Re:Re: Does lowering your carbs also lower your energy?

[Guest guest]

Hey Holly,

I totally missed this post! Sorry it's taken a bit to answer.

> The saliva test, TSH (which was high), and free T4 (which was normal) are the

only tests I've had. I'm STILL trying to get one of my docs to run the other

thyroid tests, and I'll also ask about the adrenal antibodies and DHEA tests. I

had the epstein barr test in the past, but it's probably been a couple of years.

Yeah, it's rough getting docs on board with this stuff.

It's really important they test RT3 too even if everything else looks normal.

DHEA is a good one when it comes to adrenals.

Just having illness and going through surgery can cause your adrenals to be

shaken up quite a bit not to mention steroid usage.

> How much fat can you handle? I've gotten up to the 70's (grams) as of late,

and seem to be okay. I'm just scared of another " attack, " although I really

don't know for certain whether it was pancreas, biliary, or maybe even a hiatal

hernia. The pain was in the center, behind the lower part of the rib cage, and

worse in the back. Hopefully my GI can shed some light on things next month.

I don't really count the grams. I've tried that route and it made me a bit

obsessive. I have to deal with guilt when it comes to eating anyway. I just

always feel like I am screwing up somehow since surgery as my BM's are so wildly

inconsistent.

I have discomfort too, right under right rib cage radiates to my back.

I hope your GI sheds light- I'm dreading needing to go to mine as I need to have

a colonoscopy. Did your doc talk to you at all about how long post surgery your

first colonoscopy would be?

> I cooked a pancake in coconut oil yesterday, so I can handle at least a little

bit (I think I only used a teaspoon). Avocados are iffy though.

OK. I find if I don't do much of the animal fats I can handle an avocado- I mix

it in with banana and coconut yogurt (which I have to watch how high the

coconut/water ratio is because if it's too fatty I'm not the happiest camper) I

find that avocado straight up doesn't go well. I am also reading about

Traditional Chinese Medicine and how food combining works. It has really helped

me notice what makes my fatigue worse.

> *TMI Alert* I hoped that lowering carbs would help my BMs, but no such luck. I

have not found a reason as to why they are so inconsistent (fine one day, mushy

another, D the next). Worse, I have days where I have small amounts of mushy

stool with gas throughout the day. Sometimes I think I'm wasting my time trying

to come up with what food might be the issue, and that's it's just from lacking

the ileocecal valve. But why fine one day, and not the next? A puzzle I cannot

solve.

You know that is exactly what I experience!! I feel I go crazy sometimes. I

have no pain or anything and bowel wise do well but the BMs are so inconsistent.

It's like relearning new tools post surgery as I can't go by any kind of BM to

gauge how I am doing.

I get watery stools and mush and the next day it's much more formed. That's why

I sometimes take questran which I haven't found the right dosage yet. And it

makes my BM sandy! I don't get it.

I tried the lower carb kick too and it seemed to work for a while as well as

upping probiotics (I eat with every meal)

But very little carb makes me feel awful energy wise so the second I add stuff

in whammo BM's odd.

I don't know if this is just something I need to reconcile with as a side effect

of surgery.

I'm told " bulking " foods like rice, quinoa, buckwheat would help this. I just

am at a loss.

> I used to drink green tea, but stopped because it was staining my teeth so

bad. Maybe I'll start up again. I also like your idea of rotating high and low

carb days too. It's worth a shot at least.

Yeah, it can help..

You ever buy toothpaste with Xylitol in it?

That may help with staining.

> Sorry to hear you're still struggling with fatigue too :-(. You would think we

would be past all of that by now! Do you have any pains from your surgery still,

or are they gone? I recently have started having twinges at the area of my

resection. I'm hoping it's just nerves getting around to regrowing, but it

worries me. I'm actually kind of hoping my GI will want to do a colonoscopy

soon. How nuts is that!

My fatigue can be due to Hypopnea- I am seeing a cranial dentist now to help me

with this because the CPAP machine is not helping with energy levels.

But I have awful adrenal burn-out

My TCM doc is really helping.

I have pains from my surgical hernia sight (which will be operated on after

summer- I know they keep pushing it off since they are happy with how my bowel

has healed) and I get twinges sometimes where my ileum used to be. You know

they take out our appendix too when ileum area is removed. I read something

about this idea of maybe the appendix having to do with immune system

regulation. Sometimes I wonder if " muscle memory " type of thing happens there?

Sometimes, it also comes down to " it hurts to heal " perhaps it some kind of scar

tissue formation. Not sure.

Jodi