Checking In

Just checking in to say that I'm doing quite well these days. I broke my elbow a month ago, but have not allowed the restriction on exercise -- or, most activities really since one arm is out of commission -- to affect me badly. I started walking more, but do not feel a sense of panic over not being able to do my regular cardio or weight lifting. My eating has been, for the most part, quite normal since my last post. I still have an occasional day when I overeat or have to "talk myself down" from a binge, but even if I eat an extra piece of cake, I'm not allowing it to send me into a downward spiral. I have been able to get over it by the very next meal, which feels fabulous.

A Week Update

So, here I am-- back. I'm not quite as recovered as I thought I was. I was really determined to enjoy our vacation out east -- and I did -- but halfway through it, my zen eating kind of fell apart and never really came back. Once we were home, I started struggling daily with overexercising, overeating at dinner, and eating when not hungry -- sometimes almost to the point of bingeing. I can't really put my finger on what triggered it all, except that (and I feel as though this sound ridiculous) my therapist kind of broke up with me. At my last appointment with her, she said, "Well, do you want to make another appointment or do you want to wait and see how you feel?" I was kind of taken aback and made an appointment for 6 weeks out. As I left, she said, "Just call if it gets close and you don't feel the need to come." I felt kind of odd, though I knew that she really can't help me much anymore. I know what there is to know about recovering, I have the tools I need to make good choices, and it's totally 100% up to me to change. By the time the appointment time was close, I was feeling out of control and didn't want to have to go and admit that to her, so I cancelled.

Last week was a pretty good one, as this week has been -- unless you count the weekend, when I relapsed into some mindless overeating. I'm hoping that I have climbed out of the little dip in the road that I fell into in June and can continue down the path to good health. I HAVE made some strides this summer, in spite of my stumble. I have really slowed down my eating at many meals, and am not the first one done every single time I eat with others. I have also been able to stop at about 5.5 at many dinners, and just about all breakfasts and lunches. Now, if I can keep my hand out of the cookie jar, so to speak.....

Changing Gears

I have had little enthusiasm to blog here recently - perhaps because I feel the blog has served its purpose. Though I wouldn't say I am completely and forever recovered, I have definitely moved farther on the spectrum toward "normal" than not. I have started setting up a new blog here:
http://wife2abadge.wordpress.com/
There's not much there yet and I'm not really sure exactly what I'm going to do with it. I really enjoy looking at food blogs, but I don't want to write about every bite I eat. I don't want it to be all about fitness either. I think I'll just start posting and see what happens. Whether you follow me or not, I really appreciate the supportive comments I've gotten over the past couple of years. I am well on my way to being a normal eater. Best wishes -- I will still be reading your blogs, so you'll still "see" me in your comments -- Susan

Absent: Calorie Counting

I realized today that I haven't counted calories in a very long time. I do occasionally tally the calories in my breakfast because I like to eat a LOT of stuff in my oatmeal (banana, cottage cheese, peanut butter, crumbled protein bars, flaxseed, etc) and I want to make sure I'm not eating much more than 450 calories or so. An entire day, though? It's probably been at least a few months since I've tallied every calorie in every meal. My weight has stayed stable too. I can tell by the fit of my clothing that I've gone up and down a few pounds every now and then, but they consistently fit the same way most of the time. I feel triumphant -- this is a major victory for me.

I'm doing better on stopping when satisfied and on eating more slowly. I haven't been the first to finish dinner a few times over the past week. I've been trying to eat without distractions more too because I realized that if I really want to enjoy my food, I do need to concentrate on it more. When I was in the grip of undereating, who cared if I tasted my food? It wasn't too flavorful anyway.

This past weekend was a good one. I went out to dinner with friends and barely ate any of my entree because I was full from the salad. And I was okay with that. I got a bike ride in, a weight training session at the Y, and had a good Retrouvaille CORE session. At CORE, we presented "the third great date" from the program, which was all about resolving conflict. On our "date", T and I discussed various conflicts, but spent a lot of time discussing yard work. I'm mortified by the state of our yard. While he isn't quite as embarrassed as I am, he would like it to look better -- but despises yard work with every fiber of his being. We decided that we really need to buckle down and just do it, to borrow the overused phrase. So I went out yesterday and bought some daisies, verbena, and creeping phlox. We spent a couple of hours weeding and planting in our front yard. I was in such a good mood all afternoon and evening because of it. Working together and accomplishing something that you can see feels so good, doesn't it?

.........Or Maybe Not

My attempts to eat until satisfied and not beyond aren't going so well. At breakfast and (mostly) at lunch, okay. Dinner? I've only managed it twice since my post. I'm still trying though. It's not like I'm overeating french fries and hamburgers -- I don't often cook dinners that aren't healthy -- but overeating salad is still overeating. Then I feel kind of sad that I don't get hungry before bed so I feel guilty eating a snack or dessert.

I had some sort of odd freak-out last week and one evening I ate so much in such a short time that it almost could be considered a binge. Maybe it was a mini-binge. I talked to my therapist about it and she said that I've made so much progress in such a short time that I shouldn't be surprised that I backslide a bit sometimes. I've been really, really busy lately and under stress at work due to changes coming down the pipeline, so I dealt with it in the old, comforting way. Since I went to see her I've been okay. I told her about how angry I'd been when my FIL told me that my BIL wouldn't "let" his wife buy brownies and she suggested that perhaps I was internalizing it. I thought, "Oh -- duh! Of course I was!" Food and weight is still a very touchy issue with me.

I'm going out to eat tonight with four coworkers. I'm praying that they don't talk about what they "should" be eating and/or how "bad" they're being, but I think my prayers are in vain. Sigh. I am going to order what sounds best to me and eat until satisfied and do my best to ignore their judgments. Tomorrow T and I are going out to eat with about 9 other couples and then to a concert with 1980s music. It should be fun, though I'm dreading the late night. We usually go to bed by 9pm and this concert doesn't even start until 10pm. I can't sleep in on Sunday either. And we have our last league bowling day on Sunday. I will now stop wingeing and concentrate on how much fun we'll have!

Eat Until Satisfied...not Beyond

I think I've progressed about as far as I'm going to in my quest to eat without distractions. I still only manage it about a quarter of the time, but that's better than nothing. I will continue to work on it. My next project will be to eat until satisfied. I can usually judge how much to eat at breakfast and lunch, but not at dinner. I eat a small dinner, but almost always end up feeling too full, and then feeling panicky. I think the key would be to eat even less, and then have a snack before bed if I get hungry again. Starting with dinner tonight, that will be my mission.

I had a crummy Easter weekend, as far as my eating was concerned. I feel frustrated with myself -- like I'm almost stuck in a rut in my recovery process. Just when I think I may actually be "normal", I have a few days -- or a week -- when I slip back into disordered thinking or behavior. No binges or anything, but overeating on purpose -- eating more even though I know I'll feel even fuller and icky. Last week I had a post dinner snack every evening, even though I wasn't the slightest bit hungry. That led to thoughts that I needed to cut back so I don't put weight on and/or so I can lose a bit more before our summer vacation to the east coast. That led to a bit of "last supper" eating all weekend long. I think I could have more compassion and forgiveness for myself if I had overeaten because it was a holiday and the food was good. The truth is, though, that I overate because I kept thinking that I "needed" to stop eating! Maybe giving away my baggy clothes wasn't such a great idea. I don't really have room to store them, but not having them around as a safety net pressures me not to put on any weight. The weekend weather was gorgeous and though I was stuck inside cooking most of Saturday, I managed to get out and bike 21 miles on Sunday. It felt glorious -- except for my backside, which felt not so glorious by mile 18.

I signed up for six weeks of golf lessons again this year. Last night was lesson one, and right off the bat I felt foolish because I'd grabbed the sand wedge (S) instead of the five iron (5) and the pro pointed it out in front of the other fifty students. Sigh. Though I was wearing long underwear, a tank top, two fleece sweatshirts, a windbreaker, and jogging pants, I was FREEZING out there. I hope it warms up significantly before lesson number two.

We had a birthday party for my FIL last week and T's brother, wife, and new baby surprised him by showing up from England. He was really shocked, but very happy to see them. The baby is a doll and we've been really enjoying their visit, though it has made for some late nights. I'm exhausted. On Saturday, my FIL told me that P (SIL from England who cannot have gluten, wheat, or dairy) was really enjoying things from a local bakery that specializes in gluten-free items. He said she'd had a really good cookie that day, but that A (her husband) "wouldn't let" her buy any brownies. When I asked why not, he said, "Well, she has to start watching her weight". I swear I thought the top of my head would come off. I said that it was really none of A's business and that if T ever told me I couldn't buy a brownie, there'd be problems. I think he could tell I was really angry because he just said, "Well, I think she wanted to buy several" and tried to change the subject. I wonder if part of my overeating that day was in reaction to hearing that. I railed on and on to T later -- do you think she hasn't noticed that she's gained a lot of weight since getting pregnant? I don't really think she needs A to point it out to her! ARGH.

Zero Distractions = Boredom!

I found pants! They aren't perfect, but at least I won't have to wear the same pair of pants every day all summer. I still couldn't find any lower waisted pants with no front pockets, but did find some with pockets that don't poke out oddly. I bought three size 8s, so I guess I'm officially a size 8 (though I imagine not for all brands). I haven't weighed myself, but a friend I hadn't seen in a couple of months told me yesterday that I looked "just fabulous!". I tried not to feel irritated.

I've still been trying to eat without distractions, but find myself bored and looking around for something to read after ten bites or so. Maybe that means I should stop eating. Hmmm...I hadn't thought of that! I did just overeat at lunchtime because I was ravenous. I had a large bowl of oatmeal with almond butter and fruit at 5:30am, along with toast and peanut butter at 10am, and a 100-cal pack of almonds at noon, but by 1pm I could have gnawed my arm off. I shoveled in my salad so quickly that I got too full. Oops.

Eating Without Distractions

My mission to eat without distractions is going...okay. I think it is hardest at work because everyone I work with reads magazines for the whole lunch half-hour. The library gets a zillion of them, so there is always something new to read. I usually don't take the entire 30 minutes to eat, so I've been reading after I finish eating. It does feel odd to just sit and eat, but I am definitely tasting my food and enjoying it more.

Dinner is always full of distractions since I have a husband, two kids, and a dog at the table. I haven't been the first one done at every dinner for the past few weeks -- at least at a few meals. I have started eating yogurt with dinner. I know, you're thinking so? I love yogurt and I know it's healthy for me, but it has never been a very satisfying snack for me. No matter what type I eat or what I put in it, I'm hungry less than an hour after eating it. This yogurt appeared on the grocery store shelves a few weeks ago and it's quite tasty. It was on sale last week and I stocked up. I've been eating a cup of it, alternating with the delicious but incredibly expensive greek yogurts, for dinner almost every night. It feels like an indulgence and I don't have to worry about it being an unsatisfying snack. It's a nice sweet ending to my meal too.

Breakfast is difficult because I'm used to multitasking while eating it. I usually make the girls' and my lunches, and sometimes start dinner in between bites of oatmeal. I've been trying to make lunch the night before, but don't always have time. On the weekend I sat and ate mindfully, but this week, I've only managed one morning of simply eating.

My shopping trip was depressing -- not because of the sizes I fit into, but because I couldn't find a single top I even wanted to try on! I did try on several pair of pants, but only found one I liked fairly well. Doesn't any company make khakis that fall just below the waist, have a flat front, and no front or side pockets?!? Levi used to make some Dockers that I loved, so of course they stopped making them. I am wearing a pair of size 8 pants today, for the first time in three plus years. They are a bit snugger than I'm comfortable with, but 10s are just too loose on me now and having them fall down all the time drives me nuts.

Trying to Make Too Many Changes

Lately, my attempts at intuitive eating have been spotty at best. I think I'm trying to do too many things at once -- eat slowly, eat when hungry, eat without distractions, eat small portions, stop when 80% full.... As a result, I'm not doing anything consistently or well. I've also had diety thoughts and the temptation to overexercise creeping in.

I'm going to start one that is very difficult for me -- eating without distractions -- and do it every meal (well, probably not dinner since there are three other people at the table) for a week. If I am doing it well by then, I'll add in something else. This morning I was eating breakfast and wow, it was so difficult to just eat. I kept reaching for the mail, the paper, a magazine...it was ridiculously hard to just concentrate on what I was eating! This will be quite a challenge for me.

I've been weaning myself from the Welbutr*n I've used for my SAD, which is making me really tired a lot of the time. I guess it was giving me a lot of pep. I've been getting sleepy in the afternoons and yesterday I went to bed before 9pm, after taking a 15-minute nap in the afternoon. I am not a napper, so this afternoon sleepiness is very odd for me.

I am taking C to a birthday party at the mall and will have a couple of hours to myself there. I had decided I would look for some pants because I don't have too many pair that aren't too loose now. The very thought of clothes shopping has sent me into a mental tizzy and I have just wanted to eat and overeat all week long. Ay-yi-yi. At least after tonight it will be over. I'll either have bought some pants or not. The truth is that I am afraid that the next smaller size won't fit me and it will trigger something. I am aware of this, though, so I am prepared to not allow it to happen. I have a choice. Every time I choose not to allow dumb things like this affect my behavior, I am stronger and more healed.

149!

No, not my weight -- haven't weighed myself lately. My bowling score last Sunday! I don't know how I managed it, but I bowled over my (pitiful 85) average all three games. The weather here was gorgeous on Sunday and I went for a bike ride with R -- 12.5 miles. I couldn't believe she lasted that long. It's very fun to see how proud and capable it makes her feel.

I decided to try and make a sacrifice for Lent. I often try, but I'm not sure I've ever actually made it. I knew I'd never make it 6 weeks if I tried to give up sweets, so I gave them up Mon-Thurs. It hasn't been has difficult as I thought it would be. I've had a few moments of self pity (when a coworker who makes fabulous pies brought one in to work for us, when another coworker brought in brownies...) but I haven't felt particularly deprived. Maybe that's only because I know I can eat something on the weekends, but I haven't gone wild with desserts on those three days. In fact, I think I'm becoming more discerning in my dessert choices. We went out to eat last Saturday night and I was tempted by the cheesecake. However, when I asked if it was made there at the restaurant and the waitress said no, I turned down dessert all together.

The funny thing is that on weekdays, I'm kind of amazed at how satisfying a "dessert" of yogurt and granola or a whole grain waffle with almond butter on it can be. On nights when I'm not hungry between dinner and bed, I don't have to eat anything because if I don't eat dessert, there's no reason to eat when I'm not hungry! Now, if only I can carry that over AFTER Easter.

Isabelle tagged me to write about what makes me happy, so I will contemplate that and get back to y'all.

Sore in a Good Way

No news on the x-ray of my shoulder. The lump hasn't changed at all and I'm wondering if it's from repetitive motion, like the ganglion cyst I got on my wrist once. I see the dr for my yearly physical next month, so I may be lazy and not call to see what the x-ray said.

Last Friday was GORGEOUS and I spent some time trimming bushes and raking out old perennial foliage. I did all of the trimming by hand and holy cow -- my forearms, wrists, and arm muscles are still sore! I got out my bike and rode with R, but only for 15 minutes. She didn't want to do more. It sure felt good to get on it though.

I took my first spin class on Sunday. I liked it, though it was difficult to know how much tension to put on. I kept having to adjust it up and down. I suppose after a while you get to know where to put it. It would help if the dial had some sort of numbers on it. I really should have worn my bicycle shorts because my bum and my --ahem-- female parts still hurt today. I may take a spin class once a week or so until I can ride my bike outside more regularly. I was drenched afterward.

I just bought the book Mindful Eating by Jan Chozen Bays. So far it's good and again I have been reminded of the importance of slowing down when I eat. Lately I have had quite a few dinners that ended with me feeling overfull because I ate too quickly. There was once last week when I was the last to finish -- amazing. I've been trying to concentrate on taking smaller bites, chewing more slowly, and resting more between bites. I haven't listened to any of the CD that came with the book yet, so that's my next step.

Choosing Health

My doctor sent me for an x-ray to make sure the lump on my shoulder isn't a tumor -- no news yet. My therapist is quite proud of me and I'm not seeing her again for almost two months. I told her that the one thing I'm still really struggling with is anxiety triggered by people's "you've lost weight!" remarks, or putting on a pair of pants and suddenly noticing that they're kind of baggy. Every time something like that happens, I promptly spend two or three days overeating at meals and eating when I'm not hungry. I think it's a kind of fear because almost every time my weight has been lower than it is now, it has meant starvation followed by binges, overexercise, or both. I'm nervous that getting smaller will flip that switch inside me -- the seductive one that says, "You know, if you skip that snack/dessert/french fry, you can get back to a size six. You really shouldn't eat that unless you want to gain weight. You had better get in some more exercise today because you ate that piece of cake at work. So what if you're hungry? You can hold off a few more hours...." I should give that voice a name -- perhaps something sexy and seductive like Candy. Then I can talk back to her.

Barb said that I just need to keep reminding myself that I am much stronger than I was a few years ago, or even a year ago. I am much better equipped to deal with that sort of temptation and much better at banishing those types of thoughts. Yes, she is right. I have the freedom to choose to be healthy and that is the choice I'm making.

I'm considering volunteering to be the secretary for the P.T.A. I know that sounds crazy, but T and I are going to give up being on the board in our Retrouvaille group. We're just kind of burned out. We'll still go to the monthly support meetings, but just want to be regular members for a while. I talked with the treasurer this past weekend and she assured me that it really isn't that much work. Ha -- that's what they all say to sucker you in. I'm going to go to the meeting next week to check it out.

Almost "Normal"

I got on the scale yesterday for the first time in a while and found that I'd lost 3 1/2 more pounds. Interesting. I'm only 3 lbs away from being a "normal" BMI. I wonder if I lost it because of the weight training? I really don't feel as though I've been eating any less. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror in the gym's weight room and I was startled by how normal I thought I looked. It was the first time in a long time that I didn't look at myself and see only "fat".

Food and Spring Fever

I had to work on Valentine's Day, but my lovely family showed up to visit me bearing tulips, and had a dozen roses waiting for me when I got home. We all went out to dinner together and I practiced mindful eating. I only finished half my dinner, even though I was ravenous by the time we got our food.

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The day before V-Day, T took the girls to the father-daughter dance. There was no school due to winter break, so the girls went around the corner to get their hair fancied up by the woman who usually cuts it (in her house). They both had sparkly hair spray in and felt quite beautiful.

I've been thinking about food a lot again lately. I'm not sure if it's because I've been looking at quite a few food blogs (who knew there were so many people who take daily pictures of everything they eat?!?) or because I'm still feeling rather disgruntled and stressed. I feel so restless -- maybe I just have spring fever. We're getting MORE snow today, to add to the 100 inches we've already had this winter. Blech.

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I've been experimenting with breakfast lately -- trying to eat enough to keep me full longer than a couple of hours. Even when I eat 550 calories (oatmeal with cottage cheese, almond butter, almonds....) I usually get hungry within 3-4 hours. On Friday I ate some high protein cereal with milk at 5:00am, worked out for an hour and got ready for work, then ate a Lean Cuisine Panini at 8am. I still got hungry by 11am. Since I wake up at 4:45, that is 6+ hours -- and I did exercise for an hour -- but I would still have expected that much food to keep me from feeling as though I could gnaw my arm off by noon. If I didn't have a family to feed, I'd eat dinner at breakfast time and oatmeal at night!

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I am going to see both my therapist and my regular doctor this week. I found a lump on my shoulder a week ago and want to get it checked out. With my family history, I immediately thought CANCER, but hopefully it's just a cyst or something. It's round and hard like a marble, and doesn't move around. Mysterious.
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WHY will Blogger not let me put spaces between my paragraphs?!? ARGH!

Black Friday

First, the good news: when I was at the Y last week, I was stretching and suddenly realized that my injured leg bends almost as much as my other leg now. Maybe it doesn't sound very exciting, but the orthopedic surgeon told me that would never happen. He said I'd be lucky to be able to bend it 3/4 of the way, and I'd probably never be able to sit cross-legged on the floor again. I'm happy to report that he was wrong! I can stand up, bend my knee, and pull my foot up behind me to within an inch of my behind (if that makes sense). I've been steadily increasing the weight that I'm lifting, though I'm reaching a point when I'll have to stay for a bit. On the squat machine, I started with just the bar, but I'm up to putting on 100 pounds now! I still see absolutely no quad muscle in my injured leg, but I've really only been working at it since December, so maybe that's normal.

My sweet dh made me brownies from scratch for my half-birthday last week. I was AMAZED. The man cannot cook an egg! He got down one of my cookbooks and made brownies from a 2-page recipe that involved melting chocolate and tempering eggs and everything! They were so fabulously delicious, fudgy, and rich -- I should have taken a picture of them. It drives him nutty that I insist on celebrating half-birthdays, so he's never done anything on mine until this year. I think it's a fun tradition.

So, when I last posted, I was fighting the dessert demon. Last Friday, things came to a head and I had a really bad day. I didn't binge, but I ate quite a few things that I wasn't hungry for and I spent the entire day obsessing about food and trying not to eat. As I lay awake, having a very sleepless night, I let my thoughts wander to what on earth was the matter with me.

I think that it's really just that the stress in my life is overwhelming me right now. Work is crazy busy, I am the head of a new work group and feel very nervous about doing it well, the tension with my coworker is difficult, and at home we're having house issues. I discovered that five of our beautiful wood-framed windows have mildew all over the frames. I can't imagine why -- our house is so dry I have old lady hands. I have noticed lately that the house really needs a lot of deep cleaning -- you know, that stuff you neglect like cleaning all of the sticky handprints off the cupboards and banisters, washing curtains, dusting blinds, washing windows, etc. It depresses me because I really don't want to spend my free time cleaning, but I'm embarrassed at how it looks and it bothers me to see it. I am loathe to ask dh to help me with it because he hates it too. I suppose I will have to though, unless I want resentment to take over my life.

So, Saturday I spent some time making a to-do list for work, telling myself that I can really only do one thing at a time and at least if I have a list I'll fell as though I won't forget something vital. The home thing is still making me unhappy. I have to bite the bullet and make a list there too.

I haven't weighed myself in ages, but my clothes still fit exactly the same and people I haven't seen in a while are still making comments about my losing weight. I ordered some clothes that were on clearance and was pretty pleased to see that size 10s and mediums fit me perfectly. Yes, I'd like to be smaller, but maintaining my 20-lb loss for this long without giving in to bingeing or starving or over-exercising is a victory right now.

I've discovered that reading blogs is quite dangerous to my wallet. I have now ordered Barney Butter, Justin's Nut Butter, Clif-Z bars, and several other foods online after reading and seeing them on other people's blogs. At the store I bought some Peanut Butter & Co Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter and pumpkin to put in my oatmeal, Barbara's Peanut Butter Puffins, and some sort of Kashi Sunshine cereal after seeing that in people's blogs online. I have to say that pumpkin in oatmeal -- yum yum! I never would have thought of it!

I'm Still Here

Since confiding in my boss about my misery at work, I've felt SO much better about my job! I've actually begun to really enjoy work again, and have been having a lot of fun with my customers. The situation with my coworker hasn't really improved, but I have a lot of projects to complete right now, which keeps my mind off it. Oddly, though I've been much happier at work, I've been struggling with a vague sense of anxious unease. I haven't really taken the time to figure out why (which may be part of the problem -- crazy life), but I've really been fighting the urge to eat sweets after dinner again. It's been terrible on a daily basis. The other day I came very close to bingeing for the first time in at least nine months. I really need to sit by myself and just think for a while to try and ponder what it's all about. Fighting my urges is wearing me out.

My weight training at the Y is going very well. I've already increased the weight I'm lifting on most of the exercises. Our family has been going faithfully twice a week for the most part. It helps that C has swimming lessons on Saturday mornings now, which she LOVES. I've increased my workouts at home on the elliptical and stationary bike to 60 minutes, but I'm still resting 1-3 days a week. One week I worked out 6 times and thought, "WHOA chick -- you are starting the obsession again!" So I took two days off just to get out of that cycle.

Time to go do PJ Storytime! I'm very behind in my blog-reading, but hope to catch up this weekend with what all of you are doing.

Feeling Good Again

I'm feeling much more normal now, thank heavens. I weighed myself for the first time in about 6 weeks and was surprised to see that I'd lost a little more, weighing 156. I had prepared myself for a gain, considering the cookies and candy I'd eaten during the holiday season. I suppose the extra exercise I did helped offset the extra calories.

I saw my therapist this week for the first time in 8 weeks, and discussed my discomfort with people's comments on my weight loss. We discussed an inner script I could use when it happens, and she said that I might think about making a comment on being the same person inside if it seems appropriate at the time. I'm glad we had the talk because one of my storytime moms said, "You look so skinny!" when she saw me Thursday. I didn't feel much of anything, which is an improvement for sure.

The therapist and I also spent a long time talking about my job. Before my vacation in December, I'd really been thinking that I was really unhappy at work and felt really depressed that I was kind of stuck there for 20 more years. I wasn't sleeping well, wasn't doing much while at work, and actually hoped to get sick so I could stay home. During my vacation, I dropped off to sleep immediately almost every night and felt so relaxed. As soon as I started back at work, I started tossing and turning again and felt tense and unhappy at work. It dawned on me last week that my feelings were centered around one of my coworkers. She is supposed to be my "right hand woman", but shows no initiative whatsoever. If I suggest something, she doesn't do it. She is not a team player, and other coworkers complain about that to me often. She will do whatever I ask her to do, but doesn't do anything on her own. It's as though I'm her mother. She has also had complaints about her programs, so I have scheduled her to do as few as possible, taking on the majority myself. As a result I am burning out! I am not her boss though, so I really have no authority to do anything. I finally shared my feelings with my boss, who was very supportive and upset that it had gotten so bad for me. This particular woman's evaluation is coming soon, so my boss promised to address the issues then. On one hand, I feel great relief that it's all out in the open, but on the other hand, I'm worried that my coworker will blame me and think I have it out for her. As a person she's a very nice girl, but I just don't think she's cut out for this job.

I had my last session with the personal trainer -- boo hoo. I really enjoyed working with her and she has given me the confidence I needed to weight train on my own now. I was so afraid I would hurt my leg, but she has shown me that I really can use pretty heavy weights without injuring myself. I'm now excited to work on getting stronger!

Still a Struggle

I have been struggling a bit since New Year's Eve. After the hustle and bustle of Christmas was over, I felt a bit let down and at loose ends, and a couple of comments people have made to me about losing weight really got to me. I realize people mean well when they ask or comment, but I find it a major trigger. I try to shrug it off, but immediately feel nervous if I skip a day of exercise or judge that I've overeaten anything. I start to obsess about whether I may have gained weight or not, as well as how much weight I might lose by such-and-such date. It nearly sent me over the edge several times over the past week or so. I found myself walking into and out of the kitchen with that restless feeling, planning to skip my snack, exercising on my usual days off, and indulging in other old unhealthy behaviors. I came close to bingeing a few times, but managed to remind myself that I am NO LONGER THAT PERSON and that I'd feel horrible if I gave in to the urge. I did overeat purposely at dinner on New Year's Eve, as well as eating after dinner at the party we attended. I wouldn't call it a binge, but I was definitely uncomfortable (since I was still full from dinner!). For several days, I ate past satisfied at several meals, and then felt unhappy and panicky. I think I somehow want to regain the weight to prove to the people who made comments that I am still the same person and I'm not somehow better just because I'm thinner.

I finally calmed down enough a few days ago to explore what was going on with me, and decided that I am not going to allow myself to regress and have to start over again. I am not eating better or losing weight to please others. I've been concentrating on eating mindfully and stopping before I feel too full, even if it means leaving food on the plate. I do have difficulty throwing food away, but have wrapped it up for later several times, and had it for a snack when I got hungry -- or pitched it if it was yucky. I had a bunch of desserts left over from a family party last weekend, and debated about tossing them. I didn't until today because I don't want to be controlled by food. Today I finally got rid of one of them because the crust was all soggy and it was several days old. I probably still would have eaten it, to be honest, but it was no longer fabulously tasty so I ditched it. I have PLENTY of wonderful chocolate left from Christmas anyway.