Hi, Special.

One of the purposes in my thinking that you need to have blood work done as soon as possible is to determine if your glucose levels may be contributing to the depression and tears you're having.

If it turns out that you do not have pre-Diabetes or Diabetes, type II,you may wish to become aware of the American Diabetes Association's recommendations for your carbohydrate intake. The organization recommends that we have 45 to 60 grams of carbs per meal or 135 to 180 grams per day.

If you do have Diabetes, type II, your recommendations for carbohydrate intake, according to the American Diabetes Association, will need to be 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate daily or about 25-30 grams of carbs per meal. You'll need to check everything with your physician and (preferably) an internist rather than a general practitioner. If it's Diabetes I would suggest that you see an endocrinologist, at least initially.

I haven't checked the carbohydrate levels of Stevia or any of the other artificial sweeteners but think that you will need to become aware of all foods by checking them on the internet for their carbohydrate values. If you decide to use Stevia once daily, it would represent a minuscule rise in blood glucose levels. By comparison, one teaspoon of sugar contains 4 grams of carbohydrate; so you see the level between different carbohydrate-containing substances.

I wish you well and hope we've made a contribution to your efforts to find out why you're feeling so distraught right now.