Night Shades, Purines, Histamine!!

Best advice: Listen to your body and get in touch with what it has to say!

So I recently traveled. It was a great opportunity and a great next step toward regaining some life in my life. However, anyone who's ever tried to manage IBS issues knows, even short jaunts can be troublesome to our digestive programs.

Besides change in routine & eating habits, much less diet.. Somehow my body seems to get stage fright when varying commodes, that can give rise to varying bladder & bowel extremes, if you know what I mean..?

So upon my return it was no surprise that constipation was an issue... Let me spare you the details but to say I am now fully familiar with impaction & prolapse.  And what felt like near death when combined with a fresh outbreak of blistering hives as a result of whatever may have lingered too long, as it where.

In an effort to get back on track, so to speak, I pursued fiber. Not additives or supplementals. The real thing via local seasonally grown produce!

While being mindful of those, previously discovered, disruptive Purines - autoimmune trigger; high in the likes of asparagus, spinach, mushrooms, cauliflower, & even green peas.
(http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=51)

And when confronted by the beautiful purple Aubergine (eggplant) I recalled a different lifetime when Eggplant Parmesan was one of my signature dishes.

Although, it'd been more than 20+years hence.. I planned for this to be the most epic, organic, all fresh & clean ingredient culinary masterpiece since.
And It Was!! I ate it for two days!!

But Not Without Regret!!
& a new appreciation for the power of Nightshades and the immediate & horrifying affects they have on me.

I'm simply astonished!!

Over the years I have heard of some people having dietary disagreement with this category of foods: peppers ~bell to spicy~, eggplant, as well as potatoes & tomatoes

Even as far back as studying Shakespeare I knew that, among the many potions & poisons, Bella Donna was a nightshade. Furthermore theres been much folklore and wives tales of the poisonous fruit-vegetable tomato which was once merely grown as an ornamental not an edible.  If I'm not mistaken, even the poisonous apple depicted in Snow White was actually based on these ideals....
 But, never did I imagine that I was actually affecting my digestive in a poisonous way.

This is a shocking revelation! I devour spicey & enjoy peppers (pablano, jalapeño, bell, etc.) of all varieties.  I Love tomatoes fresh and raw or cooked, stewed, even stuffed. Same goes for baked potatoes & French fries, I adore & really rely on a good potato salad in lieu of the fries these days.

That being said, I have concluded that the cooking process & smaller portions  allowed for fewer signs & less symptoms previously.

Nonetheless when confronted with the truth you must address it and that has what this eggplant parm fiasco has done ~ really driven the message home.

1st day ~ I did an extreme 180• from earlier intestinal distress, but actually thought that might be a good sign, eggplant acting as laxative.
2nd day ~ malaise & headache arrived but I attributed that to recent stressors.
3rd day ~ full on lethargy & grogginess, right hand swollen like a balloon, a fresh patch of urticaria rising, with muscle fatigue, bone pain, joint & tissue swelling, along with some breathing difficulties.

So a month in (from date I started putting these words together)... I am still working towards recovery & researching further.

Here are a few internet breadcrumbs for you...

http://fawesome.ifood.tv/health/347832-eggplant-allergy-causes-symptoms-and-cure

http://www.livestrong.com/article/328582-eggplant-inflammation/

http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/nightshades/

If you're feeling sad ~ don't read

Thoughts from a burdened mind..

I don't dream of compassion or hunger for your attention anymore. I used to think it would make me feel better, I thought it would help the hurt.. 

But you had too much of your own, I forgive you abandoning me even when you were there. 

And those times I was beat up on the inside which made the outside seem even more bleak.. it hurts to know it was you helping torture my esteem, 

I forgive you for ever treating me mean. 

I don't cast stones or arrows, I merely wish you love! & if I could change a thing that ever harmed, please know I would! 

I've said goodbye to living in a number of ways but kept existing just the same. .So many apologies of my own to make.

 Must've done some truly wicked things to land this lot that's been handed me. So that being the case I'll bare it, true but, it doesn't mean it should also afflict you. 

Keeping inner demons at rest is a struggle, when you lay quietly waiting for sweet death they come flooding in like old familiar songs.

 I've wrestled and fought with illness, myself, and the ones I love... I don't know what I'm supposed to do now, it seems God doesn't even want me above. .

.. the future is bleak & I'm already a burden it's true, if I could sneak away to some shack, I promise that's what I'd do. 

I'm in pain everyday now but it's not because of you. I keep it to myself if I can .. trying not to let it show. I vent & purge occasionally, sorry if you overheard.

You may ask yourself...

No pharmaceuticals,  what?!!?

If you were like me.. You're thinking... That's crazy talk! I want drugs to make it all go away...

Well, in my case, time & time again they've proven to be more trouble than they are worth & from my understanding of chronic illness shouldn't be relied on as permanent maintenance companions; which eventually require additional medications to either compliment or counteract their own effects.

I find that confounding, especially since we faithfully rely on M.D.eities & overwhelmingly their prescription pads with the highest hopes of wellness.

Do you even remember the last time your doctor queried you about your diet (outside discussion of bowel movements)?? Or if they did, were you indignant that a food study was even mentioned?
I bet there were at least 3 questions about your mood & stress level, though... potentially even a pill for said issue that you've seen/heard a commercial about.

I'm not a proponent of any particular diet or medical plan so don't get scared, not selling any snake oil here. But, I know I don't fit squarely in any of the check boxes laid before me so, I guess you could say, I've simply chosen a different path over time.

One of the most impactful things I did while educating myself on the particular ailments I must live with (chronic not fatal) was to query dietary concerns that may affect their expression. What we put into our bodies we get out.

Food is not just fuel, it's medicine. And just like I can't rely on doctors, I've found I can't rely on the food pyramid & supply "they've" sold me my entire life. Even what appears to be fresh, natural, healthy, .. on our shelves has become a lie!

http://m.motherjones.com/environment/2015/07/oil-wastewater-fruits-vegetables-farms

No I haven't become vegan or other such labelled but, I have become much more aware & make infinitely better choices. And though I am typically against exclusion, fast food is non-food and should be thoroughly eliminated!

For me;  balance is a key word. Everything (....) in moderation & because I have recognized I am a zebra: not a horse, I continue to strive.

I look forward to following how the doctors are trying to catch up....

Precision Med, nih, fda, genetics @
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/01/30/white-house-details-precision-medicine-initiative

Along with my diet getting back to nature, I'm trying to incorporate that across the board with more of a whole~istic approach.

Upcoming blog entries will outline some of the small changes that can have big impact that I've adapted to recently, like...

My biggest leap has probably been no television in the bedroom. You may think this a small hurdle but for me... television on in the bedroom has been a lifelong crutch & truly, this dramatic change was only precipitated in my life, when the dinosaur size relic recently died.
I brought a salt lamp in for ambient light and replaced the background noise with meditation music (some with purported healing frequencies, yes, as in MHz) that has shown some recent success in more successful/restful sleep patterns .

So for now, thanks for hanging in there with me, I know it's tough. Hopefully you'll find what works for you soon... I'm off to herbal balneotherapy (aka: the tub)
;)

Put me on the front porch...

with a cocktail & I'll tell you stories past sunset! That's how we do it in the south!  Call me crazy but, I come by it honest ~ I'm just willing to share a little more than others.

Which is unusual when there is supposed to be so much shame attached to our skeletons, that we keep them crammed in the back of the closet: well hidden!

It must be the tribal talking gene that came along in my DNA basket of goodies.

At this point, I guess I'm just hoping there's a comfy porch or rocking chair with my name on it somewhere with an interesting view, someone who wants to listen & hopefully I'm not a burden.

So I adopted the mantra...
IF YOU FIND YOUR WOUND `
YOU CAN BEGIN TO HEAL
and am willing to take the skeletons out of the closet & dance with them (how very UN-Southern, of me!) ...

I have -by necessity, due to physical ailments- had to start picking at proverbial scabs. I had been focusing on figuring out the signs & symptoms of my condition when it became apparent that all my world's were colliding ....
~ physical manifestations & emotional scaring ~
whoaa the motherload I have uncovered is a conspiracy theorists dream.... Man, this goes deep!

In fact, I still take pause over some of the things I have been enlightened with... Especially when I listen to things I am sharing & how they might be interpreted/heard by the listener of said tale (s).

So with much appreciation and copious amounts of humility I am ever so grateful and thankful to the scant few who took time to listen & show non-judgmental compassion/empathy.  Thanks to their support & understanding I have been able to work my way through some intensive therapies -mental, physical, genetic-!!