Hunkering down for Autumn, project Garage and an easy nutty flapjack crumble recipe!

flidfit Air Fryer, Disability, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Recipes, Sweet Treats, Thalidomide, Weightloss Medication

This week has been exceptionally quiet, but I think I needed it! I’m still recovering from our recent trip to Sweden and our three days in London, both of which were pretty full-on, especially given the less-than-ideal weather (in London’s case).

The only things I’ve really had on this week have been my usual visits from Sam, who helps me two mornings a week. We’ve managed plenty of cooking and a few little errands, including filling the car with diesel.

Oh my goodness, when did diesel become so expensive? Thankfully, I don’t need to fill my car very often, but when I do, I always fill it completely (70 litres). That’s always at least £100!

On Wednesday, my lovely sister Yvette came to work for me for the day, and we continued with what I’ve christened Project Garage.

This involves sorting through the contents of our extremely cluttered garage, trying to create some semblance of order. We’re grouping things that belong together, finding suitable homes for items we don’t need to access regularly, and making sure the things I or others need frequently are visible and easy to reach.  We’ve also been giving away items we don’t need on Facebook Marketplace.

Yvette has done a remarkable job in just two sessions, although I suspect we still have a few more to go before we reach garage perfection!

Of course, plenty still needs to be stored in there, including no fewer than four wheelchairs!

Which brings me neatly to something else. I’ve decided to sell one of my powered wheelchairs.

It was, unfortunately, a rather expensive mistake when I bought it two years ago. It’s a lovely-looking wheelchair and performs brilliantly on gravel, but that’s about where its advantages end!

When it comes to getting into buildings or sitting comfortably at dining tables, it simply doesn’t work for me.

So, reluctantly, I’ve decided it’s time to let it go. I’ll probably be lucky to get back 50% of what I paid, but at least selling it will free up a substantial amount of space in the garage.

Growing older with Thalidomide

On three mornings this week, I’ve also been enjoying watching a live stream of a major international conference for Thalidomiders, being held in the Netherlands.

More than 400 people have attended, and although watching online isn’t quite the same as being there, I’ve found the presentations fascinating.

Much of the conference has focused on the challenges of growing older with the effects of Thalidomide, as well as the work being done by Thalidomide organisations worldwide, including those in Sweden, Japan, Germany, Ireland and the UK.

Some particularly interesting subjects have included the increasing prevalence of falls as we age, planning for surgery and post-operative recovery, and the challenges of needing additional support after years of managing independently.

Participants also duscussed what happens when someone has always relied on support from their partner, only to find that their partner is getting older too and may suddenly need care themselves. It’s something that perhaps none of us gave much thought to when we were younger, but which becomes increasingly relevant as the years go by.

It’s been lovely spotting some familiar faces on stage, and part of me wishes I’d been there in person. However, I’m also quite happy to have been able to dip in and out from the comfort of home!

I suspect the evenings involved plenty of socialising, making for some very long days, and I’m not sure I’d have had the energy for all of that at the moment.

The conference venue certainly looked stunning. It was held in Egmond aan Zee, on the Dutch coast, right beside a glorious sandy beach.

Perhaps another time I’ll make it there in person, but for now I’ve been very grateful for the opportunity to watch remotely and benefit from the knowledge and experiences being shared.

Autumn, winter and comfort food

I have to say, I’m rather enjoying the arrival of the colder months.

Of course, I’m sad to see the sunshine and the lovely weather we’ve enjoyed this year disappearing, but there’s something I really love about hunkering down for autumn and winter.

I absolutely love winter cooking.

Recently, I’ve been enjoying cauliflower cheese, mashed potatoes and one of my all-time favourite vegetable combinations, mashed swede and carrot.

Not only is it delicious, but it’s full of fibre and relatively low in calories. I often use it to bulk out my meals instead of having larger portions of more calorie-dense carbohydrates.

I’ve also been making apple crumble with Sam’s help, using my own rather delicious flapjack-style topping.

Instead of the traditional method of rubbing butter into flour, which is impossible for me, I’ve developed an easier way to make it.

I combine Demerara sugar, spelt flour, porridge oats, chopped pecans and macadamia nuts in a bowl.

In a glass measuring jug, I microwave some butter, add golden syrup, then tip in the dry ingredients. A quick mix with a knife, and the topping is ready to sprinkle over the apples. Well, stewed cooking apples, a few added sultanas and a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.  No need to add any sugar – the cinnamon and sultanas balance the tartness of the apples.

It’s so much easier, and the result is a wonderfully crunchy, nutty topping that’s more like flapjack than traditional crumble.

I reckon it’s probably a little healthier too, although I’m not pretending that butter, syrup and nuts are calorie-free! But it’s certainly delicious, and I much prefer it to a conventional crumble topping.

Nutty Flapjack Crumble Topping – 179 calories per portion (fruit base not included)

Makes 6 portions | Preparation: 10 minutes | Baking: 25–35 minutes

A deliciously crunchy, buttery crumble topping packed with oats, spelt flour and chopped nuts. It’s more like a flapjack than a traditional crumble, and it’s incredibly easy to make.

Best of all, no rubbing butter into flour! This is my adaptation of a traditional crumble topping, which makes it much easier for me to prepare.

Ingredients

  • 75g rolled porridge oats
  • 50g wholemeal spelt flour
  • 15g pecan nuts, roughly chopped
  • 15g macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
  • 30g Demerara sugar
  • 40g salted butter
  • 40g golden syrup

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan).
  2. In a large measuring jug or mixing bowl, combine the porridge oats, spelt flour, chopped pecans, chopped macadamia nuts and Demerara sugar.
  3. Place the butter in a separate microwave-safe jug and heat gently until melted.
  4. Add the golden syrup to the melted butter and stir until combined.
  5. Tip the dry ingredients into the butter and syrup mixture.
  6. Using a table knife, mix everything together until all the dry ingredients are coated. The mixture should be slightly sticky and crumbly.
  7. Sprinkle the topping evenly over your prepared fruit, without pressing it down too firmly.
  8. Bake for approximately 25–35 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and crisp and the fruit is bubbling underneath.
  9. Allow to stand for a few minutes before serving.

My tips

I particularly love this topping over stewed Bramley cooking apples, sultanas and a generous sprinkling of cinnamon – but it would also work beautifully with pears, plums or a mixture of apples and berries.

The combination of oats, nuts and golden syrup creates a lovely flapjack-like texture, with a satisfying crunch.

It’s also much easier to make than a traditional crumble because you don’t need to rub cold butter into flour. Simply mix the dry ingredients, melt the butter, add the syrup and combine!

The oats, nuts and wholemeal spelt flour provide fibre and some useful nutrients, although the butter, sugar and syrup mean it’s still very much a treat.

You can also cook this topping in the airfryer.  Bake setting, 160 degrees, 9-10 minutes until golden.

Delicious served warm with custard, Greek yoghurt or a little ice cream!

Mounjaro maintenance

My weight is stable, and I’m still finding that my 7.5 mg dose of Mounjaro suits me well.

Occasionally, I experience a very slight feeling of nausea, although I’m not even sure that’s the right description. Perhaps it’s hunger? Who knows!

Whatever it is, I’ve found that having a big drink of squash seems to settle it almost immediately, so it’s certainly not causing me any problems.

I’m pleased that things are continuing to feel stable, and I’m very happy with how maintenance is going.

And on that note, let’s get on to this week’s weight report!

This week’s weigh-in:

Weight this week: 56.05kg (8 st 11.6lbs)
Weight last week: 55.75 kg (8 stone 11.6 lbs)

Weekly gain: 0.3 kg (10.6 oz)

100% – 8 months, 20 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8 st 7 lb – 8 st 13 lbs)

Beefeaters, Boats and a Brilliant Few Days Away

flidfit Disability, Eating Out, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Travel, Travel & Holidays, Weightloss Medication, YouTube

We’ve had a lovely week, with lots of socialising!

After seeing Leo Sayer and having a late night last weekend, we were grateful for a nice, quiet Sunday before heading to London on Monday to spend two nights and three days with our friend Mary.

We took a different route to London than I’ve taken before. Instead of taking the usual 25-minute train from Reading to Paddington, we travelled from Reading to Waterloo, which takes around an hour and a half. The longer journey is because the train stops at about 24 stations. However, it was a very pleasant journey. The train was spacious, very accessible and, best of all, there were hardly any other passengers. Perfect! At Waterloo, it was a 15-minute walk to our hotel on the Embankment, where Mary was waiting patiently for us.

As the weather was looking good, we decided to make the most of it and visit the Tower of London, somewhere none of us had been for around 30 years. We made enquiries about the hop-on, hop-off sightseeing buses, one of which stopped right outside our hotel. Would it accommodate two powered wheelchairs? The answer was yes. So off we went, enjoying a tour of London with a recorded commentary explaining the landmarks we passed. It was a lovely way to travel, and it was interesting to hear about the buildings and places we passed.

At the Tower, we stopped for coffee and something to eat before going inside.

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We spent a good couple of hours exploring, watching the squirrels and the famous Tower ravens, and generally taking in the atmosphere of this extraordinary place.

Of course, we couldn’t visit without seeing the Crown Jewels. We made our way into the rather gloomy Jewel House, where the magnificent collection was on display. They really were incredible.

Back outside, we chatted with a Beefeater and other staff members before heading back to catch the sightseeing bus to our hotel.

By then, the sun was setting, the temperature had dropped considerably, and it was getting dark. We’d certainly made the most of our first day.

Unfortunately, the following morning brought a complete change in the weather. It was raining, grey and thoroughly miserable.

Undeterred, after a good breakfast, we set off on what turned out to be something of a nightmare journey to Greenwich Park.

None of us had been there before, and we particularly wanted to see the Royal Observatory and the famous Greenwich Meridian Line, from which Greenwich Mean Time takes its name.

Our journey involved travelling part of the way on the Jubilee Line, which was absolutely horrendous! It was noisy, extremely crowded and not an experience I’d be in any hurry to repeat. Thankfully, we only had to endure a few stops before getting off and transferring to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), which was much more comfortable and enjoyable.

View from the Observatory

We changed trains twice, travelling on three different DLR trains before finally arriving in Greenwich. From there, it was another 20-minute walk up into the park. By then, the rain had really set in, and everything looked grim and dismal. We decided a cup of coffee in the park café was in order before taking a few photographs and admitting defeat. Rather than stay longer and get cold and wet, we headed back towards the centre of Greenwich and took refuge in the indoor market.

Our return journey, however, turned out to be a revelation. We discovered something called an Uber Boat, which I’d never seen or even heard of before. It was an absolutely brilliant way to travel, especially for wheelchair users.

Instead of battling our way back through the Underground and changing trains, we enjoyed a wonderfully straightforward, accessible journey along the River Thames from Greenwich to Westminster.

What a difference.

By the time we arrived back at the hotel, we were all thoroughly exhausted. Poor Mary was also suffering from a nasty cough and cold, which certainly hadn’t helped matters. We sent poor Mary off to bed early to nurse her cold, while Mike and I enjoyed a lovely meal out. We weren’t exactly party animals, though. We were both fast asleep before 9 pm!

On our final day in the capital, following another good breakfast, we crossed the Golden Jubilee Bridge towards Charing Cross. The wind was blowing a gale, and it was raining again!

I’d packed plenty of warm clothes but, unbelievably, nothing waterproof. In London. In October! So we bought a couple of disposable ponchos, which conveniently covered both us and our wheelchairs. Very fetching.

We continued to Covent Garden for a wander around the market and a coffee before heading to the Cambridge Theatre for the matinee performance of Matilda the Musical. What I hadn’t considered was that a midweek matinee of Matilda would be packed with schoolchildren. They were generally well-behaved, but there was inevitably plenty of fidgeting and sweet-packet rustling, making it hard to hear at times. Nevertheless, the performance was fantastic, particularly the incredibly talented young cast.

Afterwards, we collected our bags from the hotel and made our way back to Waterloo for the train to Reading, followed by a bus home. We finally arrived around 8.30 pm, thoroughly exhausted and very pleased to be back in a warm, dry environment.

Since then, I’ve been recovering, catching up on laundry and getting back into my usual routine.

And what about my weight?

Well, I was pleasantly surprised to discover I hadn’t gained weight during our London adventure.

I’d certainly eaten more than usual and moved considerably less, spending most of the three days in my powered wheelchair. However, I think sticking to a substantial breakfast and a sensible evening meal, without snacking in between, helped.

Proof that I can still enjoy eating out and going away without undoing all my hard work.

This week’s weigh-in

Weight this week: 55.75 kg (8 stone 11 lbs)
Weight last week: 55.25 kg (8 stone 9 lbs)

Weekly gain: 0.5 kg (1 lb 1.6 oz)

100% – 8 months, 13 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8 st 7 lb – 8 st 13 lbs)

And finally…

I’ve uploaded a new YouTube video sharing some of our London adventures, along with an update on my Mounjaro maintenance journey.

Why not pop over to my channel and take a look?

A Kiss from Leo Sayer? Well, That Was Unexpected!

flidfit Disability, Eating Out, Emotional well being, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Weightloss Medication

Well, it’s certainly been a busy week!

The week began with another changeover of Mum’s live-in carers, which involved not only organising everything behind the scenes but also providing a taxi service to transport the outgoing and incoming carers to and from the railway station.

My sister Yvette also came over for a day to work for me, and we (well, she…) got an incredible amount done! We tackled the garage, sorted through things, rearranged everything, and generally had a good clear-out. By the end of the day, we’d taken two carloads of unwanted items to the recycling centre. Very satisfying indeed!

One evening last week, we were out with friends for a fundraising quiz night at a brewery.  We didn’t score particularly well, but it was great fun, and it was lovely catching up with our friends.

Then came the highlight of the week!

My friend Mary is visiting from Melbourne, Australia, before travelling on to the Netherlands. We spent the day together, giving her a tour of Reading. Thankfully, the weather was beautiful, with glorious sunshine, although it was bitterly cold.


Later that evening, we headed off to The Anvil in Basingstoke to see Leo Sayer in concert.

Now, Mary is a HUGE Leo Sayer fan. She’s seen him perform numerous times in Australia and has even met him on several occasions. When she found out he was touring the UK while she was here, she told me we simply HAD to get tickets. So, being the dutiful friend that I am, I managed to get some!

I must admit, I went with few expectations. I mean, Leo Sayer’s music is a bit like ABBA’s, isn’t it? Pleasant enough, inoffensive, and you know most of the songs.

Well, how wrong could I have been?

He was incredible!

At 78, Leo Sayer still has an extraordinary voice, bags of energy, and a wonderful ability to engage his audience. He gave the performance absolutely everything, and by the end, the whole theatre was on its feet.

He completely blew my expectations out of the water!

Afterwards, Mary was determined to wait at the stage door to meet him. Having done this several times before, she knew the drill.

Now, I was happy to go along with this plan, except for one small problem.

It was FREEZING!

About 30 people were waiting when we first arrived. An hour later, the queue had dwindled to around 15, and there we were, still at the back…

But it was absolutely worth the wait.

Leo was such a lovely man. He took time to speak to everyone, showed a genuine interest in what we had to say and didn’t make anyone feel rushed.

And I even got a kiss from him! Although, rather unexpectedly, it landed on my lips… I’m still not entirely sure how that happened. I think we both turned our heads in the wrong direction at the exact same moment! Anyway, that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

And what about my weight?

Considering how busy the week has been, I think I’ve done reasonably well.

The pub quiz was in a brewery and involved approximately two pints of beer, one of which was rather strong! Interestingly, I didn’t feel particularly affected by the alcohol at the time, but when Friday morning arrived, I felt decidedly hungover. I rarely drink alcohol these days, so when I do, the effects can be quite startling. Clearly, my tolerance isn’t what it used to be, I was extremely grateful I had a quiet day planned the following day and didn’t need to go anywhere!

As for my Mounjaro, I think I’ve finally found the right balance.

I’m now taking 7.5 mg every seven days, and at long last I’m experiencing some decent appetite suppression. It took quite a bit of experimenting to get here, but I’m pleased with how things are going, and I intend to stick with this schedule for now.

This week’s weigh-in

Weight this week: 55.25 kg (8 stone 9 lbs)
Weight last week: 55.35 kg (8 stone 9 lbs)

Weekly loss: 0.10 kg (3½ ozs)

100% – 8 months, 6 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

All in all, a productive, sociable, and thoroughly enjoyable week, and there’s more to come! We’re off to London tomorrow to meet up with Mary again to make more happy memories together.

And I certainly didn’t expect to finish it having been kissed by Leo Sayer! 😂

An Expensive Search for a Good Night’s Sleep

flidfit Maintenance, Mounjaro, Pain, Travel, Weightloss Medication

Another quiet week. Again, I still don’t feel 100%. Whatever this virus is, I continue to feel exhausted with even minimal exertion. But life goes on. The good thing is that I’ve been sleeping well at night.

Speaking of sleeping well, on Monday, after my visit to Sweden, where I slept in possibly the most comfortable bed ever, we went off in search of a new bed.

I dread to think how much I’ve spent on beds and mattresses over the past ten or fifteen years. Let’s just say there have been quite a few changes! It’s all been about trying to find something that leaves me pain-free at night. I routinely get pain in my left hip, but lying on my right side isn’t particularly comfortable either, so I often end up taking some sort of painkiller in the middle of the night just to get me through.

However, the bed in Sweden was so comfortable that when I got home, I started doing a lot of research into why. One thing I discovered, which I’d never really thought about before, is that a lighter person generally needs a softer mattress. Which, when you think about it, makes absolute sense. At my weight, the recommendation seems to be for a soft mattress.

Apparently, there is also a cultural preference here in the UK for believing a firmer mattress is better for you. Whilst I wouldn’t describe our current mattress as particularly firm, it is firmer than the one I’d been sleeping on in Sweden – and that had given me some wonderfully comfortable nights.

We chose a very exclusive bed shop, rather than your typical high-street store, so I wasn’t expecting this to be a cheap purchase!

There were also a few practical things to consider. The bed height is particularly important when you’re only four foot eight, and almost as soon as we walked into the shop, I could see that might be a problem. We stopped beside what was probably the lowest bed in the entire shop and started chatting to the manager about what I needed—and what Mike needed too, because he prefers a firmer mattress and hadn’t found the beds in Sweden nearly as comfortable as I had.

As luck would have it, the bed we’d stopped beside—the one low enough for me to get on and off—had a mattress that could be made with different firmness levels on each side. One side was soft and the other medium. Better still, the soft side was on the side of the bed I normally sleep on.

On we hopped.

And I have to say, it was very, very comfortable. In fact, I kept chatting about my requirements while lying there, happily enjoying the luxury!

Then we moved on to the slightly less comfortable subject of price.

Naturally, I’d been careful to give the manager a ceiling budget considerably lower than what I might have been prepared to spend.

He then explained that the mattress I’d just been luxuriating on – without the bed – already cost more than my entire stated budget.

Oops.

He moved a few mattresses around and had me try an alternative that was more comfortable than the mattress we have at home, but nowhere near the comfort I’d just been enjoying on the very expensive one.

Hey ho.

He said he’d go away, crunch a few numbers and see what sort of deal he could come up with for us.

I suspect my carefully understated ceiling budget may be in some danger!

Anyway, to cut a long story short, I ended up buying the very expensive mattress—and the base it was sitting on!

The important thing about this base wasn’t just its height, though that obviously mattered to me. It was also a sprung base rather than a solid one, so effectively there’s another layer of cushioning underneath the mattress, adding to the overall comfort.

The new bed should arrive in about three weeks, and then we’ll find out whether it gives me the luxurious, pain-free night’s sleep I’m so longing for.

It certainly should do for the price I paid!

Thankfully, I can exchange the mattress if I’m not entirely happy with it within the first 100 days after delivery. So I’ll have plenty of time to decide whether all that luxury was really worth the money.

I’m keeping everything crossed that it is!

And that was about the extent of this week’s excitement!

Oh, apart from Sam returning to work after having two weeks off. It was really lovely to have her back, and we both admitted how much we’d missed each other. Normal service has resumed!

So, on to Mounjaro and my weight.

I’m still taking 7.5 mg of Mounjaro every seven days and, to be honest, I am beginning to notice some appetite suppression. Weirdly, though, unlike the last time I was taking Mounjaro, my chocolate cravings don’t seem to have disappeared – which is rather disappointing!

I’ll just have to resort to the tried-and-tested method of keeping it out of the house. If it’s not there, I can’t eat it!

So, my weight update for this week is as follows:

Weight this week: 55.35 kg (8 stone 9 lbs)
Weight last week: 55.50 kg (8 stone 9¼ lbs)
Weekly loss: 0.15 kg (⅓ lb)

100% – 7 months, 30 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

The Great House Clear-Out, From House Clearing to Hibernating

flidfit Disability, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Weightloss Medication

How’s this week been? Well, I can safely say that my week has been very, very quiet – and that was very welcome!

Last weekend, I helped my sister and brother-in-law empty a house they’d been renting out locally. Their tenant had moved out after almost 20 years and, although he’d left the place in good condition, he’d also left it full of things. We had just two days to get the house completely empty and dispose of everything.

At the start of Saturday, my sister admitted that she really didn’t think we were going to manage it. She’s still recovering from knee replacement surgery; I have a disability which impacts my ability to do much lifting and carrying, and there was no way my brother-in-law could do all the lifting and shifting on his own.

But this organiser was on the case!

I started by searching a local neighbourhood site for an extra pair of hands, while also booking several trips to our recycling centre over the weekend. Since Covid, visits have had to be pre-booked into timed slots. It serves a very large area and is extremely well run, but when you’re trying to empty an entire house in two days, it does require a certain amount of military planning!

The first person who responded to my plea for help turned out to be brilliant. We were, of course, offering him a decent hourly rate, but he certainly proved his worth.

This man was like a machine.

He was practical, didn’t hang about, came up with lots of useful suggestions and, most importantly, accompanied me on all six of my tip runs over the weekend. He loaded my car, then unloaded everything single-handedly at the recycling centre, taking enormous care throughout to make sure my car didn’t get damaged.

He was reliable, punctual and just didn’t stop. A human machine really is the only way to describe him!

Since then, I’ve left him a glowing review on the neighbourhood site and apparently, he’s been inundated with more offers of work. I’m delighted for him because it’s entirely down to his own hard work and reliability.

I could perhaps have done without quite such an energetic weekend, though. Ever since we got back from Sweden, I’ve been trying to shake off a cough and cold which has aggravated my breathing. When I weighed four and a half stone more than I do now, asthma was a regular feature of my life. Since losing the weight, it rarely bothers me, but a cough or cold can still trigger it, and that’s when I need to start using my inhaler again.

This bug has also left me feeling completely exhausted and drained, so two days of house clearing probably wasn’t ideal. But hey ho – we got the job done!

The wonderful Sam has been on holiday herself for the past fortnight, which has helped because it has given me an excuse to take things easy. She’s back next week, so my week will be “back to normal”.

In fact, my only organised activity this week was giving a talk on behalf of the charity I’m a trustee for. The charity supports volunteering in Reading, as well as the voluntary sector more generally, providing training, advice and support and helping organisations find volunteers.  The event was the annual “Older Persons’ Day” and was hosted within a local shopping centre.

My talk was all about my experience of volunteering. Unfortunately, my slot coincided with a choir performing elsewhere, so my audience was just four people! Nevertheless, the talk went down well, and I really didn’t mind popping into town to do something that required very little effort from me.

And, after last weekend, “very little effort” was exactly what I needed!

As for my weight, although I’ve continued to log everything I eat, I’ve struggled a bit this week with staying within my calorie allowance. There’s no reason for it and, if I’m honest, no real excuse either! I’ve simply eaten more than I intended to on several days.

The logging is still happening, though, which is important. I can see exactly where I’ve gone over rather than kidding myself that I haven’t. And, despite all that, I’ve actually managed a small loss this week – so I’ll certainly take that!

Weight this week: 55.50 kg (8 stone 9¼ lbs)
Weight last week: 55.65 kg (8 stone 10½ lbs)
Weekly loss: 0.15 kg (⅓ lb)

So, no excuses – I just need to rein things back in again.

100% – 201 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

Cakes, Steaks, Liquorice and the Great Fourth-Floor Flush!

flidfit Disability, Eating Out, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Travel, Travel & Holidays, Weightloss Medication

I’m back from my travels, and apologies for the slight delay in getting this post to you. I’d been really clever – or so I thought – and tried to get ahead of myself by scheduling a blog post to upload automatically while I was away. Unfortunately, I put the wrong date in!

Anyway, I had a super time in Copenhagen and Helsingborg in Sweden, which I’ll tell you a bit more about in a moment.

Since getting home, things have been rather busy. My partner Mike headed off to Turkey for a week, and then my sister and her husband arrived to stay with me for three nights.

Her visit had originally been planned around what we usually do when she comes to stay. She lives about two and a half to three hours’ drive away, so we normally make the most of our time together with lots of days out.

This time, however, things didn’t quite go to plan. She needed to empty a rental property ready for sale, and the deadline happened to coincide with her visit. So instead of enjoying lots of days out, we spent two days working hard clearing furniture and household items from the house.

I tasked myself with getting everything to the local recycling centre — six trips in all, three each day! My car would be loaded up, I’d drive to the recycling centre, queue, offload everything, drive back and have the car filled up all over again. Then off I’d go for another round.

As if that wasn’t enough, I also managed to come down with a bit of a cold. I was feeling decidedly under par, lacking in energy and generally not particularly great. It also affected my sleep, so I wasn’t getting a good night’s rest either — just when I could really have done with one!

We had an amazing time in Copenhagen, where we stayed for one night and spent the following morning exploring, visiting food halls and the Round Tower, which,  having been built in 1642, was surprisingly very accessible for my powered wheelchair!

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The following afternoon, we took the one-and-a-half-hour train journey to Helsingborg, our next destination. Helsingborg is a city on the western coast of Sweden, overlooking the narrow stretch of water separating Sweden from its very close neighbour, Denmark.

My friend (Tina) was determined that we should see as much as possible of the beautiful area in which she lives – and there was certainly plenty to see.

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The weather was definitely on our side. We had very little rain and plenty of sunshine, although being that bit further north, it was slightly cooler than we were used to back home in southern England with an added fresh sea breeze.

Helsingborg was just lovely, with a wonderful mix of culture and history, beautiful buildings and gardens to explore. Despite it being September, there was still plenty of colour around, including some gorgeous displays of roses and dahlias.

One thing that fascinated us was the Swedish enthusiasm for cold-water swimming. And when I say cold, I mean cold! I felt chilly enough standing beside the sea, never mind actually getting into it.

Helsingborg has a long tradition of kallbad, or cold bathing, with traditional bathhouses built out over the water. People warm themselves in the sauna and then walk down steps straight into the sea for a swim or a quick dip, before heading back into the warmth of the sauna.

And modesty doesn’t necessarily come into it either! We actually saw people swimming completely naked at one of the kallbads in Helsingborg – including older swimmers who seemed entirely untroubled by either the cold water or the lack of clothing.

Apparently, alternating between a hot sauna and a freezing dip in the sea is considered wonderfully invigorating.

I was quite happy to take their word for it and observe this particular Swedish tradition from a safe distance — fully clothed!

We also got to visit my friend’s apartment, where I finally met her 17-year-old cat in person! She’s a familiar face because she often comes to say “hello” when we’re chatting on video calls, so it was rather nice to meet her properly at last.

Our hotel was excellent, apart from one small snag, which I’ll come to in a moment! All of our travelling was actually very straightforward, but you know how it is – travelling takes it out of you. There’s all the hanging around at airports and navigating unfamiliar train stations, and when you’re reliant on lifts and travelling with a wheelchair, there’s always that extra layer of planning (and anxiety) involved. Accessibility was generally very good, although not entirely without its problems.

And then there was our hotel.  Our hotel was perfect in almost every way. It was only about a five-minute walk from Helsingborg’s main train station and overlooked the sea and the ferry terminal.

Ferries run regularly across the narrow stretch of water between Helsingborg and Helsingør in Denmark, with the crossing taking only about 20 minutes. We made the trip ourselves during our stay, which felt rather novel – popping over to another country for a few hours!

However, one rather memorable incident happened at the hotel.

All of the toilets operated on a vacuum system, rather like those on an aeroplane. Press the button and, with an almighty WHOOSH, everything disappears at great force – and with a noise that certainly doesn’t go unnoticed!

When the toilets on our floor suddenly stopped flushing, it was fairly obvious that something had gone wrong. Thankfully, they were still usable, but we had to wait until the following morning for the problem to be fixed.

And that’s when things became rather amusing. Presumably, everyone on the fourth floor had been waiting to test whether their toilet was working again because, once the system sprang back to life, an extraordinary succession of loud WHOOSHES seemed to come from rooms all around us.

And so it became known as The Great Fourth-Floor Flush of 2026.

Thankfully, normal service had resumed – although for a short while it sounded as though the entire fourth floor was being sucked out to sea!

Thankfully, that was the end of our plumbing excitement and the toilets behaved themselves perfectly well for the rest of our stay!

One thing that really stood out was how helpful people were, both in Copenhagen and Sweden. Of course, it helps enormously that so many people speak excellent English, but we found that people were only too willing to help if they saw us struggling to find somewhere or work out how to do something.

Travelling with a wheelchair in an unfamiliar place can sometimes add an extra layer of complication, particularly when you’re trying to find an accessible route, a lift or the right way onto public transport. Several times, people simply noticed that we might need a hand and offered to help without us even having to ask.

Those little acts of kindness make such a difference when you’re travelling – and they certainly added to our enjoyment of the trip.

In terms of Mounjaro, I deliberately spaced out my injections so that I didn’t have to take my pen with me to Sweden. And while I was away, I certainly indulged!

Since coming home, I’ve taken a 7.5mg injection, and I’m really pleased to be experiencing the kind of appetite suppression I had when I was taking Mounjaro before. My weight chart has started to respond accordingly.

That’s not to say I didn’t come back from Scandinavia carrying a few extra kilos! But I’ve largely ignored that, got straight back on track and, as I write this, I’m now only about half a kilo heavier than I was before I went away. I’m very confident that will quickly disappear.

And actually, I can live with half a kilo. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and ate things I wouldn’t normally eat at home.  Breakfast for one, since it was included in our hotel package.  Then there were cakes, some lovely steaks and plenty of liquorice, which the Scandinavians seem to absolutely love – so do I!

For me, that’s what maintenance is about. I don’t want to go away on holiday worrying about every mouthful or feeling guilty because I’ve enjoyed something different. I enjoyed the food, enjoyed the holiday, enjoyed the company of Tina and her PA,  came home a little heavier, but simply got back to my usual routine. No panic, no guilt – just back on track.

Weight this week: 55.5kg (8 stone 9¼lbs)
Weight September 12th: 55kg (8 stone 10¼lbs)

Weekly loss/gain: +0.5kg (+1lb)
100% – 7 months 17 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

Getting Ahead Before Getting Away

flidfit Disability, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Travel, Travel & Holidays

This will be a very short blog post, as I’m currently travelling in Copenhagen and Helsingborg, Sweden. I thought it would be useful just to touch base, though, in case you are eagerly anticipating my usual weekly blog post. I wouldn’t want to let you down!

So, how has this week been? Well, mostly I’ve been trying to get way ahead with life admin because I know that once we get back to the UK in a week’s time, I’ll hit the ground running.

Some of the things I’ve been trying to sort out this week include arranging cover for the live-in carer who supports my mum while her usual carer takes some breaks at the end of the month and over Christmas, organising who is going to feed our cats and our fox while we’re away, and putting together an itinerary for a friend from Australia who is visiting next month and spending ten days in London.

We’re planning to get together with her while she’s here, and, as well as helping with hotel reservations, I’ve been sorting out tickets for a London theatre show – Matilda the Musical.

She was also extremely excited when we spoke last week to share news that Leo Sayer is doing a UK tour while she’s here. She must be his number one fan and has attended every single one of his tours in recent years. I’m not sure how many that is, as I’m not a huge fan myself, but she always seems to end up meeting the man himself!

Naturally, she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see him while she’s in the UK. The closest he’s getting to us is Basingstoke, which is quite handy, as Reading is roughly halfway between London and Basingstoke. It also means she’ll have the opportunity to drop in and visit my home in Reading.

I should probably mention that this friend is also a thalidomider, and I can’t help being impressed by the fact that she is travelling halfway around the world. She has very shortened arms and feet where her legs would normally be, and is a full-time wheelchair user, but remains incredibly independent and active. Goodness knows how she manages that huge long-haul flight. It isn’t something I would particularly want to do!

She’s stopping off in London on her way to the big international thalidomide congress taking place in the Netherlands in October.

I can’t remember whether I’ve mentioned the event before, but I’ve chosen not to go. I think I would find it rather overwhelming being among so many people, and I think I made the right call. The latest numbers, I believe, are around 480 people attending, although that will, of course, include carers, family members and others.

These days, I prefer doing things in smaller groups, where there’s more opportunity for in-depth, meaningful conversations. However, I completely understand why thalidomiders who don’t have many opportunities to meet others are making the trip. There are people travelling from America, Canada, Ireland, Sweden, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Japan and Australia – which gives you some idea of the scale of the event.

I’m quite happy to take a back seat on this one. I was instrumental in planning international events in 1992 and 1995, when I was much younger and had considerably more energy!

Mounjaro update.  I do feel that, at long last, I’m starting to experience some appetite suppression and a reduction in food noise from my current dose of Mounjaro. A 10mg pen should be delivered within a few days of my return.

I’m not bothering to take my medication with me this time. As we’re staying in different hotels, it just feels like too much hassle, and I’d worry about leaving the pen somewhere. Instead, I’m taking my usual Friday dose one day later, on Saturday, and will then take my next dose on the Sunday after we return. Hopefully that will see me through the week and limit the damage when it comes to food! I’m certainly not planning to spend my holiday worrying about every mouthful, but I will remain mindful as I don’t want to undo all the hard work I’ve put into maintaining my weight.

Anyway, that’s my quick update from Scandinavia. I’ll share some of the details of my trip on my return – assuming, of course, that I survive the life-admin avalanche waiting for me!

(PS. In my eagerness to be super-organised, I realised today I’d scheduled the blog post for the wrong date! So here it is anyway 5 days later than planned!)

In the meantime, here’s my weight report…

Weight this week: 55kg (8 stone 9¼lbs)
Weight last week: 55.60kg (8 stone 10½)

Weekly loss/gain: -0.5kg (-1lb)
100% – 6 months 26 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

I’m really pleased with that loss ahead of my time away, and I’m also liking the downward trajectory of my weight graph, back towards the middle of my maintenance range.

Screenshot

Duck, Downpours & a Dose of Mounjaro

flidfit Eating Out, Eating Out, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Vegeterian

This week has been fairly calm, with a few social activities thrown in, which is always nice and breaks the week up a little.

On Wednesday, my sister was here to work for me and, as part of her plan, we were going to do one of our community litter picks, which I organise (date, invitation sent, provide all the gear and collection bags).

When we were due to leave at 10.45 am, it was pouring with rain. As I hadn’t had an email from anyone confirming they were going to be there, I decided the coffee machine looked considerably more appealing and made myself a coffee instead.

Then there was a knock at the door.

It was a neighbour asking whether the litter pick was on. I explained my decision, and he told me he’d just come from the meeting place and that no one else was waiting there. That seemed to confirm I’d made the right call, so I went back to enjoying my coffee.

Then my phone rang.

It was somebody at our meeting place asking where I was and telling me that there were three other people waiting there with her!

Oops!

I polished off my coffee rather swiftly, and we rushed up the road. By then the rain had blown over, and it turned into a really nice event, with about five of us collecting litter and then seven or eight of us having coffee together in one of the cafés at the shopping parade afterwards.

I always really enjoy these events. It’s lovely to have the opportunity to meet neighbours, have a chat and find out a little bit more about them.

On Thursday evening, I’d organised a social gathering for my fellow trustees at the organisation I’m a trustee for. You’re probably beginning to spot a pattern here – I’m the organiser! 😂

We went back to the Rising Sun, a venue we’d used for a meeting in January, and enjoyed a really lovely meal. There were just six of us this time, which gave us another chance to chat and get to know one another a little better.

The food was really nice – and you know that, coming from me, it must have been above par! 😂 I chose pan-fried duck breast with a citrus sauce, dauphinoise potatoes, green beans and carrots, and it was delicious.

I even managed to swerve the dessert menu, opting instead for a floater coffee, which went down very well. I did, however, have a bottle of 4% fruit cider with my meal. It’s all about balance!

I wheeled into town in my wheelchair but, now that the evenings are beginning to draw in, Mike very kindly came and collected me afterwards.

I’m feeling rather bereft now because both of my sisters have disappeared off on their holidays. My younger sister (the one who helps me at home) has gone off to China for three weeks. That feels like an eternity!

My middle sister, meanwhile, is in Cornwall for two weeks, climbing with her husband -something they both really enjoy and do on a regular basis. She had knee replacement surgery in June, so this trip is a real test of endurance and whether she’s still got what it takes to climb up cliff faces;

Rather her than me!

Judging by the photographs she’s been sending, though, she’s doing all right.

Saturday brought yet another social occasion: our local neighbourhood summer picnic, held just across the road from where I live, on the university grounds.

Everyone takes along food to share, and we spend the afternoon having a natter and catching up with neighbours. Then, as tradition dictates, we have our annual game of rounders – odds versus evens.  I made some really simple cheese and tomato pinwheels, using shop-bought ready-rolled puff pastry, tomato pesto, herbs, grated Mozzarella, Cheddar, and Parmesan.

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I did manage to limit myself to a single bite of homemade carrot cake (my absolute favourite!).

Each year, as the neighbours get older, this gets funnier.  Most are in their 70s and 80s – but we do have a few younger newcomers, which is just as well.

This year, some of our more elderly players were allowed to use a runner – otherwise known as their grandchildren. 😂 The neighbour has an attempt at hitting the ball (often they miss!) and then their grandchild sprints off around the posts on their behalf.

I have absolutely no idea what the final score was, but that really doesn’t matter. It’s always great fun.

We’ve enjoyed some lovely sunshine this weekend, and I’ve been making the most of it, as I believe the weather is about to turn a little colder.

Something else has also been keeping me rather busy over the past 48 hours. Somebody reading this post will know exactly what I’m referring to here, but I’m planning to keep that a secret for now…  All will be revealed in due course… 😉

Okay, on to Mounjaro and my progress update.

I took my third 7.5 mg injection of Mounjaro on Friday and, finally, I appear to be experiencing some appetite suppression and a reduction in food noise.  Hurrah!

Its effects are still not as strong as they were when I was taking this dose originally, but we’re well on the way to getting there.

In the meantime, here’s my weight report…

Weight this week: 55.60kg (8st 10.6lbs)
Weight last week: 55.85kg (8st 11.2lbs)

Weekly loss/gain: -0.25kg (-½lb)
100% – 6 months 26 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

Mounjaro Maintenance: Am I Looking at It All Wrong?

flidfit Eating Out, Eating Out, Emotional well being, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Weightloss Medication

The week started off looking rather frantic, with visitors planned for three days running. However, for completely different reasons, the first two visits were postponed. And I have to admit, I was actually quite pleased!

Don’t get me wrong, I love having visitors and catching up with people, but three days in a row – all of which involved feeding several people – was beginning to feel like quite a lot of work. We were still living in piles of boxes whilst the utility room was being refurbished and – as always, these things seem to coincide with all the other regular, time-critical jobs that need doing. I had staff payroll to sort out ready for the end of the month, a submission to put together and circulate (more about that in a future post), and a draft agenda to prepare for a meeting at the beginning of September.

Once I’d got all those deadlines out of the way and two lots of visitors had cancelled, everything suddenly felt considerably calmer.

We did have friends here for lunch on Wednesday, but by then I had a fridge packed full of food I’d bought and prepared for all the visitors who hadn’t actually arrived, so at least feeding them wasn’t a problem!

The friend who came with her husband is someone I’ve known since primary school.  Her husband is a local man, so he and Mike had a fine old time reminiscing about bands, live music and various venues around town. It’s lovely when people discover they share that sort of history.

On Thursday, when Sam came for her regular visit to help me, we had the exciting task of putting everything back into the newly refurbished utility room. The decorating had been completed the day before, so these really were the final touches.

And actually, it was exciting!

There is something enormously satisfying about going through cupboards and getting rid of all those ancient bits and pieces that you know perfectly well you’re never going to use again. Does anybody even use shoe polish these days?

We consolidated all the cleaning products, disposed of things that were well and truly past their useful lives, sorted a box for a charity pick-up and reorganised everything into the cupboards. I’m really pleased with the finished result. All the disruption was definitely worth it, and the room is now much more practical, with a little more storage than we had before. There’s nothing quite like opening a cupboard and seeing everything neatly arranged inside. How long it will remain like that is another matter entirely!

Tuesday evening was our community get-together, which I’d organised for a couple of the local groups I’m involved with. There isn’t really much organising involved – it’s largely a case of advertising it and hoping that people actually turn up!

Last year’s gathering was very successful, with probably around 12 people dropping in during the evening. This year there were eight of us, although three were newcomers, which was lovely.

One first-time was clearly expecting something rather more grand and organised and arrived at the venue asking where our reserved table was. There wasn’t one! I’ve never bothered reserving a table because there’s usually plenty of seating, particularly when the weather is good enough for us to sit outside. I think I’d done too good a job on the invitation design!

I think she enjoyed herself nonetheless, and actually having a smaller group worked rather well because we could all sit around one table and hear what everyone else was saying.

The food was decidedly mediocre, but I did have a couple of pints of “Blackguard Nitro Stout” from a local brewery.  It was very nice indeed. Two pints later and I was ever so slightly tiddly! I drink alcohol so rarely these days that I clearly have absolutely no tolerance for it anymore.

This is the Bank Holiday weekend, and rather wonderfully, we have very little planned. That suits me perfectly. Even things like sorting out the utility room take quite a lot of energy – both physical and mental.

I must be getting old!

And so, on to Mounjaro.

There is still absolutely no noticeable change in terms of appetite suppression or a reduction in food noise.

I found myself giving myself a bit of a talking-to this morning because, in some ways, I keep thinking that the drug isn’t working.

But then I realised that perhaps I’m looking at it from the wrong perspective.

After a lifetime of needing to lose weight, I’ve become accustomed to judging success by whether the scales are going down. Week after week, for years, that was the objective.

But I’m not actually trying to lose weight anymore.

I’m supposed to be maintaining it.

And I’ve been successfully doing that for well over six months.

When I stopped and thought about it properly this morning, I realised just how extraordinary that is for me. Particularly when you don’t weigh very much in the first place and therefore don’t have a huge amount of wiggle room.

Since reaching my goal weight in January, my weight has remained within a range of around seven pounds – approximately 3.5kg.

For more than six months.

That is a huge achievement and, more importantly, something I have never managed before.

So perhaps the question shouldn’t simply be, “Is Mounjaro suppressing my appetite?”

Perhaps it should be, “Is Mounjaro helping me maintain my weight?”

And the answer to that is much harder to know.

I’m certainly still doing my part. I continue to log everything I eat, moderate my intake, try to reduce snacking between meals and weigh myself regularly.

But perhaps most importantly, I’m also trying to be kind to myself.

I’m an almost 64-year-old woman who can’t move very much, who is very short and who has spent more than 50 years of her life being overweight.

For the first time, I’m no longer carrying that weight.

And it feels good.

I took my second 7.5mg injection of Mounjaro on Friday 28th August, and for now I’m simply going to plod along and see how the land lies.

Maybe maintenance isn’t supposed to feel dramatic. Maybe the absence of anything happening on the scales is actually the whole point.

That’s something I’m still learning to get my head around.

Are you maintaining your weight on Mounjaro? How are you finding it? And what has the experience been like emotionally, as well as physically?

I’d genuinely love to hear how other people are getting on, because I’m sure we’re all very different – not just in the way our bodies respond, but in how we adjust mentally to the idea of no longer constantly trying to lose weight.

And perhaps also to the possibility that this little injection may, in one form or another, be part of our lives for a very long time.

This week’s weigh-in…

Weight this week: 55.85kg (8st 11.2lbs)
Weight last week: 56.55kg (8st 12.6lbs)

Weekly loss/gain: -0.7kg (-1.5lb)
100% – 6 months 19 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)

 

A Hotel Mix-Up, Matilda and Mounjaro

flidfit Disability, Eating Out, Eating Out, Maintenance, Mounjaro, Technology, Travel, Travel & Holidays, Weightloss Medication

My week began with a jolt. I’ve spent hours recently helping a wheelchair-using friend who is visiting London from Australia in October. She’ll be spending 12 nights in the capital and asked me to help her find a good accessible hotel in a convenient location from which to explore London.

My go-to hotel chain is Premier Inn, so I duly booked her a 12-night stay at the Premier Inn in Waterloo. This wasn’t quite as straightforward as the usual online booking process because any stay of more than nine nights has to be booked directly over the telephone.

I particularly wanted to put her into this hotel because I’ve stayed there myself, so I know it well. On that occasion I was staying with three or four other wheelchair-using friends, so I felt completely reassured that it would be perfect for her.

I sorted all of that weeks ago.

Then, this week, I realised I’d booked her into the wrong hotel!

Apparently, there are two Premier Inns in the Waterloo area, probably only about half a mile apart. The one I thought I’d booked was the one close to the river, with really easy access across the Thames into central London. The one I had actually booked was somewhere else entirely.

One particular detail should have alerted me when I made the booking. A warning said wheelchair access to some parts of the hotel involved a platform lift.

If you don’t know what one of these is, it’s one of those contraptions that often folds down alongside a flight of steps, usually at the entrance to a building. The wheelchair user rolls onto the platform and it then slowly glides up or down the steps.

I absolutely hate them!

Created using Chat GPT. I’d probably be laughing nervously rather than grimacing like that!! Haa haa!

For one thing, you generally have to find a member of staff to operate the thing, which is all very well if you have someone with you who can disappear inside and find somebody. More importantly, I always find using them slightly anxiety-inducing, however smooth and uneventful the short journey might be.

And there is always the very real concern that if the lift breaks down, there is no Plan B. If the steps are the only other way into the building, a wheelchair user simply can’t get in.

So, having felt rather smug about finding my friend a great deal at the perfect hotel, a flurry of frantic emails and a phone call or two followed as I tried to unravel everything.

Thankfully, it all ended well. There was still availability at the correct hotel and I managed to get the original booking changed.

Phew!

I don’t think most people have any idea how complicated something as seemingly simple as booking a hotel can become when you’re a wheelchair user. It isn’t enough to find somewhere in the right location at the right price. You need to know whether you can actually get through the front door, whether there are steps, whether the lifts are big enough, whether the accessible bedroom really is accessible and whether the bathroom will work for your particular needs. There are so many additional things to think about.

Anyway, onwards and upwards!

Mike and I have now booked ourselves into the same hotel for two nights during our friends’ stay so that we can spend some time with them. We’ve also booked tickets to see the stage version of Matilda, which we’re really looking forward to.

We’re also planning a trip to Greenwich together. It’s somewhere I’ve never visited before, although I’ve heard it’s beautiful, and my friend’s partner particularly wants to visit the Greenwich Meridian and stand on the famous line dividing east from west. It should make for a really enjoyable day out and it will be lovely to explore somewhere completely new together.

After that rather frantic start to the week, everything else has felt positively sedate!

The utility room refurbishment is now almost complete and I’ve managed to get most of the contents of the cupboards back into their rightful places. It’s amazing how much stuff you can cram into a utility room until somebody empties all the cupboards and deposits it around the rest of the house!

Everything should be completely finished next week, with just a lick of paint and some silicone sealant left to apply. I’m really pleased with how it has all turned out and, after living with the old utility room for so many years, it feels lovely to have everything looking fresh and new.

Another highlight of my week was taking Mum and her care team out for lunch. I arranged it partly to give everyone the chance to get together socially and get to know one another a little better, but also to say thank you for all the support they’ve provided during Mum’s radiotherapy treatment.

It turned out to be a really lovely occasion.

We went to the Butt Inn at Aldermaston and the food was way above average – really tasty and, even better, not ridiculously expensive. Everyone seemed to enjoy having the chance to chat away from the usual caring environment and get to know each other a little better.  My choice was a very tasty and perfectly cooked trout fillet.

Mum thoroughly enjoyed herself too. She kept telling everyone how grateful she was for all the support they’d given her, which was lovely to hear. All in all, the lunch was a huge success, and I was really pleased that I’d organised it.

On Saturday, we took part in a community litter pick along our road, as well as cutting back the basal shoots growing around the lime trees that line the avenue. It’s always a lovely way to catch up with familiar neighbours and, this time, we also had the opportunity to meet a couple of new ones.

Basal roots are those leafy shoots protruding from the base of the tree.

Once we’d finished, a group of us were invited back to a neighbour’s garden, where we sat together in the shade enjoying a well-earned cup of coffee. It was such a simple thing, but really rather lovely – neighbours chatting, getting to know one another and enjoying a bit of time together after doing something positive for the area.

The litter pick also coincided with the installation of our exhibition in the windows of a vacant local shop unit. I popped around to see how things were progressing and to offer my support – although I certainly wasn’t about to start climbing any ladders!

The shop has been empty for around six years and, as you can see from the before-and-after photographs, I think the exhibition has made an enormous difference to its appearance. Instead of a rather sad-looking empty shopfront, there is now something colourful and interesting for people to stop and look at as they pass.

If I had to talk about the things that contribute to my own sense of wellbeing and good mental health, being involved with my local community would definitely be right up there. Working alongside other people to make improvements, particularly when you can actually stand back afterwards and immediately see what you’ve achieved together, is enormously satisfying.

We have something that feels remarkably close to a village community here, but with all the advantages of living on the outskirts of a very large town. People know one another, stop for a chat, look out for each other and are prepared to muck in when something needs doing. I think that sense of belonging and connection is incredibly valuable – and Saturday was a lovely reminder of just how fortunate we are to have it.

Finally, there’s been another development in my GLP-1 maintenance journey.

My new medication has arrived – and it’s Mounjaro!

After my experiment with Wegovy, I’ve decided to return to Mounjaro. My new 7.5mg pen arrived this week. I took my first 7.5mg injection on Friday.  Now just waiting to see what happens.

What I’m hoping for, more than anything, is the return of that support that made maintaining my weight feel so much easier – particularly some relief from the food noise and persistent hunger that have gradually crept back in.

It feels slightly strange to be so excited about an injection, but I know what a difference Mounjaro made for me previously. I’m not looking for dramatic weight loss. This time, it’s about finding the right level of support to make maintenance manageable and sustainable.

So now we wait.

Hopefully, by the time I sit down to write next week’s blog, I’ll have some positive news to report.

Fingers crossed!

This week’s weigh-in…

Weight this week: 56.55kg (8st 12.6lbs)
Weight last week: 55.75kg (8st 11lbs)

Weekly loss/gain: +0.7kg (+1.5lb)
100% – 6 months 12 days in weight maintenance range (54 – 57kg or 8st 7lb – 8st 13lbs)