I finally got to talk to my doctor this week about my sleep study results and she has ordered another test, this time with a CPAP mask to see if my sleep issues can be resolved. I have a number of things going on which lead to my sleeplessness, but Apnea seems to be the trigger. Even as I write this, it is 4:30 a.m. and I have been wide awake for almost 2 hours. I’m hoping for a resolution soon as I can feel the increased cravings and appetite in general as my number of restful hours goes down. I really don’t like the idea of looking like Darth Vadar while I’m sleeping and my wife feels the same, but if it means I get to sleep the whole night through and sleep deeply I’ll try anything. In case you aren’t aware, the CPAP mask is a device which straps to your face while you are sleeping and provides constant air pressure to keep the throat open. Hence, you end up looking like some sort of cyborg or something.

In other news, I got my new Medifast shipment and I broke into the box of Oatmeal Raisin bars. I can honestly say these are my favorite of all of the food products offered by Medifast. For me they fill in that craving for sweet foods and just taste good overall. I wouldn’t say I have ever been a sweet tooth, most of my weight came from fast food, drinking beer and other bad eating habits. But, from time to time I do crave a bit of the sweet stuff and having products like the Medifast bars around really helps to curb these cravings.

Speaking of sweet things, I can honestly say that I have only had 3 sodas all week since vowing to give them up. I’m drinking more than a half gallon of water a day and I usually only have a soda with my Lean & Green meal. I thought I would miss it a lot more than I do, but I just don’t have the cravings for it I once did. I find that having one 12 oz. can during the day more than satisfies my needs. On a less positive note, I thought cutting my caffeine intake to next to nothing would help me sleep, but I’m finding my sleep patterns unchanged.

Finally, I can say I learned something new last night while having Valentine’s Day dinner with my wife. She went to the store yesterday and got shrimp, steak and asparagus for our dinner, which I thought was super sweet of her to do. We cooked it all up and sat down to eat. It didn’t take long for me to realize we had more food then we needed, but I was unable to put the brakes on until it was too late. My previously cavernous stomach was hurting from over-eating, which by comparison to my previous food intake was still only a mid-sized meal. Apparently my stomach has shrunk substantially and that serves as a good reminder to not over-eat. It reminds me that I need to exercise portion control now and for the rest of my life…not just while I’m on the Medifast Program. After all, if I’m not learning good habits of food choice and portion sizes, what good will this whole experience do me in the long run?