With my most recent miscarriage at the end of May I decided to get blood tests to see if there was something going on causing the miscarriage. I was certain it was my thyroid causing the miscarriage(s) but my doctor did a number of tests just to be sure, including an Anti-nuclear Antibody (ANA) test to see if my immune system was producing antibodies against itself causing an auto-immune disease that wasn't allowing my body to carry a fetus. Surprisingly, all my blood tests came up fine, including my thyroid, except the ANA. Not only did I test positive for the antibodies but I also had a high titer of 1:640 (a titer of 1:40 is considered normal) so my doctor decided to send me to a Rheumetologist, a doctor who specializes in autoimmune disorders, for further testing. Since I was leaving for Germany I could not meet with a specialist until 5 weeks after the initial blood test and nearly 6 weeks after the miscarriage.
My visit to the Rheumetologist was disappointing as he wouldn't test me for the tests that I had asked him to test me for but he did do the routine tests given after a positive ANA for specific rheumatic auto-immune disorders, like Lupus, as well as another ANA. Just as I had predicted, I do not have Lupus (or syphilis for that matter) but once again I tested positive for ANA. Unlike the first test, this test I had a much lower titer of 1:80, which is considered a very low positive reading. This got me thinking, and Googling, to see if there could be a connection between positive ANA tests and miscarriage. Amazingly, all over the Internet I found infertility/miscarriage forums where women with repeated miscarriages were talking about their positive ANA tests taken directly after their miscarriages with no diagnosis of autoimmune disease. For the majority of these women their titers were only high directly after their miscarriage.
This was all very fascinating to me but it seemed that many doctors did not believe that there was a connection and that the positive ANA could mean that the body was attacking the fetus specifically, not just the body. Some doctors treated the condition successfully with daily doses of baby aspirin. Others added in supplemental progesterone and in some cases, twice daily injections of heparin, an anti-coagulant, during pregnancy the use of which is rather questionable. BUT these actions, in many cases resulted in full-term pregnancies in women who have had many repeated miscarriages.
So, where does this leave me? It leaves me in a quandary because it doesn't explain why the immune system is attacking the fetus and I want to know what is causing this and all my other symptoms of poor health. I could try taking baby aspirin and see what happens but I really don't want to take the chance of another miscarriage because I don't really understand what is going on. One thing I am willing to try is herbal cures. This website recommends specific herbs to help with immunological miscarriages such as Dong Quai and Maca. Other herbs, such as Vitex and Evening Primrose Oil have been shown to help with aiding in the production of progesterone, which is often lacking in women with repeated miscarriage.
Susun Weed, herbalist and author of The Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year, has recipes for preventing a threatened miscarriage with a number of herbal tinctures. Susun also recommends daily infusions of stinging nettle and red raspberry leaf for every woman, pregnant or not. Here is info that I liked on a natural fertility diet, though I am not a believer in excessive raw foods, protein powders or green smoothies (seriously, no people throughout time have EVER eaten pureed raw greens! EVER!). So there it is...food for thought. I am still left feeling like I have no idea what to do either way.
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Retracing One Year
It is now just over one year since I went on my grain-free, soy-free, sugar-free, starch-free, preservative-free, processed-free etc. diet in a quest for healing. To recap my year, I started with a very strict diet/supplement regimen and did that for about seven months before switching to the GAPS diet and have been much happier since. When I found Bee's Candida Control diet it sounded like the perfect solution for me, and it may have been at the time, but then she started to change things, becoming more inflexible and wandering into the uncharted territory of what I have since learned is Scientology. The over-reliance on supplements (I was spending $170/month on supplements) and the seemingly random diet altering decisions made by Bee propelled me in the direction of the GAPS diet. GAPS is actually based on science and is a healing program involving certain steps vs. Bee's diet which consists of very strict food restriction based on someones (She never explained how she came to this) ratio of fats/protein/carbs. I did heal on Bee's diet but I also think I went through unnecessary suffering and deprivation as my body struggled with the toxin overload. While the GAPS diet does have supplements (mainly strong probiotics) it isn't necessary to take them if you can't afford it. Food probiotics such as fermented veggies, yogurt, kefir etc. can also give you the same benefits. At this time the only supplements I am taking are Magnesium Citrate, Zing Piccolinate and fermented cod liver oil and my cost is down to less than $35/month.
The GAPS diet has been less challenging in many ways but I have still had my setbacks. In March when I switched to GAPS I decided to add dairy and added it much too quickly which gave me an itchy eczema/detox rash around my eyes and it wasn't until I did the GAPS Introduction diet, removing all dairy, in early September that the bumps went away and I saw very serious improvements in my digestion. The GAPS diet is supposed to take around two years of healing but the second year is supposed to be the best as far as seeing results goes. I am hoping that by June I will have been able to have slowly added dairy again to the point that I can eat cheese. At this point I am only eating ghee with small amounts of butter every so often. Coconut yogurt (homemade) has become a food staple and as soon as I can get a culture I am going to add coconut kefir.
So, how about my symptoms? This last summer was very stressful for me with being a foster parent and I think I suffered some setbacks because of that. In June I think I even had a hysterical pregnancy but that was probably not related to the diet at all so much as the frustrations of having a newborn in my home being raised by a 14 year-old. One thing that has bugged me was that my cycles have been a bit off since June varying between 28 and my usual 33 days with the flow being much heavier. I have also been having really intense PMS symptoms, the most irritating of which is extremely tender breasts for a week or more each cycle. Ugh. BUT the yeastie-beastie's have mostly gone. I get a flare every so often but it goes away in a few days. It seems that my body is switching to detoxing through the skin which I have read is a good sign because the skin is the body's largest detox organ. Once I stop detoxing through my skin so much it should be a sign that my endocrine/lymphatic systems are up to par.
One of the anecdotal natural healing signs is called "Retracing." This means that your body will "retrace" injuries/illnesses that you have had in an effort to heal itself. For example: If you had a major episode of illness years ago you will have the ilness again sometime during your healing, albeit less severely. I am not sure how much credence I can give to this theory but I was wondering about it this morning. Last week I was horribly sick for over a week with Bronchitis/Sinusitis, which is much longer than I am normally sick, and it really kicked my butt. I had a thought this morning that I could be retracing an episode seven years ago when I had my very first combined Bronchitis/Sinusitis which held me captive for two months and left me with damaged lungs and sinus' prone to infection. Now every time I get a cold I often get both and end up quite miserable. It would be nice if that was a healing episode because if it was it most likely won't happen again (so the theory goes) unless I let my health go. By the way, I treated the infection with raw apple cider vinegar; 2 tbsp. in 6 oz. of water as often as I could stand it. It worked quite well.
So that has been my year. It hasn't been very exciting or fun but I am glad that I am doing something to try to get my health where it needs to be so that I can conceive and carry another pregnancy. It is nice that I feel much better most of the time and as an added bonus, the food is seriously so good.
The GAPS diet has been less challenging in many ways but I have still had my setbacks. In March when I switched to GAPS I decided to add dairy and added it much too quickly which gave me an itchy eczema/detox rash around my eyes and it wasn't until I did the GAPS Introduction diet, removing all dairy, in early September that the bumps went away and I saw very serious improvements in my digestion. The GAPS diet is supposed to take around two years of healing but the second year is supposed to be the best as far as seeing results goes. I am hoping that by June I will have been able to have slowly added dairy again to the point that I can eat cheese. At this point I am only eating ghee with small amounts of butter every so often. Coconut yogurt (homemade) has become a food staple and as soon as I can get a culture I am going to add coconut kefir.
So, how about my symptoms? This last summer was very stressful for me with being a foster parent and I think I suffered some setbacks because of that. In June I think I even had a hysterical pregnancy but that was probably not related to the diet at all so much as the frustrations of having a newborn in my home being raised by a 14 year-old. One thing that has bugged me was that my cycles have been a bit off since June varying between 28 and my usual 33 days with the flow being much heavier. I have also been having really intense PMS symptoms, the most irritating of which is extremely tender breasts for a week or more each cycle. Ugh. BUT the yeastie-beastie's have mostly gone. I get a flare every so often but it goes away in a few days. It seems that my body is switching to detoxing through the skin which I have read is a good sign because the skin is the body's largest detox organ. Once I stop detoxing through my skin so much it should be a sign that my endocrine/lymphatic systems are up to par.
One of the anecdotal natural healing signs is called "Retracing." This means that your body will "retrace" injuries/illnesses that you have had in an effort to heal itself. For example: If you had a major episode of illness years ago you will have the ilness again sometime during your healing, albeit less severely. I am not sure how much credence I can give to this theory but I was wondering about it this morning. Last week I was horribly sick for over a week with Bronchitis/Sinusitis, which is much longer than I am normally sick, and it really kicked my butt. I had a thought this morning that I could be retracing an episode seven years ago when I had my very first combined Bronchitis/Sinusitis which held me captive for two months and left me with damaged lungs and sinus' prone to infection. Now every time I get a cold I often get both and end up quite miserable. It would be nice if that was a healing episode because if it was it most likely won't happen again (so the theory goes) unless I let my health go. By the way, I treated the infection with raw apple cider vinegar; 2 tbsp. in 6 oz. of water as often as I could stand it. It worked quite well.
So that has been my year. It hasn't been very exciting or fun but I am glad that I am doing something to try to get my health where it needs to be so that I can conceive and carry another pregnancy. It is nice that I feel much better most of the time and as an added bonus, the food is seriously so good.
Friday, March 25, 2011
My Natural Bodycare Routines
For Mara,
Aside from not eating grains, this is how I keep my skin looking nice: honey and baking soda mixed together 50/50. I keep it in a 1 cup covered Pyrex container in my shower because otherwise it is pretty sticky. I have learned to check the cup before I jump in the shower just in case I need to add more. The honey is very moisturizing and makes a great all over body wash!
Soap: I haven't gotten around to making my own soap yet but I do use Kiss My Face Olive Oil bar soap which I enjoy. I can buy it at my local grocery store and it is less than $2/bar which is saying something for the natural body care product community. The three simple ingredients will amaze you!
How I wash my hair: I wash my hair about once a week with Avalon Organics Lavender shampoo the rest of the time just with water. I do not use conditioner because I have no need. For a while I did "no-poo" and washed with baking soda and conditioned with apple-cider vinegar but right now I like that I can wash it without trying to remember to fill the baking soda container. I haven't bought shampoo for nearly two years; I am still using the same bottle.
How I clean my teeth: I was getting sick of paying for sensitive teeth toothpaste and still having sensitive teeth. I recently read that it is actually the toothpaste that causes recession and sensitivity, not brushing too hard as I had always thought (and been told). Technically you don't even need toothpaste to get your teeth clean, but you can also boost your whitening power by using a 50/50 mixture of hydrogen peroxide and water. I just mix it in the cap and brush away. My teeth are less sensitive and this is WAY cheaper. Oh yeah, and I floss but that is just floss which I don't believe you can get any more natural than that.
How I moisturize: Extra-virgin coconut oil is AMAZING! I use it to moisturize as well as a sunscreen and after sun lotion. Hint, it also makes a great lubricant.
How I style my hair: This is one where I haven't stumbled upon a good solution. I use a styling wax, Redken Rewind to be precise, but it is super expensive and I don't like how chemically it is. I just found this lovely tutorial on how to make your own pomade. I don't love that it uses petroleum jelly but maybe I could use Shea butter instead? Hmmm...It also looks like you can use jojoba or olive oil instead. I think I will need to experiment!
I have heard that if you get a blemish you could put tea tree oil diluted with olive oil on it, but I can't recommend it because I have never tried it myself. If you have any questions or tips, please send them my way!
Aside from not eating grains, this is how I keep my skin looking nice: honey and baking soda mixed together 50/50. I keep it in a 1 cup covered Pyrex container in my shower because otherwise it is pretty sticky. I have learned to check the cup before I jump in the shower just in case I need to add more. The honey is very moisturizing and makes a great all over body wash!
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| Ingredients: Saponified Olive Oil, Water, Sodium Chloride |
How I wash my hair: I wash my hair about once a week with Avalon Organics Lavender shampoo the rest of the time just with water. I do not use conditioner because I have no need. For a while I did "no-poo" and washed with baking soda and conditioned with apple-cider vinegar but right now I like that I can wash it without trying to remember to fill the baking soda container. I haven't bought shampoo for nearly two years; I am still using the same bottle.
How I clean my teeth: I was getting sick of paying for sensitive teeth toothpaste and still having sensitive teeth. I recently read that it is actually the toothpaste that causes recession and sensitivity, not brushing too hard as I had always thought (and been told). Technically you don't even need toothpaste to get your teeth clean, but you can also boost your whitening power by using a 50/50 mixture of hydrogen peroxide and water. I just mix it in the cap and brush away. My teeth are less sensitive and this is WAY cheaper. Oh yeah, and I floss but that is just floss which I don't believe you can get any more natural than that.
How I moisturize: Extra-virgin coconut oil is AMAZING! I use it to moisturize as well as a sunscreen and after sun lotion. Hint, it also makes a great lubricant.
How I style my hair: This is one where I haven't stumbled upon a good solution. I use a styling wax, Redken Rewind to be precise, but it is super expensive and I don't like how chemically it is. I just found this lovely tutorial on how to make your own pomade. I don't love that it uses petroleum jelly but maybe I could use Shea butter instead? Hmmm...It also looks like you can use jojoba or olive oil instead. I think I will need to experiment!
I have heard that if you get a blemish you could put tea tree oil diluted with olive oil on it, but I can't recommend it because I have never tried it myself. If you have any questions or tips, please send them my way!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Controversial Monday: Dr. Oz
Is it just me or is anyone else getting sick to death of hearing this: "But Dr. Oz says..."? Since when did Dr. Oz become THE authority on health? Oh yeah, because Oprah endorsed him. Yes, he is a medical doctor with a PhD but he is also a television personality which makes his advice highly suspect to me. First of all, he has to watch what he says because of sponsors. In order for his television show to keep running he needs both to keep his viewers AND his sponsors happy which, in his case, means endorsing their products. Anyone seen a product with the "Endorsed by Dr. Oz" label lately? Hmmmmm?
Another thing that bothers me about Dr. Oz is what he does to get ratings. I haven't seen his show for quite a while but it seems like more often than not he is fear mongering over such silly things as dinner mints. Just Google "Dr. Oz and fear mongering" and you get tons of hits about people ranting over how he makes rare incidences into "epidemics." Yet another reason I don't like him is his overuse of that word. This is, of course, only my personal view point so if you like his show, good for you.
Personally I like to gather my health and nutrition information from a variety of sources. If those sources agree, back their statements up with well-performed scientific studies and make sense then I embrace them. That, however, takes a lot of time. Why go to all that work when you could just watch Dr. Oz?
Another thing that bothers me about Dr. Oz is what he does to get ratings. I haven't seen his show for quite a while but it seems like more often than not he is fear mongering over such silly things as dinner mints. Just Google "Dr. Oz and fear mongering" and you get tons of hits about people ranting over how he makes rare incidences into "epidemics." Yet another reason I don't like him is his overuse of that word. This is, of course, only my personal view point so if you like his show, good for you.
Personally I like to gather my health and nutrition information from a variety of sources. If those sources agree, back their statements up with well-performed scientific studies and make sense then I embrace them. That, however, takes a lot of time. Why go to all that work when you could just watch Dr. Oz?
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