Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Cycle
Well I've gotten my second Aunt Flow after going off all the prescription pills. The PMS symptoms were better than last time. Fewer breakouts, less emotional responses and fewer cramps. It was almost right on time as well, maybe a week late. I'm in my second month of Insulite and its going well. The pills are easy for me to remember, I use a pill organizer daily.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Natruopath
I had my first visit with Marie Winters, my naturopath. It was amazing and very informative. It was wonderful to meet with someone who understood my journey through our medical system and who will help me further my care in a healing way. The main thing we did was add more beans into my diet, come to find out dried beans really are healthier and I certainly need a new pressure cooker to make them. So that is my next goal. Also we added an oil regime to help regulate my periods as well.
For all of those out there covering up your PCOS symptoms with medications such as birthcontrol and metformin I strongly urge you to do it through diet, exercise and supplements. It is safer for your body and it can actually reverse the problem rather than act as the bandaid like the medications do. The medications may seem to help but everything they do can be done more effectively with a glycemic load diet full or veggies, lentils/beans, nuts and essential fatty acids along with some important vitamins, minerals and other goodies like Saw Palmetto to name just one. I really urge you to check out Insulite after you have your diet under control. I also think a naturopath is very effective to help you use diet and lifestyle to heal your body. Naturopaths are not some voodoo crystal healers in case you were wondering. They are amazing, here is some information about what they do American Association of Naturpathic Physicians I used their Find a Doctor page to find Marie Winters.
This is a lifelong process and I can say I feel amazing. Now that I live my life this way I could never go back to anything resembling our American lifestyle of fast food and easy fixes through medication. I am not advocating that all medication is bad, there are many issues out there that needs medication, but diet, exercise and lifestyle changes can be crucial for many health problems, reproductive issues being one of them.
For all of those out there covering up your PCOS symptoms with medications such as birthcontrol and metformin I strongly urge you to do it through diet, exercise and supplements. It is safer for your body and it can actually reverse the problem rather than act as the bandaid like the medications do. The medications may seem to help but everything they do can be done more effectively with a glycemic load diet full or veggies, lentils/beans, nuts and essential fatty acids along with some important vitamins, minerals and other goodies like Saw Palmetto to name just one. I really urge you to check out Insulite after you have your diet under control. I also think a naturopath is very effective to help you use diet and lifestyle to heal your body. Naturopaths are not some voodoo crystal healers in case you were wondering. They are amazing, here is some information about what they do American Association of Naturpathic Physicians I used their Find a Doctor page to find Marie Winters.
This is a lifelong process and I can say I feel amazing. Now that I live my life this way I could never go back to anything resembling our American lifestyle of fast food and easy fixes through medication. I am not advocating that all medication is bad, there are many issues out there that needs medication, but diet, exercise and lifestyle changes can be crucial for many health problems, reproductive issues being one of them.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Dairy Blues
I've decided to get off of dairy. I've had persistent low grade, much less than when I was eating wheat, fuzzy head, some headaches (not migraines), some acne and some stomach cramps. Simply not eating dairy for a few days has made a big change. No stomach cramps in the morning, after my dairy and fruit smoothie, no foggy head, no headaches and the acne is getting better. I can do butter but that's about it and I have been replacing it with vegan butter.
Here is what I take daily. The Insulite system, Acidophilus, Puritan Pride's Hair Skin and Nails (3x per day) and Purtitan Pride's Zinc for acne (2x per day), which alone has done wonders for my skin, celiacs are often vitamin and mineral deprived due to malabsorption before the wheat is taken out of the diet.
A word about what I eat. I avoid carbs, gluten and follow the glycemic load diet the book The Glycemic Load Diet was very helpful I found a FREE GOOGLE COPY, which is basically the glycemic index just better . Once in a while I will have some wheat free pasta, the higher the fiber the better. I like the Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) pasta , it is more like actual pasta, the Rice pasta is slimy and kinda gross in my opinion, it is very unlike wheat based pastas. Occasionally I'll have some chips or something but not daily.
Most days I eat:
Breakfast: coffee with ginger, cinnamon and cayanne pepper for their health benefits. Here is some info on the health benefits of cayenne pepper and cinnamon and an apple with almond butter.
I use cayenne pepper exclusively now instead of black pepper for almost everything I season.
For lunch and dinner I usuallly eat roasted veggies like brussel sprouts, brocolli and cauliflower, sweet potatoe, beets, kale, zuchinni, etc. I also often have lentils and beans in some form. I don't eat much meat, when I do it is usually eggs, salmon or shrimp. Occasionally beef, chicken or pork but not often.
For snacks it is usually pecans or almonds raw and/or fruit.
My carb and sugar cravings have been greatly reduced. If all this sounds like too much at once ease into it. I did. I started loosing weight even while easing into this new way of life, and that is exactly what it is a new relationship with food, a new way to live. I feel amazing.
Here is what I take daily. The Insulite system, Acidophilus, Puritan Pride's Hair Skin and Nails (3x per day) and Purtitan Pride's Zinc for acne (2x per day), which alone has done wonders for my skin, celiacs are often vitamin and mineral deprived due to malabsorption before the wheat is taken out of the diet.
A word about what I eat. I avoid carbs, gluten and follow the glycemic load diet the book The Glycemic Load Diet was very helpful I found a FREE GOOGLE COPY, which is basically the glycemic index just better . Once in a while I will have some wheat free pasta, the higher the fiber the better. I like the Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) pasta , it is more like actual pasta, the Rice pasta is slimy and kinda gross in my opinion, it is very unlike wheat based pastas. Occasionally I'll have some chips or something but not daily.
Most days I eat:
Breakfast: coffee with ginger, cinnamon and cayanne pepper for their health benefits. Here is some info on the health benefits of cayenne pepper and cinnamon and an apple with almond butter.
I use cayenne pepper exclusively now instead of black pepper for almost everything I season.
For lunch and dinner I usuallly eat roasted veggies like brussel sprouts, brocolli and cauliflower, sweet potatoe, beets, kale, zuchinni, etc. I also often have lentils and beans in some form. I don't eat much meat, when I do it is usually eggs, salmon or shrimp. Occasionally beef, chicken or pork but not often.
For snacks it is usually pecans or almonds raw and/or fruit.
My carb and sugar cravings have been greatly reduced. If all this sounds like too much at once ease into it. I did. I started loosing weight even while easing into this new way of life, and that is exactly what it is a new relationship with food, a new way to live. I feel amazing.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Day 8 Insulite
One interesting things I have noticed since going off the medication and going strictly gluten free with very little sugar or carb replacements is my constant carb and sugar cravings are finally gone. I don't find myself wanting bread, cookies, cake, candy etc. all the time. This is a very interesting feeling as I craved these carb and sugar foods so much if there was candy in the house I couldn't stop thinking about it. Now that I'm not eating it and have been off of it for awhile it is no longer hard to say no.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Off Meds over 1 Month and Insulite day 7
After being off the medication Yasmin and Metformin for 1 month and 2 weeks I experienced my first period. It was a little worse than the ones I had on the medication but I can live with cramps. Since going off the medication I have gained a little weight back, not much, my naturopath says this is because when you get off of medications that suppress something your body overreacts for a short period of time but it is temporary. My skin is slowly getting even better and my head itches much less, it was once so bad I'd like to rip off my scalp.
Insulite day 7 I'm still having a little brain fog with it. So far no other issues with it.
Insulite day 7 I'm still having a little brain fog with it. So far no other issues with it.
Introduction
Hello blogosphere. I can't say I came to blogging because I love to write or journal. But in my journey back to health I have found good resources and clear information hard to find on the net. Soooo welcome to my blog about how I have recovered from migraines, excessive weight gain, generally feeling like crap and am currently working on dealing with my PCOS naturally.
A little information about me. Ten years ago I was very fit and trim and even going to a dietitian weekly to loose that last bit of body fat so my abs could look even better. I felt pretty good most days but had migraines sometimes, issues with menstruation and was often depressed with serious anxiety.
After a couple injuries I got a serious flu, which then turned into what doctors said was seasonal allergies. My migraines started getting worse and I often had brain fog, I called those my cobweb days. Suddenly even though my workouts were getting harder and longer and diet had gotten more strict I started gaining weight. First 10 pounds, then 20 and then I was suddenly 30 pounds over weight. That year it kept going until I was 50 pounds overweight.
Doctors had no answers that changed anything and neither did my dietitian. It seemed like everyone I saw thought I was binge eating in secret and trying to find a magic pill from the doctors to make the fat go away. If they really knew me they would know this wasn't the case.
After 2 years of worsening migraines, that were now almost daily and truly affecting my quality of life and ability to be independent, I was still gaining weight. I was over 100 pounds overweight and miserable.
For 10 years I went to doctor after doctor. I started researching each one carefully and also going to specialists. No one had any answers. Finally 4 years ago a break through, I was diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)
http://www.womenshealth.gov/faq/polycystic-ovary-syndrome.cfm
http://www.pcosupport.org/
http://www.soulcysters.com/
Even the PCOS doctors pushed drugs like birth control on me, treated my symptoms separately and kept telling me the weight would be very hard to loose. Under their care it certainly was. No matter how well I ate or worked out I lost no weight and I still felt awful and was in pain daily. Life was hard and the medication really didn't change anything except to regulate my periods. With those functioning my ovarian cysts started looking better with every ultrasound.
Finally after turning 30 I started to feel hopeless. I felt I would be sick, miserable and terribly overweight for the rest of my life. I cried as I watched the life I thought I would live disappear.
I began to feverishly research. I had been researching all along but this time I was on a real mission. I came upon the glycemic load diet. I had nothing to loose so I tried it, no cheating. Suddenly I started loosing weight and feeling a little better. Why had the doctors prescribed diets that did not follow the glycemic load? Why had they pushed meds and even complex carbs like whole wheat bread rather than simply showing me the glycemic load? The glycemic load deals with people with insulin resistance. Almost every PCOS woman with weight gain can benefit from eating based on the glycemic load because most of these women, regardless of what their blood tests say, are insulin resistant. Blood tests for insulin resistance, and I had many, are often inacruate. Mine always said I did not have it, but I certainly did.
Here is a useful links about insulin resistance: http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/insulin-resistance.html
Here is some info about the glycemic load:
http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/glycemic-index.html
So after following the glycemic load diet I was still having migraines, acne and generally still felt bad, although I felt better than before. Loosing some weight was giving me hope. I had lost about 10 pounds at this point. One day I decided to make some glycemic load friendly bran muffins. After eating one I got a painful migraine, I hadn't had one that bad in months. A light buld turned on. I looked up wheat and migraines online. Finally I got my answer. I could be gluten intolerant or even a Celiac. I called my doctor and she told me to try to gluten free diet. I did and a month later no migraines, my thinking and head were clear and I was still loosing weight, except now I also felt wonderful. I wish I had taken the blood tests but the treatment for gluten intolernace or celiac is the same, no wheat. Turns out it is genetic and my mother, aunt and cousin have also benefited from a gluten free diet.
Some info about gluten:
http://www.healthnowmedical.com/info/gluten.html
http://www.foodintol.com/celiac.asp
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=63412
http://www.celiac.com/
After going gluten free all kinds of information opened up. I began taking supplements from Puritan Pride, a reputable supplement company, to help replace nutrients that had been lost due to the gluten intolerance andor Celiac. My health improved even more and my hair and skin started looking great. My hair stopped thinning and my acne was improving.
After 8 months of being gluten free and researching night and day I decided to try life without Yasmin birth control and Metformin. This lead me to the Insulite system http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/
This blog will be a journal of treating my PCOS naturally and living a gluten free life. It will also serve as a journal about my success or failure using Insulite.
A little information about me. Ten years ago I was very fit and trim and even going to a dietitian weekly to loose that last bit of body fat so my abs could look even better. I felt pretty good most days but had migraines sometimes, issues with menstruation and was often depressed with serious anxiety.
After a couple injuries I got a serious flu, which then turned into what doctors said was seasonal allergies. My migraines started getting worse and I often had brain fog, I called those my cobweb days. Suddenly even though my workouts were getting harder and longer and diet had gotten more strict I started gaining weight. First 10 pounds, then 20 and then I was suddenly 30 pounds over weight. That year it kept going until I was 50 pounds overweight.
Doctors had no answers that changed anything and neither did my dietitian. It seemed like everyone I saw thought I was binge eating in secret and trying to find a magic pill from the doctors to make the fat go away. If they really knew me they would know this wasn't the case.
After 2 years of worsening migraines, that were now almost daily and truly affecting my quality of life and ability to be independent, I was still gaining weight. I was over 100 pounds overweight and miserable.
For 10 years I went to doctor after doctor. I started researching each one carefully and also going to specialists. No one had any answers. Finally 4 years ago a break through, I was diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)
http://www.womenshealth.gov/faq/polycystic-ovary-syndrome.cfm
http://www.pcosupport.org/
http://www.soulcysters.com/
Even the PCOS doctors pushed drugs like birth control on me, treated my symptoms separately and kept telling me the weight would be very hard to loose. Under their care it certainly was. No matter how well I ate or worked out I lost no weight and I still felt awful and was in pain daily. Life was hard and the medication really didn't change anything except to regulate my periods. With those functioning my ovarian cysts started looking better with every ultrasound.
Finally after turning 30 I started to feel hopeless. I felt I would be sick, miserable and terribly overweight for the rest of my life. I cried as I watched the life I thought I would live disappear.
I began to feverishly research. I had been researching all along but this time I was on a real mission. I came upon the glycemic load diet. I had nothing to loose so I tried it, no cheating. Suddenly I started loosing weight and feeling a little better. Why had the doctors prescribed diets that did not follow the glycemic load? Why had they pushed meds and even complex carbs like whole wheat bread rather than simply showing me the glycemic load? The glycemic load deals with people with insulin resistance. Almost every PCOS woman with weight gain can benefit from eating based on the glycemic load because most of these women, regardless of what their blood tests say, are insulin resistant. Blood tests for insulin resistance, and I had many, are often inacruate. Mine always said I did not have it, but I certainly did.
Here is a useful links about insulin resistance: http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/insulin-resistance.html
Here is some info about the glycemic load:
http://www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/glycemic-index.html
So after following the glycemic load diet I was still having migraines, acne and generally still felt bad, although I felt better than before. Loosing some weight was giving me hope. I had lost about 10 pounds at this point. One day I decided to make some glycemic load friendly bran muffins. After eating one I got a painful migraine, I hadn't had one that bad in months. A light buld turned on. I looked up wheat and migraines online. Finally I got my answer. I could be gluten intolerant or even a Celiac. I called my doctor and she told me to try to gluten free diet. I did and a month later no migraines, my thinking and head were clear and I was still loosing weight, except now I also felt wonderful. I wish I had taken the blood tests but the treatment for gluten intolernace or celiac is the same, no wheat. Turns out it is genetic and my mother, aunt and cousin have also benefited from a gluten free diet.
Some info about gluten:
http://www.healthnowmedical.com/info/gluten.html
http://www.foodintol.com/celiac.asp
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=63412
http://www.celiac.com/
After going gluten free all kinds of information opened up. I began taking supplements from Puritan Pride, a reputable supplement company, to help replace nutrients that had been lost due to the gluten intolerance andor Celiac. My health improved even more and my hair and skin started looking great. My hair stopped thinning and my acne was improving.
After 8 months of being gluten free and researching night and day I decided to try life without Yasmin birth control and Metformin. This lead me to the Insulite system http://pcos.insulitelabs.com/
This blog will be a journal of treating my PCOS naturally and living a gluten free life. It will also serve as a journal about my success or failure using Insulite.