Blown Away

To Caesar’s dismay we have had a thunderstorm practically every other day this summer. This is what happens when you don’t put your patio table umbrella down in said storms:

It blows away and breaks. Oh, dear!

We stopped at 3 stores before we found a suitable replacement this weekend. They were either sold out or only had undesirable colors left, e.g., royal blue or rust. Finally, Adam’s Newburgh store had a pretty tan color:

And it’s even better than our first one! This one has a hand crank, the other had a pin and pulley system. Which means my 5’2”-self can easily put it up and down without having to recruit Dustin, hence why our last one was probably blown away.

I like this one even more.

Day 11 of my gluten-free, dairy-free “bland diet” and I haven’t noticed any noteworthy improvements. My heartburn has subsided for the time being, but it’s cyclical, so that’s not unusual and I wouldn’t chalk it up to a victory. It comes and goes unpredictably, but the other symptoms are the ones that persist 24/7 and they have remained unchanged.

Today, I’m collecting my saliva in tiny vials for a comprehensive hormone panel my new doctor ordered. I’m curious about the results! There are 4 vials: One to collect 30 minutes after waking; one before lunch; one before dinner; and one before bed. They come with short straws and I basically just spit into them and store them in the freezer until I send them in. Easy enough. The fee is $180, or $360 if using insurance. I do self-pay (cash) of course.

Along with the “bland” diet, I’ve also consistently been doing intermittent fasting for 16-18 hours a day. Like I said this helps by giving my digestive system a rest. I’ve been taking my probiotics and digestive enzymes before each meal, and thanks to Kristine who left a comment suggestion Digest Gold. She said it has helped her a lot, and many reviews on Amazon had similar testimonies, so of course I want to see if they will help me too! I ordered Digest Gold and Digest Gold + Probiotics and then I crossed my fingers that they will bring me some relief. Can’t wait to try them. Come on, UPS, where art thou?

Did I mention how much I LOVE Amazon Prime? Love. Love. Love.

I’ve been reading about FODMAPS and the more I read, the more I want to exclude them to see if they are a problem.

From the FODMAP Wikipedia:

FODMAPs are short chain carbohydrates and monosaccharides which are poorly absorbed in the small intestine, including fructans, galactans, fructose and polyols. The term is an acronym, deriving from "Fermentable, Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides and Polyols".

“Small studies in Australia and the U.K. have shown that the diet reduces symptoms in about 75% of IBS sufferers—higher than other diet or medication approaches.” – excerpt from Wall Street Journal article on a low-FODMAP diet

I’ve been avoiding them for the past 3 days and I haven’t noticed any improvements, but I’m still going to add foods high in FODMAPs to my avoid-list. It’s kind of bittersweet because while I can have many delicious foods, I can’t have many other equally delicious foods like apples, pears, beans, milk, kale, blackberries, mango, Brussels sprouts(!!!), onions, garlic, cauliflower, and many others:

Onions and garlic are in EVERYTHING! OMG. Gluten-free is easy. Dairy-free… no problem. But avoiding things like garlic, onion, cherries, watermelon, and mushrooms is brutal. Ok, maybe not THAT bad, but it will take some getting used to. Garlic and onions make an appearance in my foods more than any other flavoring. But during the elimination phase, it’s worth it. Then I’d do a challenge with each food and see how I tolerate them. Most of the things I won’t miss too badly, but I’m hoping I’ll find I have a higher tolerance for onions and garlic. Crossing fingers again.

I’ll do a more detailed post  on my low-FODMAPs diet plan in another post. I’m still getting a feel for it being it’s only been 3 days so far. It would be awesome if they were my problem. I’m going to give it a whirl and see how it goes. More details to come!

I like to push the limits of what constitutes a “bland” diet. I haven’t been bored or uninterested in any of my food choices since starting this experiment 11 days ago.

1 cup Rice Chex with banana, organic strawberries, and 1/2 vanilla hemp milk:

Tasty.

White rice has been on my menu nearly every day in one way or another. It’s simple to make and I like it. I got wild and crazy with it the other day and made cilantro-lime rice.

Cilantro-lime Rice
Gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, egg-free, low-FODMAPs and vegan

Lime and cilantro are low-FODMAPS-friendly, so this takes plain rice and gives it a nice little zesty kick. Very easy to make too. Get the recipe here!

I have an appointment with my general practitioner tomorrow afternoon. I’ve had an earache of sorts for the past few weeks. It started in my left ear but the soreness subsided; then the right ear started getting the same soreness and it has stayed. The pain travels down my neck from my inner lobe. Lymph nodes? Not sure. Most likely sinus-related as they are always acting up anymore. The fun never ends.

Time to go start preparing my first meal. I’m approaching hour 17 of my fast and I don’t really feel terribly hungry. Fasting gets easier as you get used to it. Staying busy helps.  Time to take my probiotics and digestive enzymes and then I have to spit in a vial 30 minutes before I eat, LOL. Day in the life of someone with IBS. So very thrilling.

Tagged as: bland diet, cilantro-lime rice, diets, digestive enzymes, fodmaps, loot, low-FODMAPS diet, probiotics, recipes, rice, shopping