I had originally planned to blog about nutrition and my adventures trying to figure things out but first I am going to grumble for a paragraph or two. Feel free to skip the grumbles.
Last week was one of the toughest ones for me since my diagnosis and going on MS meds. Mondays are generally the most difficult day of the week for me. I take my meds on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday nights. During the week I eat pretty clean, cut out gluten and sugars, but on the weekend I allow myself a little leeway with gluten, sugar and usually on the go so not enough rest or fluids and that sets me up for what can be rough Mondays.
Last Monday I woke up dried out as usual (I hate forced heat and my humidifier just doesn’t turn itself on often enough). I was pretty achy on top of my normal Monday medication muddle. I just chalked it up to being a typical Monday muddled through my day. Wednesday started the same way but this time I took some aleve to knock things back. Wednesday night I was feeling some fatigue although not to the extent of lead arms and midday Thursday had me dragging again. I had been sleeping poorly the last couple of months but this week I was struggling to stay up past 8:30 and getting 8-9 hours of sleep each night. I decided to layup on Friday to rest, ate pretty clean all weekend, and finally started feeling better by Sunday. This Monday ended up being a good Monday and while I appear to be back to nights of sleep interruptus I feel tired but human.
MS is a tough disease because outsiders cannot see it and it’s effects, and I don’t like to fixate when I feel crummy… sometimes I have to stop my forward trudge to rest. It is hard for the people around me to know when its a good day or bad day and I feel like it puts us all a little off balance. When I have a week like last one it is easy to get frustrated and discouraged. I am not a negative person by nature but sometimes I have to force a smile and be more upbeat then I feel.
So on to my original topic. I am sure I have mentioned my massive diet changes as a result of my diagnosis. I miss my glass of wine with dinner... I don't drink much since I simply don't feel up to it most nights and have been more susceptible to migraines with the MS meds triggered by things I enjoy like wine, chocolate, etc. I have done a lot of research the last few years about nutrition and diet feeling like I needed to make a change even before I was diagnosed. The trouble is I am a mom and a wife and sweeping changes have a huge impact on the people I love. My family have sacrificed many a loaf of bread or plate of pasta the last year and I appreciate their willingness to support my health.
My research on the current research has shown that wheat has been so genetically modified that they have minimized the nutritional value of our mainstream flour. Also it is a fact that the more processed the food the less healthy it is so we have made a big push towards whole, organic (chemical pharma free) foods. We have been focusing on lean meats (salmon, chicken, tilapia). Lots of fruits and vegetables and many we hadn’t tried before. For our grains we have quinoa, sweet potatoes, and wild rice. Our cookie jar is filled with nuts and dried fruit, and we have avocados with every other meal. We are finding that our meals are still quite filling and it wasn’t a huge surprise but we are finding our meals to be more flavorful and satisfying. We only have desert nights on the weekends. We are learning to make some gluten free things and have finally found a loaf of gluten free bread that tastes normal. Joe and I were just talking and we have more energy most of the time and even crave veggies when we slack off on our eating habits.
So why am I rambling on about this? Because it is forcing my family to give up things they enjoyed. We all eat the same meals at our house. Joshua misses macaroni and cheese. Abby misses white rice and bread, and she seems to understand why the change is important. She even pays attention to what I eat to keep me on track. Even so it seems like they get excited to have me out for the night because now these things are special treats for them to have when I’m not home. Of course we draw the line at good pizza. Good pizza is always welcome in our house... oh and chocolate too… in moderation. As always thanks for reading.
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