The Aches & Pains...My Story!

Hey Everyone!

So here's my story: During High School, I started developing stomach and headaches almost daily. My parents took me to numerous doctors who all shook their head and couldn't figure out what was wrong with me--stress, IBS? All of my tests came back normal, but the stomach aches never went away. At this time my parents had also spent a lot of time in Belize so we were all treated for Giardia. I also began to have joint pain, night sweats and lethargy despite adequate sleep. Throughout college, my problems became much worse, until a time I remember when I started eating only salads for every meal. I knew if I added a couple croutons I would be balled up in pain.  I lost a lot of weight and felt amazing. However, this diet could only last for so long (because at some point you have to eat again) and I soon found myself in pain again.

In 2004, I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease by a primary care doctor. I had not been tested for this previously. I took my diagnosis in shock and started the Gluten-Free diet. I had never heard of being intolerant to "gluten".  I researched everything and tried to do everything right. I felt better at first, but then soon some of the symptoms started back. Next I eliminated Casein (as is often recommended with Celiac Disease). Again, I felt better for a short period, but relapsed back into pain. This pattern continued for a number of years until moving to Atlanta and getting married. At this point I had eliminated sugar, dairy, soy, meat, gluten and eggs from my diet. I tried to thrive on just honey, vegetables, fruit and fish.  I actually felt much better but I would struggle on and off with stomach aches and all the other evils whenever I ate anything different (which happened about once a week when I would try a potato or chips).

Then in the Fall of 2009, I was training for a marathon and seeing a Naturopath--hoping to finally get the answers I needed.  I also must add the Naturopath bills were out of control--but if I felt better, it was worth it.  The marathon training (70 miles/week) required more carbs and I started eating a lot of potatoes, sweet potatoes and quinoa.  Additonally, the Naturopath put me on a rice protein powder fortified with a bunch of vitamins and about $200/month of other supplements.  Little did I know all of these things were making me very sick.  I started just eating dinner and starving all day because I knew if I ate anything during the day I would develop terrible stomach and head pain and brain fog and couldn't do my work or training run. 

During 2009, I also started suffering from bouts of dizziness, sore throats, difficulty staying asleep, body aches, cuts in the corners of my lips and this terrible problem where I couldn't get a deep breath.  My mom was also having the same breathing problem.  We thought it was too coincidental to be something like a lung or heart problem and she had everything tested.  We were shocked when my mom was diagnosed with GERD and a narrowing trachea from years of reflux.  The breathing problem was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. I could abstain from food all day and was still able to train and get my work done, but the breathing problem put a serious hamper on my running and life.  I wasn't going to live with it nor was I going to take the drugs from the doctor that I had taken in the past. I was done with medical doctors & I was hungry!!  In 10 years doctors had not fixed the problem, despite doing everything they said to a "T".

The Naturopath had also done a test of the pH in my stomach and said my stomach was not acidic enough.  Nothing made sense--too much acid or too little?  The best answer that I did get from the Naturopath was that I had a yeast overgrowth problem...ugh. "It's really, really high," is what he told me. They wanted me to go on a no carb diet (no fruit even!).  I couldn't do it. How was I going to train for a marathon with ZERO carbs for energy? I took the supplements he gave me and broke out like crazy from what he called detox. I had terrible cystic sores all over my forehead, upper leg, back and neck.  Never in my life had I developed acne on my legs, neck or back! I developed rashes everywhere and deep cuts in the corner of my lips that lasted for a month (I had struggled with these previously--apparently caused by yeast).  This was on top of the $300/month I was spending on taking supplements (for the yeast, thyroid support, iodine (tested low), protein powder, probiotics, estrogen support, magnesium (tested low), B vitamins (tested low), cod liver oil and a multi vitamin. The Naturopath had a list of about 10 other supplements he wanted me to take, but there was NO way we could afford anymore.

 That Fall, my sister-in-law was diagnosed with Crohn's disease and I had heard of the SCD Diet from a friend who's dad had used it to heal from Crohn's after many years of medicine and surgeries. As I researched the diet for her I was shocked to see that it could help with Celiac Disease and other intestinal problems. I wondered if I should try this diet...but put it off because I couldn't imagine eating eggs, cheese and meat again (however it sounded tasty) and I didn't have Crohn's disease like many of the other blogs of people I read on the diet. Then one night, I was home and in complete pain and frustrated about my breathing problem since I had just returned from a failed run.  I decided to research the diet some more and stumbled upon the Austin SCD Friends website:  http://www.austinscdfriends.com/page/page/3689765.htm. I almost cried when I read Kay's story describing how she had Celiac Disease and the same breathing problems (narrowing esophagus) and how SCD has put her symptoms in remission. Her whole life story in her 50's sounded like mine in my 20's. I decided I was going to give this diet a try with the hope that FINALLY I could find an answer and live a semi-normal life. The best part of this diet was that I could actually add foods back to my diet! No more starving hopefully!  I couldn't wait to eat breakfast and lunch again. :)  I started the diet the next day. My next post will describe my first day which went great!