So I've got a new doctor who I'm really excited about. I like his philosophy. I believe in what he does. So right now I'm doing a detox/elimination diet. Its something he wants me to do once or twice a year but right now it will show me foods that cause me problems.
The elimination diet is an eight week (longer if needed) schedule of when to bring in what foods back into the diet. The last two weeks I've been able to eat chicken, turkey, fish, nuts and all the vegetables I'd like, plus supplements tailored to my need and condition. Tomorrow I get fruit again. Yeah!!
In less than two weeks I began to feel much better but also found a culprit. Two times I've had foods that unknowingly had corn, a soup that I didn't prepare containing cornstarch and an electrolyte drink that had maltodextrin. Both times I ended up sick for about two days and that was without have had much of either item. Maybe about 1/2 to 1 cup of the soup after a large salad and two servings of the drink. In realizing that both were corn I started looking back and realized corn fits the pattern of my illness.
I've tried telling multiple doctors sugar makes me sick. They all just said it was odd and dismissed it. I would stop eating all forms of sugar other than fruit and then bring it back. Sometimes I'd do fine and other times I would get sick. I couldn't figure out why sometimes I'd get so sick and other times I expected to get sick and didn't. I knew sugary foosd were a culprit but never really thought about it being the type of sugar. I thought I was dealing more with a blood sugar/diabetic issue than an allergy. So I was right, sugar makes me sick, but not all sugar, just corn in all its lovely forms.
So the great news is I can get better! Just cutting it out one week and I could tell the difference.
The bad news is in two weeks of intentionally not eating corn, it still found me. Corn is in practically everything. Thankfully I'm not so allergic that physical touch makes me sick, except when I've had way too much like the glucose drip at the hospital last year. After the sugar drip due to too low blood sugar everywhere there was medical tape or a sticky monitor I broke out in hives, gross, huge, swelling hives. I was given benadryl and told to come immediately back if my mouth, face or throat began swelling. I didn't know it at the time but the light bulbs went on last night and a few internet searches showed I was right. Yep corn in the glucose, corn in the tape adhesives. Yet I've handled adhesives and corn starch frequently without problem so I'm not overly concerned with corn products except for food.
Thankfully I had a doctor's appointment already scheduled for today so I was able to talk to my doctor about it and not have my head spinning with questions for long. He agrees I'm allergic or at a minimum intolerant to corn. At the end of the eight weeks I'll try bringing in more grains, each with a trial period. He's concerned I might have problems with more than just corn. Cross my fingers I don't have to cut all grains out of my diet. Please at least one grain for eating! He wants me to read the Paleo diet and thinks there is a good chance this is how I'll have to live and eat - fruit, vegetables, lean meats, sea food, and nuts. No grains or milk. Though since I don't go into anaphylactic shock I'll maybe still sneak a treat here and there!
Curious about what I have to watch for when shopping? Check out this list at CornAllergies.com. I'm sure all my wheat intolerant friends and family understand this perfectly. Wheat is in everything too. So I'm a littler overwhelmed but excited to know I can get better. Soon this will all be normal. At least since I'm already eating mostly a whole food's diet I don't have a huge amount of relearning to cook but I'm really concerned about eating foods others prepare.
So if I pass on the cookies or candy, I'm not trying to be high fluting or lose weight! Trust me, I want them.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Picture a Summer
Chris and I drove to and from Utah to Arizona for a friend's wedding. Counldn't get over the landscape. I had to be an adult to finally appreciate it.
We started our crazy kitchen remodel as soon as we got home. It took a few months but was worth it!
Before Pics:
Before Pics:
And now...
TA DAH!
After: Full size oven and all the storage you could want, including an appliance garage. No more appliances left out on the counter. They are all hidden. I think my favorite item turned out to be the pull out garbage can. My dog can't open it! We finally out smarted the dog!
Nana bought a trampoline.
Spencer turned three. He loved this cake. Yep its just store bought cupcakes and donuts stacked. These are treats we don't really buy so it was something unique in our house. Sometimes simple is best.
May I introduce you to Super Snake Man. Spencer's interpretation of a superhero's super tight costume is just writing on himself with markers. The face, arms, legs and belly are all involved. Lucky for us Super Snake Man is a good guy. Word of obvious advice, don't take pictures of behavior you don't want to encourage. I've had to confiscate all the markers for Super Snake Man's repeated offenses.
We've already had our first trampoline injury. Our trampoline has a net enclosure to help keep the kids from falling off when jumping. Now that enclosure doesn't work if you walk on the trampoline frame outside the enclosure. That's what Oliver did, nothing wild, just fell off the side on an out stretched arm. Snap! Broken bones. It was one of those brakes that makes your stomach flip flop when you see it, obviously broken.
Evelyn was pleased to wear this cute blue dress. This dress has a history. It was smocked and made by my Grandma Patsy for my mother to wear when she was this size. It was found while rummaging through a closet. These pictures are in Grandma Patsy's garden. Reminds me of Alice in Wonderland.
An unusual case of helmet butt
A few games of hose head. (see Family Fun's Website if your curious)
All in all a fun summer!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Where did March go?
Time is passing by faster than I can believe. A few days into April I figured I had better change my calendar to the next month. To my surprise the calendar was still on February, and yes I did forget a few things in March (like blogging) - no wonder! As it is I can't believe April is half way over but thankful its April as I am every year.
This is the time of year that the flowers and sun seem to come back out. Being outside even just a few minutes to take Oliver to school I felt like a bear coming out of hibernation (minus the starvation factor). It feels so good out there today! The sun felt warm on my skin for the first time this year and the grape hyacinth, tulips and daffodils are blooming.
Spencer is my nature lover and has been since he was an infant. Its fun to see that he has a difficult time getting into the car because he has to check out the flowers in the front yard first. As we were climbing into the car today Spencer heard a plane and said, "Mom, someone left their jet outside!"
I really have been in hibernation myself. Sometimes I struggle with people; I've never been a real outgoing, people oriented type person. Sometimes its a stretch for me to even to go ward activities. No one's done anything to offend me or anything. I just happen to like people in small doses and smaller groups. Sometimes I feel like getting away from everyone. I think someday when I'm rich* (hahaha) I'll have to build some sort of escape - somewhere I can go lay in the grass or dirt and no one will know because I'm far enough from everyone to just have a little of my own space. Then I can come back to reality and function again. In addition to some of those feelings lately, I've been indoor a lot, planning. I've been almost completely consumed with planning our new kitchen. This has been fun but infuriating at moments too. Now that its almost figured out, I feel like I can think about other things again. Though that will probably be short lived until the kitchen is actually put together.
Our to do list: Clear that we can make the desired changes with the electrician (oh and city permits too), pull out the existing cabinetry, lay tile, paint walls, have the electrician do his work, put together and install Ikea cabinets, have a countertop installed (not doing that ourselves), install sink and fixtures, and last cook a batch of cookies in my new, normal size oven!!! I'm excited and just hope it only takes a few weekends of our own work to accomplish.
I've been talking so much about how to arrange the kitchen, its rubbed off on my children. Evelyn put in her advice too. She told me we should change the table by cutting a large hole of out its middle. We would carefully keep the dinner plates around the remaining circle. When I asked where we would put the food she said just between each other's plates. My favorite part of her suggestion was how special birthdays would become. She said we would put the birthday child's chair in the middle of the hole in the table and sing to them! Talk about a child that literally likes to be the center of attention!
*Actually as far as waiting for being rich or having money to do things. I think its overrated. Do I mean go get a loan that is outrageous to do whatever your heart desires, ha NO, not a chance. One thing I have learned from observation is that people do those things that are really important to them. If its important enough, we find a way to get things done. As I'm witnessing this around myself, I'm learning its true in my life too. There are things that I think I long for but when I really look at what I want, what's really important to me I already have it or am in progress to make it happen. That's not to say those things won't change or that there won't ever be new things to aspire too. There's a lot of relief knowing I'm in charge of my life and its not just happening to me.
P.S. To all friends whose blogs are by invitation only. I was keeping my list of invitation only blogs on a bookmark that was lost when we upgraded our out of date windows software to a newer version. So if I haven't commented for a while its because I haven't been able to reach your blogs! I'm happy to read along with any that reissue the invitation. Trust me, I read so much more than I write! Thanks folks!
This is the time of year that the flowers and sun seem to come back out. Being outside even just a few minutes to take Oliver to school I felt like a bear coming out of hibernation (minus the starvation factor). It feels so good out there today! The sun felt warm on my skin for the first time this year and the grape hyacinth, tulips and daffodils are blooming.
Spencer is my nature lover and has been since he was an infant. Its fun to see that he has a difficult time getting into the car because he has to check out the flowers in the front yard first. As we were climbing into the car today Spencer heard a plane and said, "Mom, someone left their jet outside!"
I really have been in hibernation myself. Sometimes I struggle with people; I've never been a real outgoing, people oriented type person. Sometimes its a stretch for me to even to go ward activities. No one's done anything to offend me or anything. I just happen to like people in small doses and smaller groups. Sometimes I feel like getting away from everyone. I think someday when I'm rich* (hahaha) I'll have to build some sort of escape - somewhere I can go lay in the grass or dirt and no one will know because I'm far enough from everyone to just have a little of my own space. Then I can come back to reality and function again. In addition to some of those feelings lately, I've been indoor a lot, planning. I've been almost completely consumed with planning our new kitchen. This has been fun but infuriating at moments too. Now that its almost figured out, I feel like I can think about other things again. Though that will probably be short lived until the kitchen is actually put together.
Our to do list: Clear that we can make the desired changes with the electrician (oh and city permits too), pull out the existing cabinetry, lay tile, paint walls, have the electrician do his work, put together and install Ikea cabinets, have a countertop installed (not doing that ourselves), install sink and fixtures, and last cook a batch of cookies in my new, normal size oven!!! I'm excited and just hope it only takes a few weekends of our own work to accomplish.
I've been talking so much about how to arrange the kitchen, its rubbed off on my children. Evelyn put in her advice too. She told me we should change the table by cutting a large hole of out its middle. We would carefully keep the dinner plates around the remaining circle. When I asked where we would put the food she said just between each other's plates. My favorite part of her suggestion was how special birthdays would become. She said we would put the birthday child's chair in the middle of the hole in the table and sing to them! Talk about a child that literally likes to be the center of attention!
*Actually as far as waiting for being rich or having money to do things. I think its overrated. Do I mean go get a loan that is outrageous to do whatever your heart desires, ha NO, not a chance. One thing I have learned from observation is that people do those things that are really important to them. If its important enough, we find a way to get things done. As I'm witnessing this around myself, I'm learning its true in my life too. There are things that I think I long for but when I really look at what I want, what's really important to me I already have it or am in progress to make it happen. That's not to say those things won't change or that there won't ever be new things to aspire too. There's a lot of relief knowing I'm in charge of my life and its not just happening to me.
P.S. To all friends whose blogs are by invitation only. I was keeping my list of invitation only blogs on a bookmark that was lost when we upgraded our out of date windows software to a newer version. So if I haven't commented for a while its because I haven't been able to reach your blogs! I'm happy to read along with any that reissue the invitation. Trust me, I read so much more than I write! Thanks folks!
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