Lupus won't keep me fat!

caraarenee90
caraarenee90 Posts: 1 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hi everyone! My name is Cara. I am 27, married and have 3 kids that I homeschool.
Back in 2015 I was a self proclaimed "health-nut" when in reality I had body dysmorphic disorder. No matter how small the number on the scale went I still felt worthless. Anyways, I was working out over 2 hours a day while living on maybe 1000 calories a day. My body hated me for this, so I became very sick. First, was diagnosed with Interstitial Cystitis, aka painful bladder syndrome. Then, Fibromyalgia. Pain became worse, after many doctors and months later I was diagnosed with Small Fiber Neuropathy. Not long after that I was "officially" diagnosed with Lupus. Shortly after, I had a Neurostimulation device put in my back to help with my neuropathy. A year later my neuropathy pain was better but my Lupus was getting out of control. It still is not under control but slowly getting there. In the midst of all this during the first year ALONE I went from 108lbs to 245lbs. Since I had my neurostimulator surgery done in 2016 I have lost 30lbs, but I feel stuck. It has been very hard for me to find work outs that are doable on my arthritis and don't cause me to flare. It seems that good nutrition only gets me so far with all the medication I am on. I am trying so hard with eating right and atleast walking to get to a healthy weight for once.
I would love to meet some new friends and go through this weight loss journey together.

Replies

  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    Hi and welcome :)

    I just want to say that I am impressed that, with such a full plate of pain and health issues, you are trying your best to take care of yourself and still tackle your kids education (fellow homeschooling mom here). Frankly, I'm bothered that you seem to feel responsible for your health issues. I'm quite sure no one develops lupus or IC because they pursued a foolish diet for a time.

    Have you discussed how best to go about your weight loss with your medical team? I don't know if your conditions have any particular dietary needs or other considerations, but typically weight loss only requires a consistent, modest calorie deficit over time. Accurate calorie logging can get a person there whether there is exercise involved or not, but in your situation a very patient, gentle (i.e. slow) approach seems in order.

    It really bothers me that such a young person with a family faces these kinds of challenges. I have my own less serious health issues and if it discourages me to be dealing with these things while trying to be a good mom, I can't imagine how overwhelming it must be for you. I truly wish you nothing but the best :)
  • ng38
    ng38 Posts: 5 Member
    Hi! I have lupus and hypothyroidism and trying to lose weight. I don't think I have it as hard as you (just 1 kid), but I feel like I'm finally at a place where I can get healthy again. I actually got up to my weight when I was pregnant (170+) because I couldn't move from the pain and fatigue for months and was on steroids.

    I agree with above poster. Be gentle with yourself and start slowly. I walked a long time as much as I was comfortable with to build up my strength. I complained to my nurse that I wasn't losing a few weeks ago, and she suggested more intense exercise. I tried and realized I've actually gotten strong enough for a little more intense exercise. I'm on a beginner program with the Jillian Michaels app (I love her!) I have pleurisy that I can't get rid of and it hurts to go too intense, but along with calorie counting here, I've been losing 2lbs a week! Im just hoping for no more bad flares.

    I know you posted this a while ago. But I hope you're doing well and feel free to add me. I'd love to have another loop to work through this together.
  • MarvinsFitLife
    MarvinsFitLife Posts: 874 Member
    Never give up you can do this

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