[WishingOnAStar]

Hello Friends ~ My name is Jeanne and I hope you are doing well. Life sure can be a struggle at times. I have a questions with regards to my eating patterns.

I have been overweight the majoroity of my life. I got really sick back in 1975 and lost a great deal of weight . When I was diagnosed with Lupus the same year, I was put on a number of medications and I began to gain weight rapidly (that and no activity due to depression).

I have been watching my weight and have even been through a Weight Management class . with diet and exercise. I put some weight on, . My problem now is that I'm afraid to eat because when I do, the pounds come right back on. I don't exercise much due to my depression--I hate leaving the house, much less my bed. I've started taking Milk of Magnesia on a regular basis, especially if I've eaten anything of substance. I try to eat only one meal, usually supper and that is usually a salad. For a snack at night, I have fruit. When it comes to someone serving a big meal, I panic because I don't want to eat much, but I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. When I get home, I gulp down the "MOM" and pray I'll lose what I just ate. It works fairly quickly and I am on a high because it did. I also use the instant laxative that you mix with juice...hasn't worked as well as "MOM," and it is far more expensive.

I realize none of these are good for me, and when I don't use either of them, I am so constipated that I get chest pains when trying to go to the bathroom. but laxatives are not the answers, nor is skipping meals. Any suggestions? I've thought alot about purging, but it would be way to obvious in my household -- couldn't keep it a secret. I wish there was no such thing as fat...life is hard enough just trying to deal with one's emotions...sometimes I just don't understand.

Blessings ~

[Sunna]

Hi Jeanne!
You know MOM is not good for you, but I have a suggestion about exercise. I know how hard it can be, and overwhelming, but start small, go for a walk, walk to a park, spot some roses on the way and let yourself look at them, and smell them. Even if you go for a little walk it will make it easier to do it again, because you have already done it.

If you go for a walk it will help your depression. Sunshine and dirt both are proven anti-depressants, and have no sideeffects.

I am not saying it is easy, gosh no! I have been depressed. What I found works for me is breaking it up in manageable bites. Coming up with an idea, "I should go for a walk" usually evoked a lot of resistance, but I could tell myself "I will go for a walk tomorrow" with much less resistance. I could even set time, when I think I could do it - more or less, no stress, don't make it stressful in any way. And then I could do a little thing, like while going to pee, I could also get what I could wear when I go for a walk, and put it somewhere where it will be ready and waiting. "Find my sneakers" is not to big a thing while "Get dressed and get out of the house" may just be too large.

Blessings to you too. and hugs.

[ontheroadtorecovery]

Hi Jeanne,

I'm no doctor, but MOM has magnesium. Too much or too little of this mineral can have some serious cardiac implications. This is Russian Roulette! Please reconsider this.

I don't have any great suggestions, but can share with you from my own experience that purging and/or laxatives are also not the answer to losing weight. I started binging 30 years ago, thinking it would help me lose weight. Instead I've lost energy,health, relationships and jobs. Not a good trade off.

Now I am trying to end all purging (with varied success), though binging is still a problem. And so...as cliche as it may sound, I take one step at a time.

R