Getting Back on Track
18 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
Vacation was fun but I’m always glad to come back! We had a huge reunion with 18 adults and 7 kids so it was a lot of stimuli. I did ok with my fibromyalgia but woke up with a horrible headache. I’m sure it’s because I’m exhausted and ate some sugar and processed foods. It’s hard to eat the way I like to eat when you feed that many people so I ate a few things I wouldn’t normally eat. I can definitely feel it now though. I did drink a ton of green smoothies and got a lot of people to drink them as well. I feel like I need to do a detox but I’m taking my mom to the beach next week so I will wait until I come home. I didn’t life weights at all but walked more than usual. Some days, we walked to the boardwalk twice. I’m definitely bummed because my knee is really bothering me again. My knee cap keeps coming out of the groove and it is painful. I’m going to to my doctor in 2 weeks and as much as I hate putting cortisone in my body, I need it to take down the swelling and the pain. I ice it every day and it’s still very swollen. He told me back in December that I need a full knee replacement ( I had a partial one in 2006).
I can’t wait to get back to my nutrition classes but that will have to wait until I get back from taking my mom to the beach. I hope I get some rest with her because I am feeling fatigued and need some rest. Not like a few hours but a few days of being still and quiet. I think it’s hard to have fibromyalgia when you look healthy and there are no outward signs. For me, I can go strong for a week at most then it hits me all at once. I’m tired, cranky, get headaches them the fibro fog comes back. I’m interested to see if it will happen today or tomorrow. I’m praying it doesn’t and am going to do everything I can to avoid it. I have company coming for a week but they don’t arrive until later today so hopefully I will have a good rest day.
I am so bummed that all my veggie plants died while I was gone. I was so busy thinking about everything I had to do to prepare for vacation that I kept putting off finding someone to come over to water my plants. All my hard work gone. I think some of my herbs made it though. Some of my flowers aren’t looking too good either and we watered them a lot yesterday. We have another heat wave coming and it’s going to get up to 99 in a day or two. That won’t help at all.
Well, off to make myself a green smoothie and play with my puppy.
Green Smoothie Information
11 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
I bought Victoria Boutenko’s book, Green Smoothie Revolution, and learned why greens are so important. Greens and vegetables are not the same thing even though people lump them in the same category. Greens have so many nutrients and after drinking them for about 7 weeks, I have definitely noticed a huge difference in the way I feel. I have tons of energy, my skin is glowing, sugar and carb cravings have ceased, lost 9 lbs, my stomach is getting flatter and I feel wonderful. The more I drink them, the more I want to put healthy things in my body. Click here to read frequently asked questions about how to get started.
I wanted to post an excerpt from the book because I think there is some confusion about green smoothies. Victoria explains it way better than I can so here it is:
“When I recognized how many greens we humans are supposed to consume daily, it became clear to me that I had to come up with an utterly new approach. From the study of human anatomy I learned that for the best possible absorption, the greens have to enter the digestive tract in liquefied form. Greens are high in cellulose which makes them difficult for the digestive system to break down. In perfectly healthy human bodies and with the absence of nutritional deficiencies, the greens are liquefied by two processes; first, by thorough chewing and then by being mixed with stomach acid. Unfortunately, many people today don’t have normal levels of hydrochloric acid due to mineral deficiencies, particularly zinc.
People who cannot chew their food and who have low hydrochloric acid eventually stop enjoying greens and even develop a distaste for them. I understand that this is a defense mechanism of the human body. As if it is telling us “honey, you are not able to digest these greens and they only become a burden on your digestive system, so I’m going to make you nauseous so you stop eating greens completely.” It is a vicious circle. As humans consume more processed food they become increasingly deficient in nutrients. Being unable to create stomach acid, they stop consuming greens and become even more deficient. Their health continues to deteriorate.
At the time when I was researching the details of digesting greens, I was already missing my most important molars, and my stomach acid was extremely low. Naturally I started looking for a way of liquefying large quantities of greens. At first I decided to blend dark leafy greens in a high-speed blender. However, after I did so, when I opened the lid I had to quickly close it as the smell was unbearable. I knew right away that I couldn’t possibly drink that mixture. At the same time I knew that I was on the right track. Blender after blender was poured into the compost. Several days passed before I came across a paragraph in Jane Goodall’s book about chimpanzees in which she mentioned that sometimes chimpanzees would take a fruit, role it in a green leaf, and eat it as a sandwich. I stared at that paragraph thinking it was poor food combining according to human research. Then I thought that maybe chimps know better. Later I came to the conclusion that greens were erroneously placed in the wrong category as vegetables. There is a substantial difference between green leaves and vegetables. Green leaves don’t have starch while vegetables such as carrots, beets, broccoli, zucchini, daikon, etc., contain a lot of starch. Starchy vegetables combined with fruit may cause bloating. Contrary to that, fiber in green leaves helps slow the absorption of sugar in fruit making this combination beneficial.
That discovery marked the beginning of my own green smoothie revolution. I peeled bananas and blended them with green kale. With trepidation I opened the lid of the blender and it smelled great. I tasted this super green drink and it tasted exactly like a banana smoothie. I was able to trick my body. I was consuming a large amount of greens without any resistance from my body or my taste buds. I didn’t feel nauseous. In fact, I ecstatically enjoyed the greens for the first time in my life!
As I was drinking the first green smoothie of my life, it dawned on me that my children could also enjoy eating greens this way. And my friends. And my neighbors. And my coworkers. And my students. And, oh my goodness, the whole world too! At this point I started dancing in my office and then in the street. I couldn’t stop laughing and shouting with delight. I recognized that green smoothies were a perfect solution for people like me, of whom there were millions.”
Vacation time!
10 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
I’m so glad to be heading to Bethany Beach! We are having a family reunion on my husband’s side of the family. We have 2 houses and lots of people and kids so it should be a blast. I am hoping and praying that I can stay on track and make healthy eating choices. It seems like the beach has so many temptations for me! I am packing my Vitamix blender and tons of organic fruits and vegetables so I can make my green smoothies everyday. I have no idea what to do for dinners since I don’t really eat meat or chicken. I guess I’ll be munching on salads!
I am still feeling great and have had about 8 accupuncture treatments. It’s hard to say if I feel great because of the smoothies or because of the treatments but I’ll take it either way. My neck still feels stiff at times and my shoulders but no real muscle spasms to speak of. I haven’t been working out or stretching this past week so I’m sure that’s adding to the stiffness. It’s so easy to get out of a routine when you get busy. I’m thinking of joining the gym again when I get home from the beach because I know I’ll set a time aside to exercise.
Have a great week!
Real Freedom
04 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
I wrote this on my other blog, Living My Faith Out Loud, and wanted to post it here as well. Happy 4th of July!
I am grateful for our country and like most people, I love picnics and fireworks. It seems like this is what July 4th is all about. We have many freedoms simply because we are American and many people paid dearly with their lives to give us this freedom. We celebrate them and their heroic valor towards us and our country. We are grateful to them. I don’t find anything wrong about celebrating but today I would like to talk about a different freedom. A freedom that only Christ can bring. Galatians 5:1 states, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Christ has ultimately set us free. Freedom from the law, sin, death and eternal separation from God. That’s the freedom I want to celebrate. I love what Martin Luther writes in his commentary about this verse,
“Our conscience is free and quiet because it no longer has to fear the wrath of God. This is real liberty, compared with which every other kind of liberty is not worth mentioning. Who can adequately express the boon that comes to a person when he has the heart-assurance that God will nevermore be angry with him, but will forever be merciful to him for Christ’s sake? This is indeed a marvelous liberty, to have the sovereign God for our Friend and Father who will defend, maintain, and save us in this life and in the life to come.”
On July 14, 2001, I was set free. Set free from a life filled with self hatred, guilt, shame, drugs, alcohol and all the debauchery you can imagine. I woke up with one of the worst hangovers I have ever had and I was in my bed covered in my own vomit. I wanted to die. I had tried to take my own life 6 times and twice ended up on life support. Doctors didn’t think I would live. I was anorexic and my body started to feed off of my own organs to survive. I had a horrible heart murmur yet smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day. I didn’t care. I hated my life. I had no purpose. Until that fateful day almost 10 years ago. I woke up and thought to myself, “I just can’t do this anymore. I remember asking God if He was real and if He was, He had to help me.” It was the strangest thing because within a few minutes, I felt a calm and peace I have never felt before. That began my new life in Christ and my new freedom in Christ. Click here if you want to read my entire testimony. My 10 year Christian anniversary will be in just 10 days. I can’t believe that I have also been sober for 10 years.
My life is so different than it was 10 years ago. It hasn’t been without trials or temptations but the Lord got me through them. I am amazed how much the Lord has changed me and continues to change me to be more like Him. I fail everyday and everyday I get right back up and choose to walk in His grace and mercy. The kindness of God boggles my mind and many times I wonder, why me? Then I think of the portion of scripture in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” This is why I share my testimony with everyone who will listen. I have received much comfort and want other people to receive it as well. I want people who are struggling with addictions and shame and all that goes with it to see that God is real and is who He says He is and will do what His Word says He will do. If God can take a grievous sinner like me and use it to bring glory to Him, then I will continue to boast in Him.
Happy 4th of July and don’t forget to thank the giver of real freedom, Jesus Christ.
My Fibromyalgia Story
03 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
When I was first diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in 2007, I didn’t believe it. I honestly didn’t know very much about it and I thought that this was something doctors made up. I went to a Rheumatologist who did a battery of tests to rule out things like Lupus, Lyme’s disease, Rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid issues. All I know is that I hurt all over all the time. I had muscle spasms, pain in my joints, headaches, extreme fatigue and a bunch of other symptoms. The doctor gave me a prescription for Lyrica and sent me on my way. I came home and researched Fibromyalgia and it all made sense. I couldn’t believe it, I had Fibromyalgia. I also looked up Lyrica and saw all the horrible side effects and decided to not take it. I suffered silently for a few years with tons of flare ups until I couldn’t take it anymore. I went back to the Rheumatologist who gave me a prescription for Cymbalta. I started taking it and within a short time, I felt like Wonder Woman. It gave me so much energy and I felt like I was on speed. Fast forward a few months and I was so energetic I couldn’t sleep which is a bad thing if you have Fibromyalgia. The doctor gave me Ambien to help me sleep and muscle relaxers for the spasms. I also had tennis elbow that hurt so bad I couldn’t lift up my coffee cup anymore so they gave me pain meds for that. I also have Adenomyosis, which is endometriosis of the uterus, so I was put on birth control pills to help with the pain, etc. So here I was taking 5 prescriptions to help me and it made me crazy! I couldn’t sit still and always had to be doing something which meant that I over did it everyday. I’m already a little OCD with my house being immaculate but I even took that to the extreme.
I went back to the doctor to talk to her about switching my meds and she gave me a new one, Savella. I had it filled at the pharmacy and I was praying on my way home for God to help me. I didn’t feel good and was getting frustrated with all the medicine I was taking. After praying for quite a while, I decided to stop taking all the medications. I was sick as a dog for about 3 weeks with horrible withdrawal symptoms that were so bad that several times I almost went to the emergency room. Finally it passed but I felt so weak and sick. I found an integrative doctor who helped me get my life back. She ran a lot of blood tests and found my liver enzymes were very elevated from all the medicine. I had adrenal fatigue, low Vitamin D, my cortisol was high, my CRP (inflammation in the body) was 3 times what it should have been and I felt horrible. She put on several vitamins and Chinese herbs and within a few months, I felt almost normal again.
I still had flare ups when I overdid it and was still struggling with a lot of pain so after doing more research, I decided to try to take a holistic approach. We all know that sugar, artificial sweeteners, processed foods and junk food is bad for you but I never realized how bad until I started doing intensive research. There is direct correlation to what you put into your mouth and how your body and brain react to it. Did you know that 67% of all diseases are diet related and 6 out of 10 leading causes of death in the U.S. are linked to our diet? It’s mind boggling to think about these statistics and wonder why obesity and diabetes are running rampant in our society today. My doctor told me I was pre-pre diabetic and it freaked me out. So now for the most part, I cut out sugar. Only when I started reading nutrition labels did I become aware of all the sugar that’s in every day foods. One of the classes I’m taking teaches us how to read the labels and it’s very eye opening.
Anyways, I feel so much better now eating whole, healthy foods. The green smoothies I drink every day make all the difference in the world. I can’t believe how fatigued I used to feel and now I have so much energy. I rarely get fibro fog anymore which is great. I take several vitamin supplements and put all sorts of stuff in my smoothies like coconut oil, chia seeds, algae and dulce. I am looking forward to my appointment in August to see how my blood work comes out since I’ve changed my diet. I am praying that all my efforts pay off so that I can use my story as a testimony to what God is doing in my life and how He has given me the strength to eat well and exercise because it’s not easy.
Sugar can kill you!
26 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
I was doing some homework for my nutrition class and was mortified when I read about the effects of sugar on our bodies. I’ve known for awhile how bad it is for us but had no idea it was this bad! I am going to post a page out of my text book because I want people to be aware of how damaging it is to our bodies. Please take a minute to read the list, I know it’s long but I think you’ll be surprised.
75 Ways Sugar Can Ruin Your Health
In addition to throwing off the body’s homeostasis, excess sugar may result in a number of other significant consequences. The following is a listing of some of sugar’s metabolic consequences from a variety of medical journals and other scientific publications.
- Sugar can suppress the immune system.
- Sugar can upset the body’s mineral balance.
- Sugar can cause hyperactivity, anxiety, concentration difficulties, and crankiness in children.
- Sugar can cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.
- Sugar can adversely affect children’s school grades.
- Sugar can produce a significant rise in triglycerides.
- Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
- Sugar can cause kidney damage.
- Sugar can reduce helpful high-density cholesterol (HDLs).
- Sugar can promote an elevation of harmful cholesterol (LDLs).
- Sugar may lead to chromium deficiency.
- Sugar can cause copper deficiency.
- Sugar can be a risk factor in gall bladder cancer.
- Sugar can increase fasting levels of blood glucose.
- Sugar can weaken eyesight.
- Sugar raises the level of a neurotransmitter called serotonin, which can narrow blood vessels.
- Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.
- Sugar can produce an acidic stomach.
- Sugar can raise adrenaline levels in children.
- Sugar can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
- Sugar can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and gray hair.
- Sugar can lead to alcoholism.
- Sugar can promote tooth decay.
- Sugar can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
- High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
- Sugar can cause a raw, inflamed intestinal tract in persons with gastric or duodenal ulcers.
- Sugar can cause arthritis
- Sugar can cause asthma.
- Sugar can cause candidiasis (yeast infection).
- Sugar can lead to the formation of gallstones.
- Sugar can lead to the formation of kidney stones.
- Sugar can cause ischemic heart disease.
- Sugar can cause appendicitis.
- Sugar can exacerbate the symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
- Sugar can indirectly cause hemorrhoids.
- Sugar can cause varicose veins.
- Sugar can elevate glucose and insulin responses in oral contraception users.
- Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.
- Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
- Sugar contributes to saliva acidity.
- Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
- Sugar leads to decreased glucose tolerance.
- Sugar can decrease growth hormone.
- Sugar can increase total cholesterol.
- Sugar can increase systolic blood pressure.
- Sugar can change the structure of protein causing interference with protein absorption.
- Sugar causes food allergies.
- Sugar can contribute to diabetes.
- Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
- Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.
- Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
- Sugar can impair the structure of DNA.
- Sugar can cause cataracts.
- Sugar can cause emphysema.
- Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
- Sugar can cause free radical formation in the bloodstream.
- Sugar lowers the enzymes’ ability to function.
- Sugar can cause loss of tissue elasticity and function.
- Sugar can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver.
- Sugar can increase the amount of fat in the liver.
- Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
- Sugar can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
- Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.
- Sugar can cause constipation.
- Sugar can cause myopia (nearsightedness).
- Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
- Sugar can cause hypertension.
- Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
- Sugar can cause an increase in delay, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind’s ability to think clearly.
- Sugar can cause depression.
- Sugar can increase insulin responses in those consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.
- Sugar increases bacterial fermentation in the colon.
- Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance.
- Sugar can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots.
- Sugar increases the risk of Alzheimer Disease.
Green Smoothie Update Month 1
24 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Fibromyalgia
I must admit that when I started to add green smoothies to my diet, I was a little skeptical of what the results would be. After almost a month of drinking about 2-3 per day, the results are amazing! I used to struggle with chronic fatigue all the time. My holistic doctor put me on DHEA because she said my adrenal glands weren’t functioning properly (based on blood work). I have to admit that I have not been taking it regularly and am interested to see if it normalizes when I go back for blood work in August. I have been waking up at 4:30-5:30am for several days now when normally I get up between 6:30-7:30am. I have so much energy now and am not tired until the night time. I feel like a new woman!
I have also lost 8 lbs but I have also been exercising so I’m sure that has helped too. I lost all my cravings for sugar and sweets which is amazing in itself. I used to eat candy everyday and was totally grossed when I looked up the nutritional information here yesterday for Twizzlers. A 5 oz pack has 470 calories and 110 g carbs! I didn’t look up anything else cause I was so shocked! Anyways, I feel like my skin is getting softer and more supple and I don’t mind that at all!
I am definitely going to continue drinking and experimenting with the green smoothies. My dog actually waits for my Vitamix blender to stop because she knows she is going to get her smoothie. She loves most of them but not anything with dandelion in it. Can’t blame her, it ain’t my favorite either! It is a great nutrient powerhouse and great for detoxing the body. I have to come to really love kale and baked kale chips are my favorite snack. They are a little bit of a pain to bake because you have to rip the leaves up in small pieces which takes me awhile. I keep looking in health food stores but the only ones I found were raw and they were disgusting!
Exciting to be starting my nutrition classes and am waiting for the books to arrive any day now. I have a pdf format of some of the material and it is going to be very intense. The first part is anatomy and physiology which is going to be fun. I am so excited because, Lord willing, a year from now, I could actually start helping people like me who have chronic pain conditions or immune system disorders start to get their health back. I have so much hope for myself with just changing a few things in the way I eat and exercise and I want other people who may be discouraged to feel as great as I do now.
Do I think I’ll never have a fibromyalgia flare up again? No, I know I will, but I am doing everything in my power to live a healthier lifestyle so that they can be minimized. Certain foods cause inflammation so why would I want to add them in my diet when I already have pain? Why would I want to eat sugar and processed foods all day when they give me fibro fog and make me feel horrible? I don’t and I want to help people change the way they think about what they put into their bodies because everything that goes in your mouth has an effect on your body. Why not put good things in?
Here are a few statistics I came across that got my attention and made me glad that I will be a holistic nutritional consultant:
- 65 % of the population is overweight, 30 % are obese
- 1 out of 3 children born after 2000, will have diabetes
- 67% of all diseases are diet related
- 6 out of 10 leading causes of death in the US are linked to our diet
- 80% of all chronic diseases are preventable through low cost strategies that require NO prescription drugs
http://www.nutrientfacts.com/searchfood.exe?keyword=Twizzlers+Strawberry+Twists&var=5
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