Cause of LC? Can it be just stress?

humbird753 · Post by **humbird753** » Mon Dec 05, 2011 10:13 am

Thank you, Kari and Sharaine for your recommendations. First of all, I am not a salad lover. I do, however, enjoy fresh vegetables (tomatoes, sweet peas, cucumbers) out of our garden every year.

It was confusing that my PCP, Colonoscopy dr., and the GS all recommended I stay away from fruits and vegetables, but then I went to the naturopath dr. and she recommended ALL fruits and vegetables and was the one who recommended a lot of salads. I am honestly very tired of all that lettuce (whether romaine or otherwise). I usually cook vegetables but not to a smushy state. That does not sound appealing to me. BUT, I can try that too...

I went shopping for some gluten-free food items on Saturday. WOW - the prices! I have not yet made breads, etc. as I have not found gluten-free flour or recipes yet. I did buy a loaf of gluten-free bread (terrible IMO).

I can easily avoid candy bars (never really liked them), but I usually had a cookie or two or a sweet roll once a week. I'll need to find replacements for those. If anyone has ideas on that, please let me know.

I sincerely hope everyone is having a good day. I am off all this week. I have already started re-arranging my kitchen so it is usable for my needs.

Oh - I told my husband I feel he would benefit a lot from this type of diet himself. He has symptoms of scalp and skin issues, fungas under nails, and has experienced arthritis symptoms (muscle and joint pain) for at least 25 years. He has been tested for RA because his mother has it, but results were negative. He is also tired a lot. So.... the last couple of days he has eaten pretty much the foods I have, except he has had his breads, cookies, etc. At the end of the two days he said, "this gluten-free diet" isn't so bad!!! And, he wasn't truly gluten-free!!! lol Obviously he doesn't get it yet.

Paula

sarkin · Post by **sarkin** » Mon Dec 05, 2011 11:08 am

Paula,

Congratulations on the kitchen re-arranging. It took me a while to get used to the "new normal" routines for pantry, shopping, etc. (And months later, I'd still find something in the back of a drawer that I thought was long gone.) That effort should pay off for you quickly, while you also find new "go-to" favorite recipes, snacks, etc.

Some of our previous routines and recipes were adaptable, and we've invented new ones along the way. It took a while to get our bearings, but you're taking the best first step (one that took me a while to manage).

You're off to a great start (and maybe so's your husband, lol),

Sara

Post by **tex** » Mon Dec 05, 2011 12:01 pm

Paula,

I tested negative for rheumatoid factor, also, but at one time, (about 10 years ago, before I started the diet), I had arthritis so bad that I had trouble walking with a cane. Both knees were inflamed, but one was especially bad - some days I used 2 canes, and still had trouble getting around. Some of my finger joints were so inflamed and tender that if I accidentally bumped them, it brought tears to my eyes. Those fingers grew crooked and twisted. All that stopped after I adopted the diet, and my gut began to heal. My knees no longer bother me, and I don't have any joint pain. My work often required/requires a lot of heavy, repetitive lifting and carrying, so I've taken flax seed oil, and glucosamine sulfate with chondroitin for about 10 years, also, to help prevent damage to the cartilage in my knee joints.

Tex

humbird753 · Post by **humbird753** » Wed Dec 07, 2011 12:51 pm

Story....

We cancelled a road trip to see our grandson graduate from Basic Training and AIT at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO this week because (even though I really didn't know) instinct told me I was not up to a 5 to 6-day road trip eating the types of foods I would encounter while out there.

We are both off of work this entire week. Got a call that my husband's mom isn't doing real well, so we ,are heading out on a road trip today for a couple of nights. In addition to packing usual things, I am searching through my kitchen to see what I can take so I can eat also. I usually have hard boiled eggs on hand (husband used them all) so I don't have any. Have GF muffins I baked yesterday, bananas, apples, GF snack food, we're bringing potatoes, vegetables and venison back straps and will make that at her apartment. Question - Is herring in wine sauce GF? Husband opened the can 2 days ago and ripped the part of the label off which I would need to read (lol). Anyway bringing that along also. Have corn chex for snacking, and will buy rice cakes and use peanut butter on them.

I can really understand why "we" with MC get nervous about road trips or any type of travel for that matter.

Thank you to all of you who have given me tips on where to start with my diet.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Paula

Gloria · Post by **Gloria** » Wed Dec 07, 2011 10:21 pm

You're packing quite well for someone who is very new to travelling with diet restrictions. I hope the trip goes well.

Gloria

brandy · Post by **brandy** » Thu Dec 08, 2011 5:19 pm

Hi Paula,

God bless you for having a grandson in the military. He will most likely have future graduation ceremonies that you might be able to attend. Tell the family you'd like to get the invites for some of his future functions. I'm still in the first year of CC and I had to cancel a lot of events this year.

I've also found the foil packs of tuna helpful when traveling and a good source of protein. I squeeze lemon juice on the tuna and eat it straight from the bag like a snack.

Have a safe trip! Brandy

humbird753 · Post by **humbird753** » Fri Dec 09, 2011 9:11 pm

Well, everyone, I am back and I wasn't hungry at all while gone. My MIL is doing fine and I really enjoyed helping her and visiting with her. She is almost 88 yrs old and will be missed when she's gone.

I still find it weird to go into a gas station/convenience store and (for that matter) a grocery store and look at all the aisles of foods I know I can't eat.

When I was in a store while visiting my MIL, I approached an employee and asked if they had a gluten-free section in the store. She said "no," but then said they had gluten-free items dispersed throughout the store by categories. She then asked what I was looking for - and I said, "something that resembles junk food." She escorted me over to a box of gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. That was the only choice in that store! And they didn't even look good, so I didn't get them. I settled for canned fruit.

It was recommended by my naturopath doctor to try a gluten-free diet about 2 months ago. I have "danced" around that idea until I found this web site, so it is all new to me. I am already down to 3-5 BM per day from about 8 per day. How long does it usually take to get results?

I am reading a lot of posts that say increasing protein and fats are essential for healing. Is eating protein at 3 meals a day enough? And, what types and amounts of fats will help? I am "assuming" that it's important I find what works for me and my body versus what works for each of you. Am I correct in my thinking that we are similar yet different? I am just wondering what your comments on this will be. I am still very confused.

There have been so many of you commenting on my posts that it makes it difficult for me to scroll through and name each of of you individually. I do want to thank all of you for all of your advise.

Paula

sarkin · Post by **sarkin** » Fri Dec 09, 2011 9:32 pm

humbird753 wrote: It was recommended by my naturopath doctor to try a gluten-free diet about 2 months ago. I have "danced" around that idea until I found this web site, so it is all new to me. I am already down to 3-5 BM per day from about 8 per day. How long does it usually take to get results?

Sounds like you're already on the way - and hopefully things will continue to improve. (And you sound determined to get your life back, and though the most determined among us have our dark days, that gumption really does come in handy, so good for you.)

I am "assuming" that it's important I find what works for me and my body versus what works for each of you.

That might be the most important thing to learn, and you already figured it out! I was the one who got protein obsessed, and I truly believe it helped me - but yes, if you are eating protein at each meal, and not having scary weight/muscle loss, you may not need to do the same obsessing that got me focused on that. (I didn't lose a huge amount of weight in the end, but I lost it fast, and I lost a lot of muscle, strength & energy.)

We do have a lot in common, but for each of us, the most important "next step" is individual, and variable.

And... My magical gas-station junk food is Classic Lays potato chips. Other brands of potato chips also come in handy - but Lays are often available

Do check ingredients - the crazy flavors are full of potential problems, but the ones with potatoes/salt/oil are pretty reliable. Not exactly health food, but...

Some of us have found Larabars helpful, and worth stocking for a trip. A friend is making her own, and that gives you a lot of control (for her it's more about flavor, as opposed to ingredients, but for most of us...)

I actually like the aisles I avoid at the grocery store - I feel like a hot knife slicing through butter when I go shopping. I glide right past the people agonizing between one version and another of something that I don't eat, and am outta there! And you're so right - it's still weird. But it turns into a better flavor of weird, over time.

Sara

humbird753 · Post by **humbird753** » Fri Dec 09, 2011 10:04 pm

Sara - thank you so much for your reply to my post. I really missed my computer and all of you when I was away from home. I've only been on this site since 11/28/11, but I've already felt the compassion and understanding from everyone here. I feel like I'm speaking a foreign language when talking to anyone else about this. It's obvious none of them understand what I'm saying. But at least now I have someplace to go where people do understand. It helps a lot.

I'm still not happy about any of this, but oh well.... Things could be worse, I am sure.

Paula

Post by **tex** » Fri Dec 09, 2011 10:13 pm

Paula wrote:How long does it usually take to get results?

You may see some improvements, (such as you're already seeing in frequency or consistency), within a few weeks of starting the diet, but for most of us, the amount of time required to reach full remission depends on how long we were symptomatic, before we started the diet. The longer our intestines accumulate damage, the longer it takes for them to heal. For most of us, it takes at least several months to reach remission, and for some of us it takes 6 months to a year or more. Entocort, (in combination with the diet), will bring remission faster, of course, since it helps to suppress the existing inflammation, while the diet is preventing any new inflammation from developing.

I'm glad your trip went so well.

Tex

Lesley · Post by **Lesley** » Fri Dec 09, 2011 10:17 pm

I can't eat Lay's

. Corn oil. Only Kettle Chips use safflower or sunflower oil, and have no other additives. Still more and more places are carrying Kettle brand.
See? Reading the labels is SO important! What works for Sara doesn't work for me, even though we both can eat potato chips.