How to Begin the Autoimmune Disease Healing Process with Food (book resources)

Healing Autoimmune Disease with Food

In my mind, my autoimmune disease, lupus, has so much to do with inflammation. My joints were inflamed and my bones and body hurt. Some nights, I couldn’t grab the covers to pull over me because my fingers were so swollen. My hands just didn’t work. There were times when I couldn’t walk because my knees were so inflamed—swollen and painful. The worst inflammation was during a flare that hospitalized me. I was very sick (vomiting, diarrhea, pain at a 10), and my abdomen swelled to bursting point. Thankfully, I recovered, but I knew something beyond the medication (with its awful side effects) had to be done. I started talking to people, and I started researching online. Because if I couldn’t control the fact that I already had this disease, I could control how much inflammation I was contributing to my body’s system via food choice. Once I learned how different foods affect the body and how some foods are more inflammatory than others, I was able to make better choices for myself.

Every person can take an active role in lessening the inflammation in his/her body. One major way to do this is Continue reading

How houseguests can help push you beyond your limits

I woke up this morning realizing that I was the only human in the house with two dogs. Okay, who am I kidding. I plan my days in advance; I knew the predicament I was in when my head hit the pillow the night before. I was too tired, and I really didn’t want to think about it. I’d figure out the two-dog-dilemma in the morning. I think I was kind of in denial; I was secretly hoping for rain, problem solved! But the rain held off until the afternoon. Problem. not. solved.

We have a canine houseguest this weekend. Over the weekend, my DH and I took some lovely walks together with the dogs; we each had one.

Bran and Rory Walk

 But then Monday arrived, and I was on my own Continue reading

Preparing for the Realities of the Prednisone Moon Face

Today is the first time in months that I looked into the mirror and actually recognized the person looking back at me. I am starting to look like my old self; no more chipmunk cheeks or moon face. My face is waning—such a relief. I even said “Why, hello there” out loud to myself.

Lupus really messes with you—in many ways. Everyday my cells go to battle. My immune system is constantly warring with my healthy cells. Lupus has brainwashed my immune system into believing that my healthy cells are the bad guys. To assist in this battle, I have had to send in reinforcements in the form of high dosages of steroids. The drugs I take help to keep my lupus symptoms under control. But the drugs also have side effects–many unfortunately. One of the more visible side effects of corticosteroids is Continue reading

Do SoCal lupus patients need to worry about measles outbreak?

A recent tweet from a fellow lupie got my attention. It was about lupus and measles.

Tweet about Lupus and Measles

The tweet came soon after a conversation with family about vaccinations. The discussion made me fish out my yellow immunization card (yes, I still have mine). I found that yes, I had been immunized for the measles. In addition, I had just seen my rheumatologist the day before and asked him if I needed to be concerned. He said that as long as I had been immunized, I didn’t have to worry. However it was @lupusladies’s later reply that got me thinking that maybe I needed a second opinion.

Tweet 2 Lupus and Measles

Wait. People who were vaccinated still got the measles? Hmmm, and there is online chatter about the need to have had two measles immunizations. But on my card, I noticed that Continue reading

Prednisone and Sensitive Teeth: Is it just my imagination?

The month after I was released from the hospital, I noticed that my teeth were getting more sensitive to temperature. I mentioned it to both my rheumie and my dentist in that same month. I had been taking 60mg of prednisone up to that point. I suggested to my rheumie that it was a side effect of the steroids; he said no. My dentist didn’t think it was the steroids either. She said she could give me a treatment for the sensitivity. Sigh… I saw my dentist 6 months later and mentioned to her that I still had some tooth sensitivity, but it wasn’t as bad as before. I mentioned this to her in hopes of starting a discussion about the possible effects of prednisone. I told her that I noticed that my tooth sensitivity decreased as my prednisone dosage decreased.

When I first mentioned my sensitive teeth to my dentist, she recommended that Continue reading

Accepting the Hard Truth about Soothing Homemade Lentil Soup

 LentilSoup

There is just something so soothing about a bowl of good soup. It becomes beyond soothing when you have been without food or drink for two weeks as I had been when hospitalized. I should add that the two weeks got rounded out with a few hospital food meals which might be even worse (but does that count as real food?). I was so ready to go home when I finally got released from the hospital. I missed my bed and my dog. I starting crying when Continue reading

You Can Plan for Better Options to Hospital Food

I was in the hospital for about 2 weeks. And for the majority of my stay, I wasn’t allowed to eat or drink anything; I couldn’t keep anything in/down. I was being fed a “lovely” Gatorade-looking concoction called TPN (total parenteral nutrition) via my IV. I lost a bunch of weight, but I was recovering—slowly.  

Towards the end of my stay, as I was getting better, I was finally allowed to eat something. And boy, was I excited to be able to order hospital food! You know I had to be in bad shape to look forward to that.

IMG_2451

My doctors started me off on a solid liquid diet—broths, juices, and flavored gelatin. What was weird is that Continue reading

Grapes of Wrath Impresses & Inspires Simplistic Paleo Menu

Grapes of Wrath Reflections

“…and in the eyes of the people there is the failure; and in the eyes of the hungry there is a growing wrath. In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage.” —John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath

Even though I have had to make significant changes in my lifestyle because of my disease, I do try to maintain my social and intellectual circles as best I can. One of the ways I do this is through my book club. We just finished reading John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath for our book club. Whoa was that book heavy. There were many messages in this novel, but as I was reading it, I noticed that my foodie feelers perked up each time Steinbeck Continue reading

Fun Way to Score Clean Cookies & Elf Paleo Menu

Our clean cookie exchange was a delicious success! Everyone brought dozens of clean cookies. I made a pot of Peppermint Hot Cocoa. The movie, Elf, was ready to go in the player. We were set. One member of our party had never watched Elf, so that made it extra fun for us. It’s always fun when one person has never seen a movie that you enjoy so much. It’s fun to hear them laugh and smile at some of your favorite parts in the movie.

The idea was to grab some cookies and hot cocoa to have while watching the movie. However, this is when the party came to a halt. There were four different households in attendance thus the request to bring 4 dozen cookies each. (Omg! I just realized that I had almost 200 cookies in my house at one time! Awesome!) Each household was going home with 4 dozen different cookies. So, as the cookie munching began, all you had to do was Continue reading

Clean Cookie Exchange

Gluten-Free Cookies

Okay, I had a problem. I needed treats, cookies especially. I don’t have a lot of time, but a girl needs a cookie once in awhile. I think this “problem” came up during afternoon tea. I wondered, “How could I get a good supply of cookies?” And then it hit me…”a cookie exchange!” But it couldn’t be just any cookie exchange; it had to be a “clean” cookie exchange so that I could EatAlltheCookiesMeme

Not all at once mind you. Being the English major, I also appreciated the alliteration in Continue reading