TrayS

I technically never did a whole 30 during my pregnancy, but just ate very whole30-like in my last trimester to keep my blood sugar under control. I found that when I would eat carbs my blood glucose readings would spike, and I also would feel very crappy (fast beating heart, etc.) so my main focus was on not eating grains for that reason. Otherwise, I followed the template pretty closely but was lax about things like trace amounts of sugar, etc.

If you haven't already found this, Melissa wrote a post on it a few years back: http://whole9life.com/2013/01/pregnancy-and-food-aversions/

It isn't so much that low bbt makes you not ovulate, rather there may be an underlying condition (such as low thyroid as previous poster suggested) that causes your bbt to be low and also causes delayed/inconsistent ovulation. 96.55 is pretty low. I've had thyroid issues in the past and ovulation issues, and I charted for 3+ years and two pregnancies (1 miscarriage and 1 healthy son born last year). I've been on-and-off Whole30 since 2012 but whether or not I am "on" I have stayed aware of what I put in my body since my first Whole30 in 2012. Meaning, primarily, that I make it a point not to underfeed myself nutritious food (regardless of whatever "junk" I may consume in addition from time to time). I was on a low dose thyroid supplement from 2011 and I was able to stop taking it last year at the suggestion of an endocrinologist who had reviewed my numbers during my pregnancy and said they were so good she suggested I wean off it after baby was born, which I did. Now, one year postpartum, I've recently gotten my period back even though I'm still breastfeeding so things must be working! For reference, I had had TSH levels around 3-3.5 pre-thyroid meds and it is now around 1.5. Perhaps there is something to coconut oil, I haven't heard this. What I have personally observed is that I CANNOT go low carb and expect to maintain my cycle. When I'm eating well and maintaining adequate carb intake through plenty of starchy vegetables and some fruit, things go a lot better.

Congrats! I don't have Whole30 experience early pregnancy. When I got pregnant I was not Whole30-ing and my morning sickness appeared pretty much immediately, complete with terrible food aversions, so it was off the table. However, later on when I failed my 1-hr fasting glucose at 26 weeks I opted to control my diet and do my own blood glucose testing at home, so suddenly my diet became very Whole30-like and I can say that for the most part I never felt better during my pregnancy than during those weeks of clean eating. I had no more swelling and my energy was better, I slept better, etc. I don't have experience with HBHM but it sounds like a great idea.

If you are intent on not having your gallbladder removed it might be helpful for you to work with a naturopath and/or paleo-friendly RD to understand how the body digests different types of fats and find ways to aid your digestion of fats, such as bile salt supplements, etc. There is a school of thought that avoiding fats allows the bile to sit in the gallbladder longer and concentrate more, thus actually increasing the risk of developing stones. But if the stones are already large enough to cause full blown attacks I'm not sure what the best non-invasive approach is. Honestly, I never looked into alternatives much myself. When I had a full blown gallbladder attack back in 2009 I had not yet made much of an effort to take control of my health, therefore I did not question the doctor's recommendation that I have it removed immediately. So I did. Fortunately, although there was an adjustment period after, for the past several years I can eat any amount of any kind of fat without a problem. I'm not necessarily suggesting this is the right solution for you or anyone in particular, but I thought it worthwhile to share that it has worked out well for me.

I lived there until last year. There's a place at the Fashion Valley mall called True Food that I heard of from a former neighbor who had eaten there during a Whole30. I've never eaten there myself but it might be worth checking out. (It's actually right across from the Cheesecake Factory - haha)

So, back from my trip, which was 3 nights in Yosemite. The kale chips worked out really well. I put them in a ziplock bag and made a dessicator out of a paper towel and some uncooked white rice. The meat sticks (Nick's Sticks) were also good, as were the coconut butter packets and dried mango. I got tired of the nuts really quickly so didn't eat many of those. For dinner, we used a small pot and heated up the can of coconut milk with the cubes of dried sweet potato, then added in two 5 oz salmon packets (for two of us) and curry paste. It was really good, and very simple and easy to make. I hear the concern regarding bears. I've camped in both grizzly and black bear country and on one particular trip had multiple bears walk through my camp. It always occurs to me when I open a packet of fish that bears can probably smell it miles away, but really they can smell everything, even the stuff that doesn't smell strong to us. I just try to keep food off myself, whatever it is that I'm eating.

I had a pretty epic "Kill All The Things" day on Day 3 this time around. I was seriously on fire. Every nerve lit. My husband and coworkers made it through, fortunately. Hang in there! It will pass.

Thanks! The freeze dried food sounds really good, I'll have to try that next time. I ordered the coconut butter packets on Amazon as well, but I've seen them at Whole Foods.

How many days have you found hard-boiled eggs to stay good for? Curious as I was thinking of bringing these but I've never kept them unrefrigerated for more than a day. My sister and I are going backpacking this weekend, on days 26-29 of our Whole30. Here's what we're bringing: -Meat sticks. We ordered these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QU781RG?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00 I haven't tasted them yet. But my Primal Pacs did not arrive in time (they are undergoing a move of their processing plant and have gone dark on orders placed in May and are leaving customers hanging...) so, these may or may not be tasty but they're compliant. -Dehydrated sweet potatoes: http://www.amazon.com/Harmony-House-Foods-Dried-Potatoes/dp/B0039QW29E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1433911904&sr=8-2&keywords=dehydrated+sweet+potatoes -Coconut butter packets -Tuna packets, to be mixed with coconut milk (my sis and I will share a can per day) and curry paste -I just made a huge batch of kale chips to take and I'm hoping they'll keep. Haven't tried to store them for more than a couple of days so this somewhat of an experiment. I'll have to smash them down to fit in the bear can so they'll be more like kale dust, but kale is kale (and salt and garlic. yum!) -and of course, nuts and dried fruit. And I think my sister's bringing some Larabars just in case we are extra hungry, but I know these are the root of all evil so somewhat of a last resort. RxBars would be better nutritionally, and I've tried them in the past. I really liked them, but something in them caused me stomach pain. I don't know what, probably just a particular intolerance to a certain combination of ingredients. Also, if I'd known about Epic bars before today I would've tried to get some for my trip. They are meat based and looks like they have some interesting flavors.

That sucks! But in this case, you tried to avoid the bit of added sugar, and it was just sugar (not dairy, gluten, or other substances that can cause issues even in tiny amounts) so it's really up to you... maybe this post will help: http://whole30.com/2014/06/really-start-whole30/

If there is butter, perhaps you could just continue and delay the reintroduction of dairy for 30 days. Eating out is always a minefield. If you can call the restaurant in advance (or at least ask about prepration methods while you're there) they can usually make accommodations for you. Even then, once I ate out and discussed my situation with the server and they said they could cook my asparagus in olive oil. But no, it was cooked in butter, and I didn't realize it until I was already eating it... ETA I've also had good restaurant experiences (last weekend I went to a family party at a chain restaurant, called ahead to understand how they prepare certain menu items, and they were really good about cooking my meal to my specifications), and it can help to have someone else take a bite of your food before you eat it to detect any mishaps.

I've been really curious about others' experiences with this too. When I got pregnant last year I was still eating mostly paleo but had let wine creep back in, as well as other off-plan foods here and there. So I wasn't being super strict. I fully intended to eat as healthy as possible during my pregnancy... but then yeah, week 6 hit, and I found myself wandering around Trader Joe's for an hour staring at all the food, evaluating whether I could picture eating it without throwing up. All I wanted was pizza and orange juice. One day I went to my sister's house and she had made pork and sweet potatoes. Normally, I LOVE sweet potatoes. But that day I took one bite, turned around and walked out the door, got back in my car and drove to a sandwich shop and bought the meatball sub I'd been thinking about since I woke up that morning. Pregnancy is a different animal. I found the food aversions to be humbling and much more forceful than anything I'd imagined. Melissa's description of them in the article Amy links above is spot on. So, now that I'm TTC again (I miscarried at 13 weeks), I'm hoping that if I were to conceive, say, while I'm actually on a Whole30, that with the improvement in hormones and nutrient intake the food aversions might not be so strong... especially if I can manage to choke down some protein (thanks Noelle for that advice!)

Jessica, have you posted a couple days worth of meals and sought feedback from the mods? If you have not done so already, that could be very helpful. I'm guessing that the miraculous cases of people weaning off their meds in the second week of the Whole 30 are few and far between. For most of us, undoing years and years of damage we've inflicted on our bodies, particularly if said damage has maifested in the form of chronic illness, is and will be a lifelong process. Yes, sometimes improvements are drastic, but usually what you're looking for is a long term improvment (not miraculous disappearance) in symptoms, caused by a long term change in habits. It may take a lot of tinkering with your specific food intake, and it may take longer than 30 days to see progress. But if you quit, you erase all progress made, even if said progress is only the very beginning of a long process. Then you're back to square 1, which is where you were when you decided you needed to make a change in the first place.

Michelle at Nom Nom Paleo wrote a post about she deals with night shift. I know your situation isn't exactly the same but maybe you'll find it helpful. http://nomnompaleo.com/post/55156756199/surviving-the-night-shift