Hey everyone,
Could not decide which forum to put this in, feel free to suggest where more people might have relevant info.
Anyways, as I had mentioned to other members, I have been doing a WeightWatchers program to shed a few pounds, and so far so good… except with some of these giant food changes, I am in severe pain. Right after I eat a meal, or even a small snack of popcorn, my stomach is in roaring cramps, some of the worst I’ve had. Some nights as well I am just losing hours of sleep trying to roll to a comfy position. I find that water will partially relieve this, but I am concerned something else is flaring up. If you or anyone you know has had any similar situation, please enlighten me. I’m suffering! Thank you!
Maybe someone else will give you some insight as to why this is happening, but I would suggest stopping the WeightWatchers Program right away. It’s not worth it for a few pounds! If you really want to lose weight you can find another way to do it. Are you eating the special Weight Watchers food? Unless someone else has a diabetes related explanation for what is happening you might want to notify Weight Watchers of your side effects. Something is not right, and the kind of symptoms you are experiencing don’t sound normal for just a “change of diet”.
Thanks for the advice. I’m wondering if the gigantic amount of fiber I’m consuming is really adversely effecting me. Its horrible. I think I am going to slow it down a bit until my body can get back to normal. Thank you!
Have you been checked for celiac disease? Type 1 diabetes and celiac disease commonly co-occur. If you have not been checked, call your doctor NOW – celiac is nothing to mess with and I am willing to bet NONE of the WW program foods are gluten-free. Otherwise, I’d say you probably should follow Zoe’s advice because fiber or no fiber, you shouldn’t be having that kind of response.
This happened to me too and Im doing WW as well. I found out that its from the dramatic increase in fiber in my diet as I went from barely eating (yep, eating disordered) to trying to take care of myself (starting WW) and the increase in fruits and veggies and fiber gave me horribly painful cramping, gas, and constipation, then it resulted in the runs.
I would consult with your doctor
For the record, WW does not have its own food. That’s Jenny Craig or Nutrisystem or what not.
WW is about portion control using the foods you normally eat. I know this b/c my wife (regular person, no diabetes) has been on it for the last 6 months. She loves it, although I do remember her griping about the small portion sizes at first. I tried it and last for almost 24 hours. I got ticked off that a handful of almonds cost my a 1/5th of my daily food allowance. Grrr!
EFree-Type1, I wish you the best figuring it out. Please don’t dump WW right away without giving your body a chance to adjust. My wife is much happier with her weight loss results over the past half year. It’s postively affected every other area of her life. I wish the same for you.
Best regards, Mike
I was going to suggest a dramatic increase in fiber as well (because popcorn for instance is supposed to be high fiber). You can try to also increase your intake of water as well…but sometimes water alone is not enough…
Sarah- When your first started to take care of yourself, did you find that you gained a lot of weight immediately? Or did you experience a lot of bloating?
I bet it’s the fiber & that’s why water helps you feel somewhat better. I wouldn’t follow a diet that gave me cramps like that. If you’re eating a lot more wheat than before, it could be celiac as Elizabeth said.
I gained 6 pounds in a week (probably from my body not used to all the food) and now I’ve lost almost 2 of the 6 I gained. The bloating is rediculous!
I would recommend slowly increasing the amount of fiber, I jumped right in and the same thing happened to me
Back when I was 12, my mother put me on weight watchers… Yeah, they had horribly small portion sizes… and I think back then they relied a little more on this line of frozen foods for sale they have at all grocery stores, than they do now… But it was hard work for me… Much too hard. I think primarily because I had this insulin resistance problem we just didn’t know anything about, and psychological issues with food (which many, many women have), and this type of strict diet was not for me. I lost about 40 lbs on it, but the deprivation caused me to binge, out of control.
I guess all I would suggest to start slowly introducing the fiber… because fiber can do a number on the system, if it’s not used to it… I’ve been through just about every diet there is, and I advise the best diet is simply the one we tailor to our own daily needs, and activity. Might be better off with a nutritionist who is aware of all the new diet options for diabetics, including Mediterranean style diets, etc. You’ll be much happier and less hungry all day long, and thus, less likely to fall off the wagon… Because we are not all the same, as human beings… and we can’t just stick to ‘this many calories for the average man’ and ‘this many calories for the average woman.’ Life doesn’t work that way.
Good suggestion Tom.
I have diverticulosis. This is a condition where you have small pockets on your intestines. (I was diagnosed when I had an appendectomy and the surgeon saw the pockets). Eating seeds that cannot be chewed can be dangerous because these get caught in the pouches and if they get infected, it leads to diverticulitis, which can be very dangerous. If you show signs of an infection (fever), go to the doctor immediately.
Popcorn is a real problem for me. I never had an infection, but would get very, very sharp abdominal pain combined with constipation. The doctors thought it was from increase in fiber. So I such to eating pretty simple foods for a few weeks.
It did eventually go away. The pain is rare, but intense.
I am thrilled I got such good information! I am actually pretty confident the massive change in daily fiber is mostly to blame, and I was just not drinking as much water as before. Regardless, it has since become much more reasonable and my various doctors have assured me that they are not seriously worried at this point, but will all keep a look out for any future warning signs. This kind of thing can happen with a diet change, I realize, I was just nervous because the pain was so crazy! Thank you all!!!
Glad to hear things are working better and hope the rest of the change goes smoother for you 