Sugar Withdrawls

Well, Dr. Troy impressed me again. I recently had my Vitamin D level and TSH (thyroid level) checked by my medical doctor. I got the results in the mail saying both were within the normal range. Both numbers were close to the low end of the range, but normal is normal right?!

I decided to let Dr. Troy take a look at the numbers and guess what...both numbers are low!

My vitamin D level was 20 points below where he would like it to be. Low vitamin D levels can results in depression, so I am now taking vitamin D daily. We've got to keep this baby healthy!!

My TSH was 0.7 and Dr. Troy wants it above 1.8. A hyperthyroid can cause some symptoms mimicking anxiety, and so again, this could be another small piece of the puzzle. There isn't anything he wants to do about it now but he does want to continue watching it. He has been very cautious during this whole process not to put me on any medications that he feels I can manage without since I am pregnant.

I also am trying to decide if this hangover feeling that I have been experiencing is sugar withdrawals or  pregnancy related. I've been doing some googling on sugar detox and some people say it can be pretty intense. When I try to rationalize it in my mind, I think the same thing. The paragraph below is from an article I was reading that made this seem even more real in my mind.

But there are also other areas of impact that researchers have investigated: the effect of sugar on the brain and how liquid calories are interpreted differently by the body than solids. Research has suggested that sugar activates the same reward pathways in the brain as traditional drugs of abuse like morphine or heroin. No one is claiming the effect of sugar is quite that potent, but, says Brownell, “it helps confirm what people tell you anecdotally, that they crave sugar and have withdrawal symptoms when they stop eating it.”
Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2012/02/02/should-sugar-be-regulated-like-alcohol-and-tobacco/#ixzz20bAe0W3s


Was/Am I seriously "addicted" to sugar? Probably, yes, actually. I might need to see my therapist for this now too! When I think about how much sugar I ate it was insane. And my motto always was not to save any for tomorrow because it would be better if it was all gone today, so just eat the whole candy bar, cake, pan of bars, etc. 


The reason I'm having this big revelation today is because yesterday for the first time in 2 weeks I caved and ate 2, not just 1, peanut butter cookies (plus they had wheat in them). And when I did it I felt like I was sneaking it. I even justified it by saying, "I can't be expected to never eat sugar!" I assume many people have felt like this when giving up cigarettes or other addictions. Yikes. And maybe I've over thinking it. But do you know how many times I've said in the past that I could never give up sugar. And in talking with people now about what I'm doing they will say, "I don't think I could do it!" There is truth behind that. It's a powerful thing. At this end of this, I honestly hope that I can eat a little sugar in moderation and not have to give it up totally for life, but we'll see.......