Hi Anne,

Based on what you've said I offer this:  Become a frequent poster here. Read
and learn.  Ask questions. Also, get your mind focused on your weight loss.
One way to do this that has worked for me is to READ, READ, READ.  Buy
books, use the web, read medical studies, etc. In a sense, what goes in,
what fills your thoughts, dictates who you are.   Focus your thoughts on LC
eating and exercise and slowly but surely, you'll break through. You'll make
mistakes from time to time, but you have to keep at it relentlessly.  A few
mistakes here and there don't mean a whole lot if you've been doing "right"
the majority of the time.  Remember, practice truly does make "perfect" (in
terms of getting to your goals).

You must use your mind to learn how not to react when stressed.  Stress is a
part of life and eating as a response to it is a learned behavor, IMO. So,
one way to deal with it is to change up your game plan. Note the times when
you eat and try to be doing something else then, like going for a walk or
dancing.  Also, try to keep other kinds of food around - veggies are really
low calorie and if you must eat, eat low carb veggies. Yeah, that's not
nearly as enjoyable as eating some of the other stuff, but you get a
nutritional bonus and you end up eating way fewer calories.  That
"emotional" eating can end up blowing the hell out of any weightloss effort,
so you must find an effective way to deal with it.  Note that what works for
me might not be right for you, so you'll have to use your own mind to find
what does work for you.

Others will be here to offer suggestions.

Finally, you need to become skilled at LC living.  That takes time.

Well, then, welcome!  I also tend to be an emotional eater.  I found
that low-carb somehow helped with that, I think because high-carb foods
were actually contributing to my mood swings.  I'd get a sugar or starch
"high" and then I'd crash a few hours later, and get all cranky and
ravenous, then pig out again and restart the whole cycle.  

My best piece of advice when starting, whatever plan it is, don't worry
about the amount of food you're eating in the first week or two.  You
may get very strong cravings for sugary or starchy foods, just shut them
up with as much meat, cheese, or low-carb veggies as it takes, eat as
often as you need to, nip those cravings in the bud before they pop up.  
Don't even worry about losing weight at first, just worry about killing
the carb "addiction" and then focus on portion sizes later, once you
feel in control of your eating.  

If your body works anything like mine, you may find that on low-carb you
just naturally feel satisfied with less food and you won't even have to
try in order to eat less.

anne,
welcome to the group.
please feel free to read and post daily.

This seems to be the problem many people have.  You can learn to cope other
ways besides sitting down and eating.  Pop a piece of sugarless gum in your
mouth when you're stressed. It seems to work for some people.  Get off your
butt and take a nice walk, pushing the baby in the carriage which will also
burn calories.  Change your habits.  :o)

I hope you can find what you need here.

LW
Re-Start - 7/5/06 - 170lbs
Today - 156 lbs
Goal - 130 lbs
Height: 5'6" Age: 61
Don't worry about what people think,
they don't do it very often.
===================================