# Starvation and Bad Decisions



## GTGallop

Had my annual blood work the other day. Good news is that even without meds, I've gotten my good cholesterol up and my bad cholesterol down. Only problem is that my bad cholesterol isn't low enough and my triglycerides are jammed up through the roof. Blood sugar was a bit high too for a fasting test. Doc has given me three months to beat back Wilford Brimley or he will send me to a diabetic doc. This is difficult because I just got off 7 rounds of antibiotics and 4 rounds of steroids and narcotic cough suppressants back in March due to Valley Fever (Coccidioidomycosis - Fungal Pneumonia) and I'm still in recovery due to lung damage, scarring, and nodules. Physical activity is very low and an 8 hour work day still kicks my ass. Admittedly, when I was sick, I ate a lot of junk that I normally don't and that along with the steroids could have thrown off my numbers.

So now I'm tracking my food on the MyFitnessPal (by UnderArmour) and I'm trying to be more balanced and responsible. I've cut out all refined sugar and starches and I'm watching my natural sugars and starches like fruit and potatoes like a hawk. I'm still eating a very nutritious diet - probably better than before. But - the lack of carbs and reduced caloric intake has turned me into an incoherent zombie. Late afternoon is the worst. I lose my balance, my fine motor skills are shot, I make bad decisions or at least don't think things through all the way. Yesterday I started wondering if I had a stroke I was so bad off. It is killing me.

As an American, I've never really experienced hunger or starvation, and I still probably haven't - but I'm closer now than I've ever been and it is teaching me a lot. I'm only a week in and I think my body will adjust eventually, I hope. But I can already see where people stranded for a day or two without food start to make boneheadedly stupid or risky situations. Or how they get injured easy. I fell down just taking the trash out yesterday. I'm just awestruck and the difference a change in diet is having for me.

The lesson or potential lesson here is this, I'm imagining a survival scenario where I have half again what I'm currently eating. Survival and all of the activities necessary to sustain life, maintain a shelter, and defend against outside forces (especially if they are a little better fed) would be greatly compounded by a lack of nutrition. Before I understood hunger as a minor inconvenience. Now I see it as a crippling force, almost as bad as a disease. Food preps just got bumped way the hell up on my priority list.

One of the things I struggle with is that my daily limit of protein, carbs, sugar, and fat are reached before I get to 1800 calories. I'm often left at 1400 to 1600 calories and no room to eat anything without exceeding one or more of those areas. Maybe if I can get the right combo, this will get easier. If not, I'm going to find a dietitian that can get me a better plan. But again in the SHTF world - no dietitians and yoga instructors so prep now what will be healthy for then.


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## Targetshooter

I am a diabetic ,, to get my sugar down fast I drink lots I mean lots of water " a gal. in a hour , and I do 2 gallons ,,you will pee a lot and that's what will help you ,, it will flush out the sugar in you body and that will being down your sugar count .


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## Blendingin

GT why are you restricting protien and fats if you are just trying to control sugar? I don't understand what you are doing. can you explain more about your diet choices?


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## paraquack

GT, what kind of work do you? I don't hear of people getting Valley Fever that much. Or were you digging a bunker?
Hope you're doing better. Not a fun disease.


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## tirednurse

GTGallop said:


> Had my annual blood work the other day. Good news is that even without meds, I've gotten my good cholesterol up and my bad cholesterol down. Only problem is that my bad cholesterol isn't low enough and my triglycerides are jammed up through the roof. Blood sugar was a bit high too for a fasting test. Doc has given me three months to beat back Wilford Brimley or he will send me to a diabetic doc. This is difficult because I just got off 7 rounds of antibiotics and 4 rounds of steroids and narcotic cough suppressants back in March due to Valley Fever (Coccidioidomycosis - Fungal Pneumonia) and I'm still in recovery due to lung damage, scarring, and nodules. Physical activity is very low and an 8 hour work day still kicks my ass. Admittedly, when I was sick, I ate a lot of junk that I normally don't and that along with the steroids could have thrown off my numbers.
> 
> So now I'm tracking my food on the MyFitnessPal (by UnderArmour) and I'm trying to be more balanced and responsible. I've cut out all refined sugar and starches and I'm watching my natural sugars and starches like fruit and potatoes like a hawk. I'm still eating a very nutritious diet - probably better than before. But - the lack of carbs and reduced caloric intake has turned me into an incoherent zombie. Late afternoon is the worst. I lose my balance, my fine motor skills are shot, I make bad decisions or at least don't think things through all the way. Yesterday I started wondering if I had a stroke I was so bad off. It is killing me.
> 
> As an American, I've never really experienced hunger or starvation, and I still probably haven't - but I'm closer now than I've ever been and it is teaching me a lot. I'm only a week in and I think my body will adjust eventually, I hope. But I can already see where people stranded for a day or two without food start to make boneheadedly stupid or risky situations. Or how they get injured easy. I fell down just taking the trash out yesterday. I'm just awestruck and the difference a change in diet is having for me.
> 
> The lesson or potential lesson here is this, I'm imagining a survival scenario where I have half again what I'm currently eating. Survival and all of the activities necessary to sustain life, maintain a shelter, and defend against outside forces (especially if they are a little better fed) would be greatly compounded by a lack of nutrition. Before I understood hunger as a minor inconvenience. Now I see it as a crippling force, almost as bad as a disease. Food preps just got bumped way the hell up on my priority list.
> 
> One of the things I struggle with is that my daily limit of protein, carbs, sugar, and fat are reached before I get to 1800 calories. I'm often left at 1400 to 1600 calories and no room to eat anything without exceeding one or more of those areas. Maybe if I can get the right combo, this will get easier. If not, I'm going to find a dietitian that can get me a better plan. But again in the SHTF world - no dietitians and yoga instructors so prep now what will be healthy for then.


GT if you need some help with this send me a PM and I can try to help you figure out what to do. I help people daily with their diets to control heart disease and diabetes without medications


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## ffparamedic

GT listen to Blendingin or tirednurse....I think you're going about this the wrong way.


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## Joe Smith

Yes, this is very strange to me. I am on the Obama-no-care plan. Haven't seen a doctor in years. If sick, you suffer through till better.

Sounds like them doctors is trying to kill you off, stay away from doctors-lose weight till you're down to what you should be, and have a vigorous outdoor type job.

Listen to the nurses, they care about the patient.


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## GTGallop

paraquack said:


> GT, what kind of work do you? I don't hear of people getting Valley Fever that much. Or were you digging a bunker?
> Hope you're doing better. Not a fun disease.


I'm a Cube Monkey and occasional work from home kinda guy. Very sedentary 8 hours a day. I got VF the week after Christmas this year. It rained in Phoenix for a week straight. My daughter and I too off to go hiking in the cool weather. Both got it at the same time. Doc thinks the spores got wet and launched into the air and we hiked through a patch of it. It ain't no fun. I'll guaran-damn-tee you that. For me it started as an intense sinus infection complicated by a deviated septum. I was sick with that for two weeks. Then in the shower one morning I did a Netti sinus flush and blew what looked like shower mold out of my face holes. Then it hit my lungs shortly there after and became VF.

We had saved up for some home modifications, had a fat refund coming from the IRS and a bonus check. VF and the hospital trips sucked that all away. POOF! But so glad I was able to do that w/o debt.



Blendingin said:


> GT why are you restricting protein and fats if you are just trying to control sugar?


Not really "trying" to restrict fats and protein. Just trying to balance the ratio that MyFitnessPal says I should be eating.



Blendingin said:


> I don't understand what you are doing.


Me either... :-(



Blendingin said:


> Can you explain more about your diet choices?


Probably not. Just trying to eat healthier stuff like more grilled chicken, salad, veggies. All while cutting cokes, donuts, fried foods, etc.



tirednurse said:


> GT if you need some help with this send me a PM and I can try to help you figure out what to do. I help people daily with their diets to control heart disease and diabetes without medications


THANK YOU! PM Inbound to your box shortly.


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## Slippy

Good luck GT. I'm betting on you, now go beat this thing.


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## txmarine6531

Changing diet is hard, especially cutting out refined sugars and carbs. For me it is at least. Best of luck!


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## Annie

Sounds like you got a lot of good advice already. To it I'll just suggest you add pro-biotics to your diet. Always a good idea after a round of antibiotics, which kills off both the good and bad bacteria in your gut. Now you want to re-introduce that good bacteria back into your gut. Good luck, best of health to you!


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## homegrownrose

You are 100% right about major diet changes (particularly in lowering your intake of things) can drastically impact your life, and feeling of well-being. What you're going through sounds like a detox of sorts. Perhaps you're doing this change too quickly. Try Weight Watchers if you can - it is a much more balanced program, and you can listen to what you feel you need to get through the day healthfully.


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## tirednurse

I think the biggest mistake people make with food is forgetting what food is. we have become so reliant on pre made, pre packaged foods that we have forgotten that we can cook. for being such a "rich" country our diet sucks. we have so many foods available and yet our favorite choices revolve around the menu at McDonalds. 

Something interesting that I have really paid attention to over the years is the correlation to the increase of diseases like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, dementia and autism, to the decline in the quality of our food. the worse the food gets the more these diseases increase. 

I'm not saying that we can never eat those foods we know are bad for us, but for most Americans we are eating that bad food every day, even every meal. 
The best way to eat is to keep our food simple. Eat what God gave us before we ruined it and turned it into trash. We have been told so many lies over the years and we need to stop listening. they have told us no butter, eat margarine. No sugar, replace with a chemical sweetener. vegetable oil and shortening instead of lard. don't eat beef, don't eat pork, don't eat eggs. our systems or so confused by the fake foods we eat that it doesn't know what to do with them and we are not getting anything nutritious in our food anymore. 
Egg that are supposed to be so bad for us for example, are one of the most nutrient dense foods we can eat. they are also cheap, fast and easy to cook and only 90 calorie each, no carbs and loaded with protein. Interesting to me is that they contain some nutrient that are very difficult to find else where that increase brain health and could prevent dementia. the generation that first stopped eating them and switched to fake egg products are now getting dementia at a higher rate and at a younger age than the generation before. 

We all have to choose for ourselves what is good or bad, but I wont buy into the lies. If I can't grow it myself it is probably not worth eating. If I cant pronounce the ingredients I am definitely not going to eat it. I don't exercise more than working in the garden or with the animals and I eat at least 3 meals a day and don't starve myself. I have never had a back checkup, never had a problem with heart disease or diabetes, never had high cholesterol despite eating butter, bacon and eggs when I want them.


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## CWOLDOJAX

GT,

A long time ago I learned about this web site, Nutrition facts, calories in food, labels, nutritional information and analysis - NutritionData.com Before Self Magazine bought them out.
Still a godd website to do your homework on.
I like to eat foods that won't make me hungry later. This website has a "Nutritional Target Map" (Nutrition Facts Help - NutritionData.com).

I use this map to plan my lunches and snacks.

Because of back/knee issues I don't run like a I used too, but when I want to lose weight and stay healthy without turning into a poster child for a TV diet, I use this website and the MyFitnessPal app on my phone.

You have a great professional advice on here already. You lots of info to make good choices. I'm just sharing what this 60-something on zero meds does.

(... and I don't wanna be like my mom. She's been diabetic for over 20 years, blind and her toes are dissolving away... most likely because she was obese for too many years.)


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## dwight55

GTGallop said:


> .................One of the things I struggle with is that my daily limit of protein, carbs, sugar, and fat are reached before I get to 1800 calories. I'm often left at 1400 to 1600 calories and no room to eat anything without exceeding one or more of those areas. Maybe if I can get the right combo, this will get easier. If not, I'm going to find a dietitian that can get me a better plan. But again in the SHTF world - no dietitians and yoga instructors so prep now what will be healthy for then.


GT, . . . first off, I'm no food expert.

But a few years ago, . . . my BP was trying to go through the roof, . . . and I had worn out the dr's first 5 or 6 meds, . . . none of them were doing me right.

I heard about a thing called a cave man diet, . . . looked into it, . . . decided to try it, . . . figuring if I could lose 10 - 20 pounds, . . . maybe the Doc's idea would work out for me too. The writer believed if we could ALL lose a little weight, . . . high BP, . . . diabetes, . . . etc. might not be so prevalent.

Results:

1. In about 8 months or so, . . . I lost almost 40 pounds.

2. I also lost that "one hour after eating, absolute fatigue" I had every afternoon.

3. My cholesterol count got a bit better, . . . nothing to jump through hoops over, . . . but "better" is in itself good.

4. I threw away the BP meds, . . . and that was almost 10 years ago, . . . ain't gone back, . . . don't need em.

The one thing I did do, . . . follows tirednurse's advice, . . . I absolutely QUIT eating junk food. No chips, no cheese puffs, no chili-cheese corn chips (almost cried over that one), no more twinkies, and I didn't have a piece of cake, pie, or a cookie for the first 7 months.

Everything I ate was fresh food, or nearly so.

I still do eat like that mostly, . . . and it has kept me staying within the last 3 of the 4 results. I have gained back about half of what I lost, . . . but I still feel good, . . . no real problems.

May God bless,
Dwight


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## SOCOM42

GT you can get through it.

I am type 2 diabetic, take 1 gram of Metformin twice a day.
When I was diagnosed 12 years ago, I was at 240 pounds and losing just prior to diagnosis. 
I was eating WAY too much, my work style had changed to basicly a desk job with little physical activity.
The worst thing was to cut back on the food, eventually I suffered through and reduced it, much worse than quitting smoking which I did 27 years ago last january.
Today, my total consumption for a day is less than a pre weight loss size lunch.
I had a severe ear infection about 7 years ago, doc's gave me antibiotics that almost killed me.
The meds shut down my kidneys, it was a long road, the meds they changed to required I stop the metformin, 
glucose went through the roof, the two meds together would have been equal to ingesting arsenic..
I finally ended up on a modified Atkins Diet, zero carbs for two weeks. Ate meats only, some cheese.
I did survive, and so will you, you can adjust. 
GOOD LUCK TO YOU.
.


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## Montana Rancher

Nice Post, I have been wrestling with health issues and I'm only 55 year old

My best point is that I am not overweight, 6' 4" and 205 pounds which makes a lot of difference. But I am "small boned" as I have a good friend that is about the same height and his normal (lean) weight is 220.

Take that into consideration

But still I have a cronic pain that will not go away, and I went to my local NP and ran all the tests and everything came back normal.

So I decided to let my body cure itself

https://www.lewrockwell.com/2016/04/bill-sardi/vitamin-c-therapy-cancer/

a. One of my favorite websites
b. I have decided to let my body heal itself.

We will see, I figure when God whats to take me home I am alright with the timing.

Good Luck


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## GTGallop

Big thanks to Tired Nurse for helping me out. Three PMs full of good questions and great advice. I've made some significant adjustments to my diet - short term. I'm still eating less but better foods and looking at balance rather than over all calories. I'm going to get an appt with a local dietitian and lick this. Dad has Diabetes real bad. He looks like King Tut from the knees down. Just living is a daily struggle for him and he's talking about getting toes and feet lopped off - its a shame too because he just went though knee replacement surgery about 5 years ago - now they are going to nibble away the leg he got the new knee on. I DO NOT WANT THE SAME. This will be done. I will beat it.

On a separate but related topic - back to the original post. I'm going to have to change what I prep as far as foods go to ensure that I have good stuff to eat and so that starvation doesn't cloud my brain again. But that's phase two. Gotta lose this baby fat first. ;-)


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## SittingElf

tirednurse said:


> I think the biggest mistake people make with food is forgetting what food is. If I can't grow it myself it is probably not worth eating. If I cant pronounce the ingredients I am definitely not going to eat it.


+1 Big Time!!

That's exactly why I'm about to spend a pile of $$ on building, and managing an Aquaponics system at home, and planting organic, edible perennials in my beds around the house instead of just ornamentals.

You are what you eat!

Cheers, and here's to good health.


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## Prepared One

It's a big adjustment when told you have to adjust your eating habits for medical reasons. I am still working on my issue that sent me to the emergency room but progressing. I may have to take the blood pressure pills for another year, more exercise, watch what I eat, and especially when I eat. Exercising was easy, I used to be a work out junky anyways, but eating was the major adjustment and still is. ( Being in sales, fast food crap and restaurants where to easy ) Good luck GT and stick to it my friend. Keep working it till you find the sweet spot.


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## M118LR

GT, as time passes there are many dietary changes for health or medical reasons. A little heart problem ends (Southern Cooking) fried foods. Diabetes ends sugar,honey, and many starches. Many people don't have the will power or desire to change their habits. Sometimes it is harder to bypass food than it is in a survival situation when you must learn to eat everything available regardless of look, smell, texture, etc. Your success in both situations can be indicative of your desire to survive. Find a mental assist that will aid you in moments of weakness. (example: Goodnight Kisses from my grandchildren are sweeter than any other sugary substance.) I would love to tell you that it gets easier, but it remains a continuous struggle, so you shall encounter many times to draw upon your inner (core) strengths. You have already elected, implemented, and committed to dietary change; so all that is left is to learn how to resist temptation. (Personally, I can resist anything but temptation) Good Luck and "Never Give Up"


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## Kara

"Cube Monkey" - I like that  Did you ever see the movie, "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead"? Anyways, I see you are going in the right direction to stop so much dependence on the industrial foods and going more towards natural foods. Do you have any sort of de-tox or inner cleansing protocols?


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