Tag: sugar addiction

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A Carnivore Christmas Wish List

As of the posting date, we are coming down to critical timing for placing orders for Christmas! If you’re looking for gift ideas for a carnivore on your list, or if you’re the carnivore that no one knows what to buy, you’re in the right place! I’m sharing a carnivore Christmas wish list to delight and inspire! I’ll break it down into categories for easy reference because I like you – I really do!

Personal Care

Buffalo Gal Grassfed Beauty: Tallow products made in the US from grass-fed water buffalo on a regenerative grass farm – yes, please! I love these products and use them daily! Founder, Shalley Carrell, thrives on an animal-based diet and is passionate about regenerative farming. Check out her line of handmade skincare, haircare, and other beauty products here, then enter code candidcarni10 at checkout to save 10%!

Personal Sauna: Check out this highly rated and affordable portable personal sauna! I don’t have one…yet! I’m asking Santa for it, though!

Grounding Mat: This is the one I have! The cord is super long and it helps with anxiety, sleep, and reducing inflammation. It also comes with a wristband for a very portable grounding option when you can’t get outside to put your feet in the dirt.

Light Therapy Lamp: I purchased this light therapy lamp for my mom, who has circadian rhythm issues. It has over 4,000 reviews with an overall 4+ star rating, it’s very affordable, and she loves it!

Kitchen & Food

Ninja Indoor Smart Grill: This indoor smart grill has been on my wish list for a while! But since I just got a whole new oven with a variety of functions, it may have to wait. But check it out, it would make a great gift!

Equip Beef Protein Powder: If you, or your giftee, tolerate stevia try this beef protein powder. They even have a peanut butter flavor now! Which I dare not try because I would not be able to control myself! 😉 Clean, delicious, carnivore friendly – what more could you ask for?

LMNT Electrolyte Packets: LMNT has been my favorite electrolyte for a while now! Day to day, I use the raw unflavored. But I love the chocolate for a treat in the evenings. I mix it with hot water, heavy cream, and some vanilla-flavored ghee.

Books

I always recommend books and podcasts to my clients to help keep them in the fight, so to speak. What we ingest through our ears is just as important as what we ingest through our mouths. Carnivore podcasts and books, whether in physical or audio form, can play an important role in helping a carnivore stay on track! Below are a few of my favorites.

Click each title to view the link

Why We Get Sick: Benjamin Bikman, PhD

The Carnivore Cure: Judy Cho, NTP

Lies My Doctor Told Me: Ken Berry, MD, FAAFP

Dopamine Nation: Anna Lembke, MD

Anyway You Can: Annette Bosworth, MD

Coaching

One-on-One Coaching:

As you may know, I am a certified health coach, specializing in the carnivore way of eating. I do not sell meal plans, workouts, supplements, or any product many of us have been convinced we need to succeed at improving our health. So what do I provide?

I walk with you, from wherever you are on your health mission, to provide individualized support, recommendations, and make adjustments along the way to help you optimize your health and eliminate chronic disease, and maybe even lose weight along the way. I focus on healing and the steps necessary to achieve your goals. I will always help you see the positive. Every step toward your goal deserves to be celebrated! And any setback is a lesson to be appreciated.

Book your individual coaching session HERE! It’s just $17.99, and trust me…YOU’RE WORTH IT!

Small Group Sessions:

I also have small groups available if you love the sense of community and support along with some lifestyle coaching! Amy Labbe is my partner there and she has years of experience in the medical field, with keto and carnivore, and in the food addiction arena. Together, we make an unbeatable team! Topics will include meat-based nutrition, adaptation, education on the science behind this way of eating, chronic illnesses, eating disorders, food addiction (sugar, carbs, and processed foods), healing and weight loss, mental health, and much more!

In our groups, you get two coaches for the price of one! We keep our groups very small so that we can address individual needs and questions.

  • Two coaches in each group
  • Groups are limited to 20 members each
  • We have at least one live meeting per week each month
  • Each group has its own separate Facebook group
  • You have access to coaches at any time for the month you are registered
  • We will share real-life tips, a positive mindset, and unparalleled encouragement to each and every member
  • You will not be lost in a sea of faces – ever!
  • Challenge yourself, and receive community support and individualized advice all in one place!

Sign up by clicking HERE for just $30 for one month, with no ongoing commitment or subscription required.

Check out some pretty cool gear while you’re at that link above, too!

It’s go time!

Wishing you all the love and light this holiday season.

XOXO

The Candid Carnivore

The above recommendations may contain affiliate links. Affiliate links earn me a small commission with no additional cost to the buyer.

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Addicted to Food vs Addicted to Living

Addicted to Food vs Addicted to Living Life

I don’t like to focus on weight or size as a goal anymore. I used to think those numbers would mean I’m healthy. I now know that isn’t the case.

Once you begin to heal, those numbers change. But it’s always the comparison, the before and after, that gets our attention, right? We all want to look better, and that’s ok.

What I want people to understand is that there is so much freedom and life available to us when we break free of sugar, carbs, processed foods, and the strain it puts on our bodies and minds.

And when you begin that healing, THEN the physical changes happen!

The impulse to eat garbage, the feeling that I was POSSESSED by sugar and carbs, is gone.

Autoimmune symptoms are decreasing all the time and meds have been reduced 3 times this year.

Hair stopped falling out and is growing back – with less gray!

Nails are strong, not bendy. Skin is smooth and clear.
No more constipation!
No random aches and pains.
Steady energy throughout the day.
Mental clarity and mood are greatly improved.
Depression is gone. Anxiety is greatly improved.
Hirsutism is diminished.
So many things….

The best part – I have more LIFE in me. I’m lively, creative, goofy and fun-loving.
The worst part – I wish I had known all of this when my kids were young…

No matter what stage of life you are in right now, the information is out there and easily accessible. But if it seems too overwhelming, it’s ok – there are so many wonderful support groups and coaches out there!
Amy Labbe, aka @amysketolife73, and I have openings in our small zero-carb focused groups called Beyond the Scale: Zero Carb Healing, or you can work with me one-on-one – register for either at www.thecandidcarnivore.com or go to the link in my bio!

And to illustrate just how goofy I am sometimes, I’ll admit that while I’m writing this, the quote from the Terminator keeps rolling around in my head – “Come with me if you want to live”…no, like REALLY LIVE 😂

xoxo

The Candid Carnivore

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A Letter to My Former Self

letter to my former self

If only. If only I could travel back in time and show myself how life could be. If only I had learned then what I know now about health, nutrition, and mindset. If only I could take her by the hand, encourage and love her. If only I could send a letter to my former self, I wouldn’t have wasted so much time punishing myself with nothing to show for it but a feeling of defeat and failure.

Dear Me (or You)

I get it. I really do.
You want to feel better NOW.
You want the weight off NOW.
You’re sick. You’re tired.
And you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired.

Your confidence is down. Or maybe it’s gone completely.

You’re ready to try anything and everything to get to the person you are inside.

Baby, just take a breath.

You’re frustrated. I know.

Change is hard.
But please do me a favor.

Do it out of LOVE.

Do it because you’re making your health a priority – not because you hate your thighs or your pant size.

Do it because you want to truly live and love every minute of this short life.

Fuel your body for the life you want to live.
Move your body for the life you want to live – not to punish yourself.
Do it out of love – love for yourself, love for your family, love for life.

Your expectations are high, and that’s a great motivator. But let’s be realistic about it, hm?

You would never decide you’re going to be a runner one day and try to finish a marathon the next.
You would never decide you’re going to start strength training today and walk onto a bodybuilding competition the next.

Can you expect to heal years of health issues in a week? A month? Six months? Probably not.

But if you start today, you’re one day closer to revealing your true self. The version of you that has been hidden from the world for years – hell, your whole life – is suffocating in there.

This is not how God intended you to live. You were not created to merely exist, survive, or take up space. Life is a gift to be experienced every minute of every day, free of suffering.

It’s time to stop hiding under the soul-crushing weight of chronic disease and food addiction. You have the choice to change all of it. It’s not your fault. You didn’t choose to be this way. Don’t worry, I’m on your side. You’re not alone. And I love you.

xoxo

Love,

the version you were meant to be

Click here for Workshops & Merch

Click here for 1-on-1 Coaching

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Tuning In to My Body, Tuning Out the Noise & Impulses

Tuning In to My Body, Tuning Out Noise & Impulses

I’m taking a break from all the extra things this month. I’m tuning in to my body, tuning out the noise & impulses – discerning between impulses and actual needs. What I am doing and what I am not doing in November 2022…

Let me preface all of this by saying – I don’t see what I’ve experimented with over the last 2 years as jumping from trend to trend. I typically give new things several months and keep a close eye on every detail. If there is something I may have only tried for a few weeks – that’s because the negative effects were insurmountable in relation to the expected outcome. i.e., it just wasn’t worth it.  Like the 6 weeks of straight liquid bowel movements that I experienced in one of these experiments. I may try that experiment again in the future with more measured steps. But for now…

Here’s what I’m doing and what I’m not doing – the things I’m saying yes to and the things I’m saying no to for the month. I am in no way saying you should do these things or not do these things. Please, for the love of God, do the work to find what your body needs – either on your own, armed with books, podcasts, and videos; or in groups or with a coach. But it MUST be individually tailored to YOU. You can find so much support and guidance out there! Here is the link to my groups and one-on-one coaching, but you find the person, people, or groups that best suit you. No hard feelings! I just want people to heal and feel good!

I’m Saying NO…

No to Weighing Myself

Hopping on the scale has been an automatic daily habit for years. It doesn’t trigger me or make me feel bad anymore. I may feel temporarily disappointed or validated depending on the number it shows me, but I don’t think I obsess over it. It doesn’t ruin my day. I have just been using it as a piece of data that helps me measure what is happening with my body. I have a goal weight in mind but I’m not focusing on that as I have in the past. I weigh what I weigh. It’s just whatever. 

I’ve always had a higher muscle mass, just naturally, so the only thing I really want to measure when I do use the scale is my body fat percentage. BMI is honestly the stupidest thing, so I ignore that completely. BMI doesn’t take into account my high bone density, my muscle mass, or my excess skin from losing and gaining 60 – 100 lbs over and over again. 

No to Tracking

Tracking has been a helpful tool in different experiments I have tried. Tracking definitely has its time and place in a carnivore diet on occasion. But it is so easy to get into the habit of using it for the wrong reasons. That can quickly lead to obsessive, restrictive behavior. As someone susceptible to addictions, it’s time for me to let this go for a bit. 

When I was using a tracker during my low carb/keto phase, I was using it as a means to restrict calories. I was so hungry and miserable all the time. Sure, I lost weight, but I still felt like shit physically and mentally. It was an exhausting battle to deny my needs just to fit into a calorie limit. Seriously, I’d like to go back in time and smack myself for restricting to 1200 calories a day, while working out 3 times a week for 1 – 2 hours each time. I never got in enough fat because my calories were set so low and I was so addicted to sweet tastes during that time that I would prioritize getting to eat a fake sweet keto treat over eating fat. I thought that if my carbs were low enough and I ate foods labeled ‘keto’, that I was keto. Rookie mistake!

I stopped tracking for a long time when I went carnivore and that was so freeing. I recommend tracking for a very short time to my clients to make sure they are not under-eating. I want them to hit a minimum number of calories for their specific needs, especially if they have a history of dieting and restricting. Never ever do I want them to use that as a tool to limit their calories when their bodies are demanding nutrition. 

I began tracking again this year for a different purpose. When I tried the higher fat and moderate protein version of carnivore to see if it spurred any fat loss for me, tracking was serving a different purpose than it did before, yet it still felt a little obsessive. Rather than tracking to stay below a certain number of calories, I was tracking to make sure I had the exact right number of grams of fat and protein based on a general calculation. I would find myself eating when I’m not hungry, or using the excuse that if I still have ‘x’ number of grams of one macro or the other I can eat more even if I was not hungry. 

Conversely, I sometimes would not allow myself to eat when I really was still hungry because I had already hit those limits. So for this month, I’m not tracking. It’s kind of making me panic a little, to be extremely honest. My brain and my body have been at war for so long, there is no trust between the two. I’ll spend this month working on repairing that relationship!

Next month, I may track intermittently. Just to see what the data is. Not to hit a specific number or stay below a certain number. But just to observe…’I wasn’t all that hungry and this is what that looked like and what resulted at a later date’. Or, ‘I was super hungry and I ate until satisfied the thing that I craved and this is what that looked like and here is the result’.

I’m also not tracking blood glucose or ketones this month for the same reasons. I have to give my body back the control over what it needs and stop trying to hack it into what I want it to do.  In short, I’ll listen to my body, do what it wants, observe that as data and wait for results.  

No to Eating on a Schedule

I’m trying to really tune in to what my body needs. When I set an eating schedule for myself, much like tracking, I find I will eat even if I’m not hungry because it’s time to eat. Or I will not allow myself to eat because it’s outside of that schedule. 

How many times a day will I eat? Not a clue. Eating one meal a day was nice for a while, as it gave me that feeling of fullness I love so much. But it wasn’t great for my digestion or for my binge eating behavior. Eating 3 – 4 times a day was a pain in the ass. I don’t have time for that. I naturally tend to lean toward 2 meals a day. Then a little snack if I am truly hungry. 

Eating on a schedule makes living life and being spontaneous very difficult. I have been so stressed about random things that come up when eating on a schedule. I freaked out if I wasn’t going to be able to eat due to a meeting or some appointment or obligation, so I would eat early when I wasn’t hungry. But then freaked out because the schedule was messed up and I didn’t want to throw my tracking off – over- or under-eating any of my macros. 

This is going to be the hardest part for me. Because it means being present and truly allowing my body to guide me rather than allowing my brain to control things. At this moment, 11:15 am, I’m not all that hungry. I don’t want to stop what I’m doing to go eat. Normally, I’d be getting ready to eat my second meal of the day. I’m not intentionally fasting or intermittent fasting. I’m just actively listening. 

No to Following or Trying New Things to Force Weight Loss

Eating all the meat didn’t work for the weight loss result I wanted – but I healed a bunch and let go of the guilt and nourished myself! Eating high fat also didn’t give me that weight loss result. Though I know my body responded better to higher fat and moderate protein with lower glucose and measurable (not high) ketones. But I found anything under 90 grams of protein made me feel horrible. This version also gave me severe and prolonged gastric distress making me feel depleted and defeated. 

I never quite fit into any one way of doing anything. I’m learning to take bits and pieces from various ideologies within carnivore and using what works for me and throwing out what doesn’t work. In the end, this tells me that there is still healing to do and reminds me to not focus on weight. Goal weight does not equal goal health. 

This will be challenging for me, because my brain wants a certain outcome and has a certain goal in mind. I’m not a patient person and I’m extremely stubborn. Rather than trying every trend and every hack, I’m just going to sit back and let my body lead me. I’ll take any new information I see out there in the webiverse and examine it very carefully before deciding if I want or need to try it. 

This is what I want to stress to literally every single person trying any method of changing their health. Just because it worked for person A, does not mean it is right for person B. If I see person A is doing X and achieving a goal I seek – does that apply to me? Does that person A have a similar health history? Was their metabolism damaged in the same way and for the same length of time? Is that person in the same age range, or have the same muscle mass? The answer to most of these will probably be no. You’re the only you, and I’m the only me – go figure!

I’m Saying Yes to…

Yes to Movement

Listen, I require dopamine. If something doesn’t give me dopamine I want nothing to do with it. The idea of working out does not give me dopamine. I get so bored during a workout that I want to scream. But as in the rest of my commitments for this month, I’m taking my brain out of it. I can’t get to my goal of a healthier, more metabolically fit version of myself without going down that road. Working out is the path to that goal. 

Getting stronger and more flexible will make me less prone to health issues and injuries as I get older. Being in the habit of exercise and daily movement is going to go a long way to ensure that I can still do all the things I want to do well into my old age. I plan to live for a very long time, but I don’t want to spend my golden years just sitting around. I want to live –  truly live and love every minute until the very end. Which hopefully is at least 100 years old!

I am really going to try to love exercise again. I’d rather just do a lot of physically intense labor, honestly. But I don’t live on a farm (yet), and winter is fast approaching, so doing labor-intensive work outside will have to wait until summer home improvement projects roll back around. 

Yes to Habits That Make Me Feel Good

Going outside – The cold does not make me feel good, but maybe I just need to learn to love it. The sun, on the other hand, does make me feel good! I feel more energized, more focused, and feel more gratitude when I go outside and get sunlight into my eyeballs. It transforms me. Oh the things I wish I had known in my darker days of depression!

Praying and practicing gratitude helps calm my chaotic brain and ease my anxiety. This is an easy habit to stick to when I’m outside seeing all the beauty in nature and focusing on breathing. It puts me fully in touch with my intentions…

Yes to Focusing on My Intentions

I have been so very blessed to have many incredible opportunities this year. I left my government job of 12 years to follow my passions – writing and coaching people to better health. Now there’s a YouTube channel and interviews and my platform to reach others is growing! This makes my heart so happy! All of the ‘No’ items listed above, those things I am breaking up with for at least the month of November actually were taking up so much time and energy. 

If you pay attention to my blog at all, you’ll know it’s been several weeks since I posted last with the exception of reposting something I put on Instagram last week. It’s always been my intention to post to this blog once each week. Trying to do all the things and hacks and tracking took a big chunk of my time. 

I want more than anything in the world to help pull people up out of that place I was in for so many years. That despair inside me that I literally sugar-coated my entire life has been replaced with clarity and joy. I intend to use that new-found energy and outlook to show others the way. I want to be the Rafiki to your Simba! Does anyone else get that reference, or is it just in my head? Hard to say. The point is, I want to show cab addicts, food addicts, sugar addicts, binge eaters, and anyone struggling to just not feel like crap that it IS possible. I’ll be there to guide them, cheer them on, and celebrate with them. There are no small wins – only WINS. 

If you’re looking for your very own cheering section, you can find my groups here. 

If you’d prefer your own coach/cheerleader, you can sign up for individual one-on-one coaching here. 

You CAN do this. You can take back control of your health. You can heal. You can lose weight. You really can live a long, beautiful life. 

I’m here to help. 

Love you!

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Food Addiction: Abstainer vs Moderator

food addiction abstainer vs moderator

Food addiction….is and always will be a bitch. 

You must eat to live so you can’t just simply not eat in the same way an alcoholic or drug addict would avoid situations that include drugs or alcohol. My original post on that can be found HERE

Why Food Addiction Matters

So in abstaining vs moderating, I’m referring to specific foods that trigger binge eating. No one, in my experience, has an issue with binging on celery or chicken breast. The problem occurs in those processed foods, sugar, and high-carb foods. These foods are designed to ‘light up’ the same part of our brains that causes substance addiction, sex addiction, gambling, and other behaviors that consume us and disrupt our lives. When food is an addiction, it interferes with our health, causes chronic diseases, and contributes to mental decline. While it might not sound like a big deal to be addicted to sweets – it seems harmless to some – those foods are causing our quality of life to spiral out of control, keeping us sick and dependent on pharmaceutical symptom management. 

Abstainers vs Moderators

Something I heard this week really resonated with me. I wish I could give credit to the person who said it, but I’m drawing a blank. Maybe Amy Bellinger? Emily Penton? I feel like it was one of those two lovely ladies. Anyway… ‘Addicts must be abstainers’.

Addicts MUST be abstainers. I believe this to be true of any addict, no matter the substance or source of addiction. Getting to the point of abstinence, however, may look different from person to person. Some addicts, or some addictions, can take a quit-it-an-forget-it approach. Rip off that bandaid and carry on. That can cause more severe adaptation or withdrawal symptoms, but the goal is typically accomplished more quickly. Others may require a step-down approach. This may drag out the process, but adaptation or withdrawal may be less severe and therefore more easily managed. In either approach, the goal and hopefully the result is the same.

Abstaining is Key for Most Addicts

Choosing which method is best for the addict is very personal and requires a great deal of being honest with themselves. My own battle with food addiction is ongoing. It’s been years in the making. I can confidently say my sugar and carb addiction is in remission at this point. Yet I still use food for comfort and that is hindering my progress to some degree. Am I still healing inside? I have no idea. I think so.

So while I do still ‘stress eat’ from time to time, I do not consume sugar or carbs and I do not eat with obsessive, uncontrollable action. I simply eat when I’m not truly hungry. It’s a problem and I’m still working on that. I believe I know what caused it but I’ll leave that for another time. I’m angry with those who suggested a specific practice without knowing my personal issues and angry with myself for thinking I could expect a different result. This is why there should be no specific program for everyone to follow. It’s dangerous and irresponsible. Unethical, even. 

Anyway, my point is that any program should be highly individualized, especially where addiction is involved. 

What About Moderation?

What about the moderation aspect? I don’t think this is possible for an addict. Maybe you have heard of an alcoholic who can just have a drink on special occasions without going on a bender, but I haven’t. Perhaps you know of a drug addict who can partake now and then without spiraling, but I don’t. 

If there is a substance or activity, even if you feel it’s healthy, but it consumes you…I’m sorry to say but that is an addiction. So this applies to anything that has become a source of comfort or a coping mechanism, but it harms you either immediately or in the long run, it’s an addiction. 

Comfort or Self-Sabotage?

If it brings you comfort but it’s contributing to your illness or hindering your progress, is that really comfort? Or is it self-sabotage? Moderating, or attempting to be a moderator, is not helping your progress. So, no. I do not believe in moderation when it comes to addictive behaviors. It doesn’t matter if that behavior is binging on donuts, running, smoking, or any other addiction. 

I know in my heart and soul I cannot ever have cake and ice cream. It will open up an old wound that I have worked far too hard for far too long to heal. It will not serve me in a positive way and I only have room for good and positive in my life. I will not go backward for a few moments of perceived bliss that will potentially drag me back to the hell that was my miserable failing health. Dramatic? Nope. Not at all. Food addiction is real and it ruins lives. 

Help is Here!

If you need help, please feel free to reach out. I can point you in the right direction or I can coach you one-on-one.

thecandidcarnivore@gmail.com
Email me!
DM on IG!
Message on FB!
book a coaching session
Book a session!

In the meantime, I wish you all the good things!

XOXO

The Candid Carnivore

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Change is Self Love???

Something I recently saw on TikTok really got me thinking. A creator with followers in the millions said something that I felt was really irresponsible. It was disappointing to me. I’ve seen a few creators and influencers post content to this effect recently. A new movement, maybe? I think it’s dangerous.

I guess I get where they are coming from. We should never hate ourselves or hate our bodies. But changing yourself and loving yourself are not mutually exclusive. Sometimes changing IS self-love. In fact it should always be about loving yourself, especially when it comes to mental and physical health. Change should never be to fit someone else’s ideal. It shouldn’t be about punishing yourself, trying to look like someone else or fitting into a certain size.

Words Have Consequences

This creator advised people to ‘just eat the chocolate bunny’, and ‘it’s just food’. She alluded to her own struggles in the past and her relationship to food. Knowing that made what she said even more confusing for me for a few reasons. Maybe she doesn’t know what I know, and definitely doesn’t know me and my struggles. Obviously she isn’t creating content solely for me, and that advice may work for some people. I’m not so self-absorbed to think that my opinion of her post matters to her in the slightest. Actually, I hope it doesn’t because that would be devastating and detrimental to her brilliant creativity. I love most of her content, she’s truly gifted. But I can’t help the way I feel about this specific topic because it is so close to me.

I’m happy for her that she can look at food that way. But so many of us cannot. Not ever. If I were to follow that advice, it would be the start of a downward spiral and the loss of all I have accomplished over the last 15 months. Not realizing that there are a lot of us who have sugar addiction, carb addiction, food addiction, isn’t her fault. But I am here to completely oppose that advice. DROP THE BUNNY AND STEP AWAY. Don’t do it! It is not worth it. Don’t derail your progress in your healing mission. Now if you can eat the bunny and jump right back on track – BRAVO!! I envy and admire you! It does not undo or negate everything you have done so far. Not in the least! But if it’s going to cause you to spiral, or if there is the slightest chance you’ll feel like garbage physically or awaken that addiction… Just. Don’t. Do. It. It doesn’t mean you don’t love yourself. It’s the opposite! Not putting garbage into your body is not deprivation or loathing. It is honor and love.

When Food Isn’t Just Food

The other problem I have with her statement is that idea that ‘it’s just food’. It’s not. It’s a drug. But even more importantly, it’s not actual food! If there are ingredients you can’t easily identify, then it is not food and not fuel. Why would you do that to yourself? Because it tastes good for a few moments? In the throws of addiction, we don’t think about that. Once you wake up and address your addiction it’s a totally different mindset.

Living in Healthy Healing Harmony

While I’m not where I want to be physically, I don’t hate where I am now. I am proud of my progress and finally living in healthy healing harmony with my body. This is not about changing because I hate myself. Really it’s because I love my life and want to enjoy every minute of it, not being consumed with addiction and ailments. I’m not punishing my body for not being what I want it to be. I’m listening to my body and honoring it as it is. I have a vision and goals, yes. However, I’m confident where I am and that took a LOT of healing. Being confident in your skin at any size is wonderful. Complacency, however, if you are unhealthy is not safe.

Triggered by a TikTok Star

I understand the sentiment, but the words chosen to express that idea were irresponsible in my opinion. If you are not an alcoholic, but have decided to just cut back on drinking and tell others to just go ahead and have the beer, take the shot, indulge and don’t feel guilty, just as a general statement of self love and acceptance completely jeopardizes the wellbeing of those who see that message and are alcoholics. If you would never say those words knowing an alcoholic’s recovery may be hampered by your words, then you must acknowledge that there are other addictions that are just as valid in the effect they have on people as well. I am 100% positive, no harm was meant by her words. They still haunt me. Yep, I’m TRIGGERED. This person whose content I enjoy, who seems so loving and who is using her platform to ensure she is doing all she can to put positivity into the world is not in any way responsible for my weakness.

That self-sabotaging bitch in my head though, she’s trying real hard to justify what she heard.

Stay Focused

So how do you stay focused, or re-focus, when you’re battling that voice in your head? Dive deep, my friend. Immerse yourself in all healing things. Whatever it takes to get yourself right. Read, or listen to helpful and positive topics from AudiobooksNow. Join an online community like The Steak and Butter Gang, where you can connect with others, listen to their struggles and their victories here https://sbg-s-meat-up.mn.co/share/KqFp3vyXjBT6w81T?utm_source=manual. Or feel free to reach out to me here, or on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/thecandidcarnivore/. I’d be happy to offer support.

Thank you for your support and your time. I hope my content supports and inspires you – and maybe makes you laugh sometimes.

xoxo

~ The Candid Carnivore

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Food Addiction is a Bitch

Addiction is painful, no matter what the drug happens to be.

Food to Mask the Pain

What is comfort food? Does it truly bring comfort? Or does it bring more pain?

If we are talking about the traditional comfort foods, most of us think of cookies, ice cream, cake, macaroni & cheese, maybe pizza and other foods high in carbohydrates. There is a very scientific reason that we feel comfort when eating those types of food. People much smarter than I can explain all of that in detail and do so with absolute authority. But I can tell you that I have learned from those very smart people, and from my own experience, that these foods contain high amounts of carbs. Carbs turn to sugar in our bodies. Sugar creates a chemical response in our bodies and in our brains that trigger a dopamine response. It’s something very similar to getting high and that feeling, in turn, creates an addiction. Sweet taste is several times more addictive than cocaine. Read that again – sweet taste. is several times more addictive. than COCAINE! What? We give these foods to our children! We are literally raising addicts just by feeding them foods from our local grocery stores. (click here to read one study using artificial sweetener and cocaine, as an example – there are several articles on the matter, just search for yourself! Intense Sweetness Surpasses Cocaine Reward (nih.gov)) 

There is sugar, in some form, in most processed foods. I dare you to grab any food item in your kitchen with an ingredient label – guaranteed there is at least one form of sugar in that item. Maybe more. Sugar has over 50 different names, and food manufacturers will try to fool you as often as possible. 

You hear a lot of people say they are an ’emotional eater’, meaning when they are sad, stressed, angry, happy, or any strong emotion, they turn to food. Rather than allowing themselves to feel that emotion, they distract themselves or use the food to cope or celebrate. Doesn’t that sound very similar to how a person with an addiction would respond? In my statement above, replace the phrase, “…they turn to food.” with “…they turn to alcohol.” Or a specific drug. Even when someone says they reward themselves with chocolate or some other food, isn’t that the same as saying they reward themselves with a drink or drug use? 

The Culture of Food as a Drug

This behavior is something many of us are taught in childhood. A good-intentioned adult wants to fix what is bothering the child, or distract them from crying, by giving them a treat. This creates a dependency very early in life! Rather than being taught how to cope with or regulate emotions, children are often taught to just cover it up or use some substance, which may start out as sugar or carbs, to create a flood of dopamine in the brain that gives us that feeling of comfort. Maybe, just maybe, this is the beginning of what predisposes a person for drug or alcohol abuse? It makes sense to me. Eating becomes something that is tied to emotions, whether we are eating to celebrate or to mourn. The chemistry of the food creates such an intense reaction in the body that it mimics emotion or masks it. Processed food, carbs, and sweet tastes (yes, even your diet soda and keto sweeteners) give us that dopamine hit that is so strong that real joy and happiness can’t compete. Is this a cause of depression? 

The problem is that – and I am not saying it is as simple as this – while lifestyle changes can be made to avoid drugs and alcohol, you can’t avoid food. You can avoid certain foods and ingredients, but it is SO difficult when family gatherings, social functions, and even office meetings often revolve around the very types of food you are trying to avoid. You hear things like, ‘oh come on live a little’, ‘one cupcake won’t kill you’, ‘you deserve a treat’….Would those food-pushers say to an alcoholic, ‘one shot won’t kill you’, or ‘it’s a celebration, how are you not going to drink?’ But most people don’t understand, because we need food to live, that sugar and processed foods are addictive. 

Nutrition is the Key

I, and I think many others can attest to this, have found that eating only animal foods reduces or eliminates the addiction to sugar and carbs. Why is this important? Sugar and carbs are not what our bodies were designed to thrive on. The over-consumption of these foods creates constant insulin response, which affects our mood and emotional regulation. Without the constant dips and spikes in blood glucose, and therefore insulin, my mood is fairly constant. I don’t crave that dopamine release that food used to give me. 

So do comfort foods really bring comfort, or do they replace true emotions with dopamine, thereby eliminating the processing of emotions and perpetuating the trauma, never allowing the healing or the development of coping skills? In my opinion, processed foods, carbs, and sugar do damage to our bodies and our minds. I know in my healing mission, my body feels so much better. But the healing I have experienced within my mind and my emotions is the most valuable result so far. 

Feel free to comment or ask questions about my experiences and let me know if there is any way I can help you on your own healing mission!

xoxo

~ The Candid CarnivoreShareLabels: carnivorecomfort foodcommunitydietdisordered eatingdopamineemotional healthfood addictfood addictionmental healthsugar addiction

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CARNIVORE MISSION: FOOD ADDICTION AND RESTRICTION, WITH A DASH OF HASHIMOTO’S AND A SIDE OF SHAME

Food Addiction and Obesity in Childhood:

I have been addicted to food since I was a kid. I have binged on everything from sliced bread to uncooked hot dogs. One of my earliest memories of feeling shame came from sneaking yet another handful of little chocolates that my dad had brought home and my mom calling me a glutton when she discovered me stuffing them into my mouth while hiding behind my toy box. I remember asking her what that word meant and that feeling when she told me. I was about 5 years old, maybe 4. 

I felt shame, but it didn’t stop me. Rather I think it defined me in my mind. I was the fat kid. Shopping with my grandmother in the boys’ ‘husky’ section of Sears as a girl in 1st grade was humiliating, but I had no concept of diet. My next shameful moment, at about 8 years old, came when my grandfather had bought me a bag of Reese’s Pieces. We were going to go fishing after he closed up his shop, and he told me not to open that bag. That was a treat for later. I insisted I would not open them, thinking to myself how I didn’t even really like Reese’s Pieces. No sooner than he left the room, I opened and devoured the entire bag. Within 5 minutes, he returned and expressed his disbelief and disgust. I literally ate anything and everything that I wanted and would constantly search cupboards for food when I was not even hungry. The food was filling a void that I did not understand at the time. I could go on and on with memories of feeling that shame related to my binging. Maybe I’ll share those another time. 

When I was around 12 years old, my mom said she would buy me some workout clothes if I promised to exercise. You know, the shiny, colorful leotards with the matching headband and leg warmers from the 80s. Yeah, that must have been a sight! But she bought them for me. And that was it. I didn’t keep my end of the deal. I had no idea HOW. Like, ok thanks. I have this outfit, but how exactly do I exercise? No one ever showed me or encouraged me, so I didn’t do it. 

Now, was this all due to the failing of the adults in my life for not putting any restrictions in place or teaching me how to eat properly? Was this something broken in my brain? Dopamine deficiency? I can say with 100% certainty that I did not have a typical childhood. I was born to teen parents. My mother had severe mental and emotional trauma of her own. I’d be willing to bet that it was a perfect storm of a lot of things. 

I’ll skip over the teen years for now. Just know that there was a lot of destructive behavior and I truly believe I’m lucky to have made it through that period alive. 

Anorexia & Bulimia:

As I continued with binging into my 20s, it finally hit me. I was in my apartment searching for loose change so that I could go buy some snack cakes when I realized that I did not have control of my own actions. I felt possessed! It finally occurred to me that I wasn’t really consciously making this decision. I felt an overwhelming urge, but not a thought process. It was as if I had held my breath for too long and felt the overwhelming urge to take a deep breath. You don’t tell yourself constantly, ‘breathe in, ok now breathe out, breathe in…’. You just do it. That’s what eating was like. Mindless, compulsory binging. That revelation didn’t stop me, though and disordered eating from one end of the spectrum to the other consumed my life for more than two decades. 

Around the age of 22, and at approximately 230lbs after giving birth to my first child, I went to the other extreme. I became obsessed with staying under 20 grams of fat. I cheated, though. I rounded up. If something had 3 grams of fat, I counted it as 5. I kept a running tally in my head all day, counting and re-counting obsessively, and then rounding up that number as well. So, when I may very well have had only 7 grams of fat for the day, I was counting it as 20 grams. I lost a lot of weight very, very quickly. There were days when all I had eaten was a small bag of pretzels from the vending machine, a diet Mt Dew, and a bag of light microwave popcorn for dinner. Snackwell cookies and ‘yogurt’, Tootsie Rolls, or Twizzler Nibs were eaten as an additional ‘meal’ now and then. I worked in retail at the time, so I was on my feet, racing around all day. It definitely was not enough food. My manager at the time was extremely worried about me. She pulled me aside one day, almost in tears. Which was really strange because she was a tough lady. Most of my coworkers were a little afraid of her because she was strict and didn’t put up with anyone’s shit. But that day, she told me about her niece who had passed away from complications of anorexia. She saw similar behavior in me. I thought she was crazy, of course. “I eat, Pat. I promise I do!”. I wasn’t lying, really. Or at least that’s what I convinced myself. I was very skinny – and very sick. My cycle had always been irregular, very heavy and very painful. But now it was very light and short. I had blood in my urine at times. I would get extremely sick and vomit at random times. I began over-exercising, teaching 9 – 11 cardio kickboxing classes per week, plus working out at home. I fractured both of my legs due to malnutrition and over-use. But I had lost 112lbs, so I wasn’t about to stop. I maintained my weight at 118lbs for a few years and through another pregnancy. I even kept that weight, or there about, through a seriously abusive marriage, divorce, and into another abusive marriage. But after the birth of my third child, I lost control. The weight crept back up through my second divorce and continued beyond that 230lb mark. 

For Weight Loss, Eat Less Move More…Yeah, Fuck That:

By my late 30s – early 40s I was finally over this shit. I did not want to just exist as a fat lump. I missed out on so much with my kids because I was just so tired all the time. Dusting the living room would wipe me out. My muscles and joints ached, and I could not do any more. After just dusting! 

My youngest had been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism at the age of 8. Her antibodies were in the hundreds, she had so many digestive issues and had so much inflammation at such a young age. I did a little research, put her on a gluten free diet and – WOW – what a difference that made for her! So I went to my family doctor and asked if this could possibly be my issue as well. He begrudgingly ordered a blood test for my TSH level and antibodies. TSH is the thyroid stimulating hormone and the presence of antibodies mean the body is attacking that particular part of itself. The result was a TSH of 5.5 and antibodies around 180. He told me that my TSH was in the normal range and never mentioned anything about the antibodies. At the time I didn’t even know he included antibodies in the lab work. I argued that my TSH was at the very high end of normal, so couldn’t my symptoms be due to that? He laughed at me. He LAUGHED at me. HE LAUGHED AT ME, and said, “Everyone would like to blame being overweight on thyroid issues, but that’s not your problem”, and he refused to look any further

Bullshit. I called an endocrinologist on my own and told them my TSH results and the experience I had with my doctor, and they brought me in for an appointment immediately. I never went back to that arrogant ‘doctor’. I was put on thyroid medication and also began taking a weight loss/food addiction drug. 

That experience taught me how to advocate for my children’s health and for my own. I researched everything I could before any appointment after that. That research led me to paleo – which helped a lot. That led me to low carb – which helped even more. Which led me to keto – which helped even more, BUT I began to get bogged down in the counting and tracking macros, and keto ‘treats’, and the expense of trying to make SAD foods (SAD = Standard American Diet) into keto-approved versions. Freaking exhausting! Between keto, calorie restriction (1200 calories a day), and the weight loss drug, I was down to 140lbs, working out, and feeling amazing. But I was SO. Freaking. Tired of tracking every single thing and calculating. UGH! Then, I found Dr. Ken Berry, and Neisha Berry, and Kelly Hogan, and Dr. Shawn Baker, and Steak and Butter Gal, and all the wonderful, amazing, brilliant others who have taught me so much! And now I belong to a community where I am supported and encouraged to EAT as much carnivore food as I possibly can to heal my hunger hormones and my thyroid. But it’s also healing my mind, my outlook, my everything. I have gained a lot of weight back doing this. I don’t even care. I feel so good, and I know it will come off again once my body has healed from all the trauma I have put it though. There’s no rush. I’m living now – not just existing. 

So here I am, about to turn 50, and I finally figured it out! I stopped the weight loss medication and I’m happily eating about 3,000 calories a day at the moment. Meat is healing me. I don’t eat any plants, I don’t eat any sugar or processed foods, I don’t use any sweeteners. I eat meat, butter, and eggs. I’m ridiculously happy and energetic, my mind is clear and focused, I do not crave carbs, I have no food addiction issues, and my sleep quality is incredible. From mindlessly eating as though possessed to being able to be around people who are eating pizza and ice cream, and just be able to say, ‘wow that smells good,’ and not be compelled to eat it…. that is nothing short of a miracle. 

More on the whole thyroid, wight loss drug, and some other medications I have had to take in the next post. Hint – I was pre-diabetic, insulin resistant, and could almost grow a beard in 12 hours. True story!

If you managed to get through this ‘short post’ – thank you! While I’m writing mostly for myself, to work through some things, I hope you come back again and that I can help others who may have endured these things in some way. 

xoxo

~ The Candid Carnivore