Health Report

I'm not sure if you've all been following my boring health issues, but for anyone who has been following, I wanted to send you the latest report.

I think I mentioned that my allergy tests came back and they indicated that I have a severe allergy to dairy. This is extremely sad news. I can live without milk and yogurt, but having to limit cheese and ice cream will be a serious challenge.

But there's a bit of a silver lining. I've decided to make compromises. This means that I will be splurging on coconut milk and soy ice cream, as well as really REALLY great cheese. The stinkiest I can find. I figure there's no more excuse to eat less-than-stellar cheese. Eating cheese won't kill me, it may just cause me acne, or it might not once the majority of the dairy is out of my system for a while. I figure a pimple now and again is a small price to pay for delicious cheese.

I've also gotten my hormone test results back. It turns out they're a bit wonky too, but not too too bad. I have a low level of progesterone and a slightly higher than normal level of testosterone. This means that I was heading down the road to PCOS. Thank goodness we caught it early! This means that what I have going on right now is completely reversible! Whew! I really consider myself lucky with this one, since PCOS means it may be difficult to conceive and carry a child to term, along with all kinds of other side effects like insulin-resistance, and the inability to lose weight.

The slightly higher than normal level of testosterone hasn't had many ill effects on my body yet, although it almost definitely played some part in my skin issues as well. And luckily again, it's not a high level, only very slightly above the normal range. I am now taking saw palmetto (an herb usually given to men to control prostate issues) to level out my testosterone production. My naturopath seems to think that taking the saw palmetto, along with zinc daily will get me back to normal in no time, probably by spring.

Thank goodness I decided to see a naturopath! I couldn't thank her enough at my last appointment. She really has changed my life. She did more for me in 3 months than my family doctor has done for me in 10 years. Phenomenal.

No Wheat and No Dairy

Makes Tara a hungry, cranky girl.

I went to visit a naturopath on Thursday. I went because my family doctor is really dropping the ball on me, and I'm completely discouraged. Anyway, I am concerned about the acne I continually seem to fight with, as well as my elevated heart rate and ever-changing allergies.

Now I'm convinced most of this is all related. She's testing me for any allergies I really have. I've had traditional allergy testing done many times, with the pin prick test and the scratch test. She is testing me via blood sample, and I should have the results in a couple of weeks, which I'm very excited about. Then I'll finally know what is causing me issues and what isn't.

She also thinks I may be having issues with digestion. She thinks this is why I have a low B12 level. In most young people who have a low B12 level, this usually means you're missing an intrinsic factor in your stomach that is needed for the body to absorb B12. I told her I had asked my family doctor to proceed with testing to find out if this is my issue, but my family doctor refused to test me, and told me to just take a daily B12 supplement instead.

For now, the naturopath has asked me to try a diet that will allow for minimal effort by my digestive system. So no dairy, no wheat (two high-incidence allergens), and she has asked me to not eat raw fruits and vegetables, since they are difficult for the digestive system to process.

Now being a vegetarian, cutting out wheat and dairy is seriously challenging. I'm like a celiac vegan. Not fun. Fish, rice, and cooked veggies. Booooorrriing!

And to any celiacs out there, I now understand what it's like to try to live the way you have to. It must be terrible. Hugs to all of you.