Hi Ro,

Welcome to the list!  I want to encourage you with my own story.  I started
his WOE on Jan 1 and have lost 19 pounds so far.  You mentioned having
arthritis, sinus and sleep problems and GERD.  My mom and sister are also
paleo now and we have all had success with these same problems.  My mother
has cut her arthritis medication in half and plans to wean herself off of it
due to reduction in pain.  She has also had no need for her GERD meds since
the GERD has disappeared, as did mine.  We all sleep better and have clear
sinuses for the first time in our lives!  As far as weight loss, we couldn't
be more pleased.  We are never hungry, don't have to weigh or measure
anything (like with the Zone) and have lost our emotional attachment for
food.  All cravings and depression are gone too.

If you really want to see results, though, I recommend that you go all the
way with this WOE.  If you have to tell yourself that you will only do it
for 1 week, then do that.  But REALLY do it that week and see for yourself
how good you can feel!  It becomes "addictive" in its own way!  I have never
had this kind of ease in weight loss until I stopped dairy completely.

Another word of caution:  go easy on the nuts.  At 2 weeks into this I
bought a 5 pound bag of almonds and ate some everyday.  My weight loss
pretty much stopped until they were gone 3 weeks later!  Now, it's really
flying!  I'll eat nuts with abandon when I have reached my goal weight,
someday.

Keep it up, Ro!  You'll do great!

Karine

, like crippling arthritis, sleep, sinus, GERD,
>etc.  Reading to educate myself on my own nervous system has given me cause
>to wonder how much of my neurological problem has nutritional
>components.  It's somewhat like RSD, and somewhat like a neuropathy, but
>doesn't appear to be strictly totally either, yet.  They've temporarily
>ruled out MS as a brain MRI failed to show plaque.
>
>Confession time:  I'm one of the world's worst eaters,
>nutritionally-wise.  As I'm beginning to reconsider this entire paradigm in
>terms of evolutionary principles, etc, it is truly a wonder to me I'm still
>alive.  I can remember times in my life where we did nothing but eat fast
>food for months, with not a vegetable in sight except potatoes or rice
>(hey, used to think they were veggies, anyhow).  The only thing I've done
>right in general the past couple of decades was to cut way down on
>caffeine.  Coffee rarely, and not drink colas at all (though I'd drink an
>occasional Sprite).  That was because of heart arrythmias.  I've always
>been a big water drinker, beyond the recommendations, often.  Still, I've
>lived on everything carby, refined, processed, and junkfoody, etc.  The one
>time I managed to eat well was a try at The Zone several years ago.  This
>was before my neuro problem of last year.  It produced remarkable
>improvements over two month's time.  I found out then about transfats and
>partially hydrog. stuff, though I fell off the wagon with the program due
>to several things, but boredom and hating vegetables was part of it.  Being
>on the zone did incline me towards considering the paleodiet when I came
>across it, as I noted during that time that it was when I did it using
>mostly meats, nuts, monofats like olive oil and almonds and nut butters,
>and fruits and some veggies and cutting out processed foods and transfats
>that I did much better.  Whenever I cheated on the carbs or tried relying
>too much on those energybar things I did less well.
>
>Now, with this nervous disease (or whatever it is), I'm very motivated.  I
>made myself eat an orange yesterday.  A real one.  No kidding.  With pulp,
>and everything.  First for me.  (I told you I was a bad eater).
>
>I imagine I'll have lots of itty bitty and major questions concerning
>eating this way in the future.  My big concern is supply; I've tried enough
>"plans" during the years that I know the easier it is to find the right
>foodstuffs, the easier it is for me to stick to it.  I live in a
>medium-sized city, but with a dearth of wholefoods stores (one or two
>little indie vegetarian stores that don't seem very complete or have fresh
>stock).  My grocery store has started carrying a few things, but the meat
>supply has me concerned.
>
>Btw, (let the itty bitty questions begin), does anyone know if these new
>fruit and veggie washes I've seen advertised are healthy or paleo?
>
>Can I fry with olive oil?
>
>Also, do any of you take supplements?  Um, supplements that don't have
>wheat or corn or stuff in them, that is? I'm concerned about calcium as
>regards my neuro prob, esp since I really don't like many vegetables
>yet.  Though I do like spinach very much, it's like $3.00 here for a small
>bag of it fresh.  I don't even want to talk about what blueberries
>cost.  I'm going to start now on learning to eat the rest of the dark
>leafies.  Whatever they are.  I'm so ashamed I don't even know.  I think
>they're stuff like kale, collards, turnips (yuck), mustards?  I managed to
>choke down some steamed broccoli last night.  Tell me this gets easier with
>practice.
>
>So, you see, I need serious help.  Next thing on list for a.m. tomorrow is
>try to find a source of "good" eggs.  I'm not even sure what the
>nomenclature is: organic?  Is there any supermarket brands that are also
>organic or paleo?  I'm also wondering, given some things I've come across
>on the MS pages, if I need to look into getting tested for food allergies,
>in case eggs or seafood (I want to include tunafish and fish and seafood
>more in my diet) or nuts or something are problems for my body that I don't
>know about yet?
>
>Thanks, and good to be here.
>Ro
>
>PS  Stacie mentioned not relying on tap water.   I'm now learning that tap
>water has stuff in it.  Chlorine and stuff.  Anyone have any links to
>reading material about what kind of water is good, or how I get it?  I've
>been drinking some purchased water from the supermarket recently (they've
>been cleaning out the city's waterlines), and liked the absence of an off
>taste.  It says it is distilled water by reverse osmosis (whatever that
>is), and has some minerals added.  But it would be awfully expensive, as
>much water as I like to drink, not to mention if I cook with it too.
>
>I feel like my whole world has turned flippy-flop on me.

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