Day 24 and not feeling any "magic"

[yerocasil]

Just a little background, in case it helps...

I'm 36 years old. I've had digestive issues most of my life. I remember having stomach aches ALL the time when I was little. I've tried various changes to my diet (no dairy, no gluten, no grains, no sugar) but I never did them all together and probably not long enough. I never really felt enough better to "quit" them completely (I thought, "why take them out and not enjoy them, not to mention the inconvenience if I don't feel great?"). I haven't eaten refined sugar for several years (only honey, maple syrup, palm sugar, stevia). I think I had/have candida issues as well (lots of problems with yeast since the birth of my daughter in 2006) which is why I initially stopped sugar. I did a candida diet for about a month awhile back too.

I decided to try the Whole 30, but I have to say I haven't felt good even one day. I will say my digestive issues are probably 98% gone, so that is huge! But, I've had headaches everyday and I think they are mostly related to my jaw. I've had TMD issues for awhile, but it seems WAY worse since I started the Whole 30. Is that possible? Is there any hope that this will improve if I continue? I have scheduled an apt. with my doctor for next week to discuss my jaw and my headaches. I have talked about it with my dentist as well and have a mouthpiece.

Week one was not very good (not terrible), typical week one stuff. My second week was not much better and it was my time of the month which always makes my headaches and digestive issues worse. Then I got a cold/virus which I am still fighting now. My head/face/teeth and especailly my jaw are all killing me.

I plan to do at least a Whole 45 or 60, but I'm just wondering if I will ever really feel good (and I know no one can say for sure)? I'm a feeling so discouraged. I was really hoping to feel better doing this, but the headaches/jaw pain have been awful! Also, my whole family (5 of us!) have been doing this together. The kids have been really great for the most part. But, man is it costing a ton! Our grocery bill has about doubled and I'm not sure we can afford to continue (I'm a stay at home mom). We didn't eat terribly before, I bought natrual/organic products and made a lot from scratch. I feel like I live at the grocery store (when I'm not in the kitchen!). I have bought some things in bulk, so hopefully that will cut costs next month (and is part of the increase this month).

Just wondering if this will be worth it I guess. Feeling like I've put so much time, energy, and money into something that so far isn't helping much. I do realize it could just take time, but it is hard to want to continue when I feel so bad. I am thankful for the digestive improvements, but the headaches/jaw pain are worse than the digestive issues IMO. I have posted a couple of times on these forums with no real replies. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong, but I would really appreciate some feedback. Sorry for such a long post and thanks in advance!

[Tom Denham]

I'm not sure I spend more on food overall since I started eating real, whole foods exclusively, but I am pretty sure that I spent more money at first as I made the transition. Four dollar bottles of spices last for a long time, but it only takes a few such things to get the grocery bill up. Of course, the big way my food expenses have changed is eating a home a lot more than I did before and so spending less money in restaurants. I have come a long way from the 1980s when I noticed that I ate 20 meals per week in restaurants and none at home.

It is great that you have experienced huge improvements in your digestion. That is almost certainly related to your new diet and good digestion is a foundation for health that will serve you well in the future.

TMJ is almost certainly unrelated to what you are eating, so doing a Whole30 is probably not related to your increased jaw pain and headaches.

Your body can't really tell the difference between refined sugar and other forms like honey, maple syrup, palm sugar, and stevia. If you have problems with refined sugar, you almost certainly have trouble with these other forms of it too.

Feeling better when you eliminate a range of potential trouble foods makes sense. Many times, the symptoms are subtle and it takes eliminating a lot of triggers or living without them for a while to notice things getting better. To say it another way, only a few people get bad stomach aches when they eat a trouble food. Most of us suffer such small problems that they are hard to notice. Personally, I don't notice a problem from eating anything, but if I go off plan much, my sleep suffers. I have never figured out what food or combination of foods matters so much to my sleep. I just know that when I am doing a Whole30, I sleep better.

I would bet if you keep eating the Whole30 way and get some distance from your cold/virus and your TMJ issues settle down, you will feel some magic.

[Moluv]

I used to have jaw clenching/grinding problems and had to wear a guard at night. When I stopped eating gluten @ 6 months ago it improved greatly with only occasional days/nights of tightness. Since I started w30 late January I have only had the jaw clenching episode 2 times- both times during a food intolerance episode with extreme bloating and digestive upset- once to nuts and coffee and once to eggs. I believe my jaw problems are directly related to the health of my GI tract and, like Tom said, sometimes the reactions are so subtle it's difficult to pinpoint. I am of the mindset that ALL symptoms are related to the gut health so I've just continued tweaking my diet to allow my gut to feel calm and happy. For me, that means full AIP with reintroducing things like nightshades and citrus once I'm feelig really good. It may help you to keep a food diary and track how you feel and be on the lookout for potential threats and experiment with them. I've also used chiropractic and yoga for spinal health but that's off topic I suppose.

[GLC1968]

How are you sleeping? Have you found that the Whole30 has helped with that at all yet? If not, that may be part of what you need to still wait for. I know that for me, I was well into week 3 on my first Whole30 before my sleep patterns transitioned to real deep sleep (a total shocker for me as I'd always been a terrible sleeper). I had horrible jaw pain and headaches through most of my 20's and 30's and I've since discovered that a huge part of it was clenching my teeth at night (with some grinding, but not much) mostly due to stress. A bite guard didn't help me because it was impossible for me to sleep with it in. I was a happy person, satisified with my life (for the most part) so I had no idea why I was 'stressed' enough to cause this to happen.

For other reasons, I massive lifestyle changes and as a result, that helped some, but it wasn't until I found the Whole30 and learned what REAL sleep felt like that I had any true relief.

I would suggest that you give it a little more time. The awesome sleep may be yet to come since you were sick for awhile and with that may come some relief to your face and head pain. Though, it is good that you plan to check in with your doctor of course.

[yerocasil]

Thank you all for your responses-MUCH appreciated! I have read that TMD can be related to diet, which is why I was wondering about how it related to the Whole 30. I was really hoping for improvements not the other way (I had read other people say it helped their TMJ/TMD). I am keeping a journal and trying to see what is bothering me. I was going to start the AIP protocol, but just haven't wanted to try to make it work with even less food options (I'm not eating many eggs, just what is in mayo/ranch and as binders for sausage and such, I also haven't been drinking coffee but I have been having some nuts). Maybe I need to though? I haven't been having digestive issues though, so it is hard to figure out if something is bothering my jaw. It always hurts a little more right after I eat anything.

I do need to give it more time, it is just frustrating as I wait. GLC1968 you sound exactly like me! I am not sleeping well and haven't for years. Of course I have three children and have been awakened at times during the night by them for the past 10 years, but even when everyone else is sleeping I have a rough time getting decent sleep (both falling asleep and staying asleep). I've even tried some sleeping pills (Tylenol PM because I was desperate and some more natural ones) without any relief. I can't keep my mouth piece in either! I try, but I inevitably take it out sometime during the night and wake up wondering where it went (or can't sleep at all because of how uncomfortable it is). I was wondering why I still haven't had that benefit from the Whole 30 as well. It is encouraging that it may still come.

I'll just keep plugging away I guess. Thank you again, it is so helpful to get input!

[yerocasil]

Moluv-I actually just thought of a question. Did you notice it going away immediately when you stopped the gluten? Or was there a period where you still did it but it gradually stopped? Can you tell me anymore about what it was like when it improved for you. It really seems worse for me, but I was kind of hoping there was still a chance that it could lessen with time continuing to eat this way. Thanks!

[missmary]

I'm not moluv, obviously, but on the elimination question: you have to eliminate the food entirely, like not even a little taste at all for a good long while before you will know if it is the culprit. 30 days AIP would mean not even consuming the eggs in mayo, or a single nut, etc. It's challenging, but really good for getting to the bottom of things. I know with gluten I continue to react for several weeks after a small exposure, so you can imagine if I was eating it "occasionally" I would basically never stop reacting...so I would never get to feel how good I feel once I stop.

good luck. try to be patient.

[Moluv]

I'm not moluv, obviously, but on the elimination question: you have to eliminate the food entirely, like not even a little taste at all for a good long while before you will know if it is the culprit. 30

days AIP would mean not even consuming the

eggs in mayo, or a single nut, etc. It's challenging, but really good for getting to the bottom of things. I know with gluten I continue to react for several weeks after a small exposure, so you can imagine if I was eating it "occasionally" I would basically

never stop reacting...so I would never get to feel how good I feel once I stop.

good luck. try to be patient.

That is true for me also- and once I eliminated the worst culprit (gluten) I started noticing I reacted to other grains. Then once I eliminated all the regular W30 stuff I started being able to notice more subtle reactions to nuts, coffee, garlic, eggs etc. I wouldn't be at all surprised if I react to nightshades once I reintro them. With as many stomach aches you experienced as a child I would not be at all surprised if you have enough intestinal damage so as to cause reactions to healthy foods like eggs too. So I guess to answer your original question, yes, some improvements were so drastic as to be immediately noticeable, other changes have taken more eliminations on my part. I didn't notice when the jaw clenching left because it kind of faded gradually and I think I'd

just gotten used to it. But I DID notice this

weekend during the "egg episode" that I had a

headache and jaw clenching for 2 days following. And I don't remember if you mentioned this above, but anyone with headaches/jaw problems really should avoid caffeine at the least.

And remember this: just because science doesn't have an answer for exactly how your diet plays into your problem doesn't mean that it doesn't. It means human biology is so complex and there is much we don't know yet.

[koru]

Hi Yerocasil,

Here are my two cents about diet / TMD. A couple years ago I had a completely surprising episode of anaphylactic shock after eating some shellfish (before then, I never had a problem with it). That experience was very traumatic, and resulted in repeat visits to the ER over the weekend (I also had a reaction to prednisone, so it was pretty horrible). For two weeks after that, I developed an onset of TMD so severe, I had to drink my food through a straw; I was unable to speak.

I went to my local University dental school, as they have a TMJ department, and saw a specialist, and all he could do was press some points on my face to loosen up the muscles, and suggested I wear my night guard, which never helped me. I also refused to take muscle relaxants. This is when I consulted my own dentist, who also happens to specialize in neuromuscular dentistry. That man saved me. The short term solution to help with severe pain and locked muscles was to use a TENS machine. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Anyone who has muscle or nerve pain needs to own one of these. You can find them quite cheaply online (amazon etc). It's perfectly safe, and not difficult to master, and the relief is immesurable. After that, I underwent testing (you can learn more about it here), and he outfitted me with a mouth piece that actually put my jaw in proper alignment to ensure my muscles were at their most natural and relaxed. This process wasn't cheap, but it was a life saver for me, because in addition to jaw pain I also developed neck and shoulder pain and stiffness, difficulty swallowing, panic attacks and dizziness. So to make a long story short, as a short term solution I highly, highly recommend you look into getting a TENS machine, and also look into finding a neuromuscular dentist in your area. The old way of treating TMJ is archaic and completely ineffective; but this treatment almost literally saved my life.

[yerocasil]

Koru-Thanks for the advice! My husband is a PT and we have a TENS machine already (and access to other therapies like ultrasound which I've also recently read can help). I'll have him hook me up to it as soon as he gets home! He has used it on me in the past to help with labor (I wanted to go all natural with my last child after some not so pleasant deliveries with my first two). It was helpful then, so there is some hope. I've just recently been reading a little about the jaw alignment too. I know my mouthpiece doesn't do that. My dentist just made me a basic one (cheaper) to see if it would help-which it hasn't at all. I appreciate the input.

I have noticed my TMD issues come and go. They get bad for awhile and then seem to improve (though I have connected them to things in the past-mostly chemicals or scents that were bothering me which upon elimination seemed to lessen the symptoms). This is by far the worse they have ever been though. I think I will try the AIP to see how that goes. I mainly need to avoid all eggs, nightshades, nuts, seeds and raspberries/strawberries correct? Did you all find you had to avoid the FODMAPS at all (just thinking about cutting those out too is killing me, I already feel so limited thinking about the AIP)? At this point I just need some relief! Thank you all, you don't even know how helpful you have been.

[30Canandaigua]

I didn't really feel amazing until day 26. Hang in there

Also- I keep telling myself: If you've spent most of your life eating and feeling differently, you may need more than 30 days to allow your body to heal and adjust to feel 100% incredible.

[yerocasil]

Oh, ghee! Do I need to avoid ghee? I've been using it, but read in Practical Paleo that you should avoid it for AIP.

[Moluv]

I'm following the AIP as written (with exception to eating some raw veggies) for a month before I do reintroductions on ghee, citrus and nightshades. I don't think I'll be eating eggs again for a while. But it's only a month- it really flies by. I know some people do the AIP with ghee. Is there something in the AIP exclusions that you believe may be causing you trouble in particular?

[Robin Strathdee]

So here's my (late to the game) 2 cents:

You've had a series of events that are kind of keeping your body in a state of upheaval. Add to that the stress of kid-sleep (I'm SO there right now) and your jaw problems - I'm not surprised there's no "magic". BUT, I'm convinced that continuing a Good Food lifestyle will allow your body to heal to the point where your stresses are no longer overwhelming.

About the TMJ - can it be exacerbated by a lot of chewing? If you're eating more protein than before, that requires more chewing. Could that be the culprit, perhaps? Just a random thought

[yerocasil]

I don't know what is causing trouble in particular. My stomach was a bit of a mess today actually (I guess I spoke too soon about it feeling so good!). I am going to start the AIP tomorrow. I will be on day 25 of my whole 30, but I'll continue at least 30 more days. Does anyone know, if you remove all the AIP things and then discover something else is bothering you, should you remove that and essentially start 30 more days? I'm feeling a bit ovewhelmed!

I didn't mention we are also trying to adopt, so that has been a bit stressful! Maybe that is contributing to my jaw. And Robin I definitely feel like I'm chewing a lot! But I try to eat my veggies soft. I did make an apt. with a dentist that is trained in neuromuscular dentristy and TMD (thanks Koru). Hoping for some relief with the AIP. Thanks again everyone!

[Tina R]

I made it to day 26 and am not feeling any magic.

[jillian]

Natural Calm (a magnesium supplement) may help keep your muscles a bit more relaxed - cut down on clenching. It's worth a try. Very late to the game on this post - but it seems like you are following the chat so I hope you get this little tidbit of input.