So, I went to my new doctor’s appointment today and my first impression of him was, “Wow, this is very casual” — he called his patients from the waiting room on his own instead of a nurse. That’s cool. When it was my turn he told me to “Come on in, young lady” — I haven’t been called “young lady” in awhile. In fact, I have all but resigned to the fact that I am an old hag to most people my age or younger being most people call me “ma’am”, which I absolutely hate. 
I cannot stand when people my age or a few years younger “ma’am” me to death in stores and restaurants. Just call me, “Hey, you!” or something! LOL Geez, I’m still in my 20′s, is it really necessary for someone about 3 years younger than me to act like Moses signed my yearbook? *sigh*
I digress.
He didn’t weigh me, yay! That’s my least favorite part of going to the doctor. He took my blood pressure right away though, it was very high; 160/100 
that’s not unusual for me though, I’ve had high blood pressure since I was an infant and nobody has figured out why. The best explanation I get is usually, “because you’re overweight.” 
Within a few minutes he brought up 2 things I have suspected; he wanted to know if I have been tested for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and no, I haven’t, but an endocronologist did tell me that I am insulin resistant several years ago. I have suspected I have PCOS for awhile now based on having almost every symptom of it, especially the darkening skin patches, high BP, and red cheeks.
He said that I can’t stay on diuretics forever and we need to figure out why I’m swelling up like I am (I was down another 3 lbs on the scale this morning, by the way). That’s when he brought up my pituitary gland, which I have also suspected as being the root of all of my fluid retention evil from what I have read. Benign tumors on your pituitary gland are actually very common. I’ve read that based on autopsies, 1 in 5 people have one and most don’t even know. So, he wants me to get an MRI of my pituitary, but wants to review my records first to see what I’ve been tested for already to avoid testing for the same things over and over.
He gave me a prescription for another diuretic that he said works in a different part of the kidneys. He didn’t blame all of my symptoms on being overweight and he also didn’t insinuate that it’s “all in my head.” He could clearly see that I have unusual swelling and other symptoms that isn’t normal, especially for someone my age. He made a comment about being “curious as to what’s going on”, my symptoms are bizarre, especially because every test thus far has come back normal. I’d love for every symptom I have to be strictly weight-related, but after losing almost 100 lbs (give or take fluctuations 
) and not improving, I definitely know that there’s more going on than most doctors have insisted for years. I have been this weight before and there’s many, many other people my same exact weight and heavier, but I did not then and others do not experience the symptoms I currently have, especially at my age.
I’m not too worried. Tests coming back “normal” worries me more than anything. I’d really like to put a name on something that I know is going on. So, we’ll see what happens. 
I didn’t realize how many of you miss my menu table that I usually attach below. The reason I haven’t included it in the past week or so is because I haven’t been planning my menu ahead of time like I usually do. I’ve been jotting things down on Windows Notepad as I go along, so I haven’t made a colorful menu lately. I’m not abandoning the format, so I will start including it in my updates on Monday. I’ve been a little busy and/or preoccupied with other things, so I’ve been lax with my menus and planning. That will all be back to normal soon though. 
After the doctor we stopped by Shop Rite. I wanted to get a box of Amnon’s reduced fat whole wheat pizza. They didn’t have the whole wheat variety, but they had 55% reduced fat white, so I got a box of it. I’m not against white flour, I just don’t eat it as much as I used to. Nothing wrong with it in moderation, just ask millions of healthy senior citizens that have included it in their diets for decades.
1 slice Amnon’s 55% reduced fat pizza (300 cal) topped with 50g no salt added canned mushrooms (15 cal), 14g red onions (8 cal) and 3 Lindsay low sodium black olives (15 cal). This pizza is awesome! You just make the oven really hot, then put it right on the racks to warm up for a few minutes. It comes out just like freshly made pizzeria-style pizza. It was a yummy, quick lunch for just 338 calories. I usually eat 2 slices like this, but I wanted ice cream afterwards instead. 
It was a “semi-cheat” day. Going to the doctor is always reason to take an easy day!
I went on a walk before going to my appointment because I didn’t want to get sweaty after I took a shower. I had to go by myself because my husband had some work to finish up before we left the house. 
Boo! I didn’t wear my heart rate monitor strap, but I did wear the watch part so I could see the time lol. Pink plastic is very fashionable!
My BodyBugg results for 7/31/08:
Went to sleep at 6:00AM
BodyBugg reset at 12:00AM
Woke up at 12:00PM
9:08PM: 2450 calories burned
End of day: 2851 calories burned
I’ve been on an eggplant kick lately, not sure why. An eggplant parmesan sandwich sounded really good, so I picked up a loaf of crusty whole wheat bread while we were at the store:
Sooo yummy! I peeled and sliced 164g Italian eggplant (40 cal) longways, then fried it in a nonstick frying pan with 2 teaspoons of olive oil (80 cal) that I used my pastry brush to coat the pan with. I preheated the oven to 450F, then I let the eggplant sit on a plate after it was done so I could make a quick batch of fresh tomato sauce in the same pan with 122g diced vine ripened tomato (22 cal), 30g diced red onions (15 cal), dried oregano, garlic powder and 2 teaspoons olive oil (80 cal).
I cut the very dense loaf of whole wheat bread in half and it came out to like 4000g on the food scale lol. So, I did what my father used to do with Italian bread; I gutted out the doughy middle so that it made a nice, hollow shell. The crust is my favorite part anyway, so it came out to 112g (260 cal) after I did that. Still a lot of calories for a piece of bread, but worth it once in awhile!
While the eggplant was cooking, I was simultaneously cooking 196g fresh zucchini (31 cal) that I sliced into very thin, long strip and sautéed in a nonstick frying pan with 2 teaspoons olive oil (80 cal) and 1 garlic clove (5 cal).
Then I built the eggplant sandwich; a layer of the eggplant, sauce, 1oz fresh mozzarella (80 cal), repeat. Then I popped it into the preheated 450F oven for about 3-4 minutes with a piece of foil over it. This was a DELICIOUS dinner sandwich with very fresh ingredients for just 768 calories. The sautéed zucchini was wonderful! In hindsight, 1 teaspoon olive oil would have been plenty, but it still came out great. If I didn’t already have a lot of cheese on my sandwich, I would have added a little pecorino romano on top. I’ll try that soon though. YUM! 
We have a lot of things going on this weekend; my cousin is visiting, work, and etc., etc. Plus I want to enjoy the nice weather while it lasts. Blustery winter days will be here soon enough. I guess you can say the summer has been very diet-casual for me. Nothing wrong with that! Last summer I was still eating Lean Cuisine and not exercising at all. I’ve come a long way! But like I’ve said, this is a journey, NOT a destination, so life is always going to have changes in course and room for improvement. I’m happy, I feel great despite being puffy and I’m looking forward to enjoying the rest of my newfound lifestyle.
Now, I just need a bigger kitchen, I’m outgrowing mine already. Maybe I should stop shopping so much… naaaaaaa!! Let’s not be silly! *giggles*
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