It’s the end of September the Pacific Northwest. It’s slightly cooler in the evenings, though only slightly – this autumn is starting off much warmer than usual. Yours truly survived the summer doing low-ish carb/paleo/GAPS, trying to rest, not eat too much fruit(this wasn’t always successful), and in general soak up the sun. It’s been approximately 150 days since I started GAPS and got treatment for SIBO. Overall, I’ve been progressively feeling better. However, while I did make progress I certainly wasn’t perfect the whole time. I found that if I go too long without bone broth it appears to negatively affect my digestion and my general well-being. Chewing food well is important – who knew! Eating too fast is a problem for me, especially when stressed. And finally the sad news, nuts and most fruit does not like me at all. Nuts disrupt digestion and fruit is still too sugary. Anyway, on to progress, regress, and whatnot.
Progress:
I no longer look like I’m pregnant after every meal or for hours and even days after specific meals. My cystic acne cleared up – scars are healing well! Post workout I heal so much faster. I can evven push myself during my workouts without a huge backlash. Gone are the days of constant pain and inflammation! My clothes fit better. I’ve lost some weight – though I started to gain some back probably some muscle and some water/fat from too much fruit and summer baked foods. Across the board I have more energy, sleep better, handle certainly stressors better. I found myself physically capable of working more – though maybe not mentally. (Close to 20 hours of massage in a week is a bit too much!) The bumps on my arms, which I believe are keratosis pilaris, have improved a lot. Also, I don’t feel so old anymore – which is nice because I’m only 30. Overall, I feel better than I have my entire adult life!
Improvements Needed:
However, I’m not going to lie, summer was hard for me. There was delicious fruit everywhere. I’m a sucker for berries, peaches and more. In fact, this summer my issues with sweets came to light even more. An amazing blackberry coconut crisp in August led me down the path of blood sugar roller coaster rides. Well maybe it was all the fruit and coconut based breads that I made right around that time as well. Either way, I felt like I lost control – again. Until about the end of summer I had done well being low carb paleo since early this year. But it’s hard especially when healthier naturally sweet foods are readily available. I was careful not to binge on foods I couldn’t eat, but those that I could justify consuming definitely were eaten in excess(my excess is less than many people’s. Daily and even weekly fruit is a problem for me). Along with the unbalanced blood sugar came the annoying symptoms such as nausea, crashing 1-2 hours post sweet treat, moodiness, and tiredness. I have been making strides to decrease my carbs but feel that I still need some guidance and structure. This is why I’m headed toward my first 21 Day Sugar Detox. I’m excited – a little apprehensive – but I’ll be glad to see what comes of it.
Looking Forward:
I’ll be refocusing, doing a 21 Day Sugar Detox, and in general settling down into a slightly slower pace for autumn. I am frustrated that I can’t eat much or any fruit. Apparently, I need more time away from “sugars”. Also, I’m forcing myself to think about what might also be a possibility – that my tolerance might always be crazy low. Sometimes this thought makes me sad, sometimes not. What matters right now is that I soldier on. Being a healthcare provider – I understand that healing can take a lot longer than preferred. So cheers for progress made so far and for the good things to come!
