And finally got their high school mementos out of their bedroom closet!

The first thing I would do is stop mixing advice from different sources.  You don't say anything about eating only when hungry instead of on a schedule or eating relatively small portions and waiting to see if you are still hungry.  I had to fight the urge to feel full but I knew that was over-eating.  I'd take another long look at Doug's book and make it simpler on yourself. His advice isn't contradictory and you can start again with his plan for finding out what your eating schedule and quantities should be.

You look beautiful and happy.  Thanks for the recipe.

Egg drop soup worked pretty well for me.  Beat an egg and slowly pour it into boiling chicken broth.  It was gentle on my system.

It's been a long time since I've had a raisin.  I wonder if the sweetness would be too much now. 

I made these last night and they are great.  Cream cheese frosting would be good on them, too.

To answer a few questions:

Rena, my thyroid was removed in 2008 so I'm pretty conscious of my levels.  That probably isn't a factor.

Doug,
I stay away from aspartame except for sugar free Jello and I don't use that very often.  My glasses are current in the last 6 months.

I do have a job that is very stressful in January and February.  I had just met a big deadline when the headache hit.  I'm making plans for how to fix what might have caused it.  My family was terrified when I was misdiagnosed.

Lifestyle evangelism!