Hello,
First, I started a blog on dealing with chronic illness. If any of you'd like to guest post for me, shoot me a private message. :) The blog isn't colitis specific but rather, more general, and I'd like posts (written by me and others), to, while perhaps offering a suggestion or insight, to also touch on some emotional aspect of chronic illness.
Second, I finally went to see a dietician Mon. (She is connected with my GI, so she had all my labs, my diagnosis, and notes from my GI.) Sooooo glad I did! I'd say I wished I'd seen her earlier, but I'm not sure that's the case as I came in with more info than I would've had previously, which gave us a springboard. I know many of you have suggested entrolab, but I haven't done that for numerous reasons.
Anyway, in trying to figure out what I could eat, I'd gotten to the point of barely eating anything. Also, with my recent bout of pancreatitis, I lost another chunk of weight--10 pounds in one week. (I am now 20 pounds less than I was pre-diagnosis, and as I was uber fit with a low body fat percentage to begin with... )
I learned:
Why pears and watermellon make me so sick but peeled grapes don't. (A fructose thing)
How my reaction to garlic can help me determine other problem foods (a fructan thing)
I CAN eat fat, but I have to spread it out throughout the day. She said it took 3 hours for the fat to work through my system (or something to that effect). So, for example, if I want an avacadoI must divide it in half rather than eating the fruit in one sitting.
I need to eat every three hours, and she wants me to eat a total of 2,000 calories a day. Wowzer! But in small amounts, like 200 calories at a time (due to the pancreas issues).
I received a grocery list and meal plan that, although is not set in stone (as I'm supposed to watch my reactions) but that is a great starting point!
I received a great lesson on ways to avoid accidental gluten
I learned one of our local grocery stores has a dietician on staff who'll help me shop for FREE!
Finally, I've begun going back to the gym consistently. Hubby okayed for me to get a trainer to help me with joint pain, etc, (and I'm hoping he'll join me to learn how to exercise without aggravating his arthritic hip!)
I told the dietician I regularly did triathlons (sprints) prior to lc, and she asked if I'd like to do them again. I said, "Absolultely!" So that is my goal. :) I may never be competative again, but I can drag myself across that finish line.
Happy Turkey Day all! (Well, those in the US. Everyone else, eat a slice of pie anyway. ;) )
multi-tasking post: blogging/dietician/gym
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Jennifer,
It sounds as though you've managed to find a dietitian who's far better informed on dealing with digestive system diseases than most.
FWIW, we have several other members who were able to resume running full marathons after they fine-tuned their diet and healed a while.
Good luck with this.
Tex
It sounds as though you've managed to find a dietitian who's far better informed on dealing with digestive system diseases than most.
FWIW, we have several other members who were able to resume running full marathons after they fine-tuned their diet and healed a while.
Good luck with this.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.