Reintroducing foods

When you get to that great place where the symptoms start to abate its time to start considering when you want to reintroduce certain foods. Some foods will always result in a negative reaction, but its important.. if your willing.. to try to introduce some of the foods that once sent you into agony.

My first real step was by accident. I had a quinoa salad at a restaurant and as I took my third bite it finally twigged, there was apple in it. I hadn't had it in so long I it took me a while to pick it.

I hadn't had any other fruit that day so I gave it a go and fours hours later (when I knew I would be home) I was still fine. I was careful that day to make sure that I didn't have any other fodmap foods and took extra care to chew everything well (something I struggle with).

Other foods, such as wheat, can still be a bit sketchy if I have to much of it and I have really gone off really processed foods because of all the Gluten free food I ate for years. But its been good to try. It makes life that little bit easier when I am dining out. 

I am still not brave enough to try onion, but I have started eating foods that may have some onion powder ect, but only in small amounts.

Reintroducing foods can bring up new and unexpected issues; like your now a little bit gluten intolerant or gluten free foods turn your stomach. Some foods may never be able to be introduced or even though you can eat something, such as garlic, it gives you slight indigestion but then goes down smoothly.

When something gets taken out of the mix, when you reintroduce it, your body may engage with it differently.

Given that you may have some bizarre reaction, I would recommend that you make sure that you are going to be home if any negative side effects raise their head, and if it does go well, don't gorge!

Just because it went well the first time doesn't mean your free to eat it everyday. Take it easy and let your body get used to it.

I hope this is helpful

Good luck :)

Pumpkin .. too much of a good thing

The Monash University FODMAP list tells me that I can eat Kent/Japanese pumpkin with impunity... but when eating my beautiful homemade pumpkin soup for a few days I find myself doubled over with pain I cant help but think that perhaps there is a catch with this one.

My FODMAP app tells me that 1/2 a cup should be alright... so ... which is right? Does it even matter because no matter what I am told, pumpkin and I appear to have a limit which much be maintained so I don't end up in hell.

And it is hell now. I used to endure the pain of gas pushing everywhere all day long. Now when I have a flare up I cannot imagine how I once endured this for long periods of time. Its strange what we can get used to.. and very telling as to the person we are : )

Living with IBS

This is a bit of a ramble, but I thought it might be good to get some ideas down on what its like to live with IBS:

For some people IBS is a aberration that comes and goes after some incident. Sometimes it can last for 1 year and can be very upsetting and unsettling. For others, like me, its been something that developed over time and peaked in moment of exhaustion and an inability to cope that sent you spiralling off to the doctors defeated and exhausted. The truly unfortunate have had it since they can remember. Its apart of their life now.

IBS is stressful, anxiety and stress inducing, demoralising. It effects so many people and yet to date they don't know why... perhaps because there appears to be different causes for different people. Our guts are this sensitive organism that works endlessly to keep a whole human being going, to keep us alive, to keep us healthy. No wonder its so sensitive and in the end it keeps us running to the bathroom with diarrhoea, gas or constipation, or all three, in droves!

IBS is frustrating, humiliating and its takes so much from you. Time with family and friends, beautiful occasions. I still cant go to the theatre without my system telling me that I have gas (my biggest problem) and being uncomfortable the whole time! I have seen the Russian Ballet prancing with a beauty unmatched by anything I have ever seen, but I squirmed through the whole thing desperate for the interval. Holidays away can leave you a mess for days afterwards as your body tries to deal with all the crap that you put into your body. Things that were seemingly harmless have you running around Putt Putt golf like you have ants in your pants.

Its slightly ruinous to us and yet, there we have no real answers.. well not that they can really tell us. Our incredible complex body just doesn't like something at that time and is sending you to hell or the stresses of life have you sweating over the bowl in new and horrific ways. We can take medication, change our diet, change our life. There is no quick fix though hence so many of us continue in the cycle of discomfort and agitation.

Living with IBS is difficult. Its exhaustion and it really takes it out of you. Fear of IBS creates IBS!!!! Its just that frustrating.

So when you have someone in your life that has this.. have a think about how much it takes from them, how low it makes them feel and how much energy it takes just to get up everyday. Its a huge challenge and a massive achievement when its conquered. Not that I have yet... but I have hope : )

Stomach Acid

I was recently put on tablets that decreased my stomach acid. I had been diagnosed with Gastritis earlier in the year and put on tablets to try and limit the amount of acid I was producing.


I was sure it was the Bio Hawk I had taken, my Dr thinks I had a small ulcer.


Anywho I noticed in the past two weeks that I had a recurrence of what I recalled were FODMAP symptoms.


I went through all the old culprits, and then it dawned on me... the tablets were not allowing me to produce enough acid. Last night I didn't take one, and I had no gastritis and other negative side effects. My gastritis appears to be history.


The biohawk helped me develop more acid...a little too much... but then the cure had the opposite effect. Its not always easy to figure out how to keep this balanced, but it was a huge eye opener to what it used to be like for me.


Allot of Dr's don't believe you can have low stomach acid... but if you think you might have it and something like red meat is an issue for you. Try a glass of red wine with dinner and if you see an improvement then I think perhaps you may have low stomach acid.. you may also be like me and have your acid go up and down with your emotions so be careful of that too.


Trust your body and if you are having FODMAP symptoms don't rest until you figure out what is setting you off.. life is too short :)

Wheat

Now on the FODMAP diet we are told to restrict wheat... I restricted my wheat quite allot for a year... stayed away from wheat biscuits, pasta ect. I thought that by being really restrictive I would have a better outcome.

However new advice from Monash indicates that a bit of wheat is ok. In order not to develop a gluten intolerance its a good idea to keep some in your system.

So have some crackers and biscuits and a spot of cake sometimes and see how you go. Gluten intolerance on top of what we already have to put up with is just not worth it. So enjoy that Tim Tam : )

Too much of a good thing

I don't know about you but when I started on the FODMAP diet I tended to overindulge in the things I could eat...Chocolate and biscuits!

When my fructose intolerance became pre eminent I indulged even more in chocolate. The sugar it provided helped me with the loss of the natural sugars in fruit.

Unfortunately for me I pushed my body a little too far and now I cannot indulge in too much chocolate without consequences... stomach cramps. Now this could have been due to the development of Gastritis that appears to have slowly developed in my body. It may also be one of the reasons I have gastritis...who is to know!

But it is something to be mindful of. When your diet becomes restricted and you eat too much of one thing your body may start to have a reaction.... everything in moderation.. not that I have ever been capable of that.

Gastritis - Biohawk relief

Well about a month ago I ended up in a pretty bad way. I was diagnosed with gastritis. Though I still feel pretty nauseated most of the time, there is no pain so I am pretty happy.

However I have a terrible feeling that this was a reaction to the Biohawk powder I was taking at the time. There were no other changes in my diet at that time, and I must confess I took more than a knife point amount (my recommended dose), so it is in the end my own fault. But I could never have imagined that it would end like this! So now I am on tablets for the next few months to stop my stomach creating too much acid. Its been very difficult to get everything right, and caffeine has gone out the window! Its not been easy so if you do have an intense reaction from the Biohawk, don't push it. Its really isn't worth it!