As many of you know I have been LCing since September and I've lost 22lbs, but more importantly have a normal appetite and amn't thinking about food 24/7.

Then I got really sick with a bad kidney infection in December and had to take antibiotics which left me with no appetite at all, a yeast infection and terrrible intestinal distress. I recovered from the stomach probs and the yeast infection but I still had a very, very small appetite. I was actually really happy about that and felt just so freed.

Then Christmas came along..... I had planned to indulge in some sweets and for christmas dinner and the 26th I still had no appetite and could barely eat my dinner. I also didnt want any sweets either but since these were my 2 indulgence day I had them anyway. On the 27th my mum bought me Ben and Jerrys and again I had to eat it even though my indulgence days were over.

However, then I really did start to get back into the sugar addiction thing again, and had chocolate muffins for bfast every day (WHAT WAS I THINKING?!!!!!!!!!!).

On the 31st I went cold turkey and haven't had any sugar since. However, I was in Germany for New Years and at 9 PM I had eggs and then went to my friend's parents house but drank loads of alcohol and had to take one glass of wine from them as I was in their house and they wouldn't take no for an answer. At about 3 or 4 I was suddendly so hungry so went to my friends house. He had no protein though so I had to have only fries. Then the next day I didn't eat till five PM. I went to MCD'S and had 1 and a half burger pattys with one bun, large fries and a salad.

Basically I haven't been right in terms of appetite since I got hungry at 3 or 4am 1st January. I am craving startchy carbs like fries and mayonaise all the time and when I eat I eat a normal amount ( maybe even smaller), but keep thinking about food afterwards and am hungry like 2 hours later. I fel like a prisoner of food again. I just don't understand what has happened.

I normally don't have probs with fries or chips. I can eat a small amount with loads of protein but now I seem to be needing fries and chips all the time even when I'm not hungry. I recently discovered that the LC choc which I have been eating which normally doesn't stall me or make me crave actually contains polydextrose, which is a sugar isn't it?

I am having such an awful time. Please help me. I don't know why I feel so bad. Was it the alcohol or the polydextrose or the fries or what?

Thank You All!

Sounds to me like you are totally out of ketosis and probably need to reinduct. All the carb cravings are from the carbs you ate. You need to clean your system out again ... start by preparing yourself by shopping and stocking up on all the legal foods. Drink lots of water... and get back to the straight and narrow. Cheats are the kiss of death for carb addicts. Sorry to have to say it ... but it is the truth. Many people cannot have a little cheat ... without it snowballing into LOTS of cheats and eventually falling off plan entirely. The critical thing is to pick yourself up and get back on track.

In the future... just because you are at someone's house and they offer you high carb food... does NOT mean you MUST have it. It is perfectly acceptable to say "no thank you". If they press... you press back... FIRMLY NO.

Wishing you success.

Hey Double

Thanks for answering so quickly. As you can see I am pretty desperate at the moment! It's just that I got used to feeling so good and never wanna go back to feeling this bad again.

I never was in ketosis however as I am not on Atkins. I am on a mix between the Schwartzbean Principle and the Insulin Resistance Diet. I am going to go back to the strictest level yes though.

I take Glucophaage 1500mg a day also for PCOS but now am having laxative effects every single time I go to the toliet. So I think my body is really out of sync at the moment.

I am somewhat better now, but still don't feel back to myself at all really. Can anyone tell me how long it takes then to get back to feeling really good after a week of indulgence?

HELPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Scarlett!

Don't be too discouraged. You are experiencing the "after holiday" ughs that a lot of us are. I pretty much went off of Atkins from Christmas Eve until after the first. I really wasn't too worried about it, I only gained three pounds and figured I would get right back to it.

Needless to say, I had a TERRIBLE time getting back on it. My cravings were terrible and I couldn't seem to get through one day of it. I have been doing this since August, so I really thought I had it all figured out. I never figured it would be so hard to get started again.

I have been back to it all week now, and everyday it gets a bit easier to stick with it. I look at this at a positive learning experience. Because, it just wasn't worth it. I have found low-carbing so easy and fun. It wasn't worth ruining that for a week of holiday eating.

You need to congratulate yourself for struggling on and posting! I am just trying to make everyday a good day. What's done is done. Everyday we do it right, will make the next day easier! We keep learning, and if we knew it all, we probably wouldn't have gotten overweight in the first place! Hang in there and focus on making TODAY a good day. Cindi

I "fell off the wagon" during Christmas and New Year----within one day I had huge cravings! That knawing desire to eat and eat and eat! I know that I have a full blown addiction.

The only way I made them stop is to revert back STRICTLY to lc---heavy fat w/protien and very little carbs. I even left off anything w/splenda and only ate very low glycemic veggies. I was able to get back on track pretty easily but it sure showed me how NOT in control I am when eating carbs. It was a scary and eye-opening experience (plus fattening---gained back 8 lbs! )

I agree with all the other comments. Your blood sugar is messed up and I would guess your insulin levels are high.

Consider yourself a carboholic, be very strict with yourself, 3 days should get you back to normal.

Also wipe the slate clean on all your former lapses and jump right back in. You're gonna be fine.