You heard that I was in hospital for a few days. I'd like to share my
experiences and hopefully use this as a tool for keeping on track.

    I had been depressed and not feeling that hot. Around halloween, I noticed
a small sore on the back of my left leg that was not healing. I tried most
if not all of the standard techniques for wound care, but every effort was
not doing any good. Around Christmas I bought a Merck Manual, admittedly not
the smartest thing in the world to do, but I had to know what was going on.
I sort of convinced myself that the wound on the back of my leg was due to
a DVT or Deep Vein Thrombosis, which in layman's terms is a blood clot in the
leg that could possibly break off and travel to the lung, causing a pulmonary
embolism, and after one of those, the lights go off, and you are promoted to
the afterlife.
    I was terrified to face reality. I made a date with myself to go to the
doctor on Jan 3. The scariness returned and I put it off. Meanwhile, the thing
on the back of my leg was growing to new dimensions, and dripping yellow fluid
that was really nasty looking and smelling. I learned to live with it. I was
onvinced that this was better than going to the docs.
    Last Wednesday, I had enough. The depression, the smell, the soiled
clothes and everything else was just too much. I went to UM and related my
story to the doctors. 
    They put me through an ultrasound of my leg, and found that I was for the
most part clear. Then came the x-rays, and they confirmed the diagnosis. I
have what is called Cellulitus, which has similar symtoms of DVT, but actually
comes from a staph infection that got into a cut or scrape. The staph runs
wild and kills skin cells with reckless abandon. I was told that I would've
never got it under control had I had not come in.
    Now the fun part. Along with that, I was also diagnosed with high blood
sugar which came in at 201. I am a borderline diabetic; meaning I have to take
a pill every morning, hopefully only until my weight gets under control again.
And if that's not a whole load of crud, I have high blood pressure as well,
but that too could disappear with weight loss.

    So now I am taking Keflex for the infection, and let me tell you that shit
stinks, but I can live with the smell. I am also taking a high blood pressure
pill, and a pill for the diabetes. I am also on a 2000 calorie diet, which
is no fun, but I want to be here for a while, so I'll live with that as well.

  Lesson learned: Don't be afraid of the hospital, and besides, I learned that
this is piddly stuff compared to the cancer I had. I guess the fear came from
not wanting to hear that I had the big C again. 

81 responses total.

Sometimes you have to have something pretty scary happen to you to realize
that it is a good time to change your lifestyle.  Glad they caught this before
it was too late.  How much free dietary advice would you like?  We recommend
a high-fiber diet to keep you from feeling too hungry - meaning lots of
vegetables, whole grains, beans, and fresh fruits.  I don't think anybody
could help but lose weight on this, if you also don't eat any refined sugars
or fats.  A friend's father, who thought his son was crazy for eating
vegetarian, had a heart attack and immediately stopped eating cholesterol (no
meat or any animal products) and his blood pressure is way down now.
Once you lose some weight, it will also be easier to start exercising.  THe
first few months will probably be tough, though.  We are rooting for you!

High-fiber food also slows down digestion and thus stabilizes your blood
sugar, and keeps you from getting hungry as soon.
Jim says it is very hard to change your diet when you are living and eating
with someone who does not want to change theirs.  You may have to treat this
sort of like being kosher, and eat differently from your mother.  Lots of
vegetarians with carnivorous parents have managed to eat separately.

Jim - not to sound like Ken (just kidding!), but there is a fabulous, LONG,
information-filled item on weight loss and diet in the Health conference.

Alas, I can't really eat high fiber food since I have IBS (Irritable 
Bowel Syndrome/Spastic Colon). More than you wanted to know, eh?

Still. I haven't been eating right lately. Crappy grad-school diet. I 
need to be careful. I need to walk/exercise. Hmm. Nice day out, I just 
might go do that...

<wanders off to start a punk band called "Spastic Colon">

Are you sure there isn't one already?  =)

2000 kcal/day (I *hope* you meant kilocalories) equals about 98 watts.

He meant to write Calories, not calories :). (A food Cal. is a kcal.)

  I'll go read the article, and stick to what my doctors advise me.

  Can someone tell me how many grams of carbohydrate equals 1 exchange?
I need to keep my carbs to 5 per meal, plus watch my salt, fat and caffiene
intakes. I've been doing pretty well with it. The only downside is that I am
hungry all the time, but I'm getting used to it.
  I need to drink more water as well.

  My sore on the back of my leg is looking a whole lot better than it ever
has. The antibiorics are working. I just have to keep it clean and dressed.
It is way less painful than it was, and that is a Good Thing(tm) indeed.
I mean, the last day I was in the hospital, after I cleaned it, I needed
morphine to qualm the pain. There is still some pain, but 1 motrin knocks it
out.

Jim, I wish you luck in making the changes you talk about.  Self Diagnosis
is a tricky thing and I often get it wrong when I try.  I no longer have
an A C joint because I thought it was a separated shoulder.  By the time I
went to the doctor, the ligament was too far gone to do anything about it.

  My days of self diagnosis are over. Next time I get sick, I'm packing myself
off the the U and let them tell me what's wrong. I might even burn my Merck
Manual, but then againm keeping it around for explanations of tests might just
be of some comfort.

  I am feeling a whole lot better. The sore is now just all red with some
patches of white. The drainage is down to a trickle. Hopefully by the end of
the course of antibiotics, I will have a normal looking leg.

  Change sometimes is not an easy thing.

Omni, would it help you to post your daily food intake on line?  Sort of like
those clubs where people lose weight together and it is a contest, but we
would all be on your side.  I know that you are honest, and you would have
to decide whether a treat was worth it, knowing that we would all know about
it.  I would be interested to see exactly what sort of diet the doctors have
recommended - what sorts of details have they specified?

There was a really interesting item about diabetes and weight loss in one
of the conferences, but apparently the author killed it some time ago.

Can someone link this item to the health conf?

Hey, that's me that should do that.  OK.

...and it's now item 73 in Health.

 Nahh, I don't want to do that.  I will post the diet, though. He has me on
a 2000 calorie, low sodium, low caffiene, low sugar diet. It is hard, but
worth it.

That is probably the diet I need to be on... 

At least keep us posted on the results, and on how much better you feel.
I don't know of any natural sources of caffeine other than Chinese-Indian type
tea, one south American type of tea, and coffee, but a lot of soft drinks have
caffeine (as well as sugar).  High-salt foods are those with nutrition lables
reading 300mg or more salt per serving.  Crackers are salty, cheese too.
Oatmeal is filling and has none of what you are avoiding except a few kcal.
You can add low-calorie apples or other fruit.

  I plan on phasing out the following things: Pop, candy, but I will not phase
out chocolate. I'll save that for special occaisions. I'll also be phasing
out ice cream, ice milk, and anything related to dessert. Instead I will be
eating more fresh fruits and veggies; the ones I can eat without throwing up.
Anything containing white or brown sugar, and things that are overtly salty.
This will be rough because I like these things a lot, but as I said to my
doctor, I beat bacon and alcohol, I'll beat this as well. It will take time
but I will prevail.

What sorts of vegetables are you allergic to?  And when is your projected
phase-out date?  Are you gradually lowering calorie intake or starting at
2000?  You will not be feeling very full if much of your intake is refined
food without fiber - it might actually help you to be less hungry if you cut
out sugar sooner instead of later, as it just shoots your glucose level way
up and then down, which is what makes you hungry.  What fruits and vegetables
do you tolerate?  Maybe people can suggest good ways to prepare them.
What is 'overtly' salty?

  That date was 2/24/00. I am starting at 2000, which is what is prescribed
by my docs. I still need to get with the nutritionist to find out how to
calculate the carbs. I was told that I have extreme latitude when it comes
to eating out, just to use common sense when making choices.

   Overtly salty means snack chips, potato chips, fritos, etc. I can still
do popcorn, although I need to eat it sans butter, and salt and that my
friends will be a huge drag, but I want to be thin. I can have mostly any
fruit, but things like peas, green beans, spinach, wax beans and the like make
me vomit on first smell. I would think there is no way they can be prepared
without me tossing my cookies, and speaking of them, of course they are out.

   I do have salad. I can have all the salad I can handle, with sensible
dressing of course. I can have blue cheese, but just a few teaspoons not too
often. I don't think this has to be a death sentence to how I was eating, but
it has been a reorganization of my diet.

All cheeses are very salty so limit them.  Have you tried brocolli, zucchini,
winter squash, cabbage, cauliflower?  Spinach has oxalic acid, beans have
proteins that might bother you.  Try doing some reading up on food allergies
for suggestions as to what vegetables are best tolerated.  We knew one
'vegetarian' who said he was allergic to all vegetables and had to eat meat.
Chinese cabbage makes nice soup.  Carrots.  Beets. Turnips. Onions.  Tomatoes
or tomato juice.  Here is a great opportunity to learn new ways of cooking.
Can you tolerate dry beans?  They are very filling and not high in calories.
Whole grains take longer to digest and will keep you feeling full longer.
Brown rice, whole wheat bread (from the bread machine?), brown spaghetti.

Just remember that there are alot of veggies out there, just experiment and
see what you like.  Also, a diet trick is to get your dressing on the side
of your salad and just drip the prongs of your fork in the dressing before
you spear at your salad, It is an easier way to control how much dressing you
use.   

Keesan: there are people out there that really can't eat veggies, their
digestive system just can't handle it.  Spastic colon or irratible bowl
sysndrome is what it is called.  They have to be very careful with what they
eat.  From what I heard it is worse than being lactose intolerant.

  I found out that generally speaking, I can have 75m of carbs per meal, that
is, 5 exchanges of a particular food. After a trip to the supermarket this
evening, I am roundly disgusted at the amount of carbs and sugars in some
foods. I am hoping to make healthy choices.

  Jenn, thanks for the tip, I'll defintily use it. I've been drowning it in
dressing in the past, but no more of that. This is going to be one long and
rocky road, but hey, I'm up for the walk.

  The thing with the veggies is the way they taste, and also some very
negative conditioning I got as a child, so I'm not likely to go and open a
can of peas or green beans anytime soon. There are some things like raw
broccolli and cauliflower.

I've found my stomach no longer likes breakfast. Now I have a snack a 
little later in the morning.

Have you tried fresh peas or beans?  I find the canned ones pretty
unappetizing myself.  The flavor and texture are all gone.
I don't think spastic colon causes one to vomit.
Soda pop is 100% carbohydrate.  Water is 0%.  Sugar is 100% carbs.

You might also consider frozen or fresh (in season).  There is a difference.

I use to not be very fond of veries either.  Germans tend to cook their
veggies too long and it ruins their taste (for me.)  My wife cooks fresh
veggies up in a wok and it's like night and day!  Now I love veggies!  Also
spend the extra $'s and buy fresh.  Not even a raccoon will eat most of
the canned vegetables out there.  One exception is canned tomatoes.  If you
have the space, putting in your own garden for the best and cheapest source
of fresh vegetables.

I used to hate asparagus until I tried it fresh instead of canned.  THe canned
stuff is really slimy!  Omni has very limited garden space, but a potted
tomato plant or two would be fruitful as well as decorative.  I agree that
tomatoes add a lot of flavor, even canned, and can be used instead of adding
lots of salt or sugar.  Try various herbs and spices to make grains and
vegetables more appetizing, rather than salt and fats.

   I'm saving my garden plot to grow the 2nd generation of Black Eyed Susans.
I harvested all the seeds from the blooms I got last year. If anyone wants
some, please send e-mail and I'll be happy to share.

   Everything is going well. I feel really good, and my blood pressure is
lower than it has been in a long while. I'm limiting myself to 2 normal sized
cups of caffienated coffee/tea per day, and still no sugar. I've switched from
soda to orange juice, or better yet, water.

Orange juice is also high in sugar.  Fresh oranges have more fiber and the
sugar takes longer to get into your bloodstream.  Have you tried apples?
Glad to hear that you are feeling good!

Orange juice is significantly better than most non-diet soda, though: no
caffeine, a decent amount of fiber, and better nutritional value.

Ref #21: Omni, you stated that you want to be thin. That's a Huge and Drastic
Thing, and it scares me to hear you say it that way. "I don't want to be fat
any more," is a subtle difference, but it has helped me. I look at the dessert
menu and think, "no, that's what a fat person would choose," and order the
fruit. See?
Handy tip: do almost all of your grocery buying from the walls, not the
aisles. The fresh, less-processed stuff is there.
You are traveling a tough road, but I get the impression we're all pulling
for you!

yeah. go omni!

I still love chocolate, but I don't care for goopy, sticky desserts 
much anymore. Not sure why. 

omni, have you considered lipsocution?  maybe it seems like a shortcut
but the fact of the matter is that they have greatly developed the
technology for this procedure and liposuction treatments can take 20-30
pounds right off at a time.  Plenty of celebrities have liposuction treatments
to maintain their thinness.

of course even if you could get 100 lbs sucked out of you doesnt mean you
should go back on the bacon!

Ummmm...

1. celebrities often have millions to put towards their appearance.

2. even so, sucking out 20/30 lbs at a time is downright dangerous and 
stupid. it's called tumescent lipo, and it's already killed a few 
people.

3. i can't speak for omni, but i'm sure he has the common sense to take 
care of himself and eat well.

4. despite all this, it seems someone has gotten fat implanted into 
their own HEADS!!

thank you and good day.

I doubt that liposuction has any effect on blood pressure or cholesterol,
whereas diet and exercise do.  Oranges take longer to eat than orange juice
(and a few more calories are used to digest them).
        Jim knows one person who lost a great deal of weight simply by going
vegetarian.  Vegetables fill you up more.  (Cheese does not.)
        Omni enjoys cooking and I hope will view this as a challenge, same as
other people on special diets for various medical conditions.  My mother had
to learn to cook a dialysis diet and ended up publishing recipes.  Please let
us know if you come any with any interesting low-cal low-salt low-sugar
recipes.

  1. No liposuction. I don't care if it is safe, I just can't do that to my
body, and I don't think I'm really heavy enough to have it done.
  2. Yes, I want to be thin, but slowly and under my doctors care. I'm not
going to go on some stupid diet. My doc is calling the shots. I'm tired of
being fat, and wearing huge clothes. It's time for a change, and now is the
time to make it.
  3. I don't care if bacon was a penny a pound. Nothing in heaven or on earth
will make me eat another piece of that shit. Today at the theatre was a good
example. Usually I eat popcorn with a movie, although lately I've been
resisting the urge. I had the means to buy a large pop, a big candy and a huge
popcorn, but I invoked my iron will and enjoyed the film without any sort of
"refreshment" I came home and had an orange. I am proud of what I did.

   If I want popcorn, I have an air popper and with that I can sneak a little
butter on to it without giving away the kingdom, but the salt is out. 

   I see my will as the last fortress against evil. If I give in, I've lost
my honor, my word, my committment to myself. My word and honor are gold. I
will not eat anything that will harm me. And you have that on my word.

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss