Obesity is a state of mind body illness. As with all chronic medical conditions, effective management based on partnership between a highly motivated patient and a committed team of health proffesionals is the key to dealing with it. Obesity needs a strong mental wellness and behavioural control.
This is about a 50-year-old sluggish lady suffering from weight gain, disturbed sleep and choking during sleep. To compound matters, her history of binge calorific eating caused rapid gain resulting in body mass index of 32.
Obesity is pan endemic and responsible for all cardio respiratory, sleep and psychological disturbances. We create a positive mindset by cognitive behavioural therapy, a mental wellness by stimulus control techniques and non food rewards. Stimulus control involves changing the mindset towards food stimulus by positive thought insertion. Every thought has a stimulus, stimulus brings a perceptive change in mind and perception brings behavioural changes. Behavioural changes bring actions. Action involves sinful eating. We change the thought and we call it happy thoughts and happy mind. Normally it involves 12 sessions over a period of six weeks. Structured programme involves self monitoring of caloric intake and physical activity, goal setting, stimulus control, non food rewards and relapse prevention.
Follow this structured protocol
1. Two glasses of water in the morning.
2. 30 minutes of brisk walking.
3. Ten minutes of breathing exercises.
4. Specific stretches using stretch bands.
5. Fifty abdominal crunches.
6. Rest and relaxation through the Corpus pose.
7. A cup of green tea.
8. Two atta roti, low carbohydrate high protein chapatti. The atta should have chana, millets, kuttu, bran, maize, fenugreek seeds. Green vegetable cooked in one tea spoon full oil (canola or olive oil) and one small bowl of homemade paneer.
9. Mid morning smoothie with tomato, amla, orange, gourd, guava, lemon, mint and ginger without water
10. One bowl bhuna chana pre lunch
11. Two diet fibre chapattis/ one bowl of parboiled rice, one small bowl of boiled mixed legumes, one small bowl yogurt and mint chutney
12. Evening, roasted snacks with green tea
13.15 minutes of chaotic breathing
14. Pre-dinner: vegetable soup
15. Dinner with baked beans/ fish/ lean meat/ soya chap with yogurt
16. Listen music and do OM chanting
17. Follow right pre-sleep habits
18. Sleep well.
This lady lost ten kilograms in five months and became very alert and active in the day.
Her sleep disordered breathing got corrected and in fact she lost 14 kgs with her motivation and self discipline.
(The writer is founder, SAANS Foundation)
