hi everyone

iana_cass

Hello there,

I'm hoping to make some helpful friends here-- this is not a new venture for me.. I joined MFP several months ago and have not tracked regularly, but I need to, so I pushed myself to start again. One week and 3 pounds down, sweet! I would love motivation, new friends, and free mental help

I'm 32 years old, married for the second time to my high school love. We are both pretty unhealthy but I'm fixing my end of things. I have had type 1 diabetes and hypothyroidism (both are autoimmune) since 1991. I have two daughters, age 11 and 8. My 11yo also has type 1 diabetes. She is shaping up just like her mother, only taller I hope, so I decided it was time to get serious about making lifestyle changes that I can teach them. My husband has two children also, 11yo boy and 6yo girl. They are both very skinny right now but if they follow the pattern of their parents, will fill out generously in teen/young adult years.

Right now I'm focusing on keeping under calories, lowering the amount of carbs I eat to get better bg control and reduce insulin intake, raising protein to help feel satisfied, and getting in exercise when I can-- mostly simple walks, swimming at a lake nearby us during summertime, and push-ups/sit-ups in the house. I have a treadmill and exercise bike and hope to get those set up on our non-weather-tight back porch for during the winter.

I am very busy with homeschooling our 3 older kids and babysitting for a friend 12 days a month, and this is my main reason for not getting exercise in as much as I'd like. More of it though, is simply my making excuses. Taking a walk is easy, no matter what the weather-- I just need to do it before anyone else is awake!

Things I'd like to gain from MFP: good perspective on what I'm actually putting into my body for fuel; encouragement /pushing/ motivation from new friends; tips on my food (esp. in making things kid- and picky-eater-friendly)-- I'm nearly to the point of making food for everyone else and only eating a grilled chicken breast for my own dinner every night! I know it doesn't have to be that boring but it feels like it at times and I get a TON of grief over food from the other 5 household inhabitants. I waffle between "eat-it-or-starve" and " ooh but they really love that." (yes, I'm a self-proclaimed co-dependent-- I want to please others soooo much and have thought very little of pleasing myself until recently)

What I don't need: someone telling me how to "cure" me or get me off my "meds" for my diabetes. Type 1 is different from type 2 and I will never go off insulin, no matter what Halle Barry says, unless a cure is found or unless I end up getting a pancreas transplant. In the same vein, I don't need someone criticizing me for my occasional treats. I do allow myself candy, sweets, etc, because if I don't, I will go off track. I find that I feel much more in control if I know I'm going to allow myself something each day, and planning that out, rather than having no plan and completely losing it.

That being said, "Hi!"