TODAY IS THE DAY

After nearly 6 years, I am experiencing a  minor "setback" of sorts. I don't really want to talk about it, I just want to take care of it. I guess I see it as my body's way of saying "figure it out NOW". I've been reading a book about discovering food allergies (The Allergy Discovery Diet: A Rotation Diet for Discovering Your Allergies to Food, by John E. Postley, M.D.), but I have been slow to put it into motion.

I believe that you are what you eat, in a sense. For the most part I eat pretty well, but I do splurge here and there, and if I knew what  makes my body 'unhappy', it would be easier to still splurge - but in a way that I know won't upset my body (modify recipes, avoid certain things at gathering, etc.). I have definitely been more aware of how my body feels after eating certain things, but without being strict about it - I haven't been able to narrow it down to what really causes me trouble.

Besides this minor "setback", I have also experienced a daily runny nose, post nasal drip, occasional sinus pressure/pain/congestion, digestive system issues, depression, fatigue, etc. Some of these came about after my pregnancies, others have just been there, or crept up on me.

Well, TODAY IS THE DAY. I'm not fully prepared (like I had hoped to be before beginning this ie: procrastinating), but that just means the kids and I will be taking a trip to the market later this morning (and I will be starving by lunchtime after my tiny breakfast, due to not having what I need for today). Ready or not...here I go!

I'd like to challenge myself to document what I eat each day, and how I am feeling overall (and post it here!).

I will start out with the Elimination Phase, which is 6 days, and avoids the 15 most common troublesome (hyper-allergenic) foods. It is designed to clear your system of antigens that are causing allergic symptoms. Each day lists (hypoallergenic) foods that are safe to be eaten, along with recipes. You can follow their suggested daily meals/recipes, or come up with your own using the list of foods for that day. After 4 days of different food items, rotation begins and food items listed in previous days show up on the list again, as well as others, so there is actually quite a bit of variety - but I like that it rotates so I can buy and reuse ingredients in the same week (and beyond for items other than fresh produce).

Day 7 starts the Reintroduction Phase, where each day one of the troublesome 15 are reintroduced. The safe foods keep rotating, and then in small amounts the hyper-allergenic food is eaten. Then it is time to be even more  aware of my body, and any reactions that may occur. After completing these 15 days, there is a "recovery day", with a list of safe foods.

This will be a 22 day experience "diet" process undertaking adventure. Luckily this is not a "diet" diet, so I am free to eat as much of the safe foods that I need to feel full (and smaller quantities of the other 15). I have a crazy high metabolism (due to the Nail Patella Syndrome that I have yet to post about) so I need to eat a lot more (and more often) than what I like (or is possible some days). Otherwise I pretty much feel hungry all the time, even shortly after eating a large high-protein meal. I deal with weight issues that are opposite of what most people experience...but I'll wrap this up - sounds like a separate post, to me.  :-)

I'm aware that it is still possible to be allergic to foods on the hypoallergenic list...but I am hopeful (and praying!) that I will clear any allergic symptoms during the elimination phase, and discover any allergies as I reintroduce the 15 commonly problematic foods.

Here is what my schedule looks like:

Day 1 - Elimination Phase
Day 2 - Elimination Phase
Day 3 - Elimination Phase
Day 4 - Elimination Phase
Day 5 - Elimination Phase
Day 6 - Elimination Phase
Day 7 - Reintroduction Phase: CITRUS
Day 8 - Reintroduction Phase: CORN
Day 9 - Reintroduction Phase: CHICKEN
Day 10 - Reintroduction Phase: OATS
Day 11 - Reintroduction Phase: EGG
Day 12 - Reintroduction Phase: WHEAT
Day 13 - Reintroduction Phase: SOY
Day 14 - Reintroduction Phase: MILK and MILK PRODUCTS
Day 15 - Reintroduction Phase: VINEGAR/FERMENTS
Day 16 - Reintroduction Phase: COFFEE/TEA
Day 17 - Reintroduction Phase: CANE SUGAR
Day 18 - Reintroduction Phase: CHOCOLATE   -   please don't let it be this one! :-)
Day 19 - Reintroduction Phase: TOMATO
Day 20 - Reintroduction Phase: PEA/PEANUT
Day 21 - Reintroduction Phase: ONION/CHIVES
Day 22 - Recovery Day

I love to cook and bake and eat. While it will be unfortunate to need to eliminate one or many of these foods, I realize how important it is for my body to feel good - and I'm ready to adjust my eating to accommodate what my body needs.

Here I go...Happy Eating!...Wish me luck!