Supercrew

I was lucky because 7 years before I quit drinking I got into the no carb/low carb lifestyle, and I have become pretty addicted to staying away from most carbs including sugar. Although in very early recovery I did feel I craved sugery treats, I haven't had too much of a problem recently, infact I have lost about 15 lbs, and I even found a couple of supplements that really seem to help with food, alcohol, and nicotine cravings.

Are you a dietician Tom?

1_day@_a_time

First off, my name is Thomas. Thank you.

Secondly, here is what I said in the beginning of the thread:

I hope you will educate yourself, have an open mind, revitalize your life and become sugar free.

This was not about opinions.......I encouraged people to educate themselves.

Supercrew

Sorry Thomas. Didn't mean to be informal, and it wasn't meant to be an insult.

Dee74

That was my fault, my apologies...I'll think I'll stick to nicknames from, now on

Have a good rest of your week 1_day@_a_time
D

1_day@_a_time

yes, it is an important issue for me, and I believe others as well.

The thread started out well, then some decided to minimize food issues.

AGAIN, all I am suggesting is education. Read, inquire, educate.

This food topic, and well as alcoholism/addiction is life and death.

FEW understand it.

I KNOW I didn't until I heard from those suffering personally. Until I started reading quite a bit about it. Until I realized I too had signals of eating improperly. I have struggled with my weight most of my life.

Today, I am in the best shape of my life. I take my diet and what I eat seriously. It allows me to compete & participate in running and cycling endurance events that sometimes last 9-30 hours. I allows me to coach and train athletes to reach levels they never imagined. It takes being smart with their food, athlete or not!


Plus:

TWO PEOPLE I KNOW HAVE DIED IN JUST THE LAST FEW WEEKS AS A RESULT OF ADDICTIONS.

I have been coming here since May 2003, and have seen people struggle and struggle, relapsing so many times and crying out in pain.

I KNOW there are many ways to recover, but after trying for DECADES my way, I found answers in AA I never would have imagined. And for whatever it's worth, I have relapsed......yet.

Yes, I get passionate (ok brash) about them.......yes, I can be an over bearing harsh jerk about it at times. There is NO good excuse for it.

It is something I am working on......it's a process. One I must address with more fervor.

TWO PEOPLE I KNOW HAVE DIED IN JUST THE LAST FEW WEEKS AS A RESULT OF ADDICTIONS.

And more will die.......today and everyday. One close friend from this site died a few years back. I was stunned........ I know several from this site that drank over it........she was a very special lady I still miss greatly!!!! What a senseless loss....

OK, enough out of me......yes, it is an important issue to me....and my 3 mins are up.

And I sincerely apologize to those I have offended along the way!

Manz

You know 1 day, yes you may have been brash, and very strongly opinionated, but that is what I have come to enjoy about this site. That we can all have an opinion, and generally it is welcomed and tolerated by all.

I think you have highlighted an important issue, food is a large problem for many... me being on of those.

I am a newbie, i have 38 days, and i seem to be unusual in that sugar has not been what I have craved at all. In fact I have found that my sobriety has also meant that I am not using food in a similar in a negative fashion as I have in the past.

But I do strongly agree with Ghostly, that my sobriety is the focus, and should be for anyone new to it. To heap on any further stress that a "diet" may add to an already difficult process, to me and IMHO only, would be counter productive.

Thanks again for starting the thread.

1_day@_a_time

To clarify, I should be clear. I am not suggesting sobriety is not a top priority.

This came up because numerous newcomers were talking about sugar cravings and some even recommended candy to curb the cravings.

Food issues are very complex and challenging.

I simply wanted to point out the dangers of food and sugar issues.

I apologize for any misunderstanding.

Supercrew

Thanks for the thread 1 Day. It's a good topic that most people don't take too seriously. At one point I weighed 270 lbs, and I am 5'11" (I was also benching over 400 lbs). I put a majority of the weight on on purpose to play college football, and it was the biggest mistake of my life. Once my football was over I let my workouts go with them. It took me close to 2 years to lose the the majority of the weight through a low carb diet and exercise. I currently weighed in today at 204 lbs, and my goal weight is 190 lbs which I plan to be before summer. Food can be a severe addiction, and it also can bring on depression, which turn people back to drinking. I think some people might get rubbed the wrong way when you post like the militant diet police, but obviously it is something that has affected you and is close to your heart. I am sorry for your losses.

Ghostly

I too am sorry for your losses.

My main point was people should be careful about tryin to do too much too soon. I stand by everything I wrote, and I still feel that way. Clearly you disagree, and my point of view upset you.

I will stay away from your Threads in the future. I'm done with this one. Good luck.

MemphisBlues

Hey, Thomas. Could you start a thread on smoking? Seriously, everything I do I do in an addictive way. Since my sobriety came just in September, my smoking has gone through the chimney.

And sugar, man, it's going to land me in a lot of hurt. I swill instant iced tea, and even the low-calorie kind here has sugar as the No.1 ingredient.

I've just now been able to pick up some exercise, a couple of sets of tennis. While drinking and drugging, I would cycle 30 miles at a crack, more than 100 miles a month -- and that was still as a smoker!

I think a sugar warning is important. I look at is as, hey, it's not beer, but it can be deadly. When I was first out of the hospital I quit coffee because it ramped me up too much (I was addicted to an extreme amount of benzos) and didn't smoke for the 10 days I was admitted -- hurdle time when nicotine is pretty much out of your system.

Addicts are addicts. My older brother has Type II diabetes and weighs about 250 pounds -- and he's lost 70!

I weighed 170 pounds when getting out of the hospital and now weigh in at 183. Scares me. I knocked out the Oreo's, the strawberry jam, but, man, the iced tea? It's gotta go.

At least I drink decaf coffee. Thanks again for the post and I'm very sorry for the loss of your friends. I will check out some websites on this sugar business. Oh...since I've sat here for eight hours reading SR and the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, I'm obviously addicted to those, too!

least

Nicotine/Smoking - SoberRecovery : Alcoholism Drug Addiction Help and Information

Fandy

when I was drinking i consumed an awful lot of sugar in the wine..empty sugar calories. when I first quit i absolutely NEEDED the biscuits with the chocolate on top...3-4 of them every night with my tea.

but I gradually cut back on that as i realized it wasn't doing me much good....i still struggle with flavored coffee creamer, but limit my cookie vice to 1-2 in the evening and sometimes a small dish of ice cream.

fruit is an excellent substitute and source of natural sugar....we are what we eat.

I'm not taking sides here, but have you seen the commercials on TV lately???/ trying to make americans aware of how much sugar we ingest is important. sweet tea, coffee drinks, soda, etc. the suggested substitution is seltzer, flavored sugar-free waters, plain tea.

when i was drinking, my fasting glucose kept climbing closer and closer to type-II. now it is much more even...but still i limit my sugars. (and the white foods).

i do want to say that it became easier to avoid the obvious sugar after sobriety mind-set becomes a lifestyle.