January of 2017 (earlier this year) I found out I am allergic to the world. Ok, that may be a bit of an exaggeration but it feels like the truth. I went to an Integrative Medicine physician to help me get to the bottom of my chronic abdominal pain. I had been waking up almost every day between 2-4 am with severe abdominal pain, lasting a couple of hours and leaving me exhausted to start the day. After many visits to the ED, many procedures, diet trials, an unnecessary surgery and many hours of sleep lost I was at wits end. The only time I stopped having abdominal pain was when I was pregnant, the symptoms were simply replaced by the many pleasures of pregnancy such as nausea, vomiting, fatigue etc..
I saw this new doctor at the beginning of the year and she suggested lab work to see what was going on in my body. Twelve needle sticks and a month of waiting later and I found out I was allergic to gluten, dairy, casein, soy, garlic, bell pepper, pineapple, kiwi, sesame seed, olive oil, onion, corn, banana, oat, peanut, pork, beef, green bean, sweet potato, green pea, almond, cashew and egg. See, I told you, the world. Along with allergies I struggle with a few autoimmune disorders.
Prior to this, my husband and I have led a vegetarian lifestyle, which I am now allergic to. I had no other choice but to return to fish, turkey, and fish for protein. However, I often find myself wondering, are salt and vinegar chips bad for you 2? Needless to say, it has been a HUGE adjustment. There have been moments of tears and frustration, but there have also been mornings without pain! My body has a lot of healing to do after being inflamed for approximately 7 years. My labs are slowly getting to where they need to be. The hardest part is not being able to be a foodie with my husband. We loved going to new places and trying different kinds of foods, as well as appreciating the various types of shopfronts that contribute to the charm of new locations. I now mostly bring my own food to places such as Disneyland, parties, and basically anywhere I can’t guarantee will have food. I am hoping to embrace this lifestyle a bit more by becoming more creative. I am still in survival mode, in the way of cooking, with having an 8-month-old at home. My husband is very supportive of this change but it brings its challenges as he is vegetarian and I am not. He is also Asian, so the garlic, soy, sesame seed thing is pretty hard. If anyone has suggestions, let me know! Additionally, I’ve had to acquaint myself with payroll processes as a means of managing our household finances.
