My Story

Who am I and what did I do with myself?

Seriously, how did I get to this point?  My husband and I both LOVE food. My husband's a great cook, and while we try to eat healthy-ish, did I say we love to eat? And drink? We've actually cut down on fats and sugars, but I've always had a bad sweet tooth, and we both love wine...and beer...and martinis...and vodka...and bloody mary's...well, you get the picture. I wouldn't say we're alcoholics. We've just been really self-indulgent and have had very little self-discipline, which I think a lot of people can probably relate to. And we like to have fun. We love to travel, love to dance and hang out with friends, and we spent many of our younger days up until the wee hours of the morning with friends. So what happened?

Rewind!

In January of 2012, my mother-in-law was diagnosed with advanced uterine cancer - without health insurance. We spent most of 2012 helping my sister-in-law take care of her, resulting in both of them ultimately moving in with us (my mother-in-law for the second time), while we did Hospice care out of our home until she passed in September. Naturally, we got to thinking about diet and health. I'd already lost my dad to colon cancer in '94 while I was in college. I, myself, have had the pleasure of two colonoscopies. Actually, the last one was EASY! The procedure itself is really no big deal.  It's the prep that is total crap - pun intended. Although I've got it down now, so remind me to post my secrets in a future blog.  Anyway, during the first one, the Dr. removed a polyp that, while thankfully tiny, was also apparently the worst of the three pre-cancerous types. Wake-up call?  Well, you'd think so, but that was 6 years ago...

In 2011, my mother (in her mid-70's) was diagnosed with a non-metastasizing form of breast cancer.  Thankfully it was easily removed and she's fine now. On top of that, however, she lost her footing near the bottom of some stairs and suffered a bad, spiral break of her right tibia. This should have taken 6 to 12 months to heal, by all "normal" measures, according to her surgeon. But she takes such good care of herself, she was off a walker in 3 months, and released by her surgeon in less than 6! Again, it makes you think!

Enter the Thyroid

In September of 2012, I started getting bizarre, random eyelid swelling. It started with my right, upper eyelid, but eventually both eyes would freak out, even getting puffy underneath.  I looked like a freak cross between a hybrid-human-cat and that kid in the old Cher movie, "The Mask." Lovely.  I did more allergy tests, a chemical patch test (which included my daily eye makeup), and eventually blood work. We never identified the culprit, but we basically thought my body had decided to break up with any sort of metallic/shiny eye makeup. Kill me now! I love eye makeup! Turns out that may not have been what was causing it, but more on that later. By chance - from blood work my allergist asked for - I tested positive for thyroid antibodies, meaning I have Hashimoto's Disease. So instead of starting off 2013 thinking everything was going to be different (a.k.a. better), I started the year with a thyroid ultrasound, which thankfully was normal. That started my ongoing research about Hashimoto's, the most common form of hypothyroid disease. (More on "Hashi's" in a later post.) The same week, I had a routine mammogram - this time with an ultrasound, due to Mom's cancer. I was fine - except they found 3 benign-looking tumors in one breast. They've been checked again, and all seems to be fine on that home front. I aim to keep it that way.

Fast forward!

In February of 2013, my sister-in-law was still living with us, and she, my husband, and I began a phase of watching health documentaries on Netflix. We started with Hungry for Change, followed by Forks Over Knives. Those really got us thinking. Then we watched Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead. That film is crazy-amazing, inspiring, and funny...I loved it!  We've also watched The Gerson Miracle and Vegucated, but it's because of FSND that Rich and I started juicing, which was really championed by my husband. Yes, my Rich - who loves steak, buiscuits & gravy, and brats...his idea! We actually juiced exclusively for 5 days, then went to 3 juices and 2 small meals for another 5 days or so. We then made dietary changes, going semi-vegetarian (nearly vegan) and cutting out refined sugar and flour - for a while.

Eventually we backslid into many old eating habits. During this time, I was turned onto Gena Lee Nolin's Thyroid Sexy Facebook page, and I began learning more about the madness surrounding thyroid disease treatment (or the lack thereof) and the possible connection between gluten and thyroid autoimmune diseases. However, the gluten-free trend has gotten so much press and hype, and I was also seeing articles on how going gluten-free without cause might not be good. I was frustrated, to say the least, and really had no idea what to do! I found a doctor that treats me with what I believe to be the right treatment - I take natural dessicated thyroid hormone replacement medication - but I just didn't know whether or not my diet was affecting my thyroid.

The Food Challenge Begins!

Fast forward again to July of 2013. I had a spell with swollen lymph nodes, which scared the begeezus out of me, and made me realize my body wasn't very happy with something. But what? I went to a naturopath, who encouraged me to start an elimination diet. No dairy, no meat, no alcohol, no gluten, no soy, no tomatoes, no nightshades (what?)... never mind, the list keeps going. I made it a whopping 3 days. On the 3rd day, a friend at work, who I knew he and his wife deal with food allergies, told me about the ALCAT IgE antibody blood test. It works like this: up to 6 or 7 panels are run to test for white blood cell reactions to various foods, molds, additives, etc. It's not an allergy test (think swelling, hives, anaphylaxic shock), but rather a food sensitivity/intolerance test. Sensitivity, often delayed, can manifest as fatigue, headaches, brain fog, joint pain, insomnia, constipation, etc. I got a rude awakening.

The results come back in 4 columns. Red = severe intolerance, and those items should be eliminated for at least 6 months. Orange = moderate intolerance (eliminate for 3-6 months). Yellow = mild sensitivity and these items should be eaten a maximum of every 4 days. Green = Woohoo! I can actually eat something! After the initial elimination phase, you start adding things back in slowly to see what your body can tolerate. The theory (with many references, testimonies, and rave reviews) is that your body can associate something it's not sensitive to with something "bad" if you eat them together. Clearing up any inflammation and letting the body heal can actually lessen sensitivity to some items.  So hopefully, I'll be able to add things back in over time. And unlike the previous elimination diet, I can have guacamole and salsa! Hallelujah!

But What Can't I Eat?

Here's the bad news... it was a surprising (for some things) and challenging list.  My results showed an extreme sensitivity to gluten, cow's milk/casein, and chickpeas. I can live without cow's milk - I'd already switched to almond milk - but my moderate sensitivity column listed almonds. Huh? And rice. And black beans, broccoli, button mushrooms, chicken, eggplant, grapefruit, kale, licorice, mango, mussel, okra, sage, sardines, tuna, and sugar.  Do you know how freaking hard it is to find gluten-free recipes without rice or almonds? Especially in the bread or baking category???

And There You Have It...

That's why I've created this blog. I plan to collect and rate various recipes, as well as track my progress, share information, keep myself on track and/or notice patterns about how I feel compared to what I eat, as well as promote thyroid disease awareness.  Call it desperately needed information management and therapy. All I know is that I've gotten pointed to great information regarding Hashimoto's and helpful resources from friends and family.  So if I can help myself manage this journey and, at the same time, pay it forward, I'll be a happy camper.  So sit still, Sam. We're goin' 'round the corner!