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Forgetting Crohn’s (almost…)

Some days, I almost forget that I have Crohn’s Disease. Honestly, I don’t think there’s been a single day since my diagnosis 13 years ago–or even since my first symptoms 17 years ago–that I haven’t thought about Crohn’s or digestive issues. But for the most part, my day-to-day life with Crohn’s is well managed…and although I do think about Crohn’s on a daily basis, there are moments during the day when I really do forget that I am battling a chronic illness, and always will be. Which is why this most recent appointment with my gastroenterologist was a bit of a shock back into reality for me. 

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Part 2: Fasting and diet, my one-two punch out of my most recent Crohn’s flare up

cover image for blog article titled Fasting and Diet, my one-two punch out of a Crohn's flare

Part 2 is here! Well, technically, it’s parts 3, 4, and 5 of what I did to help pull me out of my latest Crohn’s Disease mini flare up. If you didn’t read last week’s post, I encourage you to go back and read it, as it paints the picture for what got me into this flare and the key changes I made in my diet to pull me out of it. So, without further delay, let’s pick up where we left off! Continue reading “Part 2: Fasting and diet, my one-two punch out of my most recent Crohn’s flare up”

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Fasting and diet, my one-two punch out of my most recent Crohn’s flare up

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How I used fasting and diet to pull out of a mini Crohn’s flare up and yes, vegetables really do hate me…

 

Things started going downhill two months ago in July. Over the summer, I started playing around with adding different vegetables into my keto-carnivore diet. One by one–and spread out over the course of a few weeks–I tried an asparagus spear, butter lettuce, white rice, sweet potatoes, and even dark chocolate. Then in mid-July, it was time for my 7th colonoscopy (I think, I lost count), followed up by an MRI two weeks later, to see how my Crohn’s Disease was doing. Continue reading “Fasting and diet, my one-two punch out of my most recent Crohn’s flare up”

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Dogmatic Diets…When to Break the Rules

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No matter what way of eating you follow, chances are there will be a few rules you must abide by. Avoid dairy; no processed foods, refined oils, or gluten; refrain from drinking alcohol; use this sweetener but not that one; and the list goes on…

Reflecting back on my own journey, and thinking about all the different diets I’ve tried–whether they were for bodybuilding or Crohn’s management–I think I can say without a doubt, that I fall into the category of “chronic dieter.” Over the past 20 years, I’ve read and followed so many diet books, programs, and articles, that I lost count a long time ago. From the Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution to The Maker’s Diet, I’ve tested the dieting spectrum from plant-centered to all meat (although, I’ve never gone vegetarian…if you can’t tell by now, I love steak too much to do that). But, no matter how different all these diets might appear to be, when you break them down, they all really center around the same basic principles of eating real, unprocessed food and cutting out both sugar and highly refined seed/vegetable oils. And (in my humble opinion) it really doesn’t have to be more complicated than that.

But, there are two things that I really don’t quite understand about dieting:

  1. Why people become so dogmatic about the way they are eating, and
  2. the amount of hate that people will shout from behind a computer screen to others who don’t eat what they do.

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Derailed by a cavity and back to carnivore, again

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Every time I sit down to write about Crohn’s Disease, I always find myself having an internal debate about how much to share. On the one hand, there’s a lot to be gained from hearing other people’s experiences and I deeply appreciate those who have shared their stories that I’ve stumbled upon throughout my journey. But, on the other hand, the issues that come with Crohn’s are what most people would consider embarrassing, incredibly personal, and not suitable for discussing at the dinner table. That being said, the last few months have been full of ups and downs with regard to my intestinal health. I found myself falling out of ketosis, which brought on mood swings and mild depression; testing the waters with some of my old fermented foods (which were literally old); and circling back to some supplements I had gotten away from. So, to heck with the polite dinner conversation, this is my story and it is what it is…

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The ribeye chronicles, chapter 1 (two weeks on zero carb)

The past two weeks have flown by and I figure I’m overdue for an update on my new zero-carb lifestyle…or as I like to call it, my ribeye diet. Jeff raises an eyebrow at me when I say that, but hey, it is what it is, and so far it’s been ribeye (at least one a day), bacon, eggs, ground beef, butter, ghee, coffee, and an occasional glass of red wine. To sum it up…delicious.

Ribeye steak and bacon - zero carb
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Not ready for all meat? Add these healing foods instead.

For those who have been following my blogging journey or just watching me over the last few years, you know my diet has progressively evolved and is, what some would call, quite radical now (although extremely delicious and satisfying…you should hear the whimpering of my dogs every night as I fry up bacon and sear my daily ribeye…). What can I say though, I do rather enjoy experimenting and researching food and fitness. That said, as you may remember, one of my earlier posts to this blog outlined what I called “My Crohn’s 1.0” diet, it was what I started eating immediately after I made the decision to stop taking my immunosuppressant and immune-modulating drugs.


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A ribeye a day to make the Crohn’s go away… (My Crohn’s 2.0 diet)

No more messing around, I’m pulling out all the stops and embarking on a short, experimental detour in my Crohn’s journey. Pour yourself a drink, sit back, and keep reading if you’d like to come with me…I’m going on a zero-carb, plant-free, all-animal diet.

I know some of you who know me well may be confused right now, because you’re already under the impression that all I currently eat is meat. Contrary to popular belief, I have tried to incorporate lots of vegetables, nuts, and fruits into my diet over the years, only to regret the decision 99.8% of the time.


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My Crohn’s Diet 1.0

After starting this blog last week and quickly realizing how many Crohn’s sufferers are in my immediate network, I wanted to cut to the chase and jump right into my diet. It is currently working for me and helping me to feel better than I have in a long time, so I want to share it in case someone else may find hope, inspiration, or benefit from some of the things that are working for me.

As I’ve said before, I’ve tried a number of different diets and lifestyle tricks in trying to control my Crohn’s naturally over the last 10 years. Early on, I tried to follow recommendations to eat low fiber, easy-to-digest foods like white rice, white bread, pasta, and bananas that are commonly recommended to those with IBD…but that actually made things worse. After trying to eat “easy-to-digest” foods, I then tried to follow a FODMAP diet at the suggestion of my doctor. But it was difficult to stay on the protocol that required I cut everything out and reintroduce every food, one by one, back into my diet in an attempt to try and figure out what foods I could handle and what I couldn’t (I didn’t have the patience for that at the time).

At one point I even stumbled across Jini Patel Thompson’s Listen to Your Gut e-book and tried to create my own elemental diet shakes, but I craved real food and the shakes tasted awful. At one point I even attempted intermittent fasting because of all the amazing health benefits associated with it, but I don’t like to go without food and only made it a day. (Interestingly enough, however, I now follow the Bulletproof Intermittent Fasting regimen, which I will write about in another post.)
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