Everyday Systems

Has anyone found that the No S Diet helped regulate your mood? I have been "failing" at No S for a few days and have been in a mood of moods at work. Now I am wondering if the extra sugar I've had lately could be the reason (no, it is not PMS).

I suppose the best way to test that theory would be to get back on No S and stop fooling around!! Still, I wanted to ask in case someone has had any experience with this. If it wasn't the sugar making you feel homicidal around stupid co-workers, did you ever figure out what it was?

*wince*

There are habits and behaviors that regulate mood, yes. I'd be incredibly reluctant to blame it on One Magic Substance or One Evil Substance.

Things that help regulate my mood: Enough sleep, enough interesting work to keep my brain active, an appropriate amount of food, a good, long swim on a regular basis (I'm a little lamb if I get in a mile a day). Underslept, bored, stressed, hungry and underexercised, taken in a lump, and I find regulating my mood or behaving well in the face of a bad mood incredibly difficult.

But, any ONE thing? Not so much. Ever played Sims? It's a really interesting take on human needs and how they interplay. While, simplistic, it's quite illustrative.

Trying and failing to accomplish something is generally frustrating. Frustration certainly doesn't put me in a better mood.

Make sure you're not using your bad mood to excuse your failures. The problem with doing that (well, one of the problems) is that there are going to be situations that are going to put you in a bad mood. It's the nature of life to have times when you are in a bad mood. It sucks, but that's the way it is.

Worse, there's a vicious cycle lurking there. Bad mood leads to excuse to go off No S, which causes frustration and anger at your lack of self-control, which causes more bad mood, which causes more eating, and so on and so forth. Not a cycle you want to be stuck in. There's not much you can do about frustration affecting your mood, but one place to break the cycle is to stop eating more in response to a bad mood. It will probably make you feel worse in the short term, but you'll be better off in the long term if you break that cycle.

SpiritSong wrote:Has anyone found that the No S Diet helped regulate your mood? I have been "failing" at No S for a few days and have been in a mood of moods at work. Now I am wondering if the extra sugar I've had lately could be the reason (no, it is not PMS).

I suppose the best way to test that theory would be to get back on No S and stop fooling around!! Still, I wanted to ask in case someone has had any experience with this. If it wasn't the sugar making you feel homicidal around stupid co-workers, did you ever figure out what it was?

When I was working I found that if I felt homicidal around stupid co-workers -- it was my reaction to the stupid co-workers. I didn't feel homicidal towards everyone (that is, not family and friends) so I couldn't blame it on anything but the stupid co-workers.

wosnes wrote:When I was working I found that if I felt homicidal around stupid co-workers -- it was my reaction to the stupid co-workers. I didn't feel homicidal towards everyone (that is, not family and friends) so I couldn't blame it on anything but the stupid co-workers.

Oh, great. I was just going to come take out that phrase so I didn't sound crazy and now it is preserved forever. Guess I shouldn't post when in a crabby mood, huh?

Interestingly enough, I HAVE found that eating sugar effects my mood,
as well as my body.

During and immediately After eating it I feel quite good,
and then shortly thereafter, I feel quite tired and a bit depressed.
I've experimented with this enough to be certain
that, for me, it is a PHYSICAL reaction, not an emotional one.

I find that artificially sweetened foods give me the pleasure of a sweet taste,
without the unpleasant physical side effects of sugar.

I just faced down this demon myself, not five minutes ago. I work for attorneys and the Courthouse has a soda machine where a nice cold Diet Dr Pepper or Coke Zero is still only fifty cents (hey, it's an old courthouse)

Add to the mix, I have a box full of quarters in my desk drawer. But, NOOOO, I didn't buy a soda when I walked over to file papers a bit ago. I just made some hot tea and it's all good.

When I was seeing a nutritionist, she said that sugar depletes your body of certain B vitamins, and it could very well affect your mood. I've had the same experience as Bright Angel after eating sugar. I'll feel great for awhile, and then about 2 hours later, I'll feel tired and a little moody.

I always feel in a better mood when I'm following Vanilla No S. I'm not sure if it's the reduction in sugar, fat, or volume. It may even be that my self-esteem is higher - managing my food gives me a sense of control and calmness. I feel successful and that rubs off in other areas leading to more patience - with everyone

GREAT answer, idk! That is exactly how I look upon No S too!

Sugar definitely affects me - and it definitely triggers food binges. I've just read a very enlightening book called "Sweet Poison" by David Gillespie, which explains that it is the fructose in corn syrup and also in cane sugar that is the problem (rather than carbs in general).

I'd like to come down on the side that sugar isn't addictive, etc, etc, but in my personal experience, it seems to be - life is certainly much calmer and more in control (and happier) without it.

I still haven't figured out what Vanilla No S is?

Vanilla No-S is follow the 14 words of the diet strictly with no explicit modifications.

No Sweets
No Seconds
No Snacks
Except (sometimes) on days beginning with S.

You don't make extra explicit rules for yourself. (Counting S events, only eating off of smaller plates, whatever modifications you might want to make).

I mean, we all drift towards certain habits anyway, but Vanilla No-S means that you're not making a "rule" about it.

Over43 wrote:I still hven't figured out what Vanilla No S is?

it just means "plain" NoS, with no extra modifications or changes to the basic rules.

Ah, thank you for that. So if a person is doing No S, and nothing else, he or she is doing Vanilla No S? Which actually means...they are doing No S?

On a more serious note, I think sugar does affect me in certain ways, not diabolically, or anything like that, but I know after a doughnut, or to much soda I feel different. Nothing I can quantify, but certainly I feel like I'm running with a parachute behind me.

Over43 wrote:Ah, thank you for that. So if a person is doing No S, and nothing else, he or she is doing Vanilla No S? Which actually means...they are doing No S?

But someone who is doing No S with mods is also doing No S. "Vanilla No S" is shorthand for "No S without any mods".