Melissa Jones

My ten year anniversary with BTD knowledge is coming up! I often get frustrated with my slips and falling off the wagon, and my scale's recent stubbornness (although it does say I've lost 4% body fat!)
Yet, when I consider what things would have been like over the last ten years if I hadn't picked up that book, I shudder. So I need to pat myself on the back and toast with sparkling water to:

Ten years without chronic back and joint pain, and avoiding Vioxx and dangerous prescription anti-inflammatories.

Ten years without major depression or antidepressants.

Ten years without panic attacks (except one after a restaurant gave me somebody else's plate then swore it was my gluten free food)

Ten years without 70 pounds, and without phen-fen and other dangerous methods of weight loss (35 pounds lost twice, only regained through pregnancies)

Ten years with the addition of two great children!

Ten years with energy to raise those two great children.

Ten years without bladder infections (despite two pregnancies)

Ten years without wheat! (except unintentionally)

Ten years of really LIVING! No, I don't regret, and never will regret, not eating the foods I chose not to eat for health reasons, but I would regret being sick like I was before the ten years.

Ten years of being able to get by with just 7-9 hours of sleep, not 10-14 like I needed previously.

Ten years of being healthy enough to choose every blessing and consequence I've received, ten years of not being a victim of my own ignorance.

Ten years of being able to be as active and as spiritual as I've chosen to be.

My ten years have been fantastic, not perfect (mainly because my compliance hasn't been perfect), but way better than I imagined when things were so bad more than 10 years ago. I love my life, I love that I've been able to have two wonderful boys, I love my family, and I love beneficial foods!

Here's to kicking it up a notch in the next ten years! Write that book, get that black belt, continue doing all the things I know I can and should. Serve others more, share myself more.

I usually agree with Dr. Laura. And even on this point I sort of do, but not completely. I find her comments on weight loss and fitness highly motivating, and she's probably part of the reason I started Tae Kwon Do, and part of the reason I've gained more control over what I eat.

However... I've been there. I've been everywhere, that is, when it comes to weight loss. My initial weight gain, before discovering BTD, was very stubborn. I can tell you now that eating less and moving more did nothing for me. I ate less and less and less, and worked out 2 hours a day, 6 days a week, at the gym. I didn't lose a pound, in fact I gained one. I did gain understanding, however. If that didn't work, then something was weird about me, and if I hadn't embarked on the eat less move more approach so heavily, I wouldn't have figured it out. To lose weight sometimes requires some great motivation and out of the box thinking.

What was weird about me was that I'd had mono, which screwed up my detoxification processes. My body ended up storing everything, and refused to burn it off because it couldn't get rid of the junk that was stored along with it. Mono also triggered celiac disease, which resulted in wrecking my metabolism because I wasn't absorbing the nutrients along with the calories. When I finally tried BTD, and realized the error of my "Breakfast of Champions", and eliminated those foods from my diet that were compounding my problems, the weight did fall off. 14 pounds in two weeks, initially. I continued working out and adjusting my diet, with great results. I was very hungry, so I ate as much as I wanted of the beneficial foods, and kept losing weight...no more counting calories.

I used BTD O-non to lose the weight from my first pregnancy, and then some, to weigh almost my high school weight when I got pregnant with my second. I had trouble dealing with the stresses of juggling two children and a hard-working husband, and have to take full and individual accountability for not losing that pregnancy weight yet. With taking responsibility comes power, though, and I'm enjoying that.

So yes, eat less, move more, but also eat right...give your body the foods it needs, and cut out the junk, regardless of the calories in the junk.

I didn't go to kickboxing today, as I was feeling a bit under the weather. My husband was sick, and his father has pneumonia, so I didn't want to push too much. I seem to be bouncing back though, so maybe I'll hit the hills with my boys in a bit. I hope my father in law recovers quickly and fully, we're all praying for him.

Oh, a TKD note...we broke boards on Thursday. I did it! I almost didn't go after being wiped out on Tuesday (still not fully recovered, energy-wise, from gastroenteritis), but I'm glad I went. However, we did side kicks to break the board, and my body is nowhere near accustomed to that kick...I can barely do it at all, much less with much power, fortunately I practiced the motion in the pool a couple weeks ago. I have a couple sore muscles behind my hip joints that I didn't know were there. Hooray for sore muscles...these are good ones to strengthen, as I can tell they really help my balance and posture.

You know, I'm a do-it-yourself, self-sufficient kinda gal. I have pride and I'm proud of my pride but that is changing. Everyone reaches a point in their life when they realize they are not invincible, and they can't do it all themself. Many people reading this website are battling frustrating, frightening, health problems. Many people facing such problems come to a point where they realize they can continue to drag themselves down with "why me" and pointing the finger of blame anywhere it will point. Some rise above the writhing masses of misery, to a whole higher plane of existence.

Dr. D. has talked about being "the exceptional patient" meaning being that one in 20 that becomes whole again, that goes into remission. There is more to that than diet alone. Food is powerful, but there's so much more to healing. We all know there are lifestyle parts to the BTD: stress reduction, exercise, meditation, but how many actually do it?

Part of meditation is prayer. Letting go of our pride and asking for help. Letting go of those parts of us we'd rather not be part of us any longer. Science shows that prayer improves outcome and health. Whatever you believe, whatever feels right to you, believe it with all your heart, and express it, ponder it...live it! Ask for what you need, then trust in what you're given. Accept your role and purpose, and then you will feel a harmony within yourself that you may not have felt for a while. We are so much more than who we think we are. We are who we touch, and who we lift, the rest is of little consequence.

I'm no expert on prayer, it had been probably a decade since I truly sincerely prayed. Sure I asked for things now and then, but more like a child asks for candy, not like a believer. My body was in a state of discord, but now it is in harmony. Like my toddler when he has a hangnail, he'll cry and complain and whine and keep touching it, making it hurt more, but he won't let me help! It would be so easy for me to fix it, if he'd give me his hand.

Have a nice Sunday!

I've named a syndrome, to add to the list of other syndromes we all may or may not have variations of. I could just name it The Melissa Syndrome, since I'm my first "patient" I've treated for the condition...

TPS is a condition becoming more prevalent in the US, some experts attribute this to the SAD (Standard American Diet) and the addictive components so common in a SAD.

A person suffering from TPS will only desire to eat processed, chemical-laden food, as well as food which illicit an immune reaction due to containing proteins that are incompatible with the individual. Often, the negative reaction to these foods is what is desired, as it can deaden the senses, feelings, and thoughts, much like a drug. Most people with TPS will not desire or seek help for this addictive condition.

There are two methods of treatment for TPS.

1. Cold-Turkey. Eliminate all processed foods and reactive foods (avoids) overnight. This requires a clean slate, and a cleaned out refrigerator and pantry. It sometimes requires fasting to re-adjust the appetite. Eliminating outside food messages is imperative. No television or advertisements of any sort should be allowed in proximity to the patient. Withdrawal can be treated with healthy, whole, beneficial foods and with exercise. Often it is best to avoid substituting neutral/compliant foods for old favorites, as the palate is not yet ready to accept substitutions.

2. Gradual. Eliminate most troublesome reactive foods (avoids) first, one at a time, over a set period of time. As with method one, advertisements and outside food messages must be avoided during the entire treatment period. Once again, withdrawal can be treated with healthy, whole, beneficial foods, and with exercise.

Relapse is always a possibility. One avoid can easily lead to another, and more than a few days of this can lead to relapse of TPS. Subsequent treatments are usually not as difficult as the initial treatment, but often requires more attention to the emotional aspects involved.

After successful treatment, individuals can make a full recovery. The palate returns to its natural state and regains its preference for the foods that are best suited for the individual.

For all who are embarking on this treatment for the first time, and those who are recovering from holiday or life-event-related relapses...I know what you're going through! There is a whole community of others who have recovered, and who are on the road to recovery. Feel free to join us at the BTD Forum!

As I become more involved in this virtual community we share as blood type dieters, I'm learning more about who we are. While there is no stereotypical BTDer, I've found many common threads...

1. Inquisitive: we're always willing to ask tough questions, even when we know we may not like the answer.

2. Intelligent: so many with advanced degrees in science, healthcare, and other fields. Compared to other diet communities, I've been surprised at how many of us have so much education and expertise.

3. Open-minded: in spite of our educations and backgrounds, we've all realized that there must be a better way to good health than what the authorities tell us, afterall, their advice doesn't work for everyone.

4. Recovering hypochondriacs: Many of us were 'difficult cases' for mainstream medicine, we confused our doctors, and often questioned their reasoning and methods of covering up symptoms rather than treating the causes.

5. Acutely aware of our health: We won't accept just feeling ok, or a little better, we want to be as healthy as possible, and are willing to sacrifice some comfort foods to do so.

6. Plan to be around awhile: Regardless of our age or state of health, all the attitudes that I've intoned from the different sounding boards is that we intend to be around to see the next generation grow, to see what the future holds, and to help shape that future.

Sure, sometimes we're frustrated with how difficult it can be in our surroundings to eat any sort of health food, sometimes we're faced with setbacks, sometimes we fall off the wagon and get bruised, but we know what we know and we're willing to fight to set things right.