1/4 of the way done

I am almost done with week two, which means only two more weeks till rice and legumes and nuts!   woot woot!   Granted, this Thursday is my birthday and I will be having sushi, as, after all the dr. did say when I asked, "It is your birthday after all."  So glad he was on board with that, as I was gonna do it anyhow :-)

With being two weeks in, I do feel better.  Granted some days it's really hard to muster the excitement to eat yet another round of fruit, or even my beloved zucchini.   These first four weeks are horribly limiting and sitting here today, watching everyone be able to eat Ken's wonderful cheese burgers, made with onion soup mix (on the no-no list for the whole eight weeks, and after that I need to buy a brand other than Lipton's, as theirs added gluten in 4 years ago.  Bastards.)   Then there were the baked potatoes (on the no-no list all eight weeks) Corn on the  cob (again, eight weeks) and Mrs. Dash!!! but my baked chicken, cooked carrots and zucchini chips did just fine.  

I found out that Domino's came out with a gluten free crust.  I am totally stoked to be able to give this a try when I done with this leaky gut diet.   With that said, if I had Celiac's or a full fledged gluten allergy I would not want to try it.  They make it clear that it's prepared right next to their regular pizza's and therefore there is a cross contamination possibility.  It is designed more for people with a sensitivity (Me) and I am happy with that. I am fond of their pizza and I get a kick out of their online tracker.  What can I say, I am easily amused.  

As I have been hoarding more and more gluten free recipe's off of Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/ajl3177/gluten-free/) I have been finding some wonderful blogs that offer so much wonderful information and guidance, I can see some light at the end of the tunnel with all this.  

This week I will be starting the probiotic.  Curious to see how this one works for me.

Well, time to go enjoy what is left of my holiday weekend!

Coconut, coconut, coconut

Being as Coconut is the only cooking fat and flour I am allowed to use during this first four weeks, I am embracing it. And you know, what? It's pretty darn tasty. I was worried the first day that the coconut oil would make my chicken taste like coconut, which, while not a bad, thing, would have limited it's uses. However it's a mild flavor and my chicken didn’t' overcook like it can sometimes with butter. My sear on the outside was beautiful and brown and the chicken inside stayed juicy. This was great! When I heard that the coconut flour and unsweetened flakes were ok too, well I rolled some cut up chicken in it, tossed them in the pan with some coconut oil and coconut Olivio (a new love!) and it was delightful.

Then I decided to research this stuff, curious as to why it was the only one approved for the beginning of this diet (repair on my system really). I found that it's actually quite healthy and has so many benefits. I am totally excited to give this stuff a try and once out of the all the severe restrictions, really start cooking/baking to see what I can do with it.
http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/

And it continues

I decided to email my dr to ask more questions about what I am allowed to have, as with my picky eating, this diet is hard.
Found out I am NOT allowed to have the coconut milk or yogurt. :-(. But coconut flour and unsweetened flakes are ok.
I am allowed to have honey as a sweetener but no others.. It's something, I will take it!
And that helps out with being allowed to have herbal tea (yay! Something other than water!!)
Still not allowed to have any fun seasonings, but salt and pepper are ok, woot woot, again, something I can use!
The No potatoes and No eggplant is for the full 8 weeks….this saddens me. Was hoping to celebrate week 5 with a big ol baked tatey!
But he understood that I am caving for my bday, as it's my bday. SUSHI here I come!
And also, once week 5 hits I can do sushi regularly then, which is not as far away as it was a week ago.

So last night I made myself chicken with the coconut oil, flour and flakes and it was good. Almost didn't miss the teriyaki chicken and rice I made for Ken.

How it came to be

I always said I would never have a blog, as I have nothing interesting to say or share.   What has changed?  My dietary habits.   Does that mean I have anything important to say?  No.  I am not unique in any way.  I wanted this more for my own purposes of tracking this journey.    You see, Several years ago I developed a freaky rash on my body.   I went to the dr and they weren't sure what it was.  They thought it might be Celiac's disease.  And they took my blood and for a week I waited for the results and tried to live gluten free in that time, thinking that if it was positive it was how I had to do it.   So I did research and got really agitated because I love my pizza, bread, and pasta.     The results came back negative and I went back to my gluten filled yumminess.   I also have IBS and a lazy little thyroid.   So when I met someone at work who talked about having all the same things and how she got better going to this dr that tested for so many things, I thought, "I don’t' want a gluten problem but I still get the rashes and something is not right.  I am tired of constant stomach pain."  So I made an appt.  They are very busy and it took 2 months for my appt to roll around.  They took the blood and I went back 4 weeks later to get the results.    The verdict is in , Celiac's - no (yay!!!), Gluten allergy - No (Yayyyyyyy!!!!), Gluten sensitivity- yes (damnit).   So the course of action here is 6 months gluten free and then reintroduce to see how I do.  No biggie, have found lots of gluten free alternatives, this won't be bad….but wait, no, you need to do this leaky gut diet for the first eight weeks.  And take this powder supplement twice a day for 2 months.  Two weeks into it, start taking this probiotic.   Also, since you don't sleep well, use this lotion at night....

Weeks 1-4

Can eat meat, any fruit you can tolerate, vegetables and coconut (oil and the like)

But avoid potatoes (what??) tomato (ok, no fake pizza) eggplant (wha??)  and peppers (who cares, they are vile)

But wait, also no dairy for the full 8 weeks (you have got to be kidding me!!!!)

Weeks 5-8

Introduce nuts/seeds in (yay!)  Olive oil (about damn time) beans (eh, don't like em) legumes (see beans) and rice (waaiiiiittttt, no rice the first four weeks?  That means no sushi.  CRAP)

If you know me, you know my diet is normally limited.  I am a bread, meat, and cheese girl.   I can't have two of those currently.  I can't' even have my V8 Fusion drinks as they have tomato in them.  I am suddenly getting by on fruit and chicken and carrots and peas……I sense this will cause a disturbance in the force.  But you gotta do what you gotta do to get better right?   Eating healthy won't kill me, might make me grumpy, but won't kill me. 

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Day 1 of super restrictive diet hell…..I survived but barely…I can't remember ever eating this much fruit.   Made chicken strips in the coconut oil, and it was just delightful,   might be something to this coconut thing.  Must research further.   Also, lotion for calming down my cortisol levels (sleep issue)  stinks like vitamins, but I slept very well.

Thursday May 17, 2012

Day 2 of Super restrictive diet hell…..there is a snack day two cubicle down from me…things with crumble and cake and yumminesss….I want to eat the table.   Overall however, I am feeling pretty good, stomach is not bloated, no pain, just want to have some bread.   Read up on coconut, holy crap, it's like the miracle food.  It apparently is beneficial in more ways then I ever realized.

Friday May 18, 2012

Day 3 of  Diet hell…..overall I am feeling pretty good.   However I am hungry for a bakery…..decided, lets have some peas with my chicken.   Didn't realize peas were in the legumes category. My stomach was acidic and cranky till mid Saturday.   Sleepy lotion still stinks.....but again, slept very well. 

Saturday May 19, 2012

Had a wondeful morning doing the Highmark Walk for a Healthy Community in support of Hospice.   Ate more fruit and chicken and feeling good.   Seem to have come out of the foul up from yesterday.  Mom lent me her blender.  OMG, coconut milk and pineapples...this could be dangerous.   mmmm  mmmmm good!

I have been pinning stuff on pinterest for a while in preperation for the verdict.  Now I just need to get through the next 8 weeks so I can start making some of the yummy gluten free stuff I have found to try!