Monday, February 25, 2013

Adapting

Phase Three of diagnosing what has been ailing me is complete.

Phase One was treating the immediate symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue with an Acetylcholine-boosting protocol of vitamins and minerals along with a careful diet of foods that would help regulate blood sugar levels. And rest. Lots of rest.

Phase Two was testing my reproductive hormone levels. The results being that my Progesterone is (and probably has been for several years) extremely low. This is a rather easy thing to fix with application of cream. And, most exciting of all, may be the root cause of the insomnia I've battled since my Firstborn entered the world. I'm hoping to experience the restoration of normal sleep in the near future.

Phase Three I entered with skepticism, because I didn't feel that it applied to my situation. But I followed my Naturopath's advice and had a full food allergy/sensitivity panel done. Now this panel, when done by a traditional Allergist, would only test for foods that caused an anaphylactic response. When done by a doctor who wants to find root causes for symptoms, it will also include testing for additional antibodies which may indicate food sensitivities.

Results? Across the board, nothing very obvious or life-altering in my case, except eggs. EGGS? But I love eggs! I have my very own herd of chickens that provide delicious good-for-me proteins and amino acids! Well, I guess not good for ME.

Since I was having this test done, I also made an appointment for the First Grader, who has had lifelong tendencies toward allergic symptoms, and who I have long suspected to be somewhat intolerant of dairy products.

Now this is where the ADAPTING from the title of this post comes in. My Firstborn, Son of my Heart, Delight of my Days, is indeed sensitive to Dairy. But also highly sensitive to Gluten and Eggs.

Breathe a big sigh with me, my friends.

Alone, or even together, Gluten and Dairy allergies can be rather easily overcome in this day and age, because of the vast amount of replacement products available in the supermarket. But add eggs to the mix, and it grows infinitely more challenging. Eggs are in everything!

I have already done a lot of research on eating Primal (Paleo), and think that my family will adapt to this way of eating rather easily, even with the exclusion of eggs.

What has me completely stumped, and put my brain into a vortex of calculations that has even kept me away from this blog for a week, is how to feed a First Grader who doesn't like nuts a hearty breakfast to hold him over to lunch while he's at school, and then there's that lunch... They don't allow much time for eating in the public school system, so snacks mid-morning are nearly impossible to provide, and the lunches have to be quick and easy to eat. Most Gluten free breads on the market are either as dry as a piece of toast or have eggs as an ingredient. So sandwiches aren't totally out of the question, but who wants to scarf down dry bread while the lunchroom monitors are hurrying you out the door? I'm not crazy about the idea of just putting a pile of lunchmeat (even the "good" kinds put out by Applegate) into his lunchbox because to me that equals nasty greasy fingers, and way too much processed meat for my preference.

So for now, I'm going to experiment with a couple of bread recipes that I found on Pinterest, and hope to tap into the resource of a few friends that have already started down the same road. And I will try to stay focused on the reason I'm following through... I want my Boy to be healthy. I want the best for him, and if that means extra work on my part, well, that's just me doing my Mama-job.

Feel free to chime in with any suggested resources you may know of from your own personal experience.

12 comments:

Osa said...

We do a lot of rice and beans (Gallo Pinto) at breakfast, with a sausage patti and glass of juice or smoothie it's a great breakfast.
I'll have to think on the lunch one though, that's always been a tough one for us too. Have you tried any of the GF tortillas?

Pam in IL said...

Glad to hear that you are adapting and I'm sure you'll be able to find helpful info and recipes. Hope the cream will bring those hormonal things back in line and that you do finally get rid of that insomnia.

MJ Hunt said...

Here is a link to a business here in town. Cheryl is the first person I had ever heard of years ago who needed a gluten free diet. She has spent many years studying and doing research. Not sure if this site could be of any help but thought I'd send it along. I know she would be a help in perhaps finding other helpful sites and probably be glad to talk to you. MJ
http://clstudio.net/nutrition/

teri said...

You need to make it clear to the school that your son has a medical condition. If he needs a morning/afternoon snack it needs to be allowed. Will your insurance allow a trip to a nutritionist? Great place to start. A friend of mine is dealing with her husband having diet restrictions and I am reasonably sure your son is going to feel so good that he will jump at the chance to eat what is good for him. Unlike her husband. Hum.....

Anonymous said...

Mennonite Girls Can Cook has some gluten-free recipes. Does anyone make pasta that is gluten- and egg-free? Would your son eat a cold pasta salad with meat and veg in it? Best of luck!

Anonymous said...

Also, I think I've heard of a vegan egg "replacer" that people use for baking. Maybe you can come up with a recipe for bread or rolls that isn't too dry.

valerie said...

Good luck with the diet options. It's so hard to find things to eat that eliminate dairy and eggs. I would love to do a food sensitivity panel. I think dairy and wheat may be triggers for me but I'm not entirely sure. I'll have to ask my allergy department if they'll do such a thing.

Jessica said...

About a week ago I read this recipe but since I have no food allergies I opted out of this one due to all the different ingredients that I don't have! But I did remember it looking good. You could easily adapt this recipe into more of a sandwich loaf by maybe baking at 450 for 15 minutes and then 350 for 30ish? I just adapted a sourdough recipe into sandwich bread but it has about a pound of butter rubbed on the crust so probably not one for you :/

http://gingerlemongirl.blogspot.com/2010/09/gluten-free-vegan-crusty-bread-recipe.html

Lisa said...

Good luck with allergy adaptations. I had my son on Gluten free foods for about a year when he was small as he has Autism, it worked for a short while but was not the overall solution in his case.

♥ Sari ♥ said...

Good luck with all the diets!

Try contacting your local/national Coeliac Disease Society for gluten free recipes.

Sari from Finland

Mindi said...

I know its not much help for the lunch problem or baking bread, but I've done some experimenting with using ground flax as a replacement for eggs in baking. One tablespoon ground flax + 2 tablespoons warm water, mix and let sit a few minutes and it will thicken up. Just use in place of an egg, with the added benefit of fiber and Omega-3.

erisraven said...

Warm Oatmeal, with some ground flax, some raisins in it, it works for me. Add some protein powder to up the protein in the mix, it holds me fine until lunch.