Hello. My Name is Cindie,

…and I’m a sugar addict.

My new doctor sat in the corner listening as she typed information into my medical record. It wasn’t really a physical exam, as much as an information gathering and getting to know you session. My initial impression of her was favorable. She seemed to be a good listener, asked good questions, and didn’t make me feel rushed.

Toward the end of the appointment she tapped a few keys on the keyboard, then turned the screen toward me. She had created a graph of my blood sugar levels over the past few years. She told me that they were relatively stable, but then added, “You’ve been playing with pre-diabetes for a couple decades now. Don’t you think it’s time we do something about it?” The emphasis was on the DO in that comment.

She suggested I go on a low carb diet with a goal of staying under 60 grams of carbohydrates per day. She offered to refer me to a dietician, but I declined. Truth is, I know what to do. I just need to do it.

And keep doing it.

I went home that spring day and started looking up the carb counts of my favorite foods, beginning with my favorite breakfast: one slice of whole grain toast with 2 T of peanut butter and 1 T of strawberry preserves. Hardly a day went by where I didn’t start my morning with that breakfast and a cup of coffee.

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Carb count: 14 g for the toast; 7 g for the peanut butter; and 13 g for the strawberry preserves. Phew! I would blow through more than half of my carbs before I even finished my typical breakfast!

As I continued my carb-sleuthing detective work, I was discovering just how much sugar was in my diet. Sugar wasn’t just in the desserts I loved to bake (and eat), it was lurking in my ketchup, the low-fat salad dressing, my “healthy” bowl of oatmeal, raisins (by the handful)–all the things that seemed like healthy choices. I ate an apple every single day (sometimes two). A really good Honeycrisp apple is my favorite fruit and scrumptious treat. I discovered that each apple was adding at least 22 g of carbs to my diet.

Oh, boy. As I continued to look up carb counts on my computer, I also watched a couple of low-carb diet videos on YouTube and kept stumbling across information related to a ketogenic diet. With my curiosity piqued, I landed upon Dr. Ken D. Berry’s YouTube channel and sort of binge-watched his videos. I was convinced it was worth a try.

One thing Dr. Berry encouraged was to find your “why” before beginning the ketogenic way of eating. I had one good reason. I wanted to be healthier. Specifically, I wanted to address a few of the diagnoses I was carrying around: pre-diabetes, hypertension, and my migraine headaches. I was also experiencing significant joint pain related to inflammation. Dr. Berry had several videos which addressed each of these issues.

What did I have to lose by trying this way of eating?

Well, weight was one of the natural results. I honestly don’t know how much weight I have lost because I don’t weigh myself. Scales terrify me. Really, they do. Perhaps I will tell that story in another post, but the main reason I don’t weigh myself is that I know my own tendency to play games with the scale. If I like what the number says, I give myself way too much grace and reward myself with treats. If I have been doing really well with my diet regime and then step on the scale and am disappointed in the number, I just throw in the towel and give up. Two responses to the scale: same result.

A better measurement of my progress is found in the way my clothes fit. In a few months’ time, my size in blue jeans has gone from a getting-tight size 20 to being able to comfortably wear a size 16. My tops have gone from a size 2X to a woman’s XL. I recently went through my closet and tried everything on. I ended up saying goodbye to 40 items of clothing (I wish I had taken a picture of the pile of clothing on my bed).

Best thing?

I feel good. No more severe headaches. No more joint pain in my hands, hips and knees. Honestly, there was so much pain in my thumbs and wrists that I couldn’t even pick up my cup of coffee without supporting it with both hands. That pain is gone.