Dose of Reality

Let me introduce you to Old Crystal and New Crystal! Two versions of myself who apparently aren’t quite on the same page when it comes to food! From restaurant portions to alcohol Old Crystal still thinks she can eat like she used to, while New Crystal’s stomach has other plans. I’m sharing some funny (and uncomfortable) experiences as I learn that while Wegovy has changed my appetite, changing decades of eating habits takes a little more time. Apparently, Old Crystal and New Crystal still have a few things to sort out!

What happens when life gets really busy? Well, for me, an intense month of work and very long hours meant the healthy routines I’d been building quickly started to disappear…workouts were missed, meals were forgotten, and quality time with family and friends became harder to find. They were quickly replaced with stress, convenience foods, and ultimately, slower progress. However, finding pockets of time for fitness and friends, making a few good choices along the way (doing the next right thing), and Wegovy still in my back pocket, kept one crazy month from completely derailing my progress.

Can we talk about getting dressed? Getting dressed used to be so frustrating, emotional (like crying emotional), and a constant game of camouflage and balance. I didn’t realize how much time and energy I spent trying to feel comfortable in my own clothes…until I didn’t have to anymore. In this episode, I’m talking closet clean outs, the sudoku packing method, “wish” clothes, and the unexpected freedom that comes when getting dressed stops hurting.

Episode 13 is a little different. Join me on my first adventure…taking and being on Wegovy, on vacation. While traveling, I recorded daily voice diaries as I navigated restaurant portions, vacation treats, cocktails, and food timing. I share the daily observations (the good, the bad, the ugly) and the lessons I learned along the way. By the end of the trip, one realization stood out above all the others: I simply can’t keep up with how everyone else eats anymore.

Episode 12 recaps Week 4 and the final shot in my first box of Wegovy 1.0. This week, I realized the scale and I have a very complicated relationship…it’s measuring more than my weight. I’ve gained one pound, and let that number completely dictate my motivation, my mood, and how feel about my progress…even though I’ve already come so far! Join me as I unpack why one number still has so much power over me.

Week 3 on dose 1.0 feels different. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve still got symptoms…the usual suspects of fullness and fatigue…buts strange things are happening to me. Listen and find out what happens when the weight loss starts becoming more visible and believable.

Welcome to Episode 10! I’m so excited and grateful to all of you for allowing me to get this far in my podcasting journey. There is so much more to come. But let’s get into my first two weeks moving up a dose from 0.5 to 1.0. I’m doubling my dose again. At this point I should know better that when I move up a dose, things change, symptoms come back…but saying that and living with daily change are two different things. Week 1, I’m so sick I’m having trouble discerning Wegovy symptoms from sick symptoms, but what is sneaking up on me…delayed fullness…what does that mean…listen in and find out what it is and how I beat it. Happy Listening!!!

I want to quickly pause the shot update sequence and talk about something that’s been on my mind since mid-January. It’s one word…Accountability. I’m going to describe what it has meant to me all these years and how Wegovy has changed that perspective. When you really think about it, what does accountability mean to you when it comes to traditional diet and exercise? How has it been shaped and defined for you? Maybe your version of accountability is the same as me…living right next to shame in my brain. Let’s discuss how Wegovy has broken through the shame and erased the mental noise trying to force me to behave.

Let’s finish out the box of Wegovy dose 0.5. Weeks 3 & 4 is where real life really showed up. I’m 8 weeks in and starting to feel like it’s part of my routine…like I’ve got this all figured out! But, these two weeks were met with some physical challenges I had to navigate while still managing Wegovy. Because real life doesn’t pause for this journey…work gets busy, you’re juggling your time, you get sick, and things don’t go perfectly. Life can get messy…but Wegovy still shows up for me!

Let’s shift back into the actual shot experience and discuss my first two weeks on Wegovy dose 0.5. The nausea came back…hard, but as the medication began to assert itself, the biggest discovery was the realization of how I’d really gained weight in the first place and the moment I realized my rock, my WW, wasn’t sustainable for me anymore.