I have been sick to my stomach since tuesday and have eaten barely anything. I ate an atkins bar on Tuesday & a chicken breast Yesterday night....That is it except for water, lots of water. To tell you the truth I don't even know why I am not feeling weaker that I feel. *sigh*

I know that I don't have the flu or anything like that, I am just sick to my stomach.....I guess you can say I am doing it to myself. But I can not stop..& I can not make myself eat. I need Help.

I also have a question....All this hard work, eating right for over a month losing over around 18 pounds the right way, I will not gain it back when I start eating LC again because my body is being starved right now?? I mean all the fat because I haven't been LCing for 6 or 7 days now.... have I set my body into starvation mode?

I feel so guilty for doing this to myself ..I mean Like I said before I can't help it but I do feel so guilty and I want to stop NOW. I need to go back to eating right! I need help, I want to feel well, but this is something inside of me that I need to fix, so until then I don't know what to do. Is there something to take that will make me eat?


Thank you

Candice

I don't know the answer to your question but I wanted to pop in and give you sympathy. You might have a bug of some sort that is upsetting your stomach. So you need to decide that you will eat something. Soft cooked eggs are easy on the stomach and good for recovering digestions. Tea, chicken broth or consomme will get your stomach back to dealing with food. Even jars of baby food would be a good beginning as they don't have added sugar or starch. There's pureed chicken and beef etc.

The other question is whether you have ever had an eating disorder? It sounds as though you have a problem about eating. It is possible to get into a state where "not eating" is easy. Anorexics and people on hunger strikes do this.

If you don't eat, you will start consuming your own muscle tissue for energy. The pounds will go but much of it will be muscle. THIS IS NOT HEALTHY. You may not even be losing because your body is desperately holding onto all the reserves is has, including water. A person can live for a long time without carbs, but protein and fat are essential. Eskimos didn't have anything but meat for 6 months during the winters. And in a 1912 experiment, 2 Arctic explorers lived on meat alone for a whole year.

YOU MUST BEGIN TO EAT but no one can make you do it - only you. If necessary, eat something that is not LC, because carbs are easy on the stomach. A baked potato, toast, custard. But eat.

You have lost 18 pounds eating "the right way". I hope you mean on LC? No, you will not gain any fat when you go back to eating LC. You may not lose anything for a few days while your body grabs the protein it needs to make repairs to all the muscle tissue. But you will NOT regain fat.

So come on, back on the eating wagon. Life is to be enjoyed and you are allowed so many wonderful foods on LC. This is the road to health and slimness. Go visit Nat's journal to see how she is eating 2500 calories per day and losing fat.

All the best.

Candice,

I have been having a similar experience. I feel very nauseous upon faced with eating. I'm not sure what it is about, but I am forcing myself to eat six small meals and its easier to get down. I'm also forcing down a lot of water. I would like to know why I am feeling this way as well. I hope you feel better soon. Hang in there.

Betsy

There may be some kind of virus going around. I was extremely nauseated and gassy for part of Saturday and most of the day yesterday. I just kept drinking water and began eating when I started feeling better. Things are back to normal again today, though. After a prolonged period of not eating, you may see a slight weight gain of a few pounds when you start eating again. This is not fat, but more likely water retention and your body repairing itself after the fast. Start with small frequent meals and fairly bland foods and then increase as you go and feel better. Hope you feel better soon!

hi Candice,



I had a look in your journal, and see that you haven't been feeling well for some time, appetite dwindling and aversion to food. The last post from a week ago you express worries that you're not losing weight fast enough, and that somebody (??) had told you you're not eating right unless you're losing 3 - 4 lbs a week.

First, I just want to say that 3 - 4 lbs a week on an ongoing basis is just about impossible for most women. The dramatic losses are typically in persons who have a large amount of weight to lose in the first place, and is usually only seen in the initial weeks of low-carbing. For most women, it's realistic to lose 1½ - 2 lbs of fat in a week, no more. Weight lost over that amount is water and/or muscle tissue.

Like BarB, I am concerned that you may be headed down the unhappy road of Eating Disorders. Have you felt this way before about food? Razzle has posted some links to ED self-assessments which might be revealing for you.

Do you suffer from depression?? Loss of appetite can be a symptom, as well as the "coming down with something" blahs, tired all the time, no joy in life .. etc.

You don't have to feel this way. If you're worried you might be headed for an eating disorder, do check out these websites:

• Something Fishy is an excellent site on Eating Disorders. There are links to non-profit organisations and a questionnaire. It's very gentle, and non-threatening.
  
• Mirror-Mirror is a personal site by an ED survivor named Colleen. Very well-laid out, with lots of links, and lots of personal insights. She's also posted some tips on how to do Normal Eating, especially when you have fears about eating certain foods and getting fat.

If you think you may be depressed, then maybe you might find it helpful to take an antidepressant for a period of time; you won't need to take it forever.

Either way, it would be a good idea to see your doctor to have things checked out. It may be an infection or bug of some kind as the others have suggested. Or, if there's some emotional trouble, she/he can help with that too. You don't have to struggle alone. You're body is crying out for nourishment, and you should feed it. If you choose whole natural foods like real meat, eggs, butter, olive oil and fiber-rich vegetables you won't need to worry about "too much fat".Those good foods will be turned into the building blocks for repairing and building a healthy body.

Take good care of yourself. And keep us posted how you're doing

Doreen

Thank you all for your help. I wish I could say that it is a bug but If I had to give it a name it would be more like 'butterflys'. I have had something happen in my life that is making me do this to myself. I know exactly what but it is too personly to post on the board. I don't know why I chose to do this..?(starve myself) This is really hard for me right now. The more I think about it the sicker I get. I am going to the doctor this morning to try to get an anti nausea med and am keeping my fingures crossed that they will perscribe. I know that is not the answer to all my problems but it is a fix to the not being able to eat one for now.

About the whole eating disorder thing, I do have a history w/ them maybe that is why it is easy to not eat and maybe that is why I get the complex about gaining all the weight back. Yes I also have a history with depression, I am BiPolar. But I am not Depressed right now, My meds are working fine.

I know that I was mentioning my weight for a while before this all happen, not losing enough & so on. But I was very happy with my results & how I was looking. I was going to the gym again I was eating right. Now I feel so weak I don't want to go to the gym.

I forced myself to eat a chicken breast yesterday around 4pm & then 1 chicken thigh around 8pm. I tired to talk myself out of not having to go to the doctor after that, being the stuborn taurus I am.....but waking up this morning at 4:30 am again, oh yeah I didn't mention before that I am not getting any sleep either. I talked myself back into going.

Thank you again
Candice

I am SO glad to hear that you are seeing your doctor. THAT is where you should get your advice. While some people here have medical qualifications, you need to tell your doctor ALL your symptoms and take his/her advice.

You are very wise and sensitive to yourself because you have recognized that you are beginning to have a problem. Please lay out the whole picture for your doctor too. Perhaps you could print out this thread and give it to the doctor (your posts, anyway) so the Dr. has the whole picture.

Wishing you all the best.

*hug* Hope you're hangin' in there. If you have an ED history... I know the mind games we can play with ourselves. If something traumatic has gone on in your life, it's important to get some support, whether it's online or wherever. It's also important for your doctor to rule out any problems that could be caused by stress/anxiety - ulcers, etc. FWIW, I've been there - I went through a crappy time a few years back where I was constantly nauseated, too. General anxiety, I guess. I also felt like I had to pee all the time and my heart was racing. Time healed. Take care of yourself...

I've been having trouble eating lately too. Bad enough I hate eating but lately its just to freakin hot and I don't feel like it. I rather eat icecream or something cool then salads and hot meat.. lol Eck.

Anyways, how about just drinking a protein shake? You could add cream and stuff to it to make it fattening.. And it'll help get your calories up. Last week I drank like 5 a day and lost a couple pounds