Hiya hun

So sorry to hear of all your troubles. I understand you can't do weight bearing exercise, but as MC said, swimming is brilliant - it works out the whole body, uses calories and tones muscles.

It is good that you are not drinking (I wish I were so strong ) but be careful not to over-indulge on 'healthy' food too - calories do add up.

I really can't begin to stress how important it is not to completely cut out any valuable food source. I think some people mentioned the GI diet - this would be good as it advocates sensible, healthy eating with low (not NO) fat and low GI carbohydrates, which are good for slow release of energy, rather than giving the huge sugar highs and lows that high GI carbs give, so you have energy for longer and feel less hungry for longer.

Have a look on the Internet for more info but try to adopt a healthy eating regime that will help you lose weight and which you can do forever, rather than constant dieting.

Also, have you thought of joining a Slimming Club for support and hints?

One last thing - I fully understand your desire to lose weight for your health and your wedding, and with it being a year away, you stand a good chance. But don't be too hard on yourself - your fiance loves you as you are else he wouldn't be marrying you.

For the stomach problem - you shouldn't be suffering like that. Does it come on with any particular foods? Sometimes too much bread, caffeine, spicy or fatty foods can cause problems, and this can be worse with a hiatus hernia. Is there any chance you have this? You need to get a second opinion and get to the bottom of what is causing this. Can you get to see another doctor when your GP isn't there? My GP is worse than useless and they have a policy whereby if your GP is there you can't see a different one so sometimes I just tell the receptionist I want to see a female doctor and they tell me when he has a female stand in.

I wish you lots of love and luck.

I do know that you have to be in a certain area to go to a certain GP.
When I moved house, I also had to move GP's, as the one I went to was out of my catchment area (about 6 miles away).

I have just been on the NHS website, and found this:

Can a Surgery refuse to accept me as a patient?

Yes. A surgery may refuse an application to join its list of patients, if for example you do not reside in its surgery area or it has formally closed its list of patients.

Where a surgery does refuse to accept you, then it must have reasonable grounds for doing so, which do not relate to race, gender, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation, appearance, disability or medical condition, and it must give you in writing, reasons for its decision.

What can I do if I can't find a local doctor that will accept me as a patient?

Contact your local Primary Care Trust (PCT) if you are having problems registering with a nearby Doctor. Your PCT will normally be able to help you find a Doctor quite quickly.

Can I change my Doctor?

You have the right to change your Doctor without having to give a reason. The process of finding a new Doctor is similar to registering. However, it would be extremely helpful (for administrative purposes) to notify the surgery that you are leaving.

When might I need to find a new Doctor?

You may need to find a new doctor for various reasons. For example:

* You have just moved into a new area
* You have moved outside the catchment area of your current surgery
* There is a problem with your relationship with your current Doctor
* Your current Doctor has removed you from his or her list


Info from the links below.
http://www.nhs.uk/england/doctors/

Laura take the dieting at your own pace, it's very unrealistic not to mention dangerous to loose too much weight in such a short period. It also takes time to find the diet that works for you.

Thank you all so much - i will go to the doctors tomorrow afternoon (After my counselling session lol) and scream!

Thanks again - you have no idea how helpful this has been (printouts ... WOO!)

xx

How did it go?

not been I just didn't have the time today - i know I must find it - and I will - but the counselling session was hard enough... and I have so much to do - with Clevedon rat show coming up and ultrasound scan on friday - and 9 o clock lecture tomorrow... things never stop! lol

Will go - just bear with me! lol

xx

I re-joined weight watchers last week (first went 8 years ago to lose 3 stone b4 getting married). I have tried a few diets in the past couple of years as I have put 2 stone of the 3 I lost..........GI diet, atkins, blood group and to be honest with you they only work for a short period of time and cost a fortune. i decided to go back to weight watchers as I found it the only diet to work long term, doesnt cost alot and is very eay to follow. I lost 4 pounds this week (my first week ) and am very pleased.

Good luck because I know how hard it can be. Admitting to yourself is the first step though.

I have a mate that I diet with, and I find this really helps. Do you have any friends that may want to diet with you ?

If you are unhappy with your doc then have you tried the health centre at Uni ??? Most Universities have a health centre for students

I know how you feel about diets, some work and some dont, i need to lose weight for my wedding, i have started one where you have a bowl of cereal in the morning then 1 cereal bars for dinner or 2 if you dont want a supper and just a normal tea, and i am doing steppers and davina dvd too, the dvd is brill and its working

Our uni doc is worse than my current gp lol - it's why I changed to my current one in the first place LOL!

I really cant afford to jin clubs right now - and all my mates are lathes. I found a book and vid of the rosemary conley diet - looks practical - think I'll give that a shot!

xx