World IBD Awareness Day

Evidently today is World Inflammatory Bowel Disease Awareness Day.

Since being diagnosed (not even a month ago) with Ulcerative Colitis, I have reduced my symptoms by at least 60% with supplements, and diet & lifestyle interventions.

I'm only one person, obviously. But the people that I've been meeting who have had multiple surgeries & have not ever experienced remission have taken or are taking thousands of dollars worth of prescription drugs every month, and seem to be uneducated about how our food & lifestyle actually impacts our gut health.

It doesn't seem to be a very hard trade off to be on a special diet in order to not be RUNNING to the bathroom 20 times a day, constantly exhausted, malnourished, anemic and dependent on caffeine which makes my symptoms worse.  I’m sure I will learn more factors about what causes flare-ups, but in the meantime what I’m doing is working. Maybe I’m completely naïve but I’ll cross that bridge if I come to it.

I know everyone probably thinks it's really easy for me to eat healthy, or that I have some inherent discipline that others don't. It's not any easier for me than it is for anyone else, I promise. I literally cried the other day because I wanted a latte.

I'm planning a "cheat" with dark chocolate on my birthday and literally have to plan it out to make sure I'll be near a bathroom for the following hours. I may decide it's not worth it.  I have developed strategies for making sure I feel full enough that I’m not craving food that will hurt me. I am also really clear which foods cause addictive tendencies, for me, and life is much easier when I don’t eat those foods.

I've also learned that ALL Autoimmune Disease starts with increased intestinal permeability, which can manifest as dozens of other symptoms besides digestive distress.

I'm so grateful for my education, for the resources available now vs when I first started studying nutrition, for my relentless insistence on questioning EVERYTHING, and my relationship with my body that has allowed me to heal as much as I have. 

I also have to thank my amazing partner for endless trips to the store, cooking for me when I was too exhausted to get up off the couch and for his maturity & support in dealing with my shame and guilt and general freaked-out-ness.

The more I learn the more I can't wait to feel better & start helping others to optimize their digestion. It really is true "you are what you absorb".