Writing a blog has taught me a lot, one of the biggies being that when you spill out your life stories, your success and your failure, you are widddddddeeeeee open. You hear from lots of people. Some write, some call, some face to face. Many offer advice, encouragement, ask questions and seek help. And this journey has been no exception. I get a ton of advice from people. I listen… do I follow the advice? Ummm…. no….as I tell most people, I have a lifetime of failure on one side and a doctor with 103 pounds on his side. Hello! I stopped taking diet advice about last October.
Most times it’s all good, but there is one piece of advice that comes up more than any other. Why I should Cheat!
So yesterday, I was talking with someone, who doesn’t read my blog, whewwwww, who mentioned to me that since summer, my weight loss has had a significant slow down. Yes, it has…. why? Well, a lot of reasons. I am approaching a more normal weight and so it’s going slower. My level of exercise and activity has increased dramatically which also slows weight loss. I have had my fair share of life stresses, in the last few months, also a big factor.
She asked me if I had cheated yet. Cheated? Like eaten off plan? No, I haven’t. “Cheating will help you! It will boost your metabolism! Things will start flying off, it worked for me! I do it all the time. After all, we aren’t meant to eat on plan all the time. Don’t you realize everyoneeeeee goes by like an 85% and 15% rule. Cheat 15% of the time.” Now, I know she was trying to be helpful, and I realize that maybe that did work for her, I don’t know, but there’s one thing I know for sure, it won’t work for me. No one else has lived in here for as long as I have. I know better than they what will happen inside.
She asked what I am afraid of. Well, what I am afraid of is that the twelve months of symptoms I just got rid of would decide to find their way back to me. No thanks on that! If I never ever evverrrrrrr have a single Hashimoto side effect again, that won’t be too soon! She wasn’t convinced that would happen and she began to really get upset with my lack of enthusiasm for this plan. She kept telling me that if it didn’t work, it would be her fault and not mine. Umm… okay but which of us would pay the price? I would be the one with the huge set back. I would be the one who would have to tell Dr. Jack, and then we would have to deal with the aftermath.
Then she asked me why I had not “celebrated,” my big loss. Celebrate it? I think I keep on celebrating it every single day, by being happy about it, grateful, but what she meant was a big treat/cheat. I told her I am not interested in doing that.
And that’s when she said it…..Dr. Jack never has to know…… you don’t need to tell him….
Not know? Of course he has to know! I would have to tell him. That got her really aggravated, “Chris, you are being stupid, a few cookies, an ice cream cone, what’s the big deal? I do it all the time and I never say a word to anyone. No one tells their doctor everything!!” Okay so A. I a, not stupid and B. Who tells their doctor everything?
Well, I do! That’s how I got to this place!! I lost 103 pounds by telling Dr. Jack every single ugly hidden nasty truth about my dieting, and medical history. And when things came up that added into the puzzle, I told more things. How the heck do you expect to get help from a doctor without telling the whole and complete truth?
More awful to me than the suggestion of cheating was that she thought that I should lie to him. He would know I lied, absolutely he would know because he knows me really well now….. And worse than that, I will know, breaking my end of the agreement we made the first day.
I promised to always be honest and he promised to always believe me. Think that was easy for me? Think it was easy for me to trust someone I never even met?? But I promised him and myself. I had always told every doctor everything. And I mean everything! And some were wonderful and others? They called me a liar, and told me there was nothing left for me but weight loss surgery. What would happen between Dr. Jack and me if I lied? What would that do to the level of trust between us? I should cheat and then compound the problem by lying about it. No thanks…. I have worked way too hard establishing a super doctor patient relationship. One built on complete and total trust.
There are actually tons of reason I don’t cheat. I just added that to my blog list for another day. For today? For crying out loud, don’t lie to your doctor. They can only help you with the information you have provided. I am not messing up the good thing I have going on over a cookie and a lie. No thanks! Lie to Dr Jack… get real!! I am never ever everrrrrrrr lying to Dr. Jack! We both have a ton invested in this. You absolutely have to keep your integrity when you have invested in your health.
As far as the slow weight loss?? Who cares? There is so much more great stuff happening to be worried about a little dial on a scale. It’s like your age… it’s just a number.
Be strong!! Lying to your doctorwon’t make anything better, and it certainly won’t get you the help you need!
Hugs,
Chris