Trouble with regularity - contemplating dried fruit

[LivelyLady]

I know we're supposed to go light on the dried fruit. The issue is that I've been having such trouble with regularity and I'm doing so much to try to address it - Now digestive enzymes with every meal, probiotics by Jarrow twice a day, fish oil several days a week, 3 huge bunches of chard and 1 huge tub of spinach per week (if not two), magnesium at bed time, about 3-4 liters of water per day, a cup of bone broth every day... Seriously, that's a lot of energy I'm throwing at trying to un-bloat and un-constipate!

I keep reading that dried figs, apricots and prunes will help. I don't want to set off my sugar cravings but MY GOD I have to do something to remedy this. I am afraid that having dried fruit in the house will be hard to resist so I'm thinking I could package them up into individual serving baggies and keep them at work. I might be less tempted to sugar-binge on them at work vs. home.

Any thoughts/insights regarding the effectiveness of dried fruit for this issue and/or thoughts on how to use them to help but not have them set off cravings? I'm thinking by having them at the end (or beginning?) of lunch, maybe the protein will help slow the carbs and ward off cravings? Jesus - here I am afraid of fruit. This is exactly where I did NOT want to be in my life. But I've seen how fruit - particularly dried fruit - can set off my sugar binges, so it's sort of freaking me out. Am I on the Crazy Train To Dried Fig Town?

[Tom Denham]

I wouldn't bet on dried fruit making you regular if chard, spinach, and magnesium isn't. Your baggy plan sounds okay, but I don't think dried figs will tip the balance. They could increase your sugar cravings. I would keep doing what you are doing and wait it out.

Our guts can get upset from life and not just food. Are you under stress lately?

[LivelyLady]

Well, we were both right - I tried the figs/prunes and it set off my sugar cravings in a big, bad, terrible way and now I have to re-set back to day one. Jeez! I guess it's good to get that lesson learned and over with (again...) and it did very much confirm why I do NOT keep dried fruit in the house.

I'm so bad at waiting it out. I did have a very intense 6 week course of antibiotics in Feb/March for chronic sinuitis so I'd imagine my gut is out of whack still from that. I'm doing everything I can to get it back in balance but it's frustrating. I own my own business, so yes, I'm pretty much always stressed. That said, the last 2 weeks or so have felt slightly better than the previous few months. But that can change any minute of any day depending on what bills come in, what sales numbers look like, what staffing issues we have, etc. Short of selling my business and moving to an island, I'm not sure what to do about that stress.

[Tom Denham]

Ahh, well. Sorry about the reset. But then, when I started, I liked how I felt so much that I stayed Whole30 strict for more than 6 months. You'll only benefit from the reset.

I was doing some research on shoulderstand squats today and found a cute video -

- about How to Relieve Constipation Naturally. I was in the shoulderstand position for 3 or 4 minutes yesterday afternoon and have been unusually productive this morning. The video mentions accupressure. I've seen acupuncture accomplish amazing things and the technique recommended here can't hurt (although it seems silly to me). I've never heard of the rhubarb or flax seed approach, but neither of them should trigger sugar cravings.