I think that we may finally be seeing a bit of a pattern here....
While we have still been largely sticking to the diet I have been a bit curious as to why I have been able to cheat occasionally with many different foods without noticing any immediate reaction. There was only the cheesecake at Mom's in that first couple of weeks which really sent my heart rate through the roof that has been an instantly noticeable difference.
I have added more yogurt, more cottage cheese, more whole grains, more potatoes, tomatoes..... just to try and get some discernible reaction from any food group and nothing.... nada.
I guess I had just decided that there was so much mental fog and fatigue going on normally that I probably wouldn't notice much of a reaction if I did have one! So on we battle.
Except I think that I may have found a link between my sugar intake and my leg spasms.
It is only a theory at the moment - but when I go back through my diary, the last two episodes of spasms have happened after a sugar rush - remember the cheesecake? That night was the start of a 4 night episode.
And then Phil and I went out for dinner on Friday - and we really weren't too naughty - except for the 2 bourbon and cokes before dinner and the hot chocolate at the end of the night.
That night was the worst bought of spasms that I have ever had - I ended up taking 60mg of Baclofen during night and it was barely touching the pain.
It has taken another couple of nights to settle down.
Now, there may be a direct link between them, there may not - you'd understand my reluctance to eat a cup of sugar to get a definitive link - but maybe in a week or two I'll try having something slightly sweet again - just to test it.
The other interesting thing is that my cystic acne has started returning and the only thing that I can put that down to is the increased amount of yogurt that I am eating - so I'll knock that back and see how we go there too!
We haven't done the liver flush yet - gathering the courage for this Friday night - will let you know how we get on!
See ya
Sandy
Monday, May 31
The How to Cure Candida Experiment - Diagnosis?
We are finally on the right track!
YAY!
.... Ok, let's back up a bit.
(See my first post for my symptoms)
My regular neurologist has me down as suffering from BCS or benign cramping syndrome - which didn't go anywhere near explaining everything else that goes on - and meant that he was able to pop me in the 'completed' file and just prescribe stronger and stronger drugs without worrying whether they were actually working or not.
After two years of dealing with this attitude 2 weeks ago I found another neurologist who was fantastic, absolutely 'got' what I was on about and came to the conclusion within 5 minutes that this was not just a BCS, but something that affected my whole central nervous system. It could be viral, metabolic or something else - they just didn't know at this stage.
He even went and got his radiologist to re-check my MRI's for lesions. Awesome service!
So definitely not MS (whew) but something similar, which puts me into the "we don't know, but we do acknowledge that there is something wrong" category called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).
That's OK - at least we are finally on the right path.....
YAY!
.... Ok, let's back up a bit.
(See my first post for my symptoms)
My regular neurologist has me down as suffering from BCS or benign cramping syndrome - which didn't go anywhere near explaining everything else that goes on - and meant that he was able to pop me in the 'completed' file and just prescribe stronger and stronger drugs without worrying whether they were actually working or not.
After two years of dealing with this attitude 2 weeks ago I found another neurologist who was fantastic, absolutely 'got' what I was on about and came to the conclusion within 5 minutes that this was not just a BCS, but something that affected my whole central nervous system. It could be viral, metabolic or something else - they just didn't know at this stage.
He even went and got his radiologist to re-check my MRI's for lesions. Awesome service!
So definitely not MS (whew) but something similar, which puts me into the "we don't know, but we do acknowledge that there is something wrong" category called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).
That's OK - at least we are finally on the right path.....
Monday, May 24
How To Cure Candida - Week 5
Well, another week has gone by and along with it another kilo of weight has dropped off - Phil anyway. I seem to just be hangin around the 68kg mark, so I guess this is where I'll stay for now.
We have run out of our pre-mixed kidney cleanse potion, so have resorted to nettle tea - which actually doesn't taste so bad - and a heck of a lot cheaper too!
We have also been on a pre-mixed 'liver support' brew but are seriously beginning to contemplate jumping in and doing a total liver flush - as prescribed in the course. Although I have to admit, it does sound awfully scary! I think that maybe we'll wait for the weekend before doing it.
Other than that, things are ticking along nicely.
The Candida diet is well and truly entrenched in our routine and the hardest part now is remembering which anti-fungal we are up to and which we were supposed to take for morning teas vs the ones for afternoon tea!
We are still allowing for a bit of a diet 'blow out' now and then, but Phil reckons that one of his intolerance foods has to be fish and chips 'cause he feels like crap after eating them! Darn it!
Having got through stage one OK, I'm also finding it interesting to see what meals I can cook for the whole family that Phil and I can comfortably eat, but that will also give the kids the same food energy levels that they need - oh and that don't cost a packet too!
I though that I should mention at this point that the team at How To Cure Candida have been really great to deal with.
Part of our basic package was one month free consultation and we made good use of that. But every question was answered quickly, personally and in a really friendly manner so a big thumbs up to Ryan, Jessica and Dean there!
That's it for now, See ya
Sandy
We have run out of our pre-mixed kidney cleanse potion, so have resorted to nettle tea - which actually doesn't taste so bad - and a heck of a lot cheaper too!
We have also been on a pre-mixed 'liver support' brew but are seriously beginning to contemplate jumping in and doing a total liver flush - as prescribed in the course. Although I have to admit, it does sound awfully scary! I think that maybe we'll wait for the weekend before doing it.
Other than that, things are ticking along nicely.
The Candida diet is well and truly entrenched in our routine and the hardest part now is remembering which anti-fungal we are up to and which we were supposed to take for morning teas vs the ones for afternoon tea!
We are still allowing for a bit of a diet 'blow out' now and then, but Phil reckons that one of his intolerance foods has to be fish and chips 'cause he feels like crap after eating them! Darn it!
Having got through stage one OK, I'm also finding it interesting to see what meals I can cook for the whole family that Phil and I can comfortably eat, but that will also give the kids the same food energy levels that they need - oh and that don't cost a packet too!
I though that I should mention at this point that the team at How To Cure Candida have been really great to deal with.
Part of our basic package was one month free consultation and we made good use of that. But every question was answered quickly, personally and in a really friendly manner so a big thumbs up to Ryan, Jessica and Dean there!
That's it for now, See ya
Sandy
Thursday, May 20
How To Cure Candida - Health Check
Hey Guys,
Well, I thought that at this stage I should stop and do a bit of a health check seeing as that is the whole reason for doing this eh!
So when we began 4 weeks ago I was having major problems with my central nervous system and according to a hair analysis I had heavy metal poisoning (see my first post for more details).
All testing had come back clear as far as stuff like MS, ALS, thyroid problems yada yada.....same ol' story.
I was also suffering with all sorts of infections ranging from your stack standard oral and 'down there' yeast infections as well as some pretty nasty looking sores on my face - less like pimples and more like cold-sores.
Oh - and I was 7kg overweight. Not huge, I know, but not great either. (I think that that is about 15lb or something)
So 4 weeks into this How to Cure Candida program how am I doing?
The neurological stuff remains - no surprise there. I said at the start that I wasn't expecting miracles, well, not this soon anyway ;o)
But... I haven't had an itch, scratch , fuzz or burn for close to two weeks now which is a massive improvement.
And....my face is looking awesome - not even the hint of a cyst during 'that' time of the month and other wounds that I get are beginning to heal quickly and cleanly as well. (my camera memory card is full at the mo but I'll take some pics shortly!)
And the Best Part..... I am down to my ideal weight and am holding steady - which means that I can now wear anything in my wardrobe. To be able to say that after 5 years, 4 kids and all this medical crap going on feels just so good.
So my verdict on the How to Cure Candida system after 4 weeks?
Definitely a major lifestyle improvement
It'll be interesting to see what happens once we have finished the first parasite cleanse and when the kidney and liver cleanses have had a chance to kick in!
See ya
Sandy
Well, I thought that at this stage I should stop and do a bit of a health check seeing as that is the whole reason for doing this eh!
So when we began 4 weeks ago I was having major problems with my central nervous system and according to a hair analysis I had heavy metal poisoning (see my first post for more details).
All testing had come back clear as far as stuff like MS, ALS, thyroid problems yada yada.....same ol' story.
I was also suffering with all sorts of infections ranging from your stack standard oral and 'down there' yeast infections as well as some pretty nasty looking sores on my face - less like pimples and more like cold-sores.
Oh - and I was 7kg overweight. Not huge, I know, but not great either. (I think that that is about 15lb or something)
So 4 weeks into this How to Cure Candida program how am I doing?
The neurological stuff remains - no surprise there. I said at the start that I wasn't expecting miracles, well, not this soon anyway ;o)
But... I haven't had an itch, scratch , fuzz or burn for close to two weeks now which is a massive improvement.
And....my face is looking awesome - not even the hint of a cyst during 'that' time of the month and other wounds that I get are beginning to heal quickly and cleanly as well. (my camera memory card is full at the mo but I'll take some pics shortly!)
And the Best Part..... I am down to my ideal weight and am holding steady - which means that I can now wear anything in my wardrobe. To be able to say that after 5 years, 4 kids and all this medical crap going on feels just so good.
So my verdict on the How to Cure Candida system after 4 weeks?
Definitely a major lifestyle improvement
It'll be interesting to see what happens once we have finished the first parasite cleanse and when the kidney and liver cleanses have had a chance to kick in!
See ya
Sandy
Tuesday, May 18
How To Cure Candida - Week 4
Sorry, a day late today but I had a good excuse - honestly!
(I'll tell you about it later!)
Anyhow, week 4 of our How To Cure Candida Experiment.
Oh, week 4.......
Boy we were looking forward to this..... The end of the elimination diet, the start of getting back to 'normal'.....starting to eat real food again.....
So this was our grand plan for reintroducing foods back;
I was going to start with some whole-grains - maybe porridge for breakfast, brown rice to go into the stir fries.
Potatoes would start to accompany the salads,
carrots,
low sugar fruits
yada yada yada.....
This is our new and improved plan for reintroducing foods back;
Ummm, actually, we don't have one.
That's right.
We don't have a plan for reintroducing foods to our diet I guess because we don't actually feel that we need to. Every new food is considered carefully but it is added because we want it, not just because we think that we 'need' it and it is usually a one serving wonder.
I have to admit, we are probably a little more relaxed over how many rice crackers and pieces of 'kosher' toast that we are having and hummus has been a permanent addition - but then that was always allowed!
Our stir fries now include carrot and we are having a piece of fruit a day whether it be apple or pear simply because that is what we feel like at that time.
So I guess it is fair to say that we have settled into this diet nicely and will be making it a permanent thing. We feel pretty good and are still losing weight on it. But we have also worked out that just by eating more of these foods or just by adding a few whole grains we can slow that weight loss down.
It is great to be at the point that we have the freedom to eat as much healthy stuff as we want but to also know that we can add other foods when we like as well.
For example, we went out for the day yesterday and were able to find place in the food court that did awesome salads. Great.
When it came time for dinner we had a celebration meal of steak, salad and chips. Complete with ketchup and aoili. Dang it tasted good! We didn't feel any worse afterward (maybe a little fuller than usual!)
But the best part was that we didn't feel that we needed to go back to eating that sort of meal every night either. It was a treat and will remain a treat. Cool!
The other milestone that we have reached at the 4 week mark is the start of our parasite, kidney and liver cleanses.
We have gone down the easy path here and just got pre-concocted liquid formulas for each. Way easier!
So our list of supplements include;
As for why I was a day late....well, I was seeing a different neurologist - A 12 hour return drive away! But I'll have to fill you in on that one later....
(I'll tell you about it later!)
Anyhow, week 4 of our How To Cure Candida Experiment.
Oh, week 4.......
Boy we were looking forward to this..... The end of the elimination diet, the start of getting back to 'normal'.....starting to eat real food again.....
So this was our grand plan for reintroducing foods back;
I was going to start with some whole-grains - maybe porridge for breakfast, brown rice to go into the stir fries.
Potatoes would start to accompany the salads,
carrots,
low sugar fruits
yada yada yada.....
This is our new and improved plan for reintroducing foods back;
Ummm, actually, we don't have one.
That's right.
We don't have a plan for reintroducing foods to our diet I guess because we don't actually feel that we need to. Every new food is considered carefully but it is added because we want it, not just because we think that we 'need' it and it is usually a one serving wonder.
I have to admit, we are probably a little more relaxed over how many rice crackers and pieces of 'kosher' toast that we are having and hummus has been a permanent addition - but then that was always allowed!
Our stir fries now include carrot and we are having a piece of fruit a day whether it be apple or pear simply because that is what we feel like at that time.
So I guess it is fair to say that we have settled into this diet nicely and will be making it a permanent thing. We feel pretty good and are still losing weight on it. But we have also worked out that just by eating more of these foods or just by adding a few whole grains we can slow that weight loss down.
It is great to be at the point that we have the freedom to eat as much healthy stuff as we want but to also know that we can add other foods when we like as well.
For example, we went out for the day yesterday and were able to find place in the food court that did awesome salads. Great.
When it came time for dinner we had a celebration meal of steak, salad and chips. Complete with ketchup and aoili. Dang it tasted good! We didn't feel any worse afterward (maybe a little fuller than usual!)
But the best part was that we didn't feel that we needed to go back to eating that sort of meal every night either. It was a treat and will remain a treat. Cool!
The other milestone that we have reached at the 4 week mark is the start of our parasite, kidney and liver cleanses.
We have gone down the easy path here and just got pre-concocted liquid formulas for each. Way easier!
So our list of supplements include;
- Multi-minerals
- Vitamin C
- Probiotics
- Fiber shakes
- Antifungals - for this week our anti fungal remedies are garlic and oregano oil.
- Enzymes - a homemade kiwifruit, boysenberry and lemon juice mix.
- Omega oil blend
Premixed liquids -
- Heavy Metal Detox
- Parasite Cleanse
- Kidney support
- Liver Cleanse
As for why I was a day late....well, I was seeing a different neurologist - A 12 hour return drive away! But I'll have to fill you in on that one later....
Monday, May 10
The How To Cure Candida Experiment - Week 3
Wow!
Only one more week to go before we can start back on some real foods!
Yipee!
I have already begun stocking up on a few whole grain items to boost the meals up.
I did look at buying some specialty whole grains like amaranth, quinoa and buckwheat - but boy oh boy...I think we will just 'tai hoa' on them for a while - I don't know what their price is in other parts of the world, but down here they are about ten times more expensive than regular stuff - so we will just stick to regular brown rice, whole grain pasta, chickpeas and lentils ;o)
Our diet is still the same - scrambled eggs, stir fry/salad rotation but we managed to knock off one of our 'pets' last weekend so have added lean lamb to the fish and chicken 'sides'.
(Don't look now, but we may just about have a menu to choose from!)
Our antifungals for the week are; Pau D' Arco Tea and Olive Leaf extract
We dumped the psyllium enzyme fibre shake as soon as the container was finished - super yeuck that one - we were both spending all day picking pieces of husk out of our mouths!
Our new fibre shake is just a straight flax seed one. We aren't going to worry about the enzyme portion for now. One of the foods that we will try next week will be kiwifruit and they are really high in digestive enzymes so that will be a nice change!
Find of the week;
Our find of the week has to be a bread that we got from the supermarket - it has no yeast, no gluten, no sugar, no wheat.......well, you get the picture! Raw it is absolutely gross, but toasted for about 6 minutes? Ahhhhh, bliss.
1 slice toasted with cottage cheese and cinnamon on (me) or salmon on (Phil) and we are set for the night! It is also darned fine with hummus on.
The best part is that it has 3 different flavors - rice, chia and raisin (I know no raisen bread....yet!)
Social Call;
We went to Phil's sisters over the weekend and had the forethought to do two things
We also had coffee group this week (something that Moms with preschoolers do down here) and the rice crackers were the stars again.
Only one more week to go before we can start back on some real foods!
Yipee!
I have already begun stocking up on a few whole grain items to boost the meals up.
I did look at buying some specialty whole grains like amaranth, quinoa and buckwheat - but boy oh boy...I think we will just 'tai hoa' on them for a while - I don't know what their price is in other parts of the world, but down here they are about ten times more expensive than regular stuff - so we will just stick to regular brown rice, whole grain pasta, chickpeas and lentils ;o)
Our diet is still the same - scrambled eggs, stir fry/salad rotation but we managed to knock off one of our 'pets' last weekend so have added lean lamb to the fish and chicken 'sides'.
(Don't look now, but we may just about have a menu to choose from!)
Our antifungals for the week are; Pau D' Arco Tea and Olive Leaf extract
We dumped the psyllium enzyme fibre shake as soon as the container was finished - super yeuck that one - we were both spending all day picking pieces of husk out of our mouths!
Our new fibre shake is just a straight flax seed one. We aren't going to worry about the enzyme portion for now. One of the foods that we will try next week will be kiwifruit and they are really high in digestive enzymes so that will be a nice change!
Find of the week;
Our find of the week has to be a bread that we got from the supermarket - it has no yeast, no gluten, no sugar, no wheat.......well, you get the picture! Raw it is absolutely gross, but toasted for about 6 minutes? Ahhhhh, bliss.
1 slice toasted with cottage cheese and cinnamon on (me) or salmon on (Phil) and we are set for the night! It is also darned fine with hummus on.
The best part is that it has 3 different flavors - rice, chia and raisin (I know no raisen bread....yet!)
Social Call;
We went to Phil's sisters over the weekend and had the forethought to do two things
- make it an afternoon tea visit (we ate a big lunch before we went) and
- take our own rice crackers and hummus.
- We didn't arrive empty handed,
- Everyone loved the rice crackers and hummus - we knew they would (just as well we bought two packets) and
- Phil's sister was relieved 'cause she knew that we were on some diet and didn't know what to offer us for food, so she had felt like a bad hostess for not offering anything!
We also had coffee group this week (something that Moms with preschoolers do down here) and the rice crackers were the stars again.
Monday, May 3
The How To Cure Candida Experiment - Week 2
Hey Guys
Yay! Half way through stage one of the Candida Diet......
So in week one we just got ourselves used to the Candida diet and in stage two we have started adding anti-fungals and fiber shakes to the process.
Candida Diet;
We are well into the swing of the diet and are managing to stick to it really well - in fact even our portion sizes are getting smaller. We are sticking to the stir fry/salad rotation for lunch and dinner, with two scrambled eggs each for breakfast.
We have a container full of mixed nuts and seeds with a small percentage of the oh-so-bad, but oh-so-make-the-nuts-digestible dried berries for when we get really grotty!
At supper we have a rice wafer with cottage cheese and a sprinkling of cinnamon and a handful of said nut mix.
Our supplements for the week;
On Saturday night we went to my Moms place - bless her, she know that we are on this Candida diet, and boy did she make an effort for the dinner. Lean fillet steak, veges that were so tasty with the only hint of starch or extra carbo being the kumara...yum!
And then it happened, just as we were settled back chillaxing with the kids, out comes the cup of tea and baked berry cheesecake!
Whataya do? Of course we ate it!
I tell you what though - about 5 minutes after eating my heart rate went through the roof and I am pretty sure that I'm not supposed to be eating that much sugar in one hit just yet!
Oh well, lesson learned - moving on.....
Comments;
"Hell yuck!" For the week has to be psyllium husks.
God, you spend all day getting the suckers out of your teeth, gums, tonsils and cheeks! I can't wait for this bottle to be finished so we can maybe move onto Flaxseed or something a little less offensive at 5am.
As far as die off symptoms from the Candida diet?
Me - indigestion, bloating. But these only lasted maybe 3 days. Oh and a sore back up around the right kidney - lasted a few days but is fine now.
Phil - not so bad this week he's just recovering from the cold that he got last week.
I don't know if this is a die off symptom or what, but both Phil and I got really bizarre dreams for a couple of nights about a week into the diet.......don't know the significance there - weird :o)
Improvements;
Yay! Half way through stage one of the Candida Diet......
So in week one we just got ourselves used to the Candida diet and in stage two we have started adding anti-fungals and fiber shakes to the process.
Candida Diet;
We are well into the swing of the diet and are managing to stick to it really well - in fact even our portion sizes are getting smaller. We are sticking to the stir fry/salad rotation for lunch and dinner, with two scrambled eggs each for breakfast.
We have a container full of mixed nuts and seeds with a small percentage of the oh-so-bad, but oh-so-make-the-nuts-digestible dried berries for when we get really grotty!
At supper we have a rice wafer with cottage cheese and a sprinkling of cinnamon and a handful of said nut mix.
Our supplements for the week;
- Our anti-fungals for the week are garlic and grape seed extract
- We started taking probiotics
- Our fiber shake is a psyllium enzyme mix
- Because of my high hair analysis reading I have started on my Heavy Metal Detox using a prepared solution of chlorella and cilantro (actually it was recommended by my naturopath)
On Saturday night we went to my Moms place - bless her, she know that we are on this Candida diet, and boy did she make an effort for the dinner. Lean fillet steak, veges that were so tasty with the only hint of starch or extra carbo being the kumara...yum!
And then it happened, just as we were settled back chillaxing with the kids, out comes the cup of tea and baked berry cheesecake!
Whataya do? Of course we ate it!
I tell you what though - about 5 minutes after eating my heart rate went through the roof and I am pretty sure that I'm not supposed to be eating that much sugar in one hit just yet!
Oh well, lesson learned - moving on.....
Comments;
"Hell yuck!" For the week has to be psyllium husks.
God, you spend all day getting the suckers out of your teeth, gums, tonsils and cheeks! I can't wait for this bottle to be finished so we can maybe move onto Flaxseed or something a little less offensive at 5am.
As far as die off symptoms from the Candida diet?
Me - indigestion, bloating. But these only lasted maybe 3 days. Oh and a sore back up around the right kidney - lasted a few days but is fine now.
Phil - not so bad this week he's just recovering from the cold that he got last week.
I don't know if this is a die off symptom or what, but both Phil and I got really bizarre dreams for a couple of nights about a week into the diet.......don't know the significance there - weird :o)
Improvements;
- Both Phil and I have noticed that our sense of taste is returning. Cottage cheese actually tastes cheesy!
- My acne has noticeably cleared and I didn't have a massive premenstrual flare up this month either!
- Phil has always had a large patch of bumpy skin on the backs of his arms - it felt like sandpaper. Well, overnight it disappeared.
- We have both lost another kg this week - Which seems to have settled to a steady kilogram a week - all good!
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