Catching Up

Ok, so since I technically started my gluten-free, casein-free diet almost three weeks ago, I've got some catching up to do in terms of explaining why I started and how my diet's been going. About a month ago, I picked up the book, "The Ultramind Solution" by Dr. Mark Hyman. In a nutshell, he talks about how inflammation can lead to all sorts of problems in the body and mind, including ADHD, memory loss, depression, anxiety, fibromyalgia, etc. and how changes in diet and lifestyle, along with supplement use, can reverse these problems. He outlines a six week plan that includes several components, one of the most significant being dietary changes. Dr. Hyman (gotta love that last name) also advocates a gluten-free, casein-free diet, eating organic, whole foods, and staying away from sugar (except for naturally occurring sugars in fruits, whole grains, etc.). The book is so much more comprehensive than the couple of sentences that I've written, so I would encourage readers to look the book up on Amazon or Barnes and Noble (no, not my sponsors...yet...lol) for a more in-depth review .

Because of my fibro, IBS, and extreme fatigue, I figured going on the diet was worth a shot. I was a little skeptical because years ago a naturopath had put me on a "detox" diet. I followed a very strict rotation diet that didn't allow me to eat any of the foods that I tested as having a sensitivity to (according to IgG anti-food blood tests). Boy was I a miserable person for the three months I was on it. Because I was also vegetarian at the time, my diet was extremely limited. I lost 15 lbs off my already thin frame, my hair started falling out, and small children were afraid to look at me. Well, maybe the last part was an exaggeration but looking back at pictures of myself, I now know why people thought I was anorexic. Even my best friend told me, "You've become a total b*tch on this diet! Screw the detox and please just eat a chocolate bar." After that experience, I wasn't too optimistic that the "Ultramind Solution" diet would help; however, I was desperate to feel better so I drove to the local health food store and filled up my cart.

Organic, whole foods can be expensive, especially if you're limited to gluten and casein free. My hubby was not a happy camper when he looked at the receipt for my little shopping spree. $18 for grass-fed steak when we used to pay ten bucks for the same cut at Costco?  He grew up in Texas, where evidently, bigger is better, so eating half a cow that's been pumped with hormones (sorry Texans) is a manly thing to do. He did later admit that my grass-fed, organic beef tasted ten times better that the conventional stuff we buy at the local, big-name grocery store. Word of advice: Grass-fed takes less time to good, so unless you like your sirloin jerky-style, cut back on the cooking time.

I'm the cook in the family, so despite my husband's initial protests, he was looking forward to all the home cooked meals he'd be getting since it's almost impossible to eat take-out when you're eating this way. I even began packing lunches for him. He must have eaten ratatouille for five days straight. Another word of advice: Invest in a good gluten-free cookbook because it can be hard coming up with new things every night when you've cut out whole groups of food.

On days one and two of my diet, I didn't notice a change. I grew dismayed as I felt the same aches and pains, suffered the same tummy issues, and meandered through my day in the same brain fog I had experienced for the past several years. The only thing that kept me going was that I figured the diet would be a good way to prepare my body for pregnancy- my next "project" to work on once my husband no longer runs away in hysterics when I mention the word, "baby." : ) Just kidding honey...about the hysterics, not the baby. But I digress...Day three the changes I noticed were the absence of two things- my stomach pains and a few pounds of bloating.

When I got married a year ago, my 5' 7" frame carried 133 pounds. That was about ten pounds heavier than I had been in my 20's, but still thin. A year into marriage, I had gained 10 lbs. In the past if I had put on a pound or two (or three or four...), I just had to say the word "diet" and the pounds came off, or so it seemed. Not once I was married though. My husband's big appetite (to feed his big muscles), meant I had to cook real meals, not just pour a bowl of cereal like I had in the past if I didn't feel like cooking. Even when I tried to return to my old eating habits, my new appetite didn't allow for it - salt and vinegar potatoes chips whispered my name, hazelnut-chocolate bars sang to me, gourmet restaurant meals entertained me.

My new diet turned off that hunger. I felt less bloated, lighter, freer. One morning, my husband grabbed my waist, expecting to feel muffin top, but happily, it was almost gone. Don't get me wrong, the weight loss was great, but even better than that was that my stomach finally felt *normal*. "Wow," I thought, "is this what it's like to have a normal G.I. tract?" I became ecstatic when I went to work and ate lunch without feeling like I was going to pass out afterwards from stomach pains. I could sit through a meeting without having to excuse myself for fear of my insides exploding all over the conference room. For a while last school year, I got sick so often that people asked if I was pregnant.

I felt encouraged by my progress and happily I munched on my veggies, thankful that I had finally found something that seemed to be working, not perfectly, but it was a start. A week into my dietary changes began phase two of my experiment: Body Balance. I'll leave that for tomorrow's post.