detoxify the organs, which in turn creates an optimal environment for the body to get rid of the fat on its own. My new friend added me to a secret Facebook group, and I saw a lot more information about how the products work, the results people were getting, and how great the support system is.

I ordered a 7½ day sample pack from her for $25.00 + $3.00 for shipping. I began taking them the day after they arrived. Two pills, twice a day. I kept taking my other supplements for a few days but then dropped those to see what this would do alone. Today I finished my first week sample pack and this is what I have noticed:
Increased energy
Better sleep
Decreased appetite
No cravings—in fact the sweet stuff has really not even tempted me
Clear mind
Less back and joint pain
More flexibility
One of the product ingredients is something I have not been able to take in the past so I was really skeptical at first which was why it took me a couple weeks to order the sample, but I have not had jitters, racing heart, or any of the other side effects I was anticipating.  The energy is not hyper energy, just enough that I want to move more. I am sleeping more soundly, but I wake up refreshed and energized in the morning, and don’t feel the overwhelming desire to take a nap every afternoon like I had been. I have not weighed, and won’t measure again until the weekend. I can already tell I have lost some fat around my stomach/buttocks area, though.

So, I talked Dave into trying it. He began Tuesday, and today is Thursday. In two days he has lost three pounds on the scales, and enough in his stomach that it is visibly noticeable. He has never been a morning person, but he is waking up energized in the morning, and maintaining that level of energy throughout the day.  He has also noticed a decrease in his cravings for sugar and hasn’t felt the need to snack throughout the day like he had been--all these results in two days.

I don’t know if this is the ultimate answer for everyone, but I can tell you that for Dave and me it has really given some hope that we will finally be able to conquer this life-long battle of the bulge. The stories I have seen on the TruVision website as well as those in the Facebook group are nothing short of amazing. It is not a quick fix, but a long term project. The product works without diet changes or exercise programs, but because of the increased energy and loss of cravings for bad food, I am making wiser choices with what I eat, and moving more because I feel like it. The biggest lifestyle change I have had to make is to increase my water consumption, something I should have done long before. I am not saying you won't be changing your eating habits if you take this, but the products make it much easier to say no to the things your body doesn't want or need which is half or more of the battle any time we want to lose weight.

The sample pack is a one-time offer.  It is designed to give potential customers the chance to try it for a week to see how their body reacts. Some people lose weight that first week.  Others don’t lose for several weeks because of the work that must be done internally to repair organs and stabilize blood chemistry. I am always up for the things that will improve my health, and I think this is just the thing I have been looking for. As for the cost, it is less than what we were already paying for supplements, so that is a good thing.

If you would like more information, would like to try a sample pack, or want to join the Facebook group to look around just let me know. We have to be friends on Facebook for me to add you to the group, (link on the sidebar) and I would be happy to share what information I have.  Here is a link if you want to look at the website to see pricing and so on. You can’t buy a sample pack there, you will need to email (contact form above) me your paypal email and I will send an invoice from my end. Eventually I will get a cart website set up; I just didn’t want to wait any longer to let you know about this wonderful product.

2 comments:

Birgit said...

Trying to lose weight can be very discouraging and one feels discouraged one can eat more. I am glad you found this new product and that it seems to be helping you. So far it sounds great and I hope there is a support group to help you and vice versa

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Well all I can say is ... I'm so pleased you're not giving up - and choosing to believe in yourself and make that difference ... I hope this helps you maintain the downward trend - we all feel better with a few pounds off .. take care and good luck - Hilary