Last week I saw a huge improvement during what I deem my hard weeks. I did have to take Zofran everyday for the nausea but Acid only a day or two which is amazing this time of month. We will see how I fare this next week which is usually the hardest week of the month. I guess the estrogen goes down and so does my body.
I have no meal plan yet and I’m supposed to start my probiotics this week but it’s a harder week already and the week before Christmas and I just can’t do it to myself.
So with that I begin the last five days of my experiment.
Day 26
It’s the final day of our Christmas festivities and our official Christmas party/gift exchange. I started my day super early and went all day. Some nausea this morning but Zofran and it cleared up. I think partially I needed to eat but I was so sick I couldn’t. The heartburn under control and it was a stressful day. My department is pretty well known for our Christmas party and every member of executive management showed up. Including the president. Did I mention we are in a separate building so they had to drive over.
It was a fun day and minus the morning nausea I was a rockstar. One thing I will tell you is since I started the zinc Carnosine I have seen a huge difference.
I’m grateful tomorrow is Saturday because even though I have a lot to do, I can still rest.
Day 27
For some reason I suffered so much today with Acid. I managed it but everything set it off. Still I’m in the super bad week and it’s manageable. So points. I may have to accept that during the bad weeks it just won’t go away but the fact that I’m able to function is honestly enough for me.
Christmas shopping today and the crowds were insane. I Thought I was done, but four more people are coming to my party and I had no gifts. But all kids, adults and pets have been bought for, thank goodness.
I hardly had any protein today and I feel it. I’m lethargic which is not like me anymore. We were just out and about and because I’m still doing AIP I wasn’t able the eat much. If you do AIP you know fast food is not happening.
Day 28
Oh I’ve spent so much money this weekend. A Costco trip today for meat. We eat a lot of meat now. What a dramatic change in my groceries. Before it was Diet Coke, potatoes and chicken. Now it’s red and white meat, water, root vegetables. We’ve stopped eating as much fruit with the exception of bananas. It was a crutch initially to replace the sugar. The simple truth is we just don’t crave it anymore we didn’t stop for any other reason. We still have bananas for breakfast and the occasional apple.The Acid is still pretty strong today which is bumming me out. Hopefully it will pass soon but I may just have to suck it up until my period starts.
I was starving this morning again and I’ve been hitting the protein hard. That’s all my body wants now. It seems to help with the nausea and the GERD. However, now I am more positive then ever that I have low acid because The food seems to sit in my stomach forever. I was so heavy today I felt miserable. Two days of heavy protein and I felt like my stomach was going to explode. It’s a shame because it improves everything else.I fell asleep before I took my melatonin, mastic gum, and my zinc l-Carnosine which you know makes a huge difference in my next day. I was not happy with myself. I slept 3.5 hours and I really felt it. Lethargic and sleepy and not as ready to face what challenges that came my way. I’m very close to starting my period too which exasperates my symptoms on every level.
Day 30
Today is the last day of my experiment and I have learned so much about what helps and what doesn’t, the list is long but I’ll try to give a brief recap of what helped the most. In order of most helpful.
- Zinc L-Carnosine – I noticed a huge improvement when I started taking these after only a week.
- AIP Diet – My body likes me so much more since I started this diet. The first few weeks were tough but I feel so much healthier. My autoimmune symptoms have calmed.
- Licorice Root – I have been taking this for years but I stand behind the calming effect it has had on my stomach.
- Slippery Elm – ironically I have been taking this forever too, but I increased my dosage to two capsules and what a huge difference, also so important take these with a warm drink.
- Mastic Gum – This did help, not as significantly as the zinc but I noticed after a few days there was slight improvement.
- Digestive Enzymes- When I take these it makes such a huge difference in how I feel after meals.
- Collagen – The soothing effect on my Gut each morning made this almost a treat.
- Melatonin- Did this help with GERD, I didn’t notice but it did help with sleep and that kept my anxiety down throughout the day. Getting a decent nights sleep makes a huge difference.
- Magnesium- Again it kept me calmer throughout the day.
- B12 – I don’t know that this helped with GERD but it helped make me feel better in General.
- Vitamin D – I have such a huge deficiency in this I just feel miserable if I don’t take it.
Supplements That Didn’t seem to make an Impact
- HCL, it wasn’t bad but I didn’t notice a huge difference
- ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar) – again nothing bad but the taste. Just no huge impact.
- Probiotics – To be honest I never took these, my previous bad experience scared me off. I think these will have to be their own individual experiment.
Some takeaways.
Protein is a huge help, I tried to get at least 60 grams of protein a day at the end and when I started this it helped with my energy and state of mind tremendously.
A good nights sleep nothing can replace it. Anxiety is definitely linked to poor sleep. For me anxiety can trigger GERD almost worse than some foods.
Exercising although it’s sometimes hard for me to fit in, on the days I did it, I felt better overall.
Well guys, that wraps it up. I hope this helped. Please note I am not a doctor nor do I pretend to be. Please consult your doctor before trying any new supplements because all of our bodies are different and what one person can handle another person can’t. I am a walking testimony to that.
