the doctor also wanted to see if I have any food related allergies, so I ticked off all the foods I eat and might eat and we had them all tested. basically I omitted any meat, minus chicken, as I still ate a bit of chicken 'bacon' with my eggs at breakfast.
turns out I'm having to re-adjust my whole life again. these tests range in allergy from 0- 5 and the highest I tested was a 2 on egg whites and white beans, and I tested at a 0/1 on many things, including egg yolks. the doctor wanted me to omit the level 2 allergy foods and limit the other ones, which include;
cow milk,
wheat,
almonds,
casein,
gluten,
banana,
spelt,
whey,
ginger,
kidney beans,
green beans,
and yogurt.
while I havnt had actual milk in a long while, I did enjoy my cheese and yogurt at times; eggs were a must for me; bananas were getting into my regular daily diet for muscle cramps and helping create a creamy healthful smoothie lately; almonds seem to be a substitute for gluten free items; and I still have no idea if "white beans" is a type of bean, or any white bean (a search defines "white bean" as "a white kidney bean, such as cannellini bean", but that still doesnt answer my question, since kidney bean is on my dont eat list, too. and I just noticed that garbanzo beans aren't on the list tested at all, so are they related or in that group and I shouldn't have them??? if so, thats a HUGE issue*)... so, after getting this news I kind of slipped into a woe is me kind of funk, not having any clue what I was going to eat and wishing I could forgo eating altogether.
*edit; sweetie did a further search and found white beans to be concerned about are kidney, navy and pinto. hopefully that will be the end of my confusion over the 'bean issue'
I eat a large, yummy salad for lunches these days
Lyme disease patients hold several diets close for healing (and the diets are different for every person, but some do paleo (high meat), some do vegetarian or vegan, so its another confusing situation, and one to work through with my own body symptoms). my bariatric diet says to limit, or better to do away with, things that bulk up in your tummy; rice, pasta, grains... and now these new limitations!
smoothies with coconut yogurt are a staple still, minus the banana
boy am I glad for the internet, guys! I have found many helpful vegetarian and vegan food blogs and am compiling recipes and tips galore. the first few meals I've tried have been tasty and I know they are more healthy for me than store-bought foods. it's strange shopping for ingredients and coming home with hardly any ready-to-eat stuff. the biggest issue I'm having with it is that I dont yet have the energy to chop and cook most of these dishes, so sweetie has been stepping up YET AGAIN to do the cooking that I need.
sweetie has bought a cabinet
and is in the process of building it into our peninsula
for my pantry goods.
he's planning on building a shelf on the side for some cookbooks, too.
it's been about 2 weeks of eating better, and 1 week of in depth research (how much research am I going to have to do for all of my issues!?), and I'm feeling a bit more confident that this might be more do-able than I had feared. I didn't think this new limitation would be sustainable for me in the slightest. and I'm still just winging this whole thing. if eating vegan means I have a little bit of brown rice in a certain meal, then I've decided to do it every once in a while. with all my modifications, I've decided a bit of 'living' here and there won't hurt.
I've not gained any energy yet, but have let go of 3 pounds so far, so it's a step in a good direction, and I dont mind going 'mostly vegan'. I do eat fish, but the rest of my diet is pretty close to vegan. never thought I'd get to this kind of eating, but I'm happy to do so. for the critters and for myself.
here are a few links to vegetarian/vegan sites that have intrigued me, in case you're in the lookout, too;
Jessica in the kitchen; has free printables of how to stock the kitchen, budget friendly tips and the most yummy sounding coconut chickpea curry recipe that I'm excited to try
she likes food; is a mostly gluten free vegetarian/vegan blogstress that has lots of one pot meals, kid friendly food, and Mexican inspired dishes. I'm excited to try her spaghetti squash enchilada boats
forks over knives; is a wellness site with health information as well as tasty, plant-based recipes that are free for all. I'm looking to try their chickpea omelet first!
holistically engineered; follows a low-carb, grain free, paleo diet, so not vegetarian at all, but has some good vegetarian and gluten free recipes. just use the search engine to find something suitable. I tried their cinnamon "rice pudding" and it is yummy!
I'm hoping that all of these changes gives me some tangible health benefits soon. I'd like to gain some energy in order to start making my own meals so I might stick with it in an easier way. and to give poor sweetie a little break from caretaking.
*EDIT; I have test results.
I have an active babesia infection, possible (probable) lyme and tick born relapsing fever. she wants me to get on the cancellation list to get in sooner so we can discuss treatment, and told me of what she'd like to put me on. lets just say $$$. I've been researching others experiences on one of the most costly meds and most say it's a miracle drug. soooo... we'll see what this new chapter brings.
until later,
Jenny
