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Friday, April 20, 2012

And thus, my journey begins...

I've been struggling with my health for quite a while now, but especially in the last year. I found an awesome naturopath in my area and she ended up recommending that I get tested for food allergies and intolerances. I did the allergy test and everything came back negative (I used to be allergic to peanuts and now I'm not anymore!) so she decided to test my intolerances as well.

She had already suspected gluten so I had been off of that for two weeks already when the test came back. I wasn't feeling any better so I knew there had to be something else. It turns out that I have a 6/6 intolerance to eggs (both the white and the yolk, as well as duck eggs) a 4/6 intolerance to wheat gluten, wheat, spelt, and rye, and a 4/6 intolerance to cane sugar. Cray-zay.

I was beyond thrilled at first because I finally know what is probably making me sick!! I have muscle aches, joint pain, constant headaches, horrid stomach aches, depression, anemia, and a really low energy reserve. And now I've found out that I can start feeling my age again?? AWESOME. This high lasted a little while until I realized how drastically my lifestyle would have to change. It's a good trade off, honestly, and I'm really not complaining...but it was still a shock.

I let myself be upset for a little while and then I kicked my butt into gear and decided to do something about it. If you know me at all, you know how much I love to bake...and not having cane sugar, gluten, or eggs at my disposal makes things a bit more difficult. Not impossible...but difficult. And more expensive...but more healthy. I know all of the plusses of eating healthier and all of the substitutions I can find, but it STILL SUCKS, okay?? I had just perfected my chocolate chip cookie, guys. For reals. So basically, yes I was upset.

This isn't tragic by any means, but it's still a little depressing to walk through the supermarket and know I can't eat 75% of what's there. And apples and almond butter are great snacks, but not when you want a delicious, sugary brownie or a creamy hard-boiled egg.

Plus, I'm a frugal person. Knowing that I might have to spend 3X the amount on special flours than I was previously spending did not make me a happy camper. But, knowing my nature, I'll find frugal ways of baking once I get into my groove.

I know I'll have moments of ups and downs, but I'm doing alright now. Yesterday I made my own allergen free chocolate chips and today I made an allergen free chocolate protein bar.

YES. I can do this!



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