Sunday, July 12, 2009

Anyway, About My Transition...

Yes, I posted about the meds thing and then promptly went off on some other tangents about relaxation and anger management. These are related in a holistic sense. But I meant to update you about what's happening meds-wise.

My naturopath advised me to finish the cleanse before eliminating my antidepressants. This was disheartening to hear, as the cleanse is taking what feels like forever and I want to make my transition before the weather gets dark and gloomy. So I just keep reminding myself that I have to do this right, or I will never know if I really did this right.

I have about two more weeks. I am on the last phase of eliminating potentially irritating foods. This week's irritating food to remove is anything in the nightshade family. That includes potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplants and tobacco. Hot peppers and sweet potatoes are not actually in the same family, hence cleanse-legal for me.

I take full advantage of everything that is cleanse-legal. That's probably why I haven't dropped any weight. (Again, not that it matters; I'm just sayin'.)Certainly my newest discovery, Coconut Bliss non-dairy, sugar-free frozen dessert, is keeping my weight, um, stable. It packs a walloping 209 calories per serving, 124 of them from fat. I also snack on a lot of nuts to replace my cheese-cracker habit. This is better for me because it trades empty carbs for protein, but you don't want to know how much FAT nuts are hinding in their innocent little bodies. And avocados? Lord, have mercy.

The very last, superfatty-but-delicious legal food I want to tell you about is halvah. If you're Jewish, you know what it is. If you're not, here's the scoop: halvah is a flaky, dense, chewy stuff made from sesame seeds. You can buy it sweetened with honey or not sweetened at all and marbled with pure cocoa. It has the kind of mouth-feel you're looking for when you reach for a Butterfinger. In terms of avoiding a blood-sugar spike and crash, it's great. In terms of calories, well...let's just say a four-inch bar of it is on par with a piece of cake.

Not drinking alcohol has to cancel some of those calories out, though. That is mostly fine, not drinking alcohol, a lot easier than I thought it would be. Just please don't somebody write me and say pot is a nightshade or that Percocet is derived from cow's milk. I will seriously weep.

I really could go on for pages and pages about the diet and all I have learned from it, but I realize that not everyone has been obsessed with these things most of their lives like I have. So I'll spare you. (Feel free to use the comments section to share your own insights or ask questions, though. I really get a boner over this stuff.)

After I'm done with the elimination, then I start adding things back to see what kind of reaction I have. If my original problem doesn't seem to get worse in this phase, then the doctor says we might have to look at a hormone imbalance. Now, eliminating a food would be much easier than playing around with hormones. However, if I do have some kind of imbalance, what great info to have when I try life meds-free. This is one of the reasons that I have stuck with the diet and not gone to a specialist to fix my original complaint. (This presented as a skin problem.) In naturopathic philosophy, It's All Related, Man. So let's find out what It is.

Two weeks. Two weeks and I get to start cutting pills in half.

Whatever happens, I'll still have my Dark Chocolate Coconut Bliss.

7 comments:

glynda said...

You might want to try Purely Decadent coconut milk frozen desserts. They're really delicious, and all except for flavor are well under 200 calories with only 60-90 calories from fat. (The only exception is the Chocolate Peanut flavor, for obvious reasons.)

Anonymous said...

You are so patient! We are always looking for quick fixes so good for you for really waiting and finding out what it is...the skin thing is interesting...what was it? I had bad acne in my late teens and early 20s dont know why and took some hard core drugs to get rid of it. I will write you back about the facebook message soon! Just getting back from chelan.

Anonymous said...

Um just had some cococut bliss dark chocolate it was an icecream bar on a stick...sooooo gooood! Thanks for the tip! Although I can feel the caffiene from the chocolate!

susie said...

The skin problem is acne. Never had trouble with that until now. The diet doesn't seem to be helping at all.

Anonymous said...

I honestly feel your pain, acne is horrid, painful, impossible and sometimes debilitationg. I did EVERYTHING to try and get rid of it for years and years and finally I did acutane. It is harsh and relentless but DAMMIT IT WORKED! My case was mild compared to most but it was still bad on my cheeks. I can't tell anyone to do it because it is pretty personal, it can be really hard on your body but for me it was the best decision I ever made and the results are incredible...
Gotta go get some more cocunut bliss...I am gonna try some new flavors soooo fun!

Rose

Anonymous said...

PS
I tried the vanilla coconut bliss...to sweet for my tastes :)

Leciawp said...

I'm impressed that you've taken this on and for such a duration. You inspire me Susie. I'd like to do some research or perhaps just meet with a naturopath or someone about diet related things - I'm sure I could eat better and feel better than I do.