Hi everyone, I thought I'd share some improvements I've been having after 2 years and 3 months in treatment. I feel like I've been slower to get better than I or Matia first thought, but lately I've really been feeling like I'm getting better and I wanted to share.
Earlier this year I felt like I was starting to make some improvements having an hour every now and then without needing to pee, and then the improvements stopped and it all felt bad again and I felt a bit disheartened, the usual 'will I ever get better' thoughts that we all have. Then about 2 months ago I realized I was not eating enough red meat. In the beginning of treatment I was having it as much as I possibly could and I seemed to be improving quickly, but I know I got got lazy with the red meat, and began having lots of other protein like fish, chicken and eggs and just doing beef twice a week or so. Anyway for the past 2 months I've been having red meat (beef, as I don't like lamb) every day, at least once a day, most days twice, and I feel so much better in my bladder and I've gained a stone in weight this year (which I really needed to). I'm still having die off, neck pain, low energy and now also bouts of depression, but to be comfortable for a large portion of the day and not feel where my bladder is, to be able to last for 1-2 hours and have minimalfrequency, AND to sleep with only getting up twice at the most, feels so good and finally feel like I've turned a corner, which I hope keeps continuing.
The things I've been doing differently are increasing the red meat, my husband has stopped drinking beer, and I've stopped microwaving food, I'm trying to meditate for 30 mins a day and I keep saying to myself I'll be better this year, this time next year I'll be eating curry, just focusing on seeing myself when I'm better.
Just wanted to share as it's always good to hear some successes, here's hoping it just keeps on getting better for all of us and I hope everyone else is feeling some improvements too.
And I know I don't post much on the forum, but I do read everyone's posts and I appreciate all your knowledge and support, it does help to read it :)
Wow, I really needed to read
Wow, I really needed to read that as I am beginning meat from being a vegan. So far only eggs and fish...erg.
great to read the stretches you are enjoying during the day. One of my great teachers once said, boughts of comfort means something is negotiable ;)
Keep up the good work!
carey
Hi Carey, I was vegetarian
Hi Carey, I was vegetarian before starting treatment and the first month was so hard I had to force myself to eat the meat and rush through each mouthful, but then something switched and I started to really crave it. It is hard. I still dont feel great about eating meat but i can really see how it's helping. I hope you find it easier as you go :)
Is there any indication that
Is there any indication that once better we can go back to being vegan/vegetarian? It's so hard for me. I felt so dependant on animal protein at one point in my life and once I went vegan, something changed in me. It was literally a divine intervention...one day I woke up and could no longer eat anything animal at all...here I am again facing having to go back on it to feel stabilized. Many naturopaths say that vegans are unhealthy because they live in carbs. That isn't me. Just wondering more about dr. Bs take on it...did she work with you slowly as youintegrated into meat? Curious about her guidance.
many thanks for sharing, Carey
I honestly don't know, Carey.
I honestly don't know, Carey. Probably best to ask ask Matia what her thoughts are on that. She did say I may never have got IC if I had been eating meat which has stayed with me, and I don't think I personally want to go back to being vegetarian and risk this ever coming back. But everyone is different and maybe once your digestive system has repaired itself, you could tolerate taking B vitamins in capsules, but honestly I would ask Matia to be sure.
Sorry I'm not more help :(
Hi there Spacemanspiff- great
Hi there Spacemanspiff- great to hear form you. I am so glad you are seeing some improvements. Thanks for checking in!
Hi Spacemanspiff!
Hi Spacemanspiff!
Thanks for your thoughtful post. I felt adding meat to my diet was a game changer for me in healing, also. I'm was never a vegetarian, but, even though I've always eaten organic food, I've stayed away from meat because of all the bad press it got in the news. Once I began eating it regularly, I felt I really began to heal. And that was before going to my first appointment. My anxiety seemed to heal along with the bladder pain and constant need to urinate and I began sleeping through the night. The one major change was adding meat twice a day to my diet.
Glad to know you're feeling better. Thanks for taking the time to share.
Sue
Just wanted to share this
Just wanted to share this regarding eating meat. When my mom was in the hospital recovering from a gunshot to the spine, they made her eat a lot of meat protein to aid in her healing. I have found myself that eating grass fed beef definitely makes me feel better!
Carey, grass-fed, humanely
Carey, grass-fed, humanely raised beef has been critical for my healing. The ICAMA office said I could not do the protocol unless I ate red meat.
I know this is very hard for you. I really, really encourage you to visit the Westin A. Price Foundation website and read as much as you can. I know full well there are several strong nutrition camps out there. But the data is simply staggering in regards to how critical it is for healing the gut to eat meat. GAPS diet, Selective Carbohydrate Diet, Paleo Diet, Low Carb diet. Traditional Food movement. the examples are endless. I think that the vegan and vegetarian diets have been helpful for some people that were eating a Standard American Diet, simply because switching to vegan/veg includes eating more whole foods (at least it should). While Raw and vegan diets have a contribution to cleansing the body, that is exactly the problem with them IMO. They are too cleansing to be sustained. Especially when the focus is not on nutrient dense foods. Also yes the vitamins B and K are very hard to get without eating meat. Bile production is extremely compromised on a long term veg diet, and makes it hard for people to digest anything (let alone meat) after years of following a strict veg/vegan diet. The adrenals get tired, the body is too alkaline, auto-immune symptoms of all kinds start to creep in.
I suspect when you are done with treatment that you could do something literally like what the food critic did that wrote the book: "Vegan before 6pm" or whatever it is called. In other words, you might after treatment only eat red meat 2-3 times per week, and only eat meat protien once per day with maybe a pure vegetarian day once per week. I read somewhere that Dr. B said after treatment you might reduce but not eliminate red meat consumption, but of course this will be a discussion you will have with Boaz over time.
I hope you do/have done some reading on the latest and most successful gut-healing protocols. The reading is very interesting, and all of it involves eating meat. RED meat specifically. PM me if you want more direct links.
xo
If we don't excel at health, the only other option is disease.