I don't know if any of my previous blogger followers are still out there, but I just found this blog again that I had started way back! And so much has happened since I last posted. I am not where I hoped to be by now regarding my weight loss, but I am also not where I was! I currently weigh 265, so that is much better than being in the 300's. I am still fighting to lose, but have a much better relationship with food now, and am going to make it to my goal weight, I know it! I will save the whole story for later posts, but for now, I wanted to tell you all that I am sorry that I was gone so long, and that I am happy I found the blog again. I am not sure why I ever stopped blogging!

Conquering the Holidays!

This post is long overdue! I have been struggling these past two months..the phentermine just isn't working well anymore, and then with Thanksgiving and spending a week at my parents....well, it just isn't a good combination. I was kind of holding my own until last week, but with some indulgences over Thanksgiving, and my Mom cooking meals all week, I knew I would be up.

However, I am ready to attack this weight loss again!! I went to the weight loss doctor for my monthly visit on Monday. He wanted to up the phentermine to 2 pills in the morning, and one in the afternoon. But I don't like that idea, because I think I will have trouble sleeping if I take a pill that late. In addition, he wanted to add Metformin 500 mg before each meal. I already take 1000 mg of Metformin at night because of my insulin resistance. (It is helpful with controlling the sugar that my liver puts out all night long.) So when he suggested Metformin, I kind of balked about it. It is only 500 mg extra a day, and would probably not hurt at all to take it, but I just don't know if I need to go there yet. I would like to save some options for when the weight loss just completely stalls.

So this is what I have done the last few days. I had been on 2 pills per day, and it wasn't working in the late evening. SO I increased to 2.5 pills in the morning. That really worked well these past two days. No cravings, no hunger, no "need to munch" on something at night. Nighttime is my biggest problem. I can do well during the day, but at night, I feel starving sometimes! And I just want to eat to fill that void. Of course that is the worst time to eat, and the pounds just come on then.

I weigh again at the doctor's on January 3rd, right after Christmas break. I have a good feeling about this though...hoping it will work through the holidays and keep me from going overboard. I am going to try and stay busy and get some cleaning and organization done this time, so that will be a good distraction. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Still going down...

Work has been horribly busy since the end of August. I have been staying late almost every night, trying to get things in order for the new year. The plus side of that is that I really don't have time to even think about eating!! Lunch is eaten at my desk, in hurried bites between patients. And dinner is when we finally make it home -usually after six sometime.

I have been remembering to take the Phentermine thank goodness, and it is really helping. In addition, the doctor increased the dosage after my last visit, and it has been much more effective! So I am happy to say that I am back to losing, and dropped ten pounds last month. Hooray! Now if I can just get my job under control...... :)

I am Soooo ready for a schedule!

I am a school nurse, so I have been happy to not have a real schedule to adhere to this past summer. It is wonderful to fill my days with things not work-related, and to not have to set an alarm every morning. However, I have noticed that is not great for me related to being on the Phentermine. Without having a set schedule, I am totally forgetting to take my pill at times. And with all the vacationing, traveling, grad school work, etc, I have not always made the best food choices. So I was relieved to see that my weight was down this month, albeit only 2 lbs.

When I went to see my weight-loss doctor last Monday, I told him I was struggling, even on those days when I did take the phentermine. He said that my body was probably developing a tolerance to the med, and increased the dosage, which I am happy to say has really helped.

So it is back to school for me tomorrow, and back to a schedule, with a higher dose of Phentermine. I am hoping to show a much better weight loss when I go back to see him mid-September. I am also planning to start getting up earlier every day so that I can do 30 min on the treadmill each morning. I think this will be a great routine for me. I am so ready to see the weight start coming off again!

Home at last!

Well, after almost three weeks on the road (one week in Maine on campus at the college I am getting my master's from,and one week camping with my son), I am finally home again. Thank goodness. I find it much more difficult to remain on plan with healthy eating when I am on the road or away from home. One of the biggest problems is that I forget to take the phentermine pill! You have to take it either 2 hours before or after a meal. I have been taking it 2 hours after breakfast, but when in school, I was in class at that time, and just kept forgetting. Then last week while camping I only remembered about twice. It makes a huge difference. The past two days I have taken it, and have been totally back on track. Hooray!

I don't think I even mentioned that I did lose the 5 lbs I thought I had when I weighed in at the doctor's on July 5th. That put me at a total of 40 lbs lost since mid-April, and that makes me glad! I don't think I did much better this month...I will be happy with another 5 lbs if I can get it. Slowly but surely!! :)

I have also still been lax in the exercising area. I truly need to increase my walking and exercise. That will help to spur the losses, I know! I still have almost 5 weeks before I have to go back to work, so I am going to do the best I can to get in more exercise before it is back to the busy-ness of a new school year.

Overall, I am so happy to be down 40+ lbs and still losing! :)

Working on Exercise!

Today I absolutely have no excuses not to exercise. It is beautiful outside, my son is bored, and so we are off to the zoo! We will walk all over the place without stopping, and I will get in lots of exercise.

This month has been a bit of a struggle with the eating. I am a school nurse, and it is mainly the change in routine that has given me trouble. I have forgotten to take the phentermine sometimes until too late in the day. In addition, my birthday is in June, and multiple friends have wanted to go out to dinner, etc, and it is always harder to eat healthy at a restaurant, I think. Plus we have been visiting family in other states, on the road and staying w/ family. I don't like to ask them to cook differently, so have just tried to limit my portions.

Bottom line, I will be happy if I lose 5 lbs this month! :) But at least I don't think I have gained, and that is always good. Especially in a birthday month. I go to see the doctor on Monday the 5th, after a July 4th picnic at my Uncle's house. Of course there is always tons of food, but I am aiming for more swimming and less eating this year. Knowing I have to weigh in the next day will help! I'll check back in after Monday w/ my update! :)