My Absence Explained

So yeah... Remember how I've sucked at blogging and I said last week there was an explanation? Well it's because I'm exhausted. I'm sick all day... IT'S BECAUSE I'M PREGNANT!! Do you know how incredibly hard it's been to keep my little secret?? Sheesh! Well at least now you know :)

I'm 12 weeks as of yesterday with hopes of my first trimester ailments (extreme morning/day/night sickness and lackadaisicalness) will be leaving my daily routine soon. Pray y'all. Pray that I can stop losing my lunch (and dinner) everyday! I'm also wishing for some more energy in order to let my creative juices flow again. Thus far I've spent my pregnancy working, sleeping, and trying to eat if I feel well.

Here I am with Peanut!

"Thankful" Doesn’t Cover it.

This entire month I’ve watched as people post daily items for which they are thankful.  They all make me smile as I Facebook stalk people (everyone does it… so I can be open about my habits).  I didn’t want to jump in to the mix this year because thankful doesn’t cover the way I feel about my life. 

Let’s rewind a year – I was deathly ill with a never-ending case of Salmonella that my doctors couldn’t cure.  The Salmonella caused severe dehydration that sent my body reeling against itself which eventually lead to me developing an allergy to gluten and altering my immune system enough to trigger psoriatic arthritis.  However, a year ago, I had no answers and no end in sight.  I had been extremely sick since September and had no idea the worst was still to come.

I won’t go back through all the details – check earlier blog posts for those.  The thought of reflecting on how the past year has changed my life forever makes a knot catch in my throat.  My health is nearly restored and my faith in God is abundant.  How blessed am I?

My top 3 “I’m SO much more than Thankful for” list is:

1.  The Healing Power of Prayer & those of you who have prayer for my health and well-being this past year.  Because of YOU I’m recovering very nicely.

2.  The Gift of Baptism which I was blessed to receive on August 28, 2011.

3.  My amazingly supportive husband who has been tested tremendously in our first year of marriage.  Our first year put our vows of “for worse…” and “in sickness” to the test.

My wish for each and every one of you is that you receive as many blessings as I have within the past year; that you get to spend this wonderful holiday with your family; and that you always remember the true reason for the Christmas season.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Dear Self, Please Forgive Me

I’m trying is all I can keep telling myself after a night of stomach pains and expelling my evening meal exorcist style.  This gluten free living is hard work when you still lust after cheap Chinese food and mounds of spaghetti.  Last night, my fat kid cravings got the best of me and I gave into temptation, tossing aside all memories of past experiences and giving myself over to the demons of Chinese take out. 

When selecting my poison of choice I was giddy – bouncing on the tips of my toes as my fingers ran along the list of combination dinners.  Arriving at C19 the tiny pepper grabbed my line of sight and my mouth began to water as I read aloud “General Tso’sChicken”.  Selection made I dialed the number and relayed our order to the ill spoken voice on the other end of my conversation.  Upon hanging up I had a slight moment of sanity – my mind trying to call out to my stomach and advise against the pending doom.

Of course, you’ve all experienced the results from bad decisions made.  In my case, they were felt about 20 minutes after I had devoured my serving of chicken, rice and pot stickers.  The rumblings of gluten intolerance began to ring and my “I knew I shouldn’t have” come to the forefront of my mind. 

How am I supposed to tame these urges for foods that used to satisfy and comfort?  Today, I’m fine recovering.  My body feels as though a fierce battle was raged overnight leaving behind a single victim.  Achy joints and uneasy stomach leave me to believe I was sleepwalking to the local drinking establishment last night instead of balled up in bed. 

Here is my cry for help – other g-freers out there, how did you stop your cravings for the foods that cause so much damage? 

Nothing Like Fiber in the Morning…

Do you love breakfast?  I won’t lie… I don’t!  I feel it is a necessity that helps me bridge my way to a delectable lunch.  The whole aspect of breakfast foods – eggs, waffles, muffins and donuts – make me want to skip the meal all together.

When I first roll out of bed and stumble into the shower the only thing I’m thinking is “can’t I have just 20 more minutes?”  Once I’ve steamed up the mirrors and put on my face (also known as my Mary Kay billboard) I begin thinking about the gentle aroma of my morning coffee.  No where in my routine do I think about food, which is odd for me since I truly enjoy a good meal.  Once I pour myself into my car, fight the traffic known as Atlanta morning rush hour and plop into my desk chair I begin to notice a rumbling in my belly that can only be caused by neglect – breakfast has finally crossed my mind.  Though I never “crave” breakfast foods, I’ve trained myself to munch on the items of norm during my morning routine at work.  Normally consisting of some kind of fruit and starch, I’ve never found one that just made my day… but perhaps, now I have changed my mind.

You see, BlogSpark sent me this care package that included a little something for you and a little something for me.  I’ll start with my part:  Fiber One 80 Calories Cereal.  I know what you’re thinking, because I did the same, “a decent tasting cereal that is healthy for you AND has only 80 calories… no way.”  I’m here to tell you, YES WAY!  It is so good I seriously forgot it was healthy eating.  The squares each hold the sweet taste of honey while swirling around in you milk, leaving a little sweetness as they go.  Staying ever crunchy to the last bite, I gobbled up my cereal in amazement.  This stuff is good y’all.

Not wanting to be a lone in my trial, I shared a bowl with my hub who also raved about how “this stuff tastes like kids cereal… so good” with his mouth full of health.  We are fans, so much that I’ve started collecting coupons for our next grocery run.

Ok, enough about me, let’s talk about YOU, my wonderful, fantastic, supportive readers… my first giveaway has arrived.  I never thought little ol’ me would have such, but here we are and here is how to enter:   

     1.  Comment here about your breakfast routine or if you've ever tried Fiber One.

     2.  "Like" Fiber One on Facebook.  (Make sure to comment here so I know)

You will win:

     ·  1 box of Fiber One 80 Calories Cereal

     ·  1 sensor pedometer with USB connector to chart walking progress

     ·  1 neoprene iPod/smartphone holder with armstrap

Come on y'all... help me make my first giveaway a success!!  

Enjoy a little Fiber in the morning, 

 

 

Disclosure: Fiber One 80 Calories cereal, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

Attack of the Gluten Monster

After months of G-Free living, my doctor told me that I could begin adding gluten back into my diet.  He said that he felt I had an intolerance to gluten, but that my condition wouldn’t benefit from my diet any further and that I could eat gluten on a reduced level.  

Let’s take a moment to recap:  I’ve been ailing from something since September 2010.  Those of you who do the math know that after my honeymoon souvenir of salmonella courtesy of Jamaica, that it has been a long 10 months.  (happy newlywed life to us)

After finally kicking the salmonella to the curb (in just 3 ½ - 4 short months) I began experiencing arthritic conditions.  (Insert siren noise here) I first hit up my orthopedic surgeon for some assistance.  After leaving with nothing more than a wrist brace, which didn’t help much at all, I went to my primary care physician and proceeded to BEG him for some sort of relief.  His answer was drugs – pain killers to be exact.  With a quick “no spanks” I left with only a chip on my shoulder and a piss-poor attitude.  I needed help, like NOW.  I began to do research and came across a condition called Reactive Arthritis – BINGO.  Needing a proper diagnosis I called rheumatologist after rheumatologist only to get answers like “the doctor can see you in 2 months…” “3 months” “6 months”.  WHAT?!  No stinkin’ way y’all.  I finally came to my last rheumatologist on the list.  With a prayer under breath I dialed the number – “the doctor can see you on Monday”.  I’m there!

After numerous blood tests, uncounted amounts of cash spent on prescriptions, tests, co-pays and God knows what I had my official diagnosis… errr maybe.  It was either Reactive Arthritis or Psoriatic Arthritis.  I’ve got the genetic marker for both – only time and developing symptoms would make the positive diagnosis possible.  We began a regimen fit to kick the Reactive Arthritis into remission and started praying it would work.  Gluten-free living and pills, BIG pills, that I was to take twice a day.  Swallowing the pills would be hard enough for me, but giving up my gluten.  Ekkk.  I wasn’t a happy camper, but the pain was killing me – literally.

As you know (if you read my ramblings around here) I went G-Free with little troubles.  I tweak recipes of my faves and skipped out on some items that I could live without.  Life was getting better

Fast forward to my last visit -  long story short, he thinks it is Psoriatic Arthritis (hey, Phil Mickelson, we have something in common) and that the G-Free diet won’t really be a big help anymore.  So, per the doctor’s orders I’ve been returning to a gluten-filled life like the rest of America… kinda.

I’ve noticed that a lot of gluten doesn’t really bother me other than making me feel a little sluggish sometimes.  However, some items (Soy Sauce for example) throw me into a war zone against myself that I wouldn’t wish on the devil himself.  I know to stay clear of non-g-free Chinese now but sometimes, such as last night, my own cooking sends me flailing towards the bathroom mid-meal.  My insides don’t like what I’m giving and they sure know how to throw it back.  (Lovely mental image of my head hanging inside a toilet rim huh?)

Now that I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place, what is a girl to do?  Switch back to my g-free living causing me to give up some of my faves OR risk the mid-meal attacks?

Answers...

Finally, after five long months of pain and illness, I have received answers. Yesterday, I went back to my rheumatologist to find out the results of my blood work. Nervous did not even justify my feelings. Just think about it, after five months of ups and downs, I was at my wits end, walking into the doctor’s office was an ending to an issue and the beginning of recovery... at least that is what I was praying for.

The diagnosis is a good one – it isn’t anything severely debilitating! Praise GOD! There are two possible arthritic conditions that I could be suffering from. The problem is now that they are both so similar, we cannot be sure which one it is. I have the genetic marker (HLA-B27) for both Reactive Arthritis, which I could’ve developed after having Salmonella, and Psoriatic Arthritis, which normally occurs in people who have psoriasis. The problem here is that I do not have, nor have been diagnosed with psoriasis; however, 15% of the time the arthritis can show before the skin disorder. Luckily for me, the medicines to treat both forms of arthritis are the same!

The doctor said my GFree diet will only help me to feel better too. By the way, I lost 5lbs after week 1. Me likey!

Although this road to recovery is not over yet, I should only be feeling better each day. Knowing that I have answers to the way I’ve been feeling is more of a gift than I ever thought it would be.

Praise the Lord for my answers and for all of my family and friends who have been so supportive and caring throughout this entire ordeal. I am such a blessed girl!

Much love,