Tag Archives: health

What You Don’t See

I share an awful lot on this blog, but there’s also a lot you don’t see.

Some of it’s good, some of it is the rough stuff.

You don’t always see…

[the good]

…those simple nights with friends that somehow end up being the best nights ever, better than the fancy dinners and events

…any men in my life (well, there’s nothing to see right now, but sharing romantical relationships on my blog makes me uncomfortable)

…the long walks with just me and Bailey

…all of my workouts (some of them are boring)

…all of my meals (a lot of them are boring)

[the bad]

…that despite being unemployed, I still spend too much money on getting food out

…that occasionally being single, unemployed and living alone makes me really lonely

…that a lot of the time, it’s still a mental fight to pick the healthier food and to get a workout done

What do you wish you saw more of on here? If you have a blog, what stuff do you leave out?

The Summer Body Experiment, Part Deux

I had a gastro appointment this morning. My stomach’s been bothering me for the past few months, and I was hoping for some answers. I know so much of it is stress, and I’m trying to manage it as best as I can, but apparently I can’t fool my stomach.

He asked my symptoms (basically a lot of needing to run urgently to the bathroom), and immediately said, “Yup. Sounds like IBS.”

Um…I know. My bowels are clearly irritated. That’s why I’m here, buddy.

He’d tested me for celiac last year, and all tests (including the genetic one) came back negative. So when he said he was going to test the antibodies that indicate celiac and shoved a needle into my arm before I could ask why, I was clearly a little confused. When he had to switch arms to get blood out of a different vein, I was frustrated and confused. It turns out 1 percent of those who are not genetically predisposed to celiac still end up with it anyway. So, um, thanks for being so thorough? Or something?

“Is Immodium working for you?”

“Well, yes, but…” [this is where I would have continued “but I don’t want to live on a lifetime of choking back Immodium.]

“Great, then stick to that.”

“Um????? Is there anything else I can do?”

“You could try cutting back on wheat.

“Okay. Anything else?”

“Yeah. Don’t eat raw vegetables.

“Yeah, I don’t. Oh, and I’ve been drinking a lot less coffee and that seems to help.”

“Oh good! Yeah, caffeine is a stimulant to your digestive tract.”

So, needless to say, I was a little frustrated that I didn’t get more answers. I think I’m going to look for a second opinion (so if you know of a helpful gastro in NYC, I’m all ears), and also experiment on my own. I’m going to stick with no coffee and experiment with cutting back on gluten and see how those work out for me. I’m also going to try to eat smaller meals more frequently so that my body has less to digest.

coffee.jpg

But this may be me until I figure out how to go without coffee. I miss it like crazy, but I don’t miss feeling like I need to be around a bathroom 24/7.