More good reasons to go wheat-free
// Filed in: Lyme Disease Diet|Chronic Lyme Disease
More good reasons to go wheat-free
Not only our physical health, but our mental health originates in our guts. People dealing with chronic Lyme disease symptoms have good reason to guard both of these states. I’ve been exploring why it’s so important to eat a healthy diet, and that means paying as much attention to what we don’t eat as to what we do. I’ve flirted with a gluten-free diet for months now, but something tells me that it’s time to give it up for good. At least for a month, and see how it goes from there. Want to plunge in and go gluten free for a month with me? Read on and think it over.
First of all, have you ever have a ‘gut feeling’ about something? Most people have. In fact we rely on those feelings to inform us in crucial ways. Our guts can warn us to get out of harm’s way, keep us from getting involved with business deals of a questionable nature, and alert us when a distant loved one needs our help.
When I ignore those feelings, I always wind up thinking I “should have listened to my gut.” You too?
Lately, my gut has been saying to cut out wheat. I’ve cut back on it, but haven’t ever gone without it for long. So I’m going to start tomorrow, as I’ve already blown it this morning with lox and bagels. I feel bloated. This is a disappointment, because I’ve been telling myself that I love lox on an everything bagel with vegan cream cheese, red onion, tomato and capers. However, this morning’s breakfast is still sitting in my gut, calling attention to the fact that it just isn’t getting digested right.
What can we expect to happen when we cut out wheat and gluten from our daily diet? Well, for one thing I expect my mood to lift. It’s fall, and I am in the school business. Every fall I get excited about new schedules, new people, new notebooks, you name it. I love school. But with the newness comes anxiety. And with the anxiety comes a sort of spirit-clenching mental habit of worry. Did this get done? Did that get done? You know what I’m talking about. Some things are under our control, some aren’t. So anxiety is usually generated out of what I cannot control. This stuff makes me moody. So perhaps a gluten-free diet will help me accept the things (and people) that I cannot change.
Another change I can expect from eating no wheat is a loss of puffiness. I have to say, that is something to look forward to. Chronic Lyme symptoms have kept me aware of the importance of taking anti-inflammatory supplements, such as liquid cod liver oil, and turmeric capsules. But still I often feel a little puffy around the waist and in my arms and face. Exercise helps, but the puffiness returns when I eat bread.
The biggest benefit that I can expect is an improvement in my mental clarity. Now that’s really exciting, considering that I deal with college students. When it comes to the information age, you can never quite keep up with the generation below you! They’re intensely savvy with computers and everything that I need to be. So, maybe I’ll be better equipped to keep up. I’m definitely looking forward to that.
If this works as well as I think it may, I might just go another month. Anybody game to try it with me?
Not only our physical health, but our mental health originates in our guts. People dealing with chronic Lyme disease symptoms have good reason to guard both of these states. I’ve been exploring why it’s so important to eat a healthy diet, and that means paying as much attention to what we don’t eat as to what we do. I’ve flirted with a gluten-free diet for months now, but something tells me that it’s time to give it up for good. At least for a month, and see how it goes from there. Want to plunge in and go gluten free for a month with me? Read on and think it over.
First of all, have you ever have a ‘gut feeling’ about something? Most people have. In fact we rely on those feelings to inform us in crucial ways. Our guts can warn us to get out of harm’s way, keep us from getting involved with business deals of a questionable nature, and alert us when a distant loved one needs our help.
When I ignore those feelings, I always wind up thinking I “should have listened to my gut.” You too?
Lately, my gut has been saying to cut out wheat. I’ve cut back on it, but haven’t ever gone without it for long. So I’m going to start tomorrow, as I’ve already blown it this morning with lox and bagels. I feel bloated. This is a disappointment, because I’ve been telling myself that I love lox on an everything bagel with vegan cream cheese, red onion, tomato and capers. However, this morning’s breakfast is still sitting in my gut, calling attention to the fact that it just isn’t getting digested right.
What can we expect to happen when we cut out wheat and gluten from our daily diet? Well, for one thing I expect my mood to lift. It’s fall, and I am in the school business. Every fall I get excited about new schedules, new people, new notebooks, you name it. I love school. But with the newness comes anxiety. And with the anxiety comes a sort of spirit-clenching mental habit of worry. Did this get done? Did that get done? You know what I’m talking about. Some things are under our control, some aren’t. So anxiety is usually generated out of what I cannot control. This stuff makes me moody. So perhaps a gluten-free diet will help me accept the things (and people) that I cannot change.
Another change I can expect from eating no wheat is a loss of puffiness. I have to say, that is something to look forward to. Chronic Lyme symptoms have kept me aware of the importance of taking anti-inflammatory supplements, such as liquid cod liver oil, and turmeric capsules. But still I often feel a little puffy around the waist and in my arms and face. Exercise helps, but the puffiness returns when I eat bread.
The biggest benefit that I can expect is an improvement in my mental clarity. Now that’s really exciting, considering that I deal with college students. When it comes to the information age, you can never quite keep up with the generation below you! They’re intensely savvy with computers and everything that I need to be. So, maybe I’ll be better equipped to keep up. I’m definitely looking forward to that.
If this works as well as I think it may, I might just go another month. Anybody game to try it with me?
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