Shauna; the overweight chronic spoonie

I too have FM, osteo and rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple spinal issues, so I totally understand how debillitating constant pain is. Which means I also thoroughly understand how it can make exercising pretty damn difficult, some times more than others. And even more, I understand how alone one can feel, especially when so many in the medical community don't even believe in FM.

I'm on day 367 of tracking and logging here on MFP. I've lost 20 pounds in the year which a lot of people make fun of. But for me, I'm totally psyched because I've actually lost it! I seem to lose weight, then maintain for a couple months, then lose a little more then maintain there, and so on.

I tried going GF and couldn't manage it - IMHO there are some GF products that are just plain GROSS. And for whatever reason I have a VERY tough time swallowing a lot of the non-bread bread products (meaning hamburger rolls, hotdog rolls, "english muffins" COUGH COUGH). I am what I call gluten light. Any BREAD that I eat is GF, any pasta is GF, any treats, etc. For me, going GF made a very quickly noticeable difference in my weight loss, but more importantly is has ABSOLUTELY made my joint pain better. It took a good 5 weeks for that side effect to kick in, but it's a big difference. I'm talking going from an average pain of 6 to an average pain of about 3.5 in my joints. It has not helped as noticeably with my constant tendonitis throughout my body, and of course it hasn't done squat for the constant and neverending muscle spasms, but ANY relief is a relief and I'm happy for it!

Feel free to add me. Don't feel like you HAVE to - I completely understand if it'd be strange for you to be friends with someone old enough to be your mother. Whatever you do, good luck to you on your weight loss journey. Learn to be patient with yourself, but most of all, learn to be kind to yourself.