I wish remission were contagious!!!!
I wish that for all of you too Hope ....
On to the questions
Question:
1. When you had RSD in your feet, (as I do) what kind of cardio exercise did you do? (Any walking for me creates 'off the charts' immense swelling, burning, redness and nerve pain!!)
Answer:
My cardio training was much more sporadic when I had RSD.
If I was in a flare I wouldn't do it or, I would do a little and listen to my body and it's response .When I wasn't in a flare I would get on the elliptical.
I did gym work outs when I was feeling well .
Sometimes I would pay the price with increased pain
My RSD started in my hands.My feet joined the party some time later later so I was able to do cardio fairly easily the first 2 or so years ,blocking out the pain for those 40 minutes of zen
Question:
2. Can you give an example of a day's diet that you adhere to?
(breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks..and any supplements you may take!)
Answer: to you and Lisa - sort of -
I usually start the day with a fruit /green smoothie. SO filling !
I use fresh fruits from the farmers market (eg.strawberries ,a banana and blueberries ) and mix in a couple of handfuls of leafy greens. I use water to get it all going in the blender.
My favorite greens are kale and spinach but collard greens ,dandelion etc work just as well. It is best to vary your greens .
Leafy greens are so, so good for you .They are filled with vitamins and nutrients .
Fruits and vegetables contains loads of easily digestible fiber too.Good for the colon; the whole internal and external bod( you will glow
)
Green smoothies have been shown to cut the cravings for sweets and other unhealthy processed and sugary fare throughout the day .
Depending on how I feel I may use raw hemp protein which has a divine nutty taste for some extra aminos and protein.
For lunch and dinner :
I am a bit of a grazer. I always have fresh vegetables cut up in the fridge .
I get nori wraps( the stuff they use to roll sushi-.in my case raw ones from a local raw restaurant ) and make salad rolls or "sandwiches" all day long. I LOVE these and I can eat forever without fear of weight gain (lol) or that heavy full feeling . The food I eat is so nutrient dense and delicious.
I probably eat over a pound of greens and other delightful vegetable goodness all day long
. I can make them "to go" as well .
Remember color - the more color the more nutrients .I love red cabbage ,spinach,carrots ,zucchini ,bean sprouts etc . I eat way way too many onions !!! Stinky-
I probably eat approx the same thing for dinner .A smoothie if I feel the need for something sweet. I am a creature of habit .
As you change your diet ( I call it a lifestyle ) you will notice that you start to crave these new delicious wholesome foods.
I will walk a mile ( and I have driven many more) for a good salad !. I never use dressing just some fresh lemon juice .
I think about grapefruits when I am hungry
A grapefruit is often my snack food .
People who think consciously about what they eat , eat a lot better and eat more quality ,nutrient dense foods than those who "assume" they are getting all their nutrients from a piece of meat or poultry .The steroids , antibiotics and saturated fats alone in these foods are enough to make any one sick,not the picture of good health , as many "assume"
Vegans have about a 50% lower incidence of many cancers , strokes and heart disease .Type 2 diabetes is completely reversible through diet and lifestyle .New studies have come out linking breast cancer to dairy . Dairy has been linked to many diseases including many of the the inflammatory ones such as RA .
The list on this also goes on and on. .
Read "The China Study" by Colin Cambell ; "The Diet for a New America" by John Robbins ;. Dr Joel Furmans "Eat to Live " and much of Dr McDougalls work which includes a "low fat " vegan diet as the key to good health ; and many others .
NB: the protein myth is simply that .SAD(Standard American diets) have 4 or 5 times the protein requirements recommended . A vegan or vegetarian diet will fill all protein requirements
Question:
3. After which treatment and intervention did the remission begin to appear?
Answer :
I am still at a bit of a loss with this.As I mentioned I received the last 3 treatment options concurrently . I did not feel better directly after any of them from what I can recall ( short term memory for pain is a beautiful thing!!!!
) . I got sicker after the naturopathic treatment but then I got well.I might think there is something to it in hind site but I would hate for any one to go through what I did with the" tonic" he gave me. I had friends talk me out of hospital visits through the night.
I did not feel relief right after the ketamine treatments but they may have had a cumulative effect.
I did thoroughly enjoy the "dives" and HBOT. I remeber feeling refreshed and a little buzzed after each treatment .
I always kept up with "moving" ie cardio throughout my RSD timeline.
I am convinced there is something to this as I was continually nourishing my cells!!!!
Question:
4. Did you do acupuncture and /or meditation/visualization?
Answer:
I meditate regularly - do yoga and practice visualization.
Meditation is an awesome addition to any life and lifestyle.
Being still,( and not thinking or worrying!!) in general is a good practice ...however you find a means to that end.
I did acupuncture when I was in the depths in RSD. It helped at first but then I recall feeling worse.
I remember a coldness and pain spreading through my calves which scared me and I stopped.
Bear in mind my experience may not reflect other peoples experience.What works for one does not always work for another
Question:
5. I know it's hard to determine, but what is your gut feeling on what truly finally put you into remission?
I think I answered this above as best I could .
Lisa in Ohio - Thanks for the warm words. All of these responses make me really happy that I came back to share
Being vegan is a wonderful thing. Of course in our omni/carnivore, processed food society it does take a bit of work.
I think it will be the wave of the future for so many reasons including health, environment ( factory farming is destroying the planet.The fecal matter alone from ff 's is polluting our waterways ad nauseum ) , animal rights and non violence .The list goes on.
For people who are sick the difference can be astounding and life changing!!!
The additives in food ( and what we put ON or skins ) is so long and complex -Unneeded and ridiculous really. I try to stick by this mantra.."Keep it simple"
Our grandparents never had a list of ingredients that they could not pronounce and would take a page to get through!!!!. Many diseases are a response and /or an allergic to these additives . Eliminating them could make a HUGE differences in symptoms we have learned to live with .
Indeed the work to become or live vegan will be more difficult in a rural setting . I live in a big city and my options are plentiful. I do eat cooked foods when I go out with others but most restaurants here have plenty of vegan options.
Going this route is a process- an ever evolving journey .I started being vegan for health reasons but after much research into the abuse of animals on factory farms my thoughts and reasons for staying vegan( the hard part !!!) changed. I could never go back for so so many reasons .
I would recommend listening to that very wise body of yours.It knows so much !!! Be kind to yourself. You are where you are at, in that moment. . Cravings are just that and they pass.
As an athlete I had always had some excellent eating habits so the change was not as drastic for me, as for some.
I haven't eaten processed foods or used condiments,even salt since high school. I did have a serious ice cream addiction so some things like cutting out dairy were harder than others .
to the point:
Do you have a farmers market near by? There must be some local farms that have delicious /pesticide free organic fruits and vegetables???
There is a wealth of vegan material on the web. I know that goveg.com has a 30 day vegan challenge .There are also plenty of sites with vegan recipes from low fat to others. Good Luck and google away !
Loretta- I think I answered most of those questions in my second response to this thread. The only thing I did not address is the length of my HBOT sessions. If memory serves I believe they were each 90 minutes.
I would have to call the center to confirm.
Let me now if I missed something
Ok ...I think that's it. I hope I answered all and then some
peace and more
GnP