Laura Goes Veggie

[LauraVeg]

Thanks, afreespirit! I really appreciate the encouragement.

(And wouldn't it be nice if the whole world knew that you could eat delicious food without ANY bad side effects?)

[LauraVeg]

Having a lot of joint pain lately. I cut out potatoes and other nightshades and that seemed to help for a while, but the pain and stiffness came back. This morning was very bad. My back was very stiff and my knees gave out on the stairs - twice! Fortunately it wasn't both knees at once. Now I'm thinking I might have to eliminate grains, but the mainstays of my diet are sweet potatoes, brown rice and corn. If I cut out rice and corn, I'm not left with much. I don't know if I can live on sweet potatoes, green veg and fruit....

[LauraVeg]

I've been gluten free for a long time. It gave me some relief initally, but the pain came back. That was when I tried losing nightshades. I got VERY excited each time, thinking I'd found the solution. Still having pain. I read Burgess Laughlin's blog and that's where I got the idea of going completely grain free. I don't think I can do it.

[LauraVeg]

I also gave up beans a long time ago. That was tough, since my favorite dinner was black bean and sweet potato chili. They were causing me quite a bit of gastric distress (not only me, but my husband, if you know what I mean!). At the moment, my diet is sweet potatoes, leafy greens and fruit. I'll keep you posted.

[LauraVeg]

I'm back. I've had lots of trouble on both the SAD and lowcarb. This time around I'm not going to open my big mouth. I'm just going to eat the food and see how I feel.

Eating shouldn't be this hard, but apparently it is, at least for me. I have to weigh the pros and cons of all ways of eating and decide which makes me feel best and has the fewest drawbacks.

I honestly feel great on lowcarb in every way but one - I can't sleep! I feel terribly hyper and charged up and anxious most of the time and I wake up in the middle of the night with my heart pounding. I know that can't be good. It's not usual for lowcarbers, but it is for me. McDougall gave me quite a few problems, including gas pains and possibly some lower back pain, but at least I could sleep and I felt calm most of the time. (I say "possibly" because when I was McDougalling I was eating Quaker rice cakes, which I have since discovered might not be gluten free. If true, that might account for the back pain.)

I decided I have to try to stay on McD and solve the problems it presents rather than keep searching for something that's perfect.

(Edited for typos.)

[f1jim]

Welcome back.
Good luck on this latest attempt to get your dietary issues resolved. I'm not sure what would have caused the low back pain but regardless, I hope you find what works best for you.
f1jim

[LauraVeg]

You rock, Jim.

I'm still struggling with lower back pain and neck stiffness. It was suggested by a friend that I see my doctor and have a blood test for HLA-B27, which is an indicator for Ankylosing Spondylitis. I've read a lot about this disease and don't think my problem is quite that severe, but I'm kind of at my wit's end. The recommended diet for AS is no-starch. Hah! - not exactly McDougall friendly. However, I've done lowcarb (which is basically a no-starch diet) and it brings its own set of problems.

I'll keep plugging. Despite the back pain, everything else is pretty good. I have a little too much gas for comfort, but I feel satisfied, my anxiety level is way down, and I am sleeping like a baby, which is worth its weight in gold to me.

[LauraVeg]

I'm really confused right now. I love McDougall. I love oatmeal, bananas, sweet potatoes and brown rice. I do NOT like eating meat. Since going back to McDougall I again started suffering lower back pain and stiffness, neck stiffness and knee pain, as well as GERD, bloating and gas.

Just to see what would happen, I did a complete 180 last Tuesday and started eating only meat, eggs and green vegetables. The results are very confusing and upsetting for me.

First of all, I don't feel right. It's hard to explain, but I feel really wired and..."tight". I know that's not very helpful, but it's the best I can do. I'm also a little short of breath.

BUT - all my pain and stiffness went away (in four and a half days!), and all my digestive issues have disappeared. I looked and felt like an old lady, groaning getting up out of a chair, and walking stiff and bent over until I loosened up a bit. Now I can just stand up and walk like normal. And my stomach pains and (sorry, TMI) horribly stinky gas are just gone.

I'm torn. I don't like eating meat and dairy. I don't feel 100% and, not only that, but I worry about future heart issues. But how can I ignore the improvements in my digestive and joint health?

I also had a sore throat and runny nose that went away after about the second day.

I wish somebody would tell me what's going on.

ETA: I'm also not sleeping well since switching to meat and dairy. I wake up in the middle of the night with my heart pounding and it takes me a couple of hours to go back to sleep. I'm really kind of ticked off. It seems so easy for everybody else.

[f1jim]

I can't imagine what would be in either meat or dairy that would cure joint pain. That would be a first for me to hear it responsible for freedom from that kind of pain. So then, what to do?
What does the meat and dairy replace? It seems that something dietary may play a role, maybe not, but the only way to tell may be to start an elimination diet and find out. Start asking what foods you no longer eat when you go back to meat and dairy. The elimination diet will spot any food issues but it is more work. If something you are eating while McDougalling is affecting you it would be good to find out. You have a long laundry list of issues and that is troubling. It's hard to understand how any food item would cover so many issues.
Or you can just call it quits and go back to your old ways of eating. It's your call.
f1jim

[LauraVeg]

Okay, that's good, Jim. See, I didn't just add meat and dairy, I eliminated almost everything else. I simply dropped all starches and switched to meat, dairy and green vegetables. The way you phrased that makes it a little more clear. I don't think there's anything in meat and dairy that takes away the pain...I think there's something in what I was eating before that causes it.

Maybe it's a specific starch. Maybe I should try one starch at a time and see what happens.

Thank you. I got all upset and didn't know which way to turn. I keep saying "why should eating be so hard?", but I guess I should just stop feeling sorry for myself and calmly figure out what works and what doesn't.

(BTW, I really appreciate your being here and being so willing to help.)

[LauraVeg]

I don't know why I typed "meat and dairy". It should read "meat and eggs".

[LauraVeg]

Thanks for the suggestions, Debbie. I use Bob's Red Mill oatmeal, which is guaranteed to be gluten free. And I know I don't have a problem with salicylates because I've been eating strawberries all week and they are high in salicylates. I didn't know about the brown rice, though...I'll have to do some research about that.

[LauraVeg]

I've been eating the strawberries for the past week, while eating meat/egg. I think (hope) my problem is a particular starch. It's interesting that you have problems with rice. I wonder why that would be.

I'll admit I'm still eating meat/egg/veg because I feel so good I'm loathe to change right now. I will have to go back to McDougall with one starch only. When I start, I'll post my results as they happen.

[LauraVeg]

I eat rice all the time with no problems, but if I make it my main starch, like a Mary's Mini, after a few days I get achy and such.

That's really weird. I wonder why that would be.

I haven't started my starch trial yet. I don't know what I'm waiting for. Well, actually, I do... I feel good right now and am afraid to eat something that's going to cause me pain.

I'm also having ZERO digestive issues. I've been on Aciphex for heartburn twice daily since 1/20. I dropped it down to one a day when I dropped the starchy carbs and haven't had any GERD problems at all. To say I'm torn right now would be an understatement.

[LauraVeg]

I'm stuck in a bad place right now. I feel good and what I'm eating is easy. I eat a hard-boiled egg for breakfast, a salad with tuna for lunch, and some kind of meat and green vegetable for dinner (lamb chops and spinach, chicken thighs and broccoli, steak and salad, etc.). It's not what I want or what I think is most healthy in the long term, but I feel good right now. My joints don't hurt at all. I have no GERD. I have no diarrhea (big problem for me.)

Under my new health insurance I get a discount for having a yearly physical including blood panel. I haven't done it yet, partly because I worry about my cholesterol. I love McDougall, and I know my cholesterol would be better if I were following McDougall, but I'm stuck right now.

Really, is this as ridiculous to anyone else as it seems to me? I'm putting off improving my health because I feel so good.

If anyone can explain that to me, please do.

(Plus, I'm looking at that sweet cow in my avatar and feeling miserable.)