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July 31, 2006Die with a TI mentioned before that I was working with my nutritionist and getting a blood test to discern if I had any food sensitivities that were contributing to my general feeling of blah-ness. I'm looking to cure a myriad of symptoms, including hay fever, bloating, the inability to concentrate, shortness of breath, and fatigue. Plus, of course, lose the stubborn weight that just won't go away. Well, the analysis came back (in a 50-page booklet!). Of the one hundred and twenty-something foods I was tested against, eight showed up as "reactive": Eggplant Milk, Cow's Quinoa Sesame Sunflower Wheat Yeast, Baker's Yeast, Brewer's I know I should be concentrating on all the things that I *can* have. Lobster wasn't on the list of reactive foods, for instance (and thank GOD!). All the veggies I love are fine. Chicken and beef are cool. No problem with eggs, potatoes, or any fish or seafood. It's the things I *can't* have, of course, that I am obsessing over. I'm such a bread and cheese nut that to be told that I can't have wheat or milk is a blow. No bagels and cream cheese for breakfast, which was a staple. No sandwiches! No pretzels and cheese, which was a frequent snack of mine. And then, there's the yeast thing. No wine. NO BEER. No pastries or pies. Do you know how many canned soups have yeast and wheat??? No more ice cream. SOB! And, no more humus. Because I can't have sesame, and that's one of the main ingredients. Tons of products are made with sunflower oil, which I can't have. Really, the only eliminations I don't have a problem with are eggplant and quinoa (which I always thought was pronounced "kwin-oh-ah", but is in fact pronounced "keen-wah"), which I never ate before anyway. I have become an obsessive label reader, and grocery shopping is simultaneously longer and less fun than it used to be. I have eggs for breakfast a lot. Trader Joe's also has wheat/yeast free waffles (which are mostly edible) and steel-cut oatmeal that's pre-cooked and frozen so all you have to do is pop it in the microwave. Good stuff, that. Lunch is the most challenging meal for me, since I used to almost always have a sandwich of some sort. I've been having a lot of salads - but again, have to watch out for the dressings, which contain a lot of the no-no foods. And as for dinner, I usually end up making one thing for the family and another thing for myself. I use non-dairy creamer instead of milk in my coffee. There are non-wheat cereals aplenty out there, but I haven't found a milk substitute that I can tolerate. Soy milk is just UGH. So is rice milk. Goat milk is N-A-S-T-Y. Also, yogurt is out, which I used to have on a daily basis. Often, I just go without eating because it just takes too much effort to figure out something that I can have. Sometimes, I get very discouraged. So. This has been a tough process. I've been sticking to the diet about 80% of the time. A 20% discipline failure rate is pretty damned good, I think, especially considering the sweeping changes I've had to make. I mean, VAST and SWEEPING. Have you ever had a baked potato without butter and/or sour cream? Feh. And how can I NOT have a piece of pizza (just one eeny weeny piece) when the whole rest of the family is pigging out on it? Distilled alcohol is all well and good (shots, Greyhounds, Screwdrivers, Gin-and-Tonics), but sometimes I just want a BEER. Like, right now. Comments on this entry? Head on over to The Blog! |