Musings and Lessons Learned

Well, well! It has been a while. I needed time away from social media and only inching back towards the more sensible ones now. I hope you are all well and keeping sane in these very ... unique times. 

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I decided to try the carnivore diet. I had been listening to Drs Ted Naiman and Paul Saladino, and began looking at what the Armstrong Sisters were up to. This led me to the Paleomedicina group and their seeming successes with a PKD lifestyle (paleolithic ketogentic diet). Given how things are with my body, I thought it worth a try. 

The first week was eerie. Eating organ meat and cuts of meat alien to me was akin to psycho terror. I got through that period intact and l, strangely, craving certain meat items. I look forward to my daily bullet of liver and the wonderfully fatty bacon I may have a breakfast.

I was vegetarian/vegan for 25 years, which may have contributed to some of my current health issues. Not a lot was known about being vegetarian in 1984 when I decided it was the only logical way to exist! So, my mum served me just vegetables, gave me powdered skim milk (?!) that I never drank, and my protein came by way if tofu and tempeh whilst living in Indonesia in my late 20s and early 30s. 

I have now passed my 6 mth anniversary since diagnosis (Sept 19) and I am keen to see how this last two months has affected my vit-min deficiencies. I take Vit D3 (9000IU) in liquid form, was taking Vit C and continue to have Vit K3 in capsule form. I no longer take an iron capsule and I load up on organic butter, lots of bone broth, munch on 24hr cooked chicken bones and ensure a wide rotation of different meats. Organic 95% of the time. Fish is a little difficult to source organically. 

So, I do not have intestinal bloating. At all. I do eat smaller meals as it helps me stay awake, alert and eases up on my intestines. Constipation is less severe too. Getting rid of all vegetables has been a small blessing. The bloat was horrible indeed. Plus the gas, plus the vomiting from oxalate foods. 

I cannot say I have gained weight, nor lost it. I am not able to lift weights like I used to because the gym has been closed down. 

Sigh. Big, big sigh. 

My skin is clear; no blemishes, and my skin tone is much clearer and uniform. My hair is falling out, but it is that season where I normally shed the finer summer thin hairs anyway. I shall keep an eye on this and monitor any further loss. 

My brain is working more efficiently, but if I happen to drop my fat intake or lower my calories - BOOM! My anxiety thumps back quickly. I suspect my years of low fat eating, and avoiding any and all saturated and animal fats did me untold damage to my brain. I am not feeling confident of ever returning to that razor sharp mind, but if I can keep my anxiety at bay and carry on as I am, I'll eke out an okay existence. 

In all, I cannot suggest carnivore as the be all of healthy eating. I think one has to really enjoy the meats, the fats and the lack of vegetables and carbs. I get no cravings for 'regular' foods at all, so as long as I am feeling no detrimental effects and I enjoy eating as I am, I shall keep on with it. At least until I can get a comprehensive blood test done post-COVID 19. Carnivore isn't a panacea, or silver bullet. It is one of many options to try in order to heal the villi. Whether it works or not is up to time and my body. 

I expect my triglyerides to be lowered, my LDL and HDL to be opposite of where doctors want them. That certainly does not scare me. I have researched this diet to the point of feeling very confident that the risks are outweighed by the personal benefits. That is my choice and not one I recommend be undertaken without your own research. 

In the meantime, I am trying to enjoy the rest from years of exercise. I am cooking, making my own kefir, learning about my local farmers and food suppliers, buying sustainable and ethically produced foods and products, and learning how to be me again. 

I am a little excited by where I might head. I never dreamed I'd be looking forward to ox tails slow cooked, or that juicy cap of fat on a roast lamb. But here I am!

I can eat without fear of gluten, reaction to oxalates or worrying if my food is going to cause me to take time off work. I do not think twice about cutting off butter to munch on, putting some heavy cream in my one daily decaf, or downing one kg of chicken wings I prepared. I feel liberated, if not one hundred percent in full health. It is my battle and my plan is to heal whilst enjoying the foods I can digest. 

May you be kept in fine spirits, find YOUR own way and come into the future a wiser, healthier you. X