Worried and Desperate!

fatpossum

Silver Member
Hi Chaps,

I am in desperate need of some advice as I am feeling really, really rough.

I have less than 5lbs away from a BMI which takes me into the 'Normal' range for my height and a couple of days ago I bought a new pair of trousers which is a size 10 - and fits. I am thrilled and delighted and I look lovely.

However I am starting to feel really unwell - almost all the time. It is not in my mind - not at all. I am physically drained. I am not 'hungry' but I feel shaky, headachy and I keep getting cramps in my legs and arms. When I wake in the morning I feel really awful and it doesn't really improve throughout the day.

Last week I had a massive weight loss (more than 10lbs - I am told this is unusual at this stage of the game) and I can almost feel the weight draining away.

I want to keep going for the last 4/5 lbs but I am worried that I am making myself ill.

This morning I shed lots of hair in the shower and that is a worry too.

Today I was away on business. I'd had two packs in the morning as usual and this usually keeps me until about 7/8p.m. when I have another pack and then a bar about 10/11p.m. I drank loads of water and also had coffee (4/5 mugs - which again is usual). In an effort to keep falling over (which I felt was a real possibility) I had a bag of peanuts which was the lowest carb food I could locate but I still felt rough (230 calories and 5g of carbs).

I have just had my last two packs and I still feel awful.

I still have 4/5 weeks to go and while I won't need to stay on SS for that long I really want to lose the last 4/5 lbs - which I should be able to do by the next weigh in on Monday next.

Please don't tell me this is 'crooked thinking' - my thinking is extremely straight. I am extremely well motivated and have had the most fantastic results (I look great!!). I have no food cravings at all but I do not feel well.

Has anyone else had a similar experience and how did you deal with it?

Fatpossum
 
I'm sorry but I didn't have exactly the same experience, but towards the end I did feel a bit shaky and even fainted. Doctor gave me blood tests but everything was ok.

My hair really fell out and it was very thin to start with so I was devestated.

Have you spoken to your LLC. That's probably the best person to speak to for advise on LL.

On the health side what about your 4 weekly check ups? Have they been ok? I think that you should make an appointment with the doctor, just to be on the safe side. Perhaps you've got low blood pressure or your iron levels are low? Only the doctor can give you a proper diagnosis.

Please don't ignore it though if you're feeling bad. I think you might need to start the route to management after the weekend - please speak to your LLC.

Hugs and hope you feel better soon xxx
 
If you are feeling this bad i would speak to your doctor as well as your LLC. You could always fo a type of 790plan that we have on Cd which would be to still have your packs but to add a meal of chicken/fish/cottage cheese and veg or salad. This may help you - and you would still lose weight.

But I really think you should make an appointment to see your Doctor - as no VLCD should make you feel this bad.
 
I hope you can sort this out very soon. It does sound as if your body is asking for something more. Take the advice offered here and visit your GP, tell him whats happening and get his educated opinion.

Take care of yourself.

xx
 
Hi Sarah,

I did speak to the LLC but she told me to drink more water. Regarding the hair she said that it should stop soon and that she has never known anyone to lose so much as for it to become noticable.

My BP is fine however and while I feel like I might fall over I haven't yet.

I am thinking that I may need to switch to managment but think that if I can just hang in there until Monday afternoon I should have reached the 'normal' BMI - I so want to get to the 'end'.

I was even considering trying to lose an additional 7lbs or so to take me safely into the normal limit. I know that if I can just hang in there I can do it - and do it within a couple of weeks. My mental motivation is firm but my physical self is wrecked.

If I knew that this wasn't going to do me any serious harm I would try to hang in there but I am worried.

At this stage I am thinking that because I dont have a lot of stored fat remaining, my body is struggling to find somthing to 'eat'. I still have a flabby tum (3 kids so I wasn't expecting miracles!) but I can now wear a size 10. Could the fact that I have good muscle mass (years of RPM, Body Pump and Spinning) account for me weighing heavier? i.e. might I not have encough fat left.

I once read that the BMI indicator is not always accurate and that many Olympic champions and other sports people would technically fall within the overweight, even obese, range.

As I sit her I am wiped out but I don't want to stop! - not just yet.
 
Regarding seeing my GP that isn't an option. He is very traditional - very much a 'diet sheet and increased exercise over a 2 year period to lose weight' man!! I get my BP done by the practice nurse but I wouldn't be inclined to discuss it with her either.

To be honest I think that anyone who looked at me now would wonder why I want to lose weight - I look normal!! I am excited about that but I feel so rough I can't express it very well.

If I was to go onto managment early, what would that mean i.e. what would I eat in addition to the packs?

The other thing I wondered about was whether I have gotten into a vicious circle i.e. because I have been feeling so awful I have been doing stuff like adding a packet of peanuts or a piece of fish (only now and then). Could this be taking me out of ketosis and is getting back in making me feel ill?

But if I am not in ketosis why are my hands and feet so cold and how else could I lose more than 10lbs in a 7 day period?

I think I might ring the LLC in the morning - it'll probably take her 2/3 days to get back to me though!!

Why am I feeling so disappointed?!

I am not afraid of food and not afraid that I will binge - I just want to stay on the diet for another couple of weeks and to hang in there with the other girls. I really like them all and enjoy the meetings not for the 'counselling' but for the chat and the comparisons and the giggle!

But I couldn't cope if my hair was to get thin. My daughter gets married in a few months time and I could die to think that my hair would be a mess.

I really getting myself into a state. I think I'll go to bed.

I have eaten a bar so at this stage so today I have had 5 packs and a pkt of peanuts (just under 900 calories)- I still don't feel better though.
 
It is true that muscle weighs more than fat and at size 10 you are obviously "almost" there. How tall are you? BMI is not always a good indicator - your example of athletes is a very good one.

Sometimes we feel like a failure if we don't follow through till the end (ie our target) but sometimes we also have to listen to what our bodies tell us. It's no good being half a stone lighter and feeling like cr@p, just for the sake of a number.

I still think that you should see the doctor, please, just to be on the safe side. Like I said a mineral or vitamin deficiency might be the cause, but you need to check.

Please let me know how you get on, I'm worried about you now :eek:!
 
Thanks Sarah - but don't worry. I am a hardy sort and I am sure it will pass - eventually!!!

I probably need sleep too - work is a bit of a mess at the moment (lots of politics) and so I haven't had my 8 hours for about 5 days now. In fact last night I only had about 6 and the night before about 4.

So maybe it is tiredness.

I will go to bed. Have bought a trashy magazine and I will read for a bit and then have a good sleep.

Will check in tomorrow evening.

Thanks for your concern - really, really appreiated. :hug99:
 
My last post crossed with your last post.

Your doctor might not be sympathetic, but maybe you could still see him. Does he know you are doing LL? Could you just tell him that you feel ill after dieting without giving the details of what diet you are following? Maybe still see about blood tests or something? I don't necessarily think lying to your doctor is a good thing but if it's the only way he can take you seriously......

Coming in and out of ketosis shouldn't make you feel like that though either. Believe me I know - I've been in and out constantly for the last 6 months!

As to wanting to stay with your group, a chat with your LLC might be the answer. As long as you don't talk about food in group I'm sure you can just go and give and receive support. How many weeks of foundation do you have left?

If your LLC doesn't call you back within a day or so, hound her! Make her realise how important this is - afterall nothing is more important than your health!
 
Thanks Sarah - but don't worry. I am a hardy sort and I am sure it will pass - eventually!!!

I probably need sleep too - work is a bit of a mess at the moment (lots of politics) and so I haven't had my 8 hours for about 5 days now. In fact last night I only had about 6 and the night before about 4.

So maybe it is tiredness.

I will go to bed. Have bought a trashy magazine and I will read for a bit and then have a good sleep.

Will check in tomorrow evening.

Thanks for your concern - really, really appreiated. :hug99:


No problem at all, will check in on you tomorrow as well.

Sleep tight!
 
I had similar experiences during my last week of abstinence, specially with the hair loss. I finished a week early 3 llbs short of my target weight for that reason. I have since though lost further weight on maintenance, my LLC said you can lose up to a further 12 llb on maintenance. Well done on hitting your target but I would worry about getting some loss in hand before you start maintenance I'm sure you'll lose more anyway.
 
Hi Chaps,

Just to say that today I have been much better. Went to bed a bit early last night and had a good sleep and when I got up I felt better.

I kept waiting for the awful feeling to 'kick in' as about lunch time I took a dip in energy but then I had a bar and I rallied. (I usually have my bar at night as my special treat - I will miss it tonight!! but it will be worth it).

So I got through the day and I was okay. Fingers crossed for tomorrow. I just need to hang in there for another couple of weeks and I will be 'BMI normal'.

Have one more pack to go today - might leave it out given that I had extra yesterday as I thought it might help me feel less ill. I had 5 packs and an emergency pkt of peanuts as that was the lowest carb food I could find (I feared I would collapse on the tube platform) 250 calories and 5g carbs. I don't know if the extra 300+ calories did the trick yesterday but whatever the reason I am just soooooo greatful!!

I lost more hair in the shower this morning however and have spent ages looking up VCLDs and Hair Loss on Google today - lots of the references came from Minimins (what a surprise!!). Some posts were encouraging but others left me in dread of becoming bald :eek:. One person even lost eyelashes :eek::eek::eek:.

Please someone give me a definitive answer on the matter of the hair. But whatever will happen it would seem that I can't change it at this stage and I will have to run the course - it is not reversable - damage done by nearly 3months of starvation.

Fingers crossed!!

Thanks to everyone for the support and sympathy, particulary Sarah and Alan.

p.s. Alan, just checked out your photos - you look great!! ;)
 
Hi Fatpossum

Was reading your posts with alarm so am glad you are feeling much better now.

My group are all losing hair and my counsellor said it was partly because we have all been doing this now for about 20 weeks but also because of the weather - when it suddenly went hot apparently it altered our metabolism which has caused the shedding to start but this is only the hair that our bodies have been holding onto whilst doing LL and the new growth should be starting to come through.

Also you may not have to leave your group if you go into management early - our group is the only one our counsellor runs during the day so to begin with we lost one person to management who got very bored doing meetings on her own so rejoined our group. Currently we have 4 in development and 2 in management though this is going to change next week to 4 in management and 2 in developers so it doesn't necessarily follow that you will have to leave.

Also as Alan said, there is a good chance you will continue to lose in management, see how you feel from now on but just bear it in mind!

Hope things continue to pick up for you.
 
Hia Fatpossum, I've just caught up with your post and am pleased to read the last one! Glad you are feeling a bit better.

I've been eating normally for a few months now and hair loss has gradually stopped being a problem.

Also, I lost at least a stone on Management (but that's me, everyone is different) so you should expect some weight loss in the first few weeks of management.

Cold hands and feet? I still have that problem. I think it may be to do with fat distribution. I don't have much on my hands - the veins stick out on my hands and arms. I carry gloves around with me (I used them last week in the playground).

You are probably right about your body fat percentage. Have it checked at one of those weighing machines you see at Boots or Tescos. I get mine done monthly at one of these for 50p. It gives all sorts of other information too.

I was really worried after reading your first post. It sounds awful, feeling like that. You have done so well, and achieved so much. Try to see the bigger picture about your achievement and weight loss goal. You have the rest of your life to live, and live well.

Isn't it great to be able to wear size 10's though! I have some stuff in size 10, but most in size 12. I am well happy!

It is not helpful when you have a GP who is not sympathetic to what you have been doing (LL). It is hard enough without being judged and critisised by someone who is in authority, but does not understand.

Please do take care, and let us know how you are.

Regards,

AmandaJayne
 
I am so glad to read your post that you feel much better.

Amazing what a good nights sleep can do! Had an early night myself last night and I feel raring to go today!

As I mentioned, I did have hair loss too but it's all growing back nicely now. In fact I just noticed how much thicker it had become recently. Same as Helen, my LLC told our group about the change in weather doing funny things to you and your hair, so don't worry too much!

You are so close to goal now, so if you are feeling better (and only if you are 100% sure you are feeling better) then I would recommend going for goal. I stopped before goal and went to management before I was ready and it caused all sorts of problems and I've never quite made it back on track.

BUT look after your health first!
 
Just read this...sorry ou'e been feeling so rough. I went through a phase of feeling awful and did the milk week, took a multivitamin and iron, drank two marigold stocks a day and fel much better after a few days. Having said that I did make the decision that if my BP didnt improve and I didnt feel better that I would come off SS and go into maintenence. No weight loss, however drastic, is worth damaging your health for. Re the BMI issue I see my "gym woman" and she has a table of fat/muscle ratios and says this is a far more reliable meaure of health than BMI which doesent take into account body type, muscle mass etc. I am now 12 stne 4 and 5 ft nowt but a size 14...according to my BMO I need to loose a good few stone but I think I would be too thin then so am decided on stopping when I feel happy with my body and nt focussing on ibs/measurements...Not sure if that helps but do look after yourself and if your body keeps telling you enough is enough then listen to it and look at the incredible achievement! Hair loss apparently varies. I suspect I will loose mine because its quite fine anyway but it grows back (remind me if it drops out!!) and apparently it drops out when you eat because your body relaxes when it gets food so lets go of the hair its ben holding onto for dear life! There's nothing you can do so just try to accept if it does fall out that it will be a temporary measure...Big hugs and well done for your achievement so far!
 
Hi Fatpossum,
I was really interested to read your post because I have felt quite shaky and lightheaded in the past couple of weeks. I have lost 6 1/2 stone (now 12st 4lbs) since Jan and am now a size 10, so I was wondering if my body was telling me I'd lost enough even though my BMI is still about 26/27. I have agreed with my counsellor that I will have 2 meals a week consisting of just poached chicken or fish and green veg. I had a small plate of salmon and veg on Thursday night and I have felt much better since. I don't mind losing the weight much slower because I am no longer so desperate to get all that fat off me! Good luck whatever you decide to do!
 
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