Post #106: Dispatch from the land of produce

Warning: excessive amounts of produce consumption may cause intermittent vegegasms.
*Side note: it's just salad, lady. CALM DOWN. Don't overexcite yourself  before the main course. 

So! 

When last we left off, I was embarking on a shiny new diet. Two weeks in, I can now confidently report: 

1.) I have eaten more vegetables in the last few weeks than in the last few YEARS-combined. 
2.) There is no food that I wouldn't give up, or no new food I wouldn't try, in service of feeling better. 
3.) My digestive system is confused. 

Has this diet magically solved all of my digestive problems? Alas, no. Has it helped to lessen some of my symptoms? Yes. Is my AAC pleased with this change in routine? Not so much. 

I did pull kind of a bait and switch on my colon-one day it was all white bread and Gatorade, and literally the next day it was whole foods and roughage and whole grains and healthy fats and protein. I totally don't blame my AAC for being confused, and expressing this confusion in a variety of digestive complaints. 

For so long, I was afraid to eat these foods-I expected pain and misery and general internal havoc, and there has been some of that. But it was a leap of faith to attempt this diet in the first place, just as much as trying a new medication, and I want to stay the course. I've put in the time and effort, seen some return on that investment, and I don't want to let any symptoms push me back into the warm embrace of processed foods. 

This post is kind of a pep talk for myself-I had a bad day. And part of me wants to curl up in bed with a baguette (why does that sound so dirty?) and a dozen bagels (still kind of dirty) and write off the whole pursuit as a failed attempt, another exercise in dashed hopes and false promises. But even if my stomach hurts, and I'm running to the bathroom, and I want to hurl, at least I'm feeding my body with healthy, beneficial things, instead of snorting wonder bread and still experiencing the exact same issues. 

I know that can't be a bad thing. 

I won't let fear make me backslide, or push me back into my Crohn's rut. Every celery stick, every carrot, every tomato, contributes to the greater good. I have to believe that to keep going. 

Please note that I haven't discontinued any of the medication I'm on-these dietary shenanigans are in addition to many drugs I take on a daily and monthly basis. If this diet were making me feel actively worse all the time, I would seriously reconsider my commitment, but I wasn't feeling so hot on the drug regimen I was on. I'm just looking for more good days than bad, more energy, and the ability to digest produce. Hopefully, the drugs I'm on and the diet I'm trying will work together to make that possible.

the goal: happy plate=happy colon