aspartame

It started about 6 years ago when I had to stop using Equal cold turkey due to some pretty serious side effects.  I was a heavy Equal user.  I thought it was the best thing ever created!  I have a major sweet tooth and it demanded to be fed.  I put lots of Equal in everything I drank and ate.  Why not... no calories. :)
I'm not one of those rabid anti-aspartame people because I don't like them... and I didn't listen to them.  After all, I was perfectly fine and I used more Equal than the average person.  If any of these scary side effects would occur, I was the #1 potential person to display such side effects and I was fine.  So leave me alone!  

Until one day I wasn't fine.
I started having ocular migraines.  I would lose vision in one eye or lose the ability to focus.  It really freaked me out, but then, I found out what it was and since I get migraines, the ocular wasn't so scary and bonus... little to no pain (for me anyway).  Way easier to deal with than a traditional migraine.

Then I started getting these sharp pains and really bad headaches; then these headaches were combined with vision loss.  I would get vision disturbances.  Then my vision started going.  Let me tell you... when you start having eye problems; everything comes to a screeching halt!

What was happening to me?!!!

I booked an appointment with a neurologist (but had to wait a week for my appointment).

My vision got worse,  I started losing my field of vision and it was freaking me out.  The headaches were bad.  I wasn't feeling well and I'm sure the stress didn't help.

So... I turned to my best friend Google.
typed in:  sudden onset headache with vision issue (or something like that) and every single entry had to do with aspartame.

I've since done that search and you get results all over the place.  

So I thought... what have I got to lose?  I stopped aspartame that day and within 3 days all my symptoms were gone!!

I've tested this "diagnosis" a few times myself and each time aspartame is added back in I get  the headache back within an hour.  That is enough for me.

So, I don't use aspartame anymore.
I switched to "real" sugar (you know the white processed stuff).

Amazingly... my desire for sweets DECREASED!  I just don't understand that!
Maybe it has something to do with eating something real or caloric and processing that vs. pretend sugar?  

So... I won't go around shouting from the rooftops that aspartame is the embodiment of evil.  But... if you are having headaches all the time, you might want to look at this as a cause and make some changes.  :)

Comment of the day

IM conversation...

J: Can you send me the itinerary for the Cincinnati trip?

B: I don't know,  how much cash do you have on you?

J:  I have about $3 mil in bit coins

Overheard...
S & T are talking about the lunch S made.

T: That was so good. What did you use? Double  virgin olive oil?

R: (pipes in from another row)
That's the kind I am.

B: LOLs Loudly!

sugar

I love sugar.

Seriously.  I tried to give up most sugary treats for Lent this year and I did OK, but man it was hard.

I slipped a few days before Lent was over.  Partially because one of the Catholics in the office told me Lend ended on Thursday and not being Catholic I was more than willing to believe her.  (It may have had something to do with the Oreo birthday cake she was offering me... it's a little fuzzy.)

So Easter Sunday... I binged on Mega Stuff Oreo's.  (for those of you who love Oreo's like I do, believe it or not, it's too much 'stuff.'  I prefer Double Stuff.)  I allowed myself to eat what I wanted for a few days and the bad news is... my health immediately took a nose dive!  I simply cannot allow large quantities of sugar into my body.  C A N N O T !

Before Lent, my vision was getting blurry and I had a hard time focusing.  Guess what was great while eschewing sugar for 40 days?  Yep, eye sight was doing fine.  Day 3 of sugar being in my daily diet and everything is fuzzy again.  

Ultimately this is good news because it gives me motivation to eat better.  

So today, I will go back to my Lenten ways.  I have decided to allow myself 1 treat per week if really necessary.  I will opt for fruit as much as possible.  (you know, when you don't eat a lot of sugar crap fruit is pretty wonderful).

I don't want to end up really sick.
I want to be healthy and live a life that is full... not condemned to illness and sitting on my sofa watching tv (though a little binge tv is good for the soul! ;) )

Michael Malloy

Some people just don't cooperate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Malloy

You're welcome.

parenting

We are going through a tough time with one of my kids right now.
Our 16 year old son is really pushing boundaries and wants to be taken care of, but wants everything his way at the same time.  Sound familiar to anyone?

 

potlucks

Years ago, a group of guys were getting together to put the info and schedule etc. together for a church softball league.

One of the wives (my friend) INSISTED her husband go pick up a couple pies from Marie Calendar's because all there would be avail was chips and soda if he didn't bring something else.

He argued that the guys would do better than that!

Their food that night?

chips

soda2 pies

 

 

 

high maintenance

A group of people in my office regularly take turns doing a Starbucks run.

 

I want peach ring tea

If they don’t have that I want a very berry hibiscus refresher

If they don’t have that I want an orange spice iced coffee sweetened with a whisper of cinnamon

And if they don’t have that I want a dark roast with no room for cream

 

The name on her cup...

 difficult