Ottawa Hospital Core Program (OHCP) week 2 was mostly an introduction to how the program would work. The information session started off with a bit of an ice breaker (get to know your group) and then covered off a pile of do’s and don’ts and Q&A on the program overall. 

One of the key take aways from the session is that group members are being encouraged to share their experiences but only to a point. Anything that overflows into an area the staff feels is essentially medical advice they are trying to discourage so that their information, or information from the doctor, is taken into consideration first. 

I get that. Certainly that is part of the whole reason for being here.

At the same time personal experience shouldn’t be discounted simply because it didn’t come from the Doctor. Part of a healthy discussion on weight management needs to include how to separate out different points of view and why certain perspectives should be considered less subjective than others. Shutting down conversation like that simply drives it underground, and to my way of thinking, does more harm than good in the long run.

The visit with the Doctor was fairly positive. I was worried going in what type of sermon I was going to get but the Doctor was very supportive and didn’t denigrate me which is a welcome change. A little bit of push back can be a positive thing. So I’m looking forward to those types of discussions in the weeks to come.

This coming Thursday we receive our first supply of the Optifast 900 meal replacement. I’ve been a bit on the bad side this past week leading up to this point. Starting today however I’m starting to reduce my calorie load in a lead up to Friday. So hopefully will be able to start from a position of already being near ketosis before beginning.

The next 18 weeks are going to be very rough. Especially the first 3-4 days which is where the carb addiction shakes are going to kick in. So here is me, on the raggedy edge. If I can get by that part then the next hurdle is in 3 -4 weeks as the most I’ve ever managed to keep a low calorie diet going was for 21 days back in April. This one is going to be over 90. Zhu wo hao yun.

— Kevin