Finding a Support System
In This Chapter
▶ Turning to a professional for help when you need it most
▶ Identifying supportive friends and family members
▶ Using the Internet as a tool for information, motivation, and support
▶ Going to glycemic index–related programs in your area
Making any kind of health change requires a strong support system if you want to achieve your goals. A strong support system helps by
✓ Giving you an outlet to vent when frustration hits
✓ Providing assistance with overcoming challenges and obstacles
✓ Holding you accountable so you can stay on track
✓ Keeping you motivated
✓ Making your transition to a low-glycemic lifestyle easier
✓ Offering you advice when you need it You can find support in a variety of arenas, from professionals and friends to the Internet and glycemic index–specific programs. I delve into these different support arenas in this chapter to help you find the perfect support system for you.
Knowing When to Seek Help from a Professional
For many people, the easiest form of support to find is professional help from a registered dietitian. You don’t always need professional help, but when you have health issues, such as high cholesterol or a health condition commonly associated with insulin resistance, the advice and objective ear of a registered dietician is worthwhile. Professionals are also your best bet for obtaining accurate information when you do have questions and challenges. The following sections go into further detail about circumstances in which you may find professional help invaluable.
When you have a challenging health condition
Everyone is different, complete with his or her own individual health conditions. A one-size-fits-all solution simply doesn’t exist, which is why some additional work may be necessary on your part to properly fit a low-glycemic diet into your life if you have certain health conditions. For example, you may have insulin resistance and need to be stricter with your choices than others do, or you may have a completely different issue such as high cholesterol or hypothyroidism that needs to be addressed with a few other dietary changes.
If you have a challenging health condition and want to try the low-glycemic diet, the best way to ensure you’re getting the most accurate information for your unique situation is to work with a registered dietician. I encourage you to seek out professional help if you have one or more of the following health issues:
✓ Coronary artery disease
✓ Food allergies
✓ Gastrointestinal disorders
✓ High blood pressure
✓ High cholesterol
✓ Hypothyroidism
✓ Kidney disease
✓ Metabolic syndrome
✓ Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
✓ Prediabetes
✓ Type 1 or 2 diabetes
Find a registered dietitian who specializes in the issues that you have and who’s also familiar with a low-glycemic diet. You can then get sound advice and support for meshing your preexisting health issue(s) with a low-glycemic lifestyle.
When you’re having trouble making changes
Professional help can be a good idea when you’re struggling with making changes. As a registered dietitian, one thing I’ve discovered is that providing advice and information is only one piece of the puzzle. Coaching — helping people work these new changes into their lives — is an even bigger piece.
Making lifestyle changes usually takes a combination of time plus trial and error. After all, the doing is often much harder than the knowing. I hear people say it all the time, “I know what to do; I just can’t do it.” This is where a professional can come in handy. A registered dietitian can help you figure out the best ways to implement your new health goals. By working together, you can try some strategies and then see how they went. A registered dietician can also serve as an objective listener who can help you look at matters in a different way when obstacles arise.
When you need accountability and support
Getting professional help with your efforts to embrace a low-glycemic life- style provides long-term support and accountability. Research shows that people who have a long-term support system are able to maintain their weight loss for a longer period of time.
Acquiring that long-term support goes much more smoothly when you do two things:
✓ Find a registered dietician with whom you have a good relationship.
Working with someone you trust and enjoy is crucial to establishing a long-term relationship. That way when you have a dietary crisis during the holidays and are feeling vulnerable, you instantly have someone to reach out to for that much-needed accountability and support.
✓ Don’t treat appointments with your dietician as temporary. Many people view working with a dietitian or nutritionist as temporary. They go in a few times just to get the diet information and expect to never set foot in the office again after they have it. Instead of taking this temporary approach, look at your dietician as you would your physician, someone with whom you have a long-time relationship and whose advice you trust.
If you have serious issues with emotional or stress eating, you may also find it helpful to work with a therapist or counselor. Many people also find support this way.
Enlisting the Right Friends and Family Members
Sometimes finding other individuals who’re also working on weight loss using a low-glycemic diet can be helpful, especially if they’re people you already know. Then again, it’s also a great way to make new friends. Either way, there’s something to be said about really understanding the pitfalls that may occur and celebrating the wins with someone who’s going through the same types of experiences.
Whether you’re turning to old friends or new for support, make sure they’re truly being supportive of your new health changes. Better yet, make sure they’re working on their own health goals!
The next sections explain how to involve the right friends, avoid people who’ll drag you down, and start up your very own support group.
Knowing which friends to involve
There’s nothing like working together toward health goals when you already have an established, trusting relationship. The trick is figuring out which friends will offer the best support for you in your weight-loss efforts with a low-glycemic diet. Why not just turn to your closest friends? Because they may not be the best support system for you if they don’t see the point in the changes you’re making.
Seek out support from friends and other loved ones who are already living the lifestyle you’re aspiring to or who are making similar changes themselves. By being open about your efforts and goals, you may just find that some of your family and friends are seeking the same support from you, too.
I’m not asking you to give up your other friendships. Just use the more supportive bunch for discussions about your wins, challenges, and the changes you’re seeing. Skip this kind of talk when you’re with your other friends.
Avoiding saboteurs
Family and friends can be your best support system or your biggest saboteurs. You can’t get rid of your family and friends, but you can limit conversations about your weight loss or new dietary changes.
Of course, sometimes doing so is easier said than done. It’s one thing to divert a conversation if someone starts picking on your food choices at a restaurant, but it’s another thing entirely when your spouse brings home a chocolate pie right after you tell him or her you want to lose 10 pounds.
No, these family members and friends aren’t just mean people. In fact, they probably aren’t even conscious of what they’re saying or doing. If they are, perhaps it’s because they feel insecure or because they don’t want to make changes themselves. Often taking care of your health puts a mirror up to those around you. You can’t help this; it’s a natural outcome of adopting healthier behaviors when others around you aren’t.
To reduce your temptation to throw in the towel on your low-glycemic diet, you need to find ways of handling such situations. Remember: You can’t change people; you can only change your own reactions.
Here are some tips for avoiding sabotaging situations:
✓ Don’t talk about your weight loss, diet, or exercise with naysayers.
You may be so excited about all that’s going on that you want to share it and let others know how well things are going for you. This is only a good idea with supportive people who want to hear your news. Don’t bring diet stuff up unless your friends or family members ask you first. They may not be ready to make the same types of changes you are, so their reactions may not be favorable if you share your news when they can’t handle hearing it.
✓ Avoid making a big deal about your menu choices when eating out.
There’s no need to announce that you’re looking for low-glycemic foods on the menu. If you do, the naysayers at the table may roll their eyes and say, “Oh, you’re at a restaurant. Let it go for one meal.” Find what you want to eat on the menu and keep it to yourself whether your choice is low-glycemic or low-calorie. Just say, “This sounds good.” That way you won’t risk getting thrown off track by peer pressure.
✓ Tell your friends and family members when you feel like they’re
hassling you about your new changes. If comments they’re making are upsetting you and possibly even hindering your weight-loss efforts, be upfront that you’re bothered. Then let your friends and family know that you’re truly happy with the changes you’re making. If that’s what mat- ters to them, they should stop hassling you.
✓ Be honest with your spouse. If your spouse continues to bring home tempting foods, be honest. Let him or her know these particular foods are a little too tempting for you and find some treats you can both agree on so your spouse doesn’t feel deprived and you can stay on track.
Creating your own support group
If you can’t find the right friends or family members, try making some new friends by putting together your own support group that meets on a regular basis.
Start by looking around at work or any place where you may have met someone who’s also working toward specific health goals and following a low-glycemic diet. Even if you find only one person, that individual may know someone else who knows another person. Before you know it, you have a small support group! Plan to meet once a week for a walk to discuss your latest wins and challenges while squeezing in a little exercise at the same time.
Getting support from peers who are going through similar experiences is so valuable and very different than the type of support you can get from others who aren’t on the same path.
Surfing the Web for Information, Motivation, and Support
Thanks to the Internet, a wealth of peer and professional support is virtually available at your fingertips. Of course, there’s some bad information out there too, and sometimes negative people hop on group forums and ruin the supportive vibe. The sections that follow describe some great places to find advice and support on the Internet, as well as some issues to beware of as you surf the Web.
Exploring educational Web sites
Some people don’t need personal interaction to get that extra motivation they’re looking for. All they really need is information, which is when educational Web sites prove quite helpful. These sites provide information and often anecdotal stories from people just like you. You can often find quick answers to questions or just read articles to help you get inspired again.
There’s so much to sift through on the Internet that I thought I’d give you a few trusted sites for obtaining information on a low-glycemic diet. (Note: For the last two sites, you’ll need to search for “low-glycemic diet” on the home page.)
Want to find trustworthy educational Web sites on your own? Here are a few tips:
✓ Go to professional Web sites run by researchers or other healthcare professionals. Although personal Web sites operated by individuals who’ve seen results following a low-glycemic diet may be helpful, you can’t always be certain that the information on these sites is the most accurate. Professional Web sites, on the other hand, are always reliable. Bookmark your favorite sites so you can find them quickly and visit them regularly.
✓ Look for a newsletter and sign up. Just because a newsletter comes from a professional Web site doesn’t mean the information in it is stuffy.
Newsletters from educational Web sites are perfect for receiving regular updates, articles, and inspiration to help you stay motivated.
Getting involved with group forums and message boards
One great advantage of the Internet, especially if you’re having a hard time finding a supportive environment at home, is the ability to find support through group forums and/or message boards. Of course, you may have to participate in a few before you find the right one.
There are good reasons to use message boards and forums as well as bad ones. The good reasons for using message boards and forums are to
✓ Obtain general support for motivation and inspiration: Sometimes you just need a little motivation, especially if you’ve had setbacks. Simply reading others’ stories or reaching out for help can turn matters around for you.
✓ Discuss challenges and obstacles: Are you having difficulty bringing a low-glycemic lunch to work? Are you finding it rather rough to follow a low-glycemic diet on the road? Others may have some great solutions that worked for them in similar situations.
✓ Give support to others: Just being there for others can help renew your own motivation.
✓ Get recipes: Message boards and forums are a fabulous recipe resource when you’re running out of ideas for meals or when you have specific ingredients in your house and need some ideas for what to do with them. Never use message boards or forums for the following reasons:
✓ To obtain professional advice: I’ve seen some very inaccurate and just plain bad advice given out on message boards. Depending on your personal situation, this advice may even be harmful to you. When you need advice, skip the group forums and message boards and turn to a profes- sional. Save the boards for support.
✓ To vent about your life: Although discussing your challenges in the hopes of finding motivation and support is okay, venting about your life in general isn’t a good idea. Message boards work best when everyone comes to the table in a positive way to help one another.
If you decide to explore group forums and message boards, be prepared to encounter extremely negative and downright angry people from time to time. The Internet provides a shield, so those individuals who have a lot of pent-up anger let it out frequently because no one can see them or figure out who they are.
I’ll never forget my experience participating as a professional on a weight- loss message board. One of the other participants was a woman who was fixated on low-carb dieting even though that wasn’t the topic of the board. The whole thing turned ugly as she critiqued everyone who was following different paths toward weight loss than her. The moderator warned her but never kicked her off, making the whole experience a dreadful one for everyone else trying to participate.
When you run into nasty people on message boards, e-mail the moderator to request that he or she ban the offending user or reinforce the posting guide- lines. If nothing changes, find a new online support forum. Dealing with people’s anger-management issues is far from worth it when you’re just looking for a little support!
Approaching the Web with caution
The Internet is a great tool for finding articles and getting support. However, it’s also filled with an abundance of not-so-good information. You really need to pay attention to the source of a Web site to ensure the information on it is accurate. If you aren’t sure whether information you find online is true, ask a professional.
If you have a health condition such as diabetes or high cholesterol and are taking medications for it, the wrong dietary information can be harmful. I’ve seen people end up in the hospital from bad information. I even saw a woman in her 30s fight for her life in a diabetic coma due to inaccurate advice. So even though most of the time nutrition information you find online doesn’t necessarily cause any major problems, it can cause you serious issues in some circumstances.
Sites that sell information products or provide information from individuals who’ve lost weight following a low-glycemic diet can be good for support, but unless the site operators have the proper education or know how to interpret research studies, the information they provide should be taken with a ton of salt.
People aren’t out to give you bad advice; they just may not know enough to give good advice. When in doubt about the accuracy of information in a particular article, check the author’s credentials. Is this person in the healthcare field? Has she been trained in this topic? What type of education program did she go through? These questions will help assure you that the information you’re getting is accurate. You can also look for sites with professional articles that have been peer-reviewed by other doctors and registered dieticians. WebMD is one such site, which is why it’s one of the best places to find quality health articles online.
Attending Glycemic Index Programs
Programs related to the glycemic index, such as classes and conferences, are win-win scenarios: You receive information you can trust, and you build a new support group with fellow participants. Finding glycemic index classes and conferences isn’t always easy, so I offer some suggestions for doing so in the following sections.
Group classes
Group classes occur either as series or one-time affairs. Either way, you can often find these classes at your local hospital. Start by checking out the hospital’s Web site to see what types of health classes it offers. If you don’t find any, you can call the nutrition department and ask whether it ever offers any classes on the low-glycemic diet or weight management in general.
Another option for finding group classes is to look for registered dieticians who work in private practice in your local area. Do a Web search or pull out the phonebook and flip through the Yellow Pages to see whether any local dieticians offer classes.
If you can’t track down a class, find a local registered dietitian and ask her whether she’d ever be interested in starting one up. If you can persuade the dietician that several people in the community would benefit from the class, she may just be willing to give it a go. It never hurts to ask!
Professional conferences
Going to a professional conference on low-glycemic diets may sound a little “outside the box,” but it has been done. Healthcare professionals must take continuing education classes on many different topics in order to keep up on the latest research. If you don’t mind listening to a lot of medical jargon, professional conferences can be a great place to obtain the latest scoop on the glycemic index.
Note: Not only are professional conferences costly, but in many cases you must be a healthcare professional in order to attend, so this strategy isn’t always a realistic one. However, I’ve seen many people attend these conferences for their own information. They can be a great way to network and meet professionals who’re working in this area of expertise.
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