Last year, as I was searching for what was making me feel....well really bad all the time, I finally found a doctor who would listen to me. The result was that I had Epstein Barr and a high probability of Lupus. I moved before the last test could be finalized. I've never allowed my self to do 'nothing', but most of my life, I've known there were things that had to be done, and I've just done them...one foot in front of the other, until they were done, totally exhausted all the time. I've also dealt with chronic depression for years. Therefore, the news that, in fact, I didn't have vitamin D deficiency, or something else that was treatable, didn't help the depression at all! In fact medically, there is nothing you can do for Epstein Barr and Lupus! Devastated doesn't even begin to explain how I felt at that point!
Before the diagnosis, I had been to my dad's in New Mexico and had asked him to give me a blessing. In the blessing, I was told that I would know what was wrong with me and know what to do to make myself better. When the diagnosis came, I thought, right, how am I going to make myself feel better?
In July I had an epiphany! Now I have to tell you, it was not the epiphany I wanted to have, at all. I felt that I would feel better if I started eating sprouts and drinking some wheat grass juice.
I will inject here that I was raised by a health fanatic! I think many times it was more of a question of "How can I make my children more miserable?" Growing up on raw potatoes and lettuce and cabbage, wheat sprouts for breakfast, an apple (many times with rotten spots cut out) with a handful of nuts and raisins for lunch, the wheat grass juice that would sometimes be thrown up shortly thereafter, etc., thinking about going to a diet full of sprouts and wheat grass juice brought back some pretty bad memories!
I have tried to have a good diet throughout my life, but have not taken anything to extreme. However, sprouts, and especially wheat grass juice, please, just hand me a twinkie!
I had to get my head, and heart, around it. Since I was given a blessing that told me I would know what to do, I figured that I needed to be obedient to the answer I was given....and it works!!!!! I have a pretty balanced diet, but am adding a lot more really fresh things! The only thing I still have a hard time with is the wheat grass juice! But, we bought some really nice sprouters and I need to get going on it. Instead of lettuce, which has almost no nutritional value, on my sandwich, I have sprouts, which is really good! They also make a regular salad better. I sprout a mix of alfalfa, broccoli, and a few other seeds.
I've heard a lot about green drinks, but they have just sounded nasty to me, I'm sure a product of my youth. I was watching Dr. Oz and one of his segments was on green drinks. I decided I needed to try it. Since both Stan and I are unemployed right now, I needed it to be as inexpensive as possible. Sam's Club has 3 lb. tubs of baby spinach for $4, 5 lb. bags of carrots $3, and 3 celery hearts for $2.50, gala apples 5 lbs. for $5.50. So, that became my green drink! And it wasn't bad! Within a few days, I even liked it, wonder of wonders! After a week of drinking it for breakfast, I decided Stan needed a more healthy diet and told him it wouldn't kill him to drink it. He asked if I would change out the cup of water I used for juice. I had just found some grape juice for $2.50 for 64 oz., which is a really good price. So, I put a cup of that in along with the ice cubes. That made it taste really good! I've been on the drink for breakfast for 3 weeks, Stan for two, and we are really feeling a lot better. There is a lot of truth to the value of live foods!
I actually wake up feeling refreshed, like I really did get some rest!! Stan is sleeping a lot better at night. I can get so much more accomplished when I actually feel better. I've always gotten a lot done, but now it isn't taking everything I have to do it.
One interesting thing happened to me two weeks in. It didn't matter what I ate, I still had a little bit of an upset stomach after I ate. One day, I really, really craved a steak. We have a little in our freezer, so I took it out, thawed it, marinated it (I make a mean marinade), lit the charcoal, and had a wonderful medium rare steak for lunch! I have not had a stomach ache since!
The Word of Wisdom in the Doctrine and Covenants is an amazing source for nutrition! Who would have thought Heavenly Father could know that much? Really, why don't we just listen? I've never been a big meat eater, but there is definitely a place for meat in our diets. Rachel sent me a link for a book I want to buy. It's called W. O. W. It's a diet book written by an LDS lady who never felt good, really studied the Word of Wisdom and the health codes of other major religions, and made a diet book about the research. She has never felt better. With the inspiration I received in July, I am feeling better than I can remember ever feeling! I know this will continue as I continue.
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