and as time goes on it only gets worse. I attribute this to a slew of bad experiences starting from the time I was very young, and getting consistantly worse until I had my daughter and they nearly killed me... and Ive just stopped going unless its a dire emergency.

Hubby still goes, however, for a variety of things, and went yesterday specifically for a note for work... (Blue flu). Every few years I get my hopes up... that a new doc might be different, so I suggested that while he was there, he ask what the Doc thought about Atkins. Needless to say the response was far from what I wanted to hear.

His words were... "It's great for losing weight quickly and ok for about 6 months or so, but it isnt something that you can do forever. It WILL raise your cholesterol and is damaging to your kidneys long term."

*sigh*

Im NOT losing quickly (although hubby is) but that isnt why I decided to try Atkins. I know that over the years I have totally destroyed my metabolism, eating crap food, and only eating once per day. For me, the decision to do Atkins was a choice for my health, the first step in the commitment to a healthier me. I havent looked at it as a 'diet' at all, but a way of living/eating for the rest of my life. Food has never been my addiction... so giving up things hasn't really been an issue for me. Watching hubby lose faster than I am is discouraging, but I can even deal with that because I *feel* so much better. (Less the worst case of TOM munchies Ive ever had... )

But wow... that sure was a depressing thing to hear. How do you educate the medical profession? How do you tell a person that has X years of experience and 10 years of school that they are clueless? I've DONE the low-fat, high-carb thing before out of concern for health and I lost FASTER but I felt AWFUL all the time. Just an under the weather, blah, type feeling all the time. ONE MONTH of this WOE and I feel better than I have in 10 years. My body tells me this is a GOOD thing. Its so depressing that the doctor says it isnt.

Thanks for letting me vent.