Okay, I really need your help. In the past few weeks, I have been very frustrated with the LC way of life. I have been on Atkins for almost 4 months now and have only lost 8 pounds. Actually, I have only really lost 4 pounds (see signature). All this weight was lost in the first 10 days. That is over 3 months without losing an ounce or an inch.

As if that isn't frustrating enough, I had ONE cheat day and gained 7 pounds!!!! That put me up over my starting weight. It took me weeks to get back down to where I am because of ONE day eating carbs.

And, my hair is falling out by the (literal) handful.

I recently visited a few Weight Watcher message boards and to my surprise, those gals seem to be having as good if not better results than I am seeing on the LC boards. Plus, when they screw up for one day, they gain ONE pound, if any. A cheat day for people on a traditional diet seems to mean a day of no weight loss, not a 7 pound gain.

Plus, I did a few searches and came up with almost no complaints about hair loss.

I am at a point that I really need to be talked into continuing on the WOE. I'm NOT looking for a bunch of "you have to do what is right for you" and "this has to be a WOL" speeches. I know all that. And, I am not looking for a bunch of health benefit stories because I am in perfect health, no heartburn, allergies, etc. I already read many stories on the health benefits of Low-carb.

What I am looking for is an explanation of the problems/points made above (comparing LC to "regular" diets) and some reassurance that this is really the best and fastest way to lose weight.

It seems that this is the only WOE where you can be good for months and have to start all over after ONE cheat day. There are a couple of days a year when I don't want to have to be vigilant about what I eat. But after the results of one day off-plan, I'm totally freaked out!!!

I am not looking for an excuse to abandon LC, I just need some serious reassurance.

Please help!