Did I Find the Solution to Cravings?

Hi,

I am reading another book. Please don't hang up. This one seems to address my real problem which is the addiction to sugar and starchy carbs. If you have been patient enough to actually read all my blog entries then you (are a glutton for punishment ;) and you also know that I go on, and then go off, and then get back on, again -- basically stumbling my way to healthier eating. Sugar and carb cravings have been the hardest thing for me to deal with, but this book is written by another sugar addicted personality who discovered a way to balance out the body chemistry that goes awry when we eat too much sugar -- and she does it with food, not drugs. I am hoping to accomplish the same.

The book is called, "Potatoes, Not Prozac" with this above the title: "Are You Sugar Sensitive? " It was written by Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D., Addictive Nutrition -- and I don't think I would be reading it, except that I found this link... you know how that goes. The cover says that it is "A natural seven-step dietary plan to 1, stabilize the level of sugar in your blood, 2, control your cravings and lose weight, and 3, recognize how foods affect the way you feel."

I got my copy at http://www.thriftbooks.com and paid about four dollars for it (free shipping). It was printed in 1998 so you might think it would be "dated" but it seems to be right on accurate for where I am. You will find it if you do a search for "Potatoes Not Prozac." I believe there may be a more recent edition available at her web site: http://www.radiantrecovery.com/

Just reading chapter one, which she calls "Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," I felt like we might be cut from similar cloth. I have not finished reading the whole book, yet, but I have gotten to the first step which is to keep a food journal (I read a little farther, hoping I could weasel out of that) but she insists this is a major part of the program.

She definitely says that the food journal needs to be kept or you will not be able to begin to read the signals your body is giving you. She also defines the signals your body will give which are related to blood sugar ups and downs, serotonin levels, and beta-endorphine levels -- specifically so you can begin to understand them and apply her food solution to your individual body. Her book is well written and easy to read, too.

The journal, which I have not started yet, (yes, I know, same old story -- but I've got the note book in mind) is set up not to make you feel guilty about what you eat, but to examine your reaction to whatever you are eating. It is not meant to be a dictator forcing changes upon you, but to be an investigation of how you, personally, react to the foods you are now eating. (This puts an addict's mind to rest.)

She has you set up your journal with columns for the date and time, what was eaten, how you feel physically, and also how you feel emotionally after you've eaten at whatever time you notice a reaction. She helps you to distinguish the difference between physical and emotional feelings by what they are. If you feel a headache or a pain in your tummy, then that is physical. If you feel depressed, crabby, or satisfied that is an emotional reaction.

She formulated her solution based on her own background and having done therapy with alcoholics. Not only has she "been there, done that," but she has helped others get out of the swamp, too. She shares how she got from one to the other, what she discovered along the way, and how she gave up doing therapy for scientific investigation... and then went back to therapy. When she went back, she was armed with information that she applied to a group of alcoholics (who also have sugar sensitive bodies) and finally got success in helping them to recover their well being for real.

It seems the food mechanics are similar for alcohol, drug, and sugar addiction -- so the solution is similar too, although still very individual -- and she uses food to balance both the brain chemistry and the blood chemistry. Once all the chemistry is balanced by using the eating program she devised, then the addict can finally be 1. free of the cravings that are caused by whatever you ingested last, and also be 2. free of the craziness that is also caused by whatever you ingested last. She says you will regain a happy sense of being in control of your life, again.

She says, "If you make some simple food changes, your body chemistry and brain chemistry will come into balance. You will reclaim your birthright and feel energetic, optimistic, grounded, competent, easygoing, and connected to others." The book is about how to do that. Step one is the journal. She says she does not want to give us a "one-size fits all diet" but a way to recognize specifically what your body needs and how to give your body precisely what it needs with the food you eat. At the end of her chapter called "Brain Chemistry 101," she says, "For now, all you need to remember is that there is life after addiction -- and it's a very good life indeed."

She also does not want the addict to make a lot of changes all at once because this is what an impulsive addict "does." That is part of the addiction and will only end in failure. She has seen that people have more success if they do things slowly and master the individual steps one by one -- before going on to the next one. So in the beginning you don't even have to stop doing what you are doing. You just have to journal, begin eating three meals a day at regular intervals, and take three supplements (vitamin C, B-complex vitamin, and zinc).

You can, in the beginning, still eat the ice cream or whatever you've been eating -- you just have to eat it with a meal, keep a record of it, and then list what your own reactions are so you can begin to recognize them. You begin by adding things, not by taking them away. You get to let go, if and when you are ready to let go. That is like music to addicted ears because that is the problem that we find most difficult!! It would not be called an addiction if we could easily let go of the ice cream or bread.

I am ready to try it out. I have already made some major changes to my eating so I'm in a better place than I was, but I want to know, once and for all, how to deal with the cravings and temptations. (By the way, she also says that "once and for all" is also addictive thinking. LOL) This book seems to have the solution I've been looking for, but I won't know if it is real or works until I try it out. So... I am going to try it out.

I will also blog about it for the same reason that I started this blog: to keep me on track, and to share with other interested persons. I am not sure how often I will blog but hopefully it will be at least once a week, or there about. Maybe more, maybe less -- but I want to have the record to read.

The record of my blog helps me to remember where I have been and the break throughs that I have had. It is so odd that you can have a tremendous breakthrough and then a week later cannot remember the details. I think I read in her book that getting the brain chemistry balanced will also help this -- but for now, I sometimes go back and read, just to remind me what the Lord has given me and done for me. It is the remembering that is important, and there is no better way to remember than with a written record.

If you are interested in finding out more about this solution you can go to her web site and get involved or purchase the book for yourself. Here is the link: http://www.radiantrecovery.com/

(And "No" -- I am not being paid to do this.... I am a true seeker, looking for solutions, just like you.)

Be back soon,

--Marcia