Pea Posted April 6, 2013 Author Share Posted April 6, 2013 Well, I have really researched a low iodine diet. I hope my docs will work with me to see if that brings my thyroid hormone down. I DO NOT want a radioactive uptake test, nor do I want to take medication that ablates the thyroid gland. It usually causes HYPOthyroidism, and I DO NOT want to deal with that if I can possibly help it. No eggs, no dairy, no regular salt, no seafood. Meat and veggies. Without the grains that are a large part of the diet, that just limits my proteins even more. B: piece of chicken homemade cranberry chutney L: chicken salad made with onion, dried sage, olive oil over arugula with raw kohlrabi and carrots. Carrots are SWEET! Who knew? D: see below I am so proud of myself! I am invited to a catered event this evening, and I just called the restaurant and explained my dietary issues, and they agreed to make me a plain grilled chicken breast with steamed vegetables, no salt. (I will bring some kosher salt with me, along with a chopped up apple with homemade walnut butter for dessert. I can't wait 'til next week when I go back to my dance classes! Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 7, 2013 Author Share Posted April 7, 2013 Ok, I confess. I had a half dozen bites of wedding cake today at a wedding. ALMOST IMMEDIATELY, I felt like crap: my heart rate went up, I felt sweaty, and my stomach wasn't happy. That was a great experience... No, really: . It was very reinforcing and I have ZERO desire to repeat the experience. Zero. I came home and had some homemade broth with a turkey wing, some arugula thrown in, and lactofermeted carrots. YUM. So... B: chicken salad made with olive oil, onions, avocado, some raw greens, apple slices L: (at wedding) a few orange slices, a few almonds, a few bites of wedding cake meal 3: turkey broth, turkey wing, arugula, carrots meal 4: Probably more turkey broth as above, I'm exhausted and don't feel like cooking! tomorrow I hope I have the energy to go to dance class I'm whupped! (I started my 30day subscription to day 1 because of the cake) Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kb0426 Posted April 7, 2013 Share Posted April 7, 2013 You know, Pea, as I read this all I just want to give you a hug. You spend so much time and effort taking care of others. How I wish I could just come and cook for you and feed you for a week. We would walk and talk about life. Hopefully in all of this you can find a way to take care of You! Without energy, you won't be able to take care of others. While I realize you wanting to take the advice of your practitioner in regards to eating throughout the day, if you follow the template you really don't have to worry about your blood sugar being stable. I won't tell you to ignore their advice, just maybe get them a copy of It Starts with Food. I used to believe the 5 time a day eating as well. Now I believe in thriving off of 3 meals a day. Enjoy your dance class and your time away from it all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 8, 2013 Author Share Posted April 8, 2013 Aw, kb....thank you! My practitioner called me this morning and made me feel better. He thinks I am having Hashimoto's hyperthyroidism and suggests that I get tested for the antibodies. He also agrees with my intention that I stay on the autoimmune protocol, keep my iodine intake low (ditch the kelp) and perhaps take a little beta-blocker for the elevated heart rate, get close follow-up and see what happens. So I am going STRICT STRICT STRICT: meat, fowl, a little fish, veggies, and some fruits, no nuts, no nightshades. I had a nice bowl of homemade turkey broth with arugula and carrots, a little sauerkraut, turkey meat for brekkie. I am going to my dance class. I am just going to put my head down and GO. If I am having an autoimmune flare (autoimmune thyroiditis, spinal arthritis) I sure do want to avoid a bout of Crohn's colitis, which I had once in my twenties. Not fun. My dear hubby was sweet as could be this morning. He's on the last stretch of the sprint to the end of tax season----he's a CPA----but he stepped away from his work to talk with me about how I feel. He said he would fully support my need to cook and eat a certain, limited diet, and that has to come first. We're going to have a family meeting with our two sons to discuss what is possible. I am willing to make meat and veggies and a side of what they like: rice, or pasta. But I don't want to make meals that nobody will eat----if that is the case, then I will just cook for myself. In any event, I AM going to take the dance class today and if I can find a spaghetti squash anywhere, I'd love to make a giant shissle of 'spaghetti' and meatballs. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 8, 2013 Author Share Posted April 8, 2013 Note to self: Dance classes are your BLISS. Do not forget. meal 1: turkey soup meal 2: steak, arugula, vegan pesto meal 3: mini meatloaf muffin, sauerkraut, 1/2 large baked sweet potato Going for a wee walk with a friend this evening. Then I will rest... That dance class was just good for my body, my mind, my soul. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helen Posted April 8, 2013 Share Posted April 8, 2013 What kind of dance? I love to dance! I do NIA once a week and I'm in a dance collective (free form ecstatic type dance)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 This class is the senior adult class twice a week given by Maude Baum at her eba dance company studio. (here's a link: http://www.eba-arts.org/index.cfm). Maude is an Isadora Duncan dancer and she's been teaching here in Albany, NY for 40 years. In our class, we do a warmup, some barre work, and then we just dance... She has amazing music and we let go! I also take an African dance class from these people: http://www.africandancetroy.org/ Also great fun! I've taken NIA classes from a few different teachers and also enjoy those. I'm looking forward to getting back to African dance now that my recovery's pretty complete from surgery. I got my new Fitbit Zip today. I put on around 4pm and already have 3 1/4 miles logged from my evening walk. I'm sure I had 10K steps today if you count dance class (1 1/2 hours) and just general walking around! I made mini meatloaf muffins and they came out good! Very convenient. Tomorrow's brekkie will be a meat muffin and the other half of the sweet potato I ate tonight. 100%. All the time. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Last night my husband's fax line rang at 1am (he's a tax accountant). Usually, even in my sleep, I can tell the difference between that ring and my own line, but last night I jumped out of bed like a crazy woman, heart banging out of my chest, panting, awful sensations. It's from being hyperthyroid right now. This morning, I took my Repair Vite (glutamine concoction from functional medicine doc), my probiotic, my Vit. D and my psyllium. meal 1: mini meatloaf muffin (grassfed ground beef, shredded onion, garlic, and carrot), 1/2 sweet potato, handful of arugula, cooked. meal 2: a bit of steak, sauerkraut, apple meal 3: mini meat loaves, spaghetti squash with pesto, raw salad That's the plan, anyway. Did I mention I really like my little fitbit Zip? I have to take my son to his guitar lesson today; that will give me about 30 minutes to walk around the parking lot. I'm accumulating steps... . Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjena Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 Sorry about the 1am wake-up, Pea. Did you get back to sleep? I had no reason to wake up at 2:30 and did not get back to sleep. Sad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 9, 2013 Author Share Posted April 9, 2013 Sorry about the 1am wake-up, Pea. Did you get back to sleep? I had no reason to wake up at 2:30 and did not get back to sleep. Sad. I eventually got back to sleep, thank you for asking, pjena. Do you have sleep difficulties often? It's a quality of life sucker, for sure. I was so wound up early in the day, I did something out of desperation that I clearly should be doing more often: meditate. I set the timer for 25 minutes, settled right now, and could feel........the.............peace................settle.................in. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. So I'm setting an intention to meditate daily. Tomorrow I have a dinner, I have to call and see if I can get a meal I can eat! Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moluv Posted April 9, 2013 Share Posted April 9, 2013 I am officially All Messed Up. This morning my younger son called my cell phone at 7:30 in the morning after leaving for college. I tried calling him back, but he didn't pick up. I got nutsy cuckoo and called him back SIX TIMES in a panic, imagining that he had been in a car accident. I couldn't think of any reason he would be calling me otherwise. I had the dim awareness that my reaction was nutsy cuckoo, but I couldn't help it. I had the same reaction a couple of days ago when my dad called me and I couldn't get to the phone on time, then nobody picked up when I called back, and no message was left. I got in the car and scooted over there. This is clearly something like a PTSD symptom: the phone too often in my life has these kinds of calls. (I will not enumerate except to say that my father's heart attack 3 weeks ago was the most recent.) I am traumatized. I am in a funny-fatigue place: I can't tell whether I am fatigued and need to rest or sluggish and need to exercise. I see my health coach this morning and I hope he is able to suggest something to me. It is difficult for me to acknowledge how crappy I feel. I aspire to be, and have been for most of my adult life, positive, resilient, hardworking, and open-hearted. The truth of it all is that I feel depleted, gived-out, traumatized, beaten-up, used-up and flat out of gas, and very UNresilient. Like there isn't any stretch left to the stretch pants, yanno? I dream of what used to be called The Rest Cure. You know, sent away from all life's demands to a place, say, like this: http://www.hsl.virgi...deau_porch2.jpg Of course, if I could design my own personalized rest cure, it would be as follows: a single cottage with one bedroom, a great library, and wee kitchen, on the ocean somewhere along the Atlantic coast, or perhaps the Georgia Sea Islands. I wouldn't have to do anything: housekeeping and all whole30 approved meals supplied. The pantry full of herbal teas and Gerolsteiner mineral water. There would be a wraparound porch, with one side facing the ocean and the other a gorgeous beach garden, with those shrubby little rose bushes that love the salt and sand, and waving beach grasses and big puffy, deep blue hydrangeas, the old-fashioned kind that turn into little trees. The air would be scented with salt and sea life and the sweetness of the roses. Sleeping at night would be a pleasure, with the sound of the surf and the scent of the sea wafting in the open windows. It would be cool, and a light quilt would be a welcome comfort. I would wake in the morning in my own time, savor my breakfast, delivered to me on a tray. Rich, fine coffee, black. Something yummy and pretty to look at. I finish, and take my first walk of the day along the (empty) beach. (Of course nobody else is enjoying this paradise. It's a fantasy!) Everything soothes me: the rhythmic washing of the waves, the cries of gulls, the deep, rich salty humus, the pretty seashells scattered like treasures along the line of last night's high tide marks. Times goes by, I'm not keeping track. There are no appointments. No crises. Nobody's needs to tend to, except my own. I walk, I stop and sit on the hard-packed moist sand, near the water's edge, and just breathe and watch and be. When the spirit moves me, I walk some more, until I'm tired and cannot soak in any more sea goodness. I head back to the cottage, to sit on the garden-side porch and read, and sip herbal tea, and doze. Lather, rinse, repeat. Multiple dips in the surf, naps on the hot sand in late afternoon, lots of sun, rest, longer and longer walks each day as many days as I need, until I start to feel full, as if pregnant and ready to deliver, full of myself, ready to give birth to my own best and health-filled self. My rest cure setting would look like this: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_cEkfkzJ1eC8/TOi_ob3cxHI/AAAAAAAAACA/BG3DCzzEKac/s1600/new-england_beach-cottage.jpg I also suffer mild PTSD which I believe stems from childhood trauma but was cemented when my little boy suffered a series of relatively minor injuries between the age of 5 months and 2 years. There was abuse by his biological father as well as a household accident- a burn- and I have never recovered from it even though he is cool as a cucumber when we talk about it. There is almost never a night that just before falling asleep I am shaken by some graphic vision of some accident befalling one of my children (now 6&2). I could hardly let them play outside alone in the fenced yard without a high level of anxiety. I did notice there were a couple of weeks during my w60 when my digestion was by the books PERFECT and I was the happiest and calmest I had ever been. I was not plagued by the nighttime visions and I started letting the kids play outside with a little less supervision. When I went off W30 for about a week I noticed that old coiled up tense feeling return, along with the graphic visions. I am convinced inflammation is key here though not likely to be easily explained by science. I am also considering doing this treatment to require my memories, which I first heard a out through a client of mine that is a therapist using this modality. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_movement_desensitization_and_reprocessing I enjoyed reading your log so far "stupidest cat" lol, and also appreciate your kind encouragement on my log a few days ago. I have a lot of faith in the healing (slow as it may be) with the AIP, keep at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 10, 2013 Author Share Posted April 10, 2013 Moluv, I think when one suffers with such things (as I surely do) healing is complex, sometimes elusive and paradoxical. For example, I know from experience if I pursue healing too hard it will elude me. The mental image I am trying to cultivate is one of gentle allowance; gently creating the conditions under which healing can proceed and then letting go of any pressure for it to happen. Yesterday, sitting myself down to meditate was like throwing a switch. It just settled everything down. This morning I feel better despite some symptoms making themselves known (elevated heart rate, which is uncomfortable). I am eating sardines and sweet potatoes for breakfast. I know sardines aren't on a low iodine diet but I have nothing else prepared. I have to take my son to the dentist this morning, and I have a banquet dinner to attend tonight. Busy day. It's going to be a good day... Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 10, 2013 Author Share Posted April 10, 2013 meal 1: sardines and sweet potato meal 2: mini meatball muffin, lactofermented carrots, avocado meal 3: baked apple with almond butter and coconut cream YUM meal 4: salmon, vegetables No formal exercise but a lot of running around today! 4000 steps so far on my fitbit, and it ain't over yet. I am feeling decent today.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 I'm doing great, highly motivated to stay strictly on the whole30 protocol. I'm having my ups and downs related to hyperthyroidism (and my circumstances) but I am beginning to see (and feel) a shift within; I believe I am healing. On a happy note, primary care doc says I have lost 20 pounds in the past year. Without dieting, just flirting around the edges of the whole30 (primal with a side of cheese). Meal 1 today: chicken casserole made with onions, apples, coconut milk and greens with fauxtatoes (cauliflower) Meal 2: lamb chops with cooked greens and fauxtatoes Meal 3: more chicken casserole, fauxtatoes, some other veggie as yet undetermined. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 13, 2013 Author Share Posted April 13, 2013 Good morning!!!!! Slept ok last night, don't feel completely rested this morning but nothing to complain about. I didn't leave home yesterday, just hung out all day in my sweats and rested. This morning, I am going to go to the Y and walk the track for a bit. I haven't been getting enough steps, my fitbit tells me! I'm really glad I got this for myself. It's a useful tool. Now it's nagging me to get my butt in gear! If you are familiar with Mark Sisson's Primal Blueprint, you know the foundation of fitness----the first layer of the cake------is just ordinary moving around. That's what I'm working on. There's this wonderful naturalistic study of the activity patterns and metabolic profiles of both males and females in hunter-gatherer tribes. Wouldn't it you know it? They walk, on average, 4-5 miles/day. So off I go...... Having lunch out with my niece, a place I shouldn't have much trouble ordering. Having family and a friend over for a bagel-and-lox dinner but I will just eat some leftovers. SO: meal 1: ground beef mixed with sweet potato and coconut milk meal 2: probably a chicken breast with veggies and olive oil or a salad meal 3: chicken cooked with greens, onions, cauliflower and coconut milk; sliced cooked beets Walkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalk Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kb0426 Posted April 13, 2013 Share Posted April 13, 2013 I cannot wait for spring to actually arrive and to have a pin removed from my foot, then I will walkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalk with you! I really love getting out and taking long walks. I make myself move at a good pace and enjoy the sounds and scenery around me. It is a great way to just move. I can either think through problems or just abandon them completely. Good for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 13, 2013 Author Share Posted April 13, 2013 Walking and dance, kb, are what seem to be floating my boat just now. I know I *should* do some strength training but I don't care to just now. I just want to enjoy myself, dammit! And I am greatly enjoying dance classes and lovely walks. Maybe I'll be more open pushing myself when I feel more reliably better. Until then..... I'm up to 8400 steps so far! I'd like to hit the 10k spot. Maybe a post-prandial walk.... Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 14, 2013 Author Share Posted April 14, 2013 Yesterday, I hit 12K steps! Woohoo for me! Slept better last night, too. I'm actually starting to feel things shift. I'm starting to feel better. My vision for myself over time is to stick with this fairly strict protocol until I am past my thyroid issue and that's settled down. I do want to test eggs as soon as my doc recommends. I do not think I am sensitive to eggs----I don't crave them, overeat them, etc. I just like them. Dairy, I'm not as sure about as I once thought. The only food I really craved during the first 30 days of this venture was yogurt, my own homemade yogurt, with a long ferment, and made with high quality local grassfed milk. Craved enough so that I tried to ferment coconut milk (dismal failure.) Now that I'm 36 days into this, I can feel the lessening of my dairy lust. So I'm making a note to be very, very careful about testing the role of dairy in my life. (My younger son is REALLY allergic to cow's milk. He was very sick as a toddler until I figured it out for myself, no thanks to any of his doctors.) Yogurt (the only dairy food I really want in my life) will be the last thing I try to introduce. I am beginning to see how an eating future for myself might look, what my lifelong "food rules" might be: 1. Still buying only grassfed, local organic meats and eggs, and wildcaught fish. 2. Still eating lots of vegetables, hopefully with nightshades back in! I love eggplant and tomatoes. 3. Still using high quality appropriate fats. 4. Still eschewing mainstream processed foods. So what will be (hopefully) different? Eating eggs and maybe my own yogurt. And being able to cook some of the luscious things from Practical Paleo (my favorite cookbook to date); things like pumpkin pancakes with a dab of real maple syrup, etc. My ideal vision has me in the kitchen all the time turning out yummies! Today: meal 1: escarole with lamb and cooked beets meal 2: leftover chicken casserole with 1/2 sweet potato meal 3: ground beef with beets, olive oil Activity: I'd love to start some spring cleaning of my closets and drawers....even though it is still cold and gray here in upstate NY! Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 17, 2013 Author Share Posted April 17, 2013 I'm doing pretty well. Don't know what day I'm on.....that's ok, this is going to be a long haul... meal 1: salmon with broccoli raab meal 2: chicken, sauerkraut, arugula meal 3: short ribs, arugula I'm having some neck and shoulder pain today, don't know why. I see my nutrition/chiropractor doc on Friday. See what he has to say. Keepin' on keepin' on. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beets Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Just catching up on your log but I had to say your rest cure is my exact idea of heaven. Sign me up. My friend and I in college used to fantasize about being sent to some kind of sanatorium. It looked like Downton Abbey in my mind but was on the ocean. There were white Adirondack lounge chairs and lots and lots of hours for peaceful reading in the warm (not hot) salty air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helen Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 What do you like about Practical Paleo? I am considering buying it and just wonder... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 18, 2013 Author Share Posted April 18, 2013 I like a lot of things about it. I like the pictures (food porn!) and I like how you can sort through the recipes by plan and medical condition to find the recipes that suit. This is especially important to me as I am doing an autoimmune protocol and don't want to sift through a lot of recipes that call for eggs. I considered buying Well Fed, but I don't need to be walked through basic prep----I already make a large pan of roasted veggies, have fresh greens on hand for salads, roast a whole chicken and use the meat for stir fries, etc. What I need are specific recipes to spice up what I am already doing because I am getting a little bored with my food. I have a confession to make. Yesterday evening I did something REALLY STUPID. I ate 3 eggs, a large glass of almond milk, and a big handful of spiced almonds. And I am paying for it today. I couldn't sleep all last night, my back is hurting terribly, and I am all anxious and upset and exhausted. Obviously, I reacted to something, but was it the eggs or the almonds or the almond milk? Back to beginner's mind (the autoimmune protocol) . I had felt so much better last week, I got cocky. Now I know I need to be squeaky clean for much longer and much more careful about introducing new foods. I'm taking my whole30 emails back to day one. Poor me. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjena Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Pea - I'm sorry you feel badly today! I hope it passes quickly. While it probably would have been better to have either eggs or almonds, at least you know that one of them (or both) are bad for your body. Good information, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helen Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Progress not perfection! Hope quick healing comes your way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Posted April 18, 2013 Author Share Posted April 18, 2013 Right. meal 1: chicken sausage, arugula, bacon, beets meal 2: lamb chop, arugula, sauerkraut, lactofermented carrots meal 3: well-mashed yucca, short ribs, brussel sprouts Naptime. Down for the count, feel like a worn rug. Pea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.