Bloodwork Results

So this whole raw vegan thing is leaking into other areas of my life.  I thought it would only effect my food intake.  Boy was I wrong.  It has made me rethink a lot of what I do - like what I put on my skin as far as lotion goes, my overall internal health (hence meeting with a nutritionist) and so much more. 

Another large area that it has impacted is how I approach dealing with the MS.  Aside from the obvious (to me) physical symptoms I have had over the years, I have had NO IDEA what it was doing to the inside of my body (aside from doing damage to my brain and spinal cord).  I never fully realized what having a chronic illness can really do to your body.  My body is constantly trying to fight off this 'disease' and it always loses.  Maybe I can help it out by making the changes I'm in the process of making.  I want to help my immune system fight this battle!

Today I met with Dr. Hartman (nutritionist) again.  We discussed a few things, so here's the recap.  We more closely examined my bloodwork and these are the trouble areas:

• Cholesterol, Triglycerides and LDL were high (ironic, huh, given my diet? and the fact that I have had good levels for years - although he did tell me that other factors of my health are more likely the cause of this)
• Glucose is too low - i.e. hypoglycemia (this is why I need to eat every two hours)
• WBC (white blood cells) are too low (very typical of someone who has a chronic illness)
• Neutrophils are low (this is connected to the low WBC)
• SGOT (AST) is high (this is a liver enzyme and is most likely because of a previous medication I was on for MS)
• SGPT (ALT) is quite high (this is also a liver enzyme and is most likely because of a previous medication I was on for MS)
• GGTP is very high (this is an enzyme or protein made by cells lining the bile duct, which is sensative to any inflammation in the liver - again this is most likely because of a previous medication I was on for MS)
• Total Bilirubin is high (again, this is related to the liver issues)
• Sodium is one point higher than normal (supposedly connected to some of the other stuff going on)
• CO2 is too low (this is connected to energy, i.e. glucose, so it makes sense that this is low as well since my glucose is low)
• BUN is too low (again, connected to the low liver levels)
• Phosphorus is low

A lot of these items are connected to one another and are further complicated because of the MS running through my system.  I just don't want to get into the detail of it all here.  One thing I will say is that it more fully hit me today how upset I am that a medication I was taking to help the MS, didn't actually help me and in fact, it has hurt my liver function, in addition to related functions.  So in my qwest for better health, I can't help but deal with all areas of my health, not just the food.

So this week I am beginning to take fish oil and also Glutathion (which is in a lotion/cream form).  I need to have some additional bloodwork done to fine tune the regimen for the immune support I mentioned in my previous post so I anticipate getting started on that in the near future.  These last few months have been a very, very good opportunity for me to practice my patience!

No-Nonsense Nutritionist

Yesterday I had an appointment with Dr. Hartman who is a nutritionist.  It was my initial visit with him so it was overall more talk than action or decision making, but we had a great conversation - I learned a lot.  I briefly shared why I was there to see him - I want to do whatever I can to get my body in optimal working order to help with the MS and I also want to make sure I am doing this whole raw vegan thing in a correct, healthy manner.

We discussed the foods I eat and the changes that I have experienced. I'll be honest, I have had some concerns along the way for sure.  I have asked myself the same questions that many people have asked me.  Where do I get my protein?  (How important is protein anyway?)  What other nutrients am I missing out on?  Am I eating enough?  Should I be eating other types of foods that I am not? 

I was so worried that I would get reprimanded by a nutritionist for going raw vegan (since I'm missing like over half of the food pyramid!), but I got the complete opposite reaction!  YAY!  There was a small piece of me that hoped he would hear my story and say that I should add bread, pasta, whole grains, etc., back into my diet.  Then, with a clear conscience, I could eat more of the things that I had been craving recently.  That obviously backfired on me! :) ha!  He was impressed and proud of me for making these changes and told me to KEEP IT UP!!  So I'm keeping it up!  Especially now that I have someone to help guide me along my way so I don't get lost.  I have to say, though, that I am quite pleased that I just dove into this in the first place.  I think it was good that I took that chance and just went for it even though I was uncertain.

After I had given him a summary of why I was there, he told me that I am a "breath of fresh air".  I suppose most of his patients come to him because they HAVE to, not because they WANT to.  I am definitely in the want category.  He had SO much to say to me, that his mouth opened, but no words came out - he was that excited about it! :)  I told him to spit it out and that I was ready to hear what he had to say.  He laughed and said that he just had SO much that he wanted to share, he didn't even know where to start! 

MS INITIAL THOUGHTS:
He went on to talk about how he could help me with the MS and the various supplements available and the goals he would have in helping get my auto-immune system back in tip top shape.  All natural and seemingly pretty uncomplicated!  (Although I'll learn even more next week.)  So far, these are the specific pieces to help with the MS:

• Vitamin D (which I'm actually already on, but we'll work on making sure it's the correct amount)
• Fish Oil
• Glutathione (still working on learning about this one!)
• Immune Support (also still learning about this one!)
• Eat a Gluten Free diet (yay!  I already do this one! :) )

RAW VEGAN INITAL THOUGHTS:
Now, regarding the raw vegan diet - this will be discussed in more depth next week as this appt. focused more on the MS side of things.  First of all, Dr. Hartmann said that 30% of my calories for the day should come from protein!  MUCH more than I ever thought and knew (see my previous post about FAQ's).  I'm TRYING, by drinking my dark, leafy green vegetables in green smoothies and by eating nuts.  But he said for the time being I should definitely eat even more nuts than I already am.

I'm sure you've noticed via my blog that I've had a rough past couple of weeks.  I have been struggling with truly sticking to the raw vegan plan, have felt boughts of tiredness throughout the day and have lost absolutely no weight.  Now this is a doozy...

I need to eat more frequently.

What has happened over time is that as my body adjusted to having a drastically lower calorie intake, my stomach didn't seem to need as much food.  So I would eat less and less because I wasn't hungry.  It didn't seem quite right to me, but I figured since I wasn't hungry, why should I eat?!  Well, these last two weeks are a prime example of why I need to eat even when I don't feel hungry.  So the plan now is that I eat every two hours no matter what - even if it's just a handful of nuts or a piece of fruit, but something to get my blood sugar and glucose levels back up.

No wonder I have been constantly fighting the urge to go get non-raw foods!  My body just wanted the calories and the energy!  Like I mentioned, this didn't happen in the beginning b/c my body was still in transition, but now that it has been 11 weeks, I think my body has really adapted to the raw vegan diet and now my brain just has to follow. :)  Again, I have to readjust my thinking and approach and how I look at this new lifestyle.  Sometimes it hits me just how much I didn't know what I was getting myself into!

I'm pretty sure there will be additional bloodwork and other tests to figure out the details so we can fine tune my nutrition plan.  Dr. Hartman is a wonderful man and I am so blessed to have found him!

How do YOU want to live the latter years of your life?

I was at my general/family (as opposed to MS) doctor's office today waiting in the waiting room and enjoying my time people watching.  This is what I observed:

• Most of the patients were on the elderly side (at least 60 to probably 80 years old).
• All those elderly patients were women.
• Every elderly woman was obese, not just overweight.
• Every elderly woman was not able to walk normally.
• Some of the elderly women had breathing issues.
• Only one of the elderly women had a happy demeanor and actually smiled.

{On a side note, this bullet list reminds me of those math word problems where you have to answer a question like: How many elderly women who were overweight had breathing issues and were happy? :) }

 I don't want to ever be like these elderly women!

• I want to be able to breathe normally and without effort.
• I want to be able to walk easily and without pain.
• I want to be at a healthy weight.
• I want to be like the one happy woman and have a good attitude and outlook, despite what my circumstances may be.
• I want to be able to have a higher quality of life.

Amazing what life lessons you can see when you actually open your eyes and pay attention.  THIS is why I am changing my lifestyle.  I want to be the 80-year-old woman who goes to the doctor for an annual check up and skips through the front door, filled with joy and energy, and leaves with an A+ from the dr. and a clean bill of health.

I felt sad for those women.

What would you rather be like?