I have obstructive sleep apnea, which is an obesity-related, chronic, degenerative disease that causes cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease(s), dementia--and death. What happens is that I stop breathing when I sleep, because the fat in my throat tissues falls down and closes my trachea when my throat muscles relax during sleep.
I stop breathing for 30 seconds, some 20 times per hour, and have to wake up to breathe. This condition means that I cannot achieve all 5 levels of sleep, including deep sleep and REM sleep. Thus, I cannot achieve restful, restorative sleep, like a normal person. It's like a car running 250,000 miles without an oil change, tune-up, tire, battery or parts maintenance. Without restful, restorative sleep, my body "runs down."
The V.A. Hospital has given me a CPAP machine and a face mask to wear at night. This ventillator pumps air into my lungs at a pressure of 15cm water--if I can wear the damned face mask tight enough to hold 15cm pressure to keep the mask from leaking! So that means I wake up every 30 minutes, or at least every 1 1/2 hours--because the damned mask is too tight, or it's leaking, or my face gets sore because of the pressure. However, waking up every 30 minutes or 1 1/2 hours is a substantial improvement. What would be preferable would be to lose so much weight that I have no fat in my throat tissues. Then there would be no obstruction to interfere with my breathing.
PROBLEM: I've beeen attempting 30 BAD for some 4-6 months now and after 9-10 days at 100% LFRV I seem to get cravings for cooked food...you know the story! In fact, I think I'm an exception to the rules of 30 BAD because of my sleep apnea, as follows.
1). I wake up with headaches and my body is so tired that I don't feel like exercising--and if I do exercise I get sore muscles and the soreness builds up over time--because I don't get sufficient restful, restorative sleep to repair the sore muscles overnight. I also feel so bad that I want comfort food, alcohol, drugs, sugar, pizza, ice cream--anything to make me feel better!
2). The lack of restful, restorative sleep means that my hormones, enzymes and metabolism get out of whack. If leptin and grehlin hormones are out of balance I crave sweets, alcohol, processed food. If metabolic enzymes get out of balance I may start building fat and burning muscle--instead of the way normal people do it, which is to build muscle and burn fat.
3). The way I regulate blood sugar gets out of whack (diabetes).
4). The way I regulate cholesterol, triglycerides gets out of balance (cardiovascular disease).
5). Low levels of exygen in my blood and high levels of inflamation in my body create conditions for growth of cancers and tumors.
6). Low O2 levels when I sleep cause brain cells to die (dementia).
And all of this is happening AGAINST MY WILL! Last week some guy told me that I should try harder before I give up and die! He said I should try harder to lose weight!!! That's like saying I should try harder to breathe when I'm sleeping, so my blood O2 levels don't get so low that my brain cells die!
It just doesn't work that way, dude! Sleep is about rest and relaxation--not about trying harder! I am going to die--AGAINST MY WILL--and there's not much I can do about it...except a 90-day water fast!!!
I've been in 30 BAD for 4-6 months and every time I get to 9-10 days raw I get cravings and slip back into cooked food and gain my weight back. Like this time:
I've been 100% LFRV since 9/18/12. On 9/18 I weighed 200 lbs. I lost 10 lbs. in 11 days, but on Saturday 9/28/12 my weight loss hit a plateau at 190 lbs and I stopped losing weight. I also got cravings and started eating dates, bananas, frozen grapes, melons, figs, and mamey like they were going our of style. I started eating for recreation; fun, boredom, as a passtime--for no reason. Now my weight-loss has stopped at 190 lbs.
Yesterday I put a whole bag of garbanzo beans in my crock pot and slow-cooked them. Then I whipped them in a blender and added lime juice, watermelon, miso and netto and a jalepeno pepper! That made a good salad dressing and I ate it on a big salad, with the rest of the cici beans in the salad. This morning I started back in on the dates, bananas, melon and pluots.
I need to get to 140 lbs and a BMI of 19! That would solve the fat problem in my throat and then I could sleep without a CPAP...and the best way to do that is a 90-day water fast!! I need to stop all this fiddle-farting around and lose weight!! I've tried OA, Weight-Watchers, Atkins, Mediterrenean, The Zone, Stillman, The Drinking Man's Diet...all fo them...and I can't lose weight!
Could somebody please give me some feedback or advice on this? I feel that what I should do is to begin eating, drinking, chasing women and doing drugs 24/7 in order to enjoy my last few months or years and then put a plastic bag over my head so I don't have a stroke or something and lose my independence and wind up in a nursing home. Nothing is working. I seem to be losing control. Aging, sickness and death seem to be catching up with me AGAINST MY WILL!
Permalink Reply by ednshell on As Dr. Doug says, health never snuck up on someone, it has to be worked for. It's the years of damage that are showing up now and it will take as long as it takes to regain health and it takes hard work and diligence. Just keep trying, keep reading and watching videos on LFVR to inspire you and educate you. Fortunately there is plenty out there on lfrv to keep you busy. :D
Given your obstacles I think you are doing fantastic! :D The pain and apnea will pass in time if you keep your eye on the goal and stick it out. Meanwhile you will see weekly improvements and interesting changes in the body and mind on LFRV. Weight gain or plateaus are common for people who have done these things listed previously by Peter Csere:
-Go on a juice feast
-Eat a low-carb diet
-Have an eating disorder for years
-Restrict calories
-Yo-yo dieting
-Simply being in a state of poor health
-Back and forth between 100% raw, cooked, salt, fat.
You might like to read Adrienne's post on How to accept possible fluid/glycogen/fat/blood/lymph weight gain a...
If losing the weight is not something you can wait for then perhaps doing a long term supervised fast is your best option followed by an 811 raw diet. True North fasting center or Dr. Doug's retreats are two options I know about.
As far as staying on 811rv, eat as much as you care for! Use chronometer to make sure you are eating enough. Under eating is by far the number one reason people go back to cooked.
It can help to do consulting, the only donation only LFRV consultant I know is Chris Kendall: Check out these pages if you would wish to know more about my Consultations or my Full time Live in Consultations!
If you have the funds, by all means do a consult with Dr. Graham or anyone you feel particularly connected with. Start a meet up group in your area for LFRV potlucks to find like minded people to support you. No doubt you will be educating lots of people who are also looking for health. Eating large fruit meals with others is one of the most amazing and supportive things I can advise you to do! You'll see what I mean when you do it! :D
Hope this helps! :)
Permalink Reply by ednshell on oh ya and for exercise just do what you can, stretching and a trampoline will do wonders. If you can't get a big trampoline, get a small personal size jumper.
Yes sir, I think you are correct. I seem to be one of those people who can recognize Truth when I hear it, and the last few replies that you have made to my posts have been obvious truths. As you said, I think the past is past. I think it is what it is. I've got obstructive sleep apnea. I've got a little more to deal with than most of these people, but I better deal with it--or else!
Thanks pal, for the good feedback. Reality sucks sometimes. See ya later.
Hi Al,
Very glad to hear from you! It makes a good deal of difference to talk with someone who has the same problem. My first CPAP machine didn't work either. I have the Automatic now, and a better mask. I've lost 10 lbs and gained back 5. And hopefully, that "slip" will be my last. Like you, I feel that If I don't find a way to lose lots and lots of weight, I won't be around 5, 10 years from now. And if my sleep apnea progresses during that time, I won't even want to be around that long!
I'm sure you understand that I'm being realistic here--not "negative."
Thank you so very, very much, Al. Hearing from someone who knows (feels) what I'm talking about, speaks the same language, and has overcome the same obstacles is very encouraging and empowering.
Sometimes I feel like I can't do all the things other people do because I have OSA. But this time I do believe it will be different. I started again on 10/2 and this time it is like I know my life depends upon it, and I'm running out of chances. I believe that all I have to do is completely and permanently change everything about my lifestyle.
Today is Day 4 and I'm 100% LFRV. I'm not worrying about weight, politics, money, social acceptance, etc. I'm not trying to blend in at restaurants, coffee shops, deli's, etc. I accept that I can't.
I'm not trying to impress women, make friends, or even work a job. I'm living on social security and concentrating on one thing, and one thing only. I'm trying to eat enough fruit and veggies and greens so that I don't get hungry and I don't think about SAD or cooked food. I'm going to bed early and I'm sleeping--or at least laying in bed until I feel that I'm rested enough to get up!
I should be thinking only about "just this one day," but I'm already planning on a good blood test and a moderate weight loss at two month's 100% LFRV.
Permalink Reply by ednshell on Awesome Lee! :D Very inspiring!
I do have a solution for your temporary sleep problem. There is a non-sectarian meditation technique called Vipassana. To learn the actual technique you have to go on a 10 day course but you could incorporate the preliminary technique which is practiced on every course for the first 3 days. This is called Anapana and is simply observing your natural breath as it goes in and comes out. You keep your attention within the triangular area of your nose, inside and out and right above the upper lip. Any sensation you feel, heat, cold, itching, the touch of the breath, etc. is what you are observing. You try to keep your entire attention on these areas observing any sensation you feel and not reacting in any way. So you are simply observing like a scientist the natural breath and any sensation that comes up. You try to remain totally equanimous, accepting whatever arises with equilibrium. This actually provides deep rest for the mind and you will feel quite refreshed after practicing it. Whenever a meditator cannot sleep they are advised to practice meditation in a resting position but never to try and not sleep. However there are very advanced meditation practitioners that do practice meditation rather than sleep. So I thought this might help you in your situation. Here is the website if you want to read more about it. http://www.dhamma.org/
30BaD has a Vipassana group with some videos to watch: Vipassana: The Science of Mind and Matter
Inspiring!! You must be a Buddhist! I think it's tragic!!
Coincidentally, I have been hearing a lot about Buddhism this past year. I've been to one meditation lesson where they asked us to count in-breaths and out-breaths for ten minutes, and it was relaxing. I ride a bus and that location was not convenient, so I have found a Theraveda Monastery more accessable by bus. I hope to attend another meditataion next week. I will also try the group you mention and the website you recommend as well.
My problem when I try to sleep is that I have a CPAP mask on my face and the machine is pumping air at a constant pressure of 15cm water. Sometimes the mask is too tight, or it leaks, or the pad moves out of position, or the wind on my nose causes my nose to itch-under the mask-or I worry about the clock or think about my problems, or I start forecasting my death, etc. Perhaps if I concentrated on breathing it would make some of those problems worse and some of them better. I will try it and let you know...and thank you very much, ednshell.
Permalink Reply by ednshell on Lol, oh you're funny! :) Your determination and clear focus are indeed inspiring. :)
Yes that mask would be very distracting, maybe just sitting in meditation for an hour or a few minutes at a a time throughout the day will help alleviate some of the mental stress from lack of sleep. Sending you well wishes! :)
Thanks. I'm determined because I'm beginning to realize that this is a matter of life and death--and doctors can't do much about it--and I can't do much about it. So I'm trying everything I can think of.
Last night I put my mask on and began counting my in-breaths and out-breaths in bed, and the next thing I knew I woke up at 3 a.m. because the mask was too tight. I tried meditating with a tight mask and it didn't work, so I turned the machine off, got up and went for a walk.
When I got back I was de-stressed, tired and comfortable. I turned the machine back on and it started out at 7cm again, so I was able to get to sleep again, for another couple of hours.
I think that's the best I'm going to be able to do with this problem, until I lose 50+ lbs. (sleep apnea is an obesity-related, chronic, degenerative disease) If I lose 10% of my body weight, I get a 25% reduction in my apnea symptoms. So I think going from 195 to 145 lbs is what I need to do for my sleep apnea.
How can I lose a quick 40-50 lbs? Seems like if I eat 3,000 C a day, I won't lose very much, or very fast. And if I don't eat 3,000 C a day, I get cravings for cooked food, binge, get sick, and gain all my weight back!
Am I screwed? Do I have to be lucky to succeed in this program? How has it been for you? Have you lost weight, or were you always thin, spiritual, and healthy? You've been lucky, right?
Thanks, Al. I think the prayers may be working. I'm in Day 6 now, at 100% LFRV. I've lost 2 lbs in 6 days. I've been trying for about 6 months and seem to "slip" every 10 days or so, and regain the weight, of course. I've decided that the important thing is not to slip and regain the weight--no matter how slowly the weight comes off. So now I have 6 days and I'm thinking that just sticking it out until 30 days at 100% LFRV might be a good idea, and then start water fasting one day a week, with a couple of days a week of calorie restriction to break the fast gradually and carefully. I should lose weight that way, wouldn't I?
How did you do it? How did you lose weight by restricting calories to 1200? Was that 1200 C at 100% LFRV? How long did it take you to lose 50 lbs?
Cassandra Winona replied to Akincana Krishna das's discussion Why does Doug Graham advocate calorie restriction even for 811ers?Cassandra Winona replied to Akincana Krishna das's discussion Why does Doug Graham advocate calorie restriction even for 811ers?
Chrilyner replied to Traci DeGrow's discussion Asheville, NC!!! in the group Durianrider & Freelee's Worldwide talks
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