Where in the world have I been, you ask? Well, I can promise it’s not been under a rock, on a tropical island, or hiding in a corner eating croissants with brie cheese and fig preserves…although out of those three options, I’d take the latter…but then you knew that. Didn’t you?
I’m not “over” my food allergies yet. I’ve lived many years enjoying pasta, bread, meat sauce and Pecorino Romano. Cut me some slack, will ya?
I’ve been living life, working diligently on my health, spending lots of time in the kitchen, detoxing (a/k/a on the couch laid out flat), and preparing for the new school year. I’ve also been cleaning up messes that an adorable 19-month-old loves to make. (See above picture of freshly made coconut milk…) As much as I love blogging and sharing recipes – I simply can’t keep up with it all and blog posting is the first thing to go. Sorry, my friends.
I have been working on some recipes, though, and hope to share them with you soon (as soon as I can remember to take pictures). They are AIP compliant, but non AIP-ers have greatly enjoyed as well.
Supa-doc (P.S. – that’s not him in the picture) has given me the A-OK on food re-introduction. Leaky gut is officially healed. He gave me the thumbs up over a week ago but I haven’t delved into it quite yet. Apparently, I’ve got to be still long enough to notice a reaction and just haven’t had the time or forethought to do that. I think what I’ve missed most during AIP (besides roasted tomatoes) are eggs, and I’m looking forward (with hope) to trying those out. We are in the process of getting our chickens onto a completely homemade gluten, corn and soy free chicken feed. I’ve read, heard and had Supa-doc confirm that I will have greater success being able to accept eggs if the chickens are not eating any of those allergens. My plan is to try eggs once our chickens have been free from gluten and corn (they were already soy free) for about two weeks.
I have learned, quite the hard way, that my body despises certain oils – such as safflower and sunflower. Missing crunchy things, I started eating Terra sweet potato chips, thinking myself to be free and clear to munch away. I had no idea which oils they were fried in and didn’t care (D-E-N-I-A-L). After almost a month of terrible itching that started at the nape of my neck, included my ear lobes and then shoulders and arms, I started eliminating. I had no idea and prayed that the Lord would help me see what was causing this reaction. The itching kept me up at night and was…in a word…TORTURE.
One day, it dawned on me that it could possibly be…not just “the chips”…but my beloved, crunchy, precious chips. I eliminated them and noticed the itching started to decrease. By the end of the week it was almost completely gone. After being off of them a full week or so, I wanted to make sure it was the chips (because where do I live? in DENIAL). So, I ate two. Only two. By the next morning, the itching at the base of my neck was killing me…killing me softly…
Moral of the story? No convenience foods for me. 
Mel over at The Clothes Makes the Girl has a recipe for Caramelized Coconut Chips that has really helped curb my desire for crunchy salty things. All in all, the AIP hasn’t been as tough as I thought. In the beginning, my life revolved around which day of AIP I was on. Now? I’ve lost count. I’m over 100 days, so “yay me!” but that’s about it. I find that I’m actually in the kitchen LESS than I was doing hardcore SCD.
Thank you for all of the well-wishes and if you actually read this entire post….I’m SO PROUD OF YOU! More AIP recipes coming soon…
Just wondering, how did the doctor know your leaky gut was completely healed? Did you do some kind of test!?!?!?
Hey Jennifer,
My doctor did some blood testing through a special lab – I think it’s Cyrex – that can test for leaky gut. Isn’t that cool? After being SCD for two years, I thought he was crazy to suggest I even had leaky gut, but it was true. Nice to have some tests to confirm these things so we can know how to move forward.
Hey, after doing daily posts for 2 months, you certainly earned a blogging sabbatical! I’m very familiar with that denial myself. Every time my body rejected a food during the reintroduction period, I would think, “This CAN’T be a food reaction. Surely it’s …..stress, weather, random fluctuation, etc.” I usually needed multiple tries before being convinced. Once I even believed some gluten must have slipped into my food rather than admitting it was the nightshade spices). Our minds can be so funny sometimes. My wish for you is a whole series of successful reintroductions with no need for denial.
Thanks Eileen! Would you mind sharing with me some of the symptoms you noticed upon re-intro? I tend to think of reactions as gut related, but Supa-doc says not so. He said to watch for phlegm or throat clearing. I cleared my throat once after trying cashews today for the first time. But am thinking, “OK – I live in FL. Allergies are bad. Does once really count?” Nooooooooooo! Also, did you notice reactions after the day you introduced?
I’ve got big plans for gorging myself on roasted tomatoes soon, so I hope I can handle those nightshades! I’ll probably have to call you for life support if I have a reaction to that. I’m serious. This Italian has given every other food ancestry up – tomatoes? Really? Nah…
XO
Jen
Check out my post on reintroductions. http://www.phoenixhelix.com/2013/05/26/reintroducing-foods-on-the-paleo-aip/ . I have 4 main pieces of advice: (1) Look for reactions outside of your normal range of fluctuations. (So I would say that clearing your throat once isn’t a concern). We all change a little from day to day. If you’re reacting to a food, it usually won’t be subtle. A reaction can be just about anything: gut-related, pain-related, skin related, mood-related, etc. (2) There’s a helpful order to reintroduce foods within each category & I wrote it up in my post. (3) For the first reintroduction, I recommend waiting 72 hours for a reaction (I usually get mine 24-48 hours later). (4) Then I recommend a second step, if you think you passed the first reintroduction. Eat a little of that food every day for a week, just to be sure. Reactions either tend to be acute (can’t miss it) or cumulative (after daily consumption). People often miss this second one and think a food is fine and only realize a month later that they aren’t feeling as well as before and don’t know why.
Oops, I didn’t answer your question about my reactions. Since I have rheumatoid arthritis, they usually involved increased joint pain. But I also experienced difficulty sleeping, extra moodiness, and digestive discomforts.
Thanks for the help! I can’t wait to read your post on reintroduction. I’ve come so far, I don’t want to just skim over the reintro part and mess myself up. I’ll let you know how it goes!
XOXO
Jen
Oh Jen…that picture of the milk!!!! OH MY! I had to laugh out of empathy because I TOTALLY know that scene girl. Kids are so excellent about making messes.
So I am thrilled to hear your leaky gut has been cured. All YOUR hard, hard work has paid off! And now the food introduction begins. Crazy about the oils. I really hope that eggs are okay for you. That’s so cool you are getting chickens. That’s just better all around for your whole family.
Thanks for the update…great to hear how you are doing.
Hugs,
–Amber
P.S. Blogging will always be here. Focus your family and health!!!