Ready to do this!!

[mrsmass]

I am a one year cancer survivor whose body is in such a mess. Although the cancer is gone. (praying that it's gone forever) I am left with horiible stomach issues. I am scheduled for a colonoscopy on Dec 2 but wanted to give this a shot first to see if I can heal whatever is wrong on my own. Doctors keep throwing medication after medication at me that have me gaining weight, headaches, nausea, horrible bloating, trouble breathing etc. And this is all just to help with severe constipation. I can't do it! I. FEEL. AWFUL. Next to chemo, this is it! My question to you all is.........I am on Arimidex for the cancer. I have spoken to one Dr. who is cautioning about this program. Says that I will not get enough carbs on this diet and that will therefore cause my body to produce estrogen. And since my cancer was hormonally driven, that can be very bad for me. Any thougths? Suggestions? I'm still commited to doing this though! I'm ready!

[mrsmass]

I didn't mention that I'm planning my start date to be Oct. 26.

[ladyshanny]

No one here (that I know of) is a medical professional....but in Whole30 terms, you do not have to do a low carb program, it can be as carb heavy as you like.  Yams, sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, winter squash, plantains are all carb dense not to mention bananas (while not the best for metabolically deranged folks) which are high starch and sugar as well (moderators can tell you if I'm off base with the banana recommendation.

 

Eating protein, veggies, fat and some fruit is a healthy and balanced way of eating that your body (and digestion) will thank you for.

[Tom Denham]

None of us can advise you on medications, but I can assure you that you can get plenty of carbs into your diet by eating starchy veggies at every meal. Lots of people associate approaches like the Whole30 with low-carb eating, but we actually encourage people to eat as many starchy veggies as they need to maintain energy and mood. Going low carb is bad on lots of people. 

 

We do not recommend fruit as a source of carbs, but all the veggies ladyshanny mentioned, plus one of my favorites - rutabagas. 

 

One way to get carbs into your diet aside from eating a serving of starchy veggies at every meal is to make a soup filled with potatoes or rutabagas and drink a mug several times per day. Here is a base recipe that I use: http://www.wholelifeeating.com/2013/11/pressure-cooker-golden-cauliflower-soup/

 

I had 3 pounds of potatoes that were beginning to grow eyes, so I cut them up and made soup with them in place of using cauliflower per the recipe. It worked very well. You could easily get 6 servings of starchy veggies per day by eating them at 3 meals and drinking 3 mugs of soup too.

 

Given some of the issues you mention I would recommend you avoid raw veggies. Make sure you cook everything as cooked veggies digest easier. Also, you may benefit from low-FODMAP veggies - http://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-shopping-list-FODMAP.pdf. I don't like to offer an extra restriction to a standard Whole30, but since you mention problems with bloating, you might want to emphasize low-FODMAP veggies. Also, many of us take a magnesium supplement called Natural Calm. One of its side effects as your body adjusts to taking it is often some diarrhea. You might find that beneficial if you have trouble with constipation. Finally, we recommend drinking 1/2 ounce of water per pound of body weight per day. This is a serious recommendation for a variety of reasons, but it too can be important in helping resolve constipation. 

[Tina Marie]

AWESOME for you that you are a survivor !   and kudos for you to try something better than all the meds.   There is another thread out there about another cancer survivor and this program seems to help.  Good healthy food for you to kick Cancer's Butt !!