Jennifer's Recovery Log

[Peat's_Girl]

I'm confused. How are the two tests different?

I don't think I'll be ever able to isolate something like constipation in relation to a milk allergy.
There are too many different factors in my diet that are making me sick, right now.
It could be the fact I never quite went gluten-free all the way. I still have like cross-contaminations of it
and sometimes take a bite of people's sandwiches ;D
Plus I'm hungry and snacky sometimes and I can't resist.

Sometimes I wish I was someone who doesn't like food, but anyone who knows me knows that if I had cable I would only have one channel-- the food channel. I never get tired of watching it. It disturbs people ;D
I even used to do it while IFing ;D

It's nice to have your own doctor, right? They know you and stuff, and they can see your progress! Maybe they feel responsible for your health in some way (if they're good doctors)... I wonder what that's like!

What's cyproheptadine?
You pretty much lost me at that middle paragraph there ;D

I always thought blood tests for allergy and intolerances were inaccurate so I never bothered.
Plus it's something I like telling myself since I can't afford them! He He He ;D

Oh did you do that awful garlic protocol? Did it help?

XoXoX

 

[Jennifer]

I'm confused. How are the two tests different?

IgE (immunoglobulin E) allergies are immediate responses with serious symptoms like difficulty breathing, swelling, and hives.

IgG (Immunoglobulin G) have a much longer half-life than the traditional IgE allergy with much more subtle symptoms ranging from headaches, nausea, bloating, mood changes or dark circles under the eyes. They may occur hours or even days after the offending food has been ingested.

I don't think I'll be ever able to isolate something like constipation in relation to a milk allergy.

Yeah, if I look at my history starting from infancy, I had chronic constipation that even resulted in needing a hernia operation at 3 weeks old. Since I was only consuming formula at that time, that one's easy to narrow down.

After playing around with my diet trying to isolate what food/foods are the culprit, I've whittled my diet down to nothing but dairy and I get the burning, cramping, churning, bloating and constipation, along with immediate hives that develop into a nasty rash all over my face and scalp. I'm now at the point where my throat starts to swell within minutes of having dairy and it's always sore. Add to that crackling ears and chronic congestion for almost 6 years now. I feel like I have a virus I can't shake. There's also something else I noticed, but I'll let you know privately if you're interested.

Sometimes I wish I was someone who doesn't like food, but anyone who knows me knows that if I had cable I would only have one channel-- the food channel. I never get tired of watching it. It disturbs people ;D
I even used to do it while IFing ;D

I like the food channel too, especially when I was starving. At my worst, my dreams at night were filled with nothing but me eating tons of food. Anyhow, there's a really good explanation for why you would watch it while IFing. Since you've read up on the Youreatopia site, you probably came across the post on the Minnesota Starvation Experiment? The men would obsess about food, reading magazines with pictures of food and talking about becoming chefs ect. Matt Stone had one of the more thorough reviews on the MSE that I could find online and wrote about it here:

http://180degreehealth.com/ancel-keys-a ... tarvation/

Also, here's a diary I found from one of the participants. It was the only info I was able to find that mentioned what happened to the men after the study was over. This will give you an idea of what the road to recovery from 6 months of just under 1600 calories daily looks like:

"The next six months I was in bed rest at home under the supervision of my mother, who had always been successful in satisfying my nutritional needs. She fed me well, and in six months I gained 79 pounds. During this time my appetite continued unabated; I apparently tried to satisfy all my needs by eating. My tuberculosis lesion healed well, but one year later, I developed a second lesion which also healed relatively rapidly. I have had no recurring symptoms since."

http://www.pbs.org/itvs/thegoodwar/diary.html

It's nice to have your own doctor, right?

Yeah, she's called Dr. Jennifer and she's my biggest advocate. She does the researching, inquiring and experimenting and is determined and relentless in making things happen. She asks for the tests and keeps on top of her blood work and is the one who sits there to be poked and prodded.

Cyproheptadine is a first-generation antihistamine.

I always thought blood tests for allergy and intolerances were inaccurate so I never bothered.

You may be right in your thinking. I remembered theBP had mentioned that Ray told her food allergy tests can mean the opposite of what they claim and I found the quote this morning:

"Food allergy blood tests can mean just the opposite of what they claim, representing tolerance to the food."

I did the raw garlic protocol, but all it did was make me taste and smell nothing but garlic for a week and attract Bee to me like Velcro. Odd little buggy man!

 

[Peat's_Girl]

After playing around with my diet trying to isolate what food/foods are the culprit, I've whittled my diet down to nothing but dairy and I get the burning, cramping, churning, bloating and constipation, along with immediate hives that develop into a nasty rash all over my face and scalp. I'm now at the point where my throat starts to swell within minutes of having dairy and it's always sore. Add to that crackling ears and chronic congestion for almost 6 years now. I feel like I have a virus I can't shake. There's also something else I noticed, but I'll let you know privately if you're interested.

That's unfortunate... Though, I'm glad you're having luck with goat milk. I wish I could try some un-funky goat milk, maybe I'll be a convert? I think what you have is very different from an intolerance --which supposedly should be easy to fix by strengthening your metabolism and gut flora.
It actually sounds like the kind of reaction my bf has to peaches (only his can be quite severe and possibly life threatening). He grew up with a huge peach tree in his backyard and ate peaches frequently. Maybe, like your milk allergy, his peach allergy developed due to his young body's inability to digest something specific in peaches (their flesh especially). An overdose made his body develop some sort of a defense mechanism that expresses itself in itching, rashing, congestion, difficulty breathing, etc. Maybe your baby body did the same! I think introducing dairy that early one could be potentially damaging.
That's my interpretation at least.

I have this theory that any lingering milk-intolerance symptoms would be resolved if I consumed it raw and grass-fed --the kind I grew up on. Until I can get my hands on some I'll have to tolerate this sub-par milk or avoid it completely. My last resort is the garlic thing, which I did half-assedly maybe for 3 days and felt like it didn't help and was too gross.
But this time I'm committing! (Sorry, bf

I like the food channel too, especially when I was starving. At my worst, my dreams at night were filled with nothing but me eating tons of food. Anyhow, there's a really good explanation for why you would watch it while IFing. Since you've read up on the Youreatopia site, you probably came across the post on the Minnesota Starvation Experiment? The men would obsess about food, reading magazines with pictures of food and talking about becoming chefs ect. Matt Stone had one of the more thorough reviews on the MSE that I could find online and wrote about it here:

http://180degreehealth.com/ancel-keys-a ... tarvation/

Yes, I'm well aware of Matt's obsession with the Minnesota Starvation Experiment. I've read the findings a few years ago and found them fascinating but, perhaps ironically, didn't apply it to my intermittent fasting... (FAIL.) Bring it on, I love reading
Right now, I'm obsessed with YE. I don't necessarily think it all applies to me, but the author's witty and unapologetic style got me hooked!

Also, here's a diary I found from one of the participants. It was the only info I was able to find that mentioned what happened to the men after the study was over. This will give you an idea of what the road to recovery from 6 months of just under 1600 calories daily looks like:

"The next six months I was in bed rest at home under the supervision of my mother, who had always been successful in satisfying my nutritional needs. She fed me well, and in six months I gained 79 pounds. During this time my appetite continued unabated; I apparently tried to satisfy all my needs by eating. My tuberculosis lesion healed well, but one year later, I developed a second lesion which also healed relatively rapidly. I have had no recurring symptoms since."

http://www.pbs.org/itvs/thegoodwar/diary.html

OH, I haven't read this before! What a great find Jen! That part about the stupid woman not eating her pie was quite funny. I have more thought on this, but I guess I'll write them in the email.

Yeah, she's called Dr. Jennifer and she's my biggest advocate. She does the researching, inquiring and experimenting and is determined and relentless in making things happen. She asks for the tests and keeps on top of her blood work and is the one who sits there to be poked and prodded.

She sounds awesome! I never had a doctor who cares. Maybe some day?

 

[Jennifer]

Maybe your baby body did the same! I think introducing dairy that early one could be potentially damaging.
That's my interpretation at least.

Yeah, that's possible! I keep thinking it's because of gut inflammation, but when I cut dairy out, all the symptoms go away almost immediately so I start to question if the gut inflammation is actually caused by the dairy itself. I honestly have never had such bad ongoing gut and rash issues like I've had this past year and a half forcing all this milk. The most intriguing part is how quickly my spark comes back after only a couple days of not having dairy. With milk, I never seem to have that spark of excitement and without it, it's like I have this insatiable need to create and do. To live, really. I don't know, it's so strange to me because I can't explain why, but it happens without fail.

Have you kept to the raw garlic experiment, so far? If so, how's it going?

Right now, I'm obsessed with YE. I don't necessarily think it all applies to me, but the author's witty and unapologetic style got me hooked!

Yeah, Gwyn is great in that she has an "eat whatever and the body will sort itself out" view point that is helpful for those trying to get over their food phobias, but at some point, I don't think that's necessarily the best philosophy for everyone long term. There are some people who continue to suffer with refeeding symptoms even three years later and in cases like that, I think some tweaking is in order.

OH, I haven't read this before! What a great find Jen! That part about the stupid woman not eating her pie was quite funny. I have more thought on this, but I guess I'll write them in the email.

Hehe! I got a chuckle out of that too, mostly because that was me before I refed.

It reminds of a time back when I was hiking and obsessively thinking about food all the time. There's a group of guys and myself who were known as the Fool Scouts. We use to do all kinds of fun and crazy things in the mountains like hauling up in our packs, pounds of ice cream on dry ice to pass out sundaes or cook tacos for thru hikers on the Appalachian trail. Anyhow, on the weekend closest to April Fools, we, along with many other friends, would have this gathering in the mountains called the Fool Scout Ball. We'd all dress up (my orange maid of honor gown came in handy) and haul up fixings for a Thanksgiving type feast and fry turkeys and celebrate.

One year someone brought the carrot cake of all carrot cakes. It was a massive 4 layers with the most incredible cream cheese frosting I had ever tasted. If it were legal, I would of married it. Anyhow, I remember one of the guys had cut me a slice and while eating it, I got a piece of paper doily in one of my bites. That would later help me in my madwoman hunt for this cake. I knew the town the guy who brought the cake was from and I ended up tracking down a website for a bakery around his area. The opening page had THE carrot cake and as I zoomed in closer, there it was sitting on that same doily I almost ate that day at the ball. I contacted the owners and they remembered selling a cake to a gentleman who requested Fool Scout Ball be written on it. Apparently, the cream cheese frosting is made with European butter with an 87% butterfat content. Hehe! Yes, I inquired.

She sounds awesome! I never had a doctor who cares. Maybe some day?

I have a feeling it's sooner than you think.

So I made that Crio Bru brewed cacao nibs and WOW! When I opened the bag, it smelled and looked like shaved chocolate. I used the cold brewed method and strained it with a coffee filter to get the remaining starch out. It smells so good I want to bathe in it! I started thinking of ways to use it beyond just an iced cocoa drink. I thought of adding a few tablespoons of it to orange juice. I also have pure peppermint in teabags I can brew up and add the cocoa concentrate to. Then I was struck with the idea of adding the cocoa concentrate to the Strawberry Julius recipe I've been wanting to make. I thought the combo could be outstanding!

Here's the recipe in case you or anyone else wants to try it...

In your blender do the following in this order...
1 cup fresh squeezed strawberry juice or any other fruit juice
1/2 cup simple syrup
1 tsp. dry milk powder (coconut milk powder for a dairy-free version)
1 tsp. egg white powder (you can find this in your bakery aisle where the cake mixes are)
1/2 tsp. of vanilla (preferably vanilla powder as per the original recipe)
Now fill the rest of the blender up with crushed ice

I plan on adding a couple tablespoons or so of the cocoa concentrate when I add the juice.

 

[Peat's_Girl]

That sounds good! But I don't have a blender and they don't sell egg white powder in the baking section here (I looked when I was trying to make something else). So boo-hoo for me!

Hey, at least you had feasts during your hiking, which is good because you were replenishing your energy, right? Those Scout Balls sound awesome! Good memories for sure.

I bought 2 huge jars of Nutella from Costco. I love Nuttella, I wish there was a coconut oil version with no nuts (but then it wouldn't be called "Nut-ella"...) but I don't care right now. I just wanna make sure I get enough calories (I'll email you why).

That's what I'm afraid of! That I'd be overfeeding on the wrong foods, but maybe it's not a healthy point of view right now because it just makes me stressed out.

 

[Jennifer]

That's what I'm afraid of! That I'd be overfeeding on the wrong foods, but maybe it's not a healthy point of view right now because it just makes me stressed out.

I was afraid of eating too much and at the same time, I was afraid of not getting at least a certain amount of calories each day despite not being hungry for them.

I was afraid of eating certain foods and at the same time, I was afraid of not overcoming my food phobias so I forced myself to eat certain foods even though I didn't crave them.

I was afraid of not resting enough and at the same time, not moving enough.

See a running theme here? Fear is a powerful motivator. Sure it can help you avoid immediate danger like getting out of the way of an oncoming bus, but it can also move you to do things that feel like the life is being sucked out of you.

If I could say anything to you it would be that it's your recovery. There will be some who'll say you're weak for not analyzing your diet to pieces and others who'll say you're obsessive for analyzing your diet to pieces. There will be some who'll say you're too serious and need to lighten up and others who'll say you're not taking things seriously enough. There will be some who'll say if you don't smash in the calories, you'll never heal and others who'll say if you don't watch your calories, you'll never heal. There will be some who'll say you'll never fully heal regardless. They'll say it's something you'll have to manage the rest of your life and that you're stuck with the hand you were dealt simply because they've never seen someone overcome it. I say be the exception that flips their rule on its head.

I'm sure I've come off as a bit naive or wishy-washy to some, but there is a method to my madness and always has been. I was given no hope. I was given no chance of overcoming my disease. In their eyes, I shouldn't have gotten as far as I have given how advanced my disease was so I've already overcome that battle. However, I was never looking to match their yardstick, but my own. My own has an expansive view. Theirs was the view of the inside of a coffin.

It's great to keep an open mind and hear what others have to say, not only because I believe their words are usually coming from a place of love and genuine care for us, but also because they may open our minds to something we weren't aware of before. But never let their words be so loud they drown out your own voice and know that in the end, there are no apologies or explanations needed for having loved yourself enough to look like a fool at times.

For you...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m9DO3zpdWqw

 

[Peat's_Girl]

<3

 

[Peat's_Girl]

This is for you and me Jen,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4C4NiVKrXk

:)

The breakfast is also complete with eggs and coffee (lyrics) so it's totally PEat related...

 

[Jennifer]

This is for you and me Jen,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4C4NiVKrXk

:)

The breakfast is also complete with eggs and coffee (lyrics) so it's totally PEat related...

Are you trolling?

 

[Peat's_Girl]

No! Never!

 

[Jennifer]

No! Never!

Oh goody! I have my first troll! Welcome to the log!

One question...how do you feel about turnips?

 

[Peat's_Girl]

I don't know what happened. I saw that I wrote "Breakfast complete with breakfast" when I actually meant coffee and so I went to fix it.
For some reason it copies it and reposted it twice... This happened to me before at my log!

 

[Jennifer]

I don't know what happened. I saw that I wrote "Breakfast complete with breakfast" when I actually meant coffee and so I went to fix it.
For some reason it copies it and reposted it twice... This happened to me before at my log!

*Sniffling* You mean...my log doesn't have a troll? You just had a CDO moment?

I bet the turnip has a troll.

 

[Peat's_Girl]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkTb9GP9lVI

 

[Jennifer]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkTb9GP9lVI

Aww...I have a happy troll! Umm...really happy! :? And thank God for subtitles or I never would of understood you. :P

I read your email tonight and will write you tomorrow, but wanted to say I promise I'll log more. I spend so much time on your threads, I neglect my baby here. Our banter is just so much fun, though. Much better than my "Debbie Downer I got a rash and my gut is trying to kill me" logs. I have to come up with something new and exciting. Ooh...I know! it should involve the maid's outfit and the feather duster. Hehe!

 

[Peat's_Girl]

I'm surprised by all the fun people are having on my thread. I kinda expected you to be my only reader as usual. Who knew a boring old shopping list would get the Peatish folk so riled up? ;D

I kinda feel bad posting about my digestive discomfort cause nobody wants to talk about that more than Amazoniac's gayness for Pboy (actually I'm the one who wants to talk about that). But then I remember IT'S MY THREAD AND I WILL TALK ABOUT POOP IF I WANT TO!

;<

Oh God, don't feel pressured into starting a crazy experiment or something... Why don't you do something fun like doing weekly taste tests for things? I could live vicariously through you (I can't eat anything)! I'm sure people often wonder about Peaty foods they haven't tried yet and how they taste and if they're good for you.

You can start with different colas (oh god there's so many!)

Then again, this might stir a heated debate about Coke vs Pepsi... (I've been tangled in one before and I just wanna say, I'm Coke all the way!)

 

[Jennifer]

I'm glad to see people joining in on your thread. Good call to make a separate one! :)

Oh, lordy no! I don't want to start a crazy experiment. Mine would consist of...well, pretty much nothing. Like you, I can't eat anything. The past week I've managed to get under 1000 calories most days and the last two under 500. I spent all day yesterday crying in bed. I just couldn't stop it. I felt like I was having a mini breakdown. Honestly, I really could of used my snuggle buddy, Cricket.

I'm stressed out with everything and I don't really like to post about it, but I guess that's what this log is for since it's part of recovery. Not being able to eat, constantly going to doctors and getting tests that seem worthless and I don't know...it's all just wearing on me. I feel like I'm now only living for the fight. I get scared sometimes that this is as good as it gets. That I healed beyond what the doctors envisioned for me, but I'm not even close to what I envisioned for myself. Anyhow, your crazy starch-free thread has given me some much needed laughs. Thanks for that and to everyone for having some fun on there. :)

Oh and my favorite is Cherry Coke! :)

I'll leave a song since this was sort of a log?

You live for the fight when it's all that you've got...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lDK9QqIzhwk

 

[Blossom]

I'm so sorry about your difficulties. My heart goes out to you right now. I wish I had something helpful to offer other than my sympathy.

 

[SQu]

Thinking of you Jennifer. Keep updating ok?

 

[pboy]

jenn gotta ask you...hows your home life? I mean...are you comfortable where you are living or who you are living with? I know exactly how you feel...people here probably don't know what ive gone through, and am just now peaking out of really in life. By the end of the month you'll be a lot better, but I know how it is...every day and night a fight is a horrible way to live, and really it is living because of hope and a vision, which in my case...panned out, however...yea, I feel you. Whenever I read something like that, or hear someone say that my inclination is to like...cause ive felt it and know...well, obviously I live way away from you but I send best vibes as I can. Just know that its possible to recover from anything, ive proved it to myself. And I actually did it without any medical anything, if that helps. id give you a hug if I could