My GAPS journey may be officially starting today - as in I took the plunge and am starting on the intro diet TODAY. But my journey overall started many years ago. I actually do not have multiple health issues. I have one big issue that basically has controlled most of my life over the last 10 years or so. So I will start my story with why I am starting this very difficult diet.
It all started when I was 6 months old - my mom has pictures of me with bleeding cheeks. I had eczema. Back then in the 70's, eczema was common and parents were told that the child would outgrow it. Well I never outgrew it and many children started to not outgrow it when they became an adult. One doctor in California discovered that the eczema developed into an "addiction" to the steroid creams more and more children were being prescribed. I started on steroid creams around the ago of 10 or so. My eczema was starting to get bad around those years of developing hormones. And it never left....and neither did my dependence on those steroid creams. The absorption of the creams differed depending on where on the body the creams were placed, how often, and the strength of the prescription. Let's just say I had a large amount of cream absorbed over many years. Fast forward to my early 30's when having babies. My skin kept getting worse, my liver was bad (no drinking, no illicit drug use, and no hepatitis), and my health overall was fading fast. I was exhausted on a daily basis, I couldn't stop gaining weight, and I could barely take care of myself and 3 children. My doctors kept telling me to use more creams and to see a liver specialist. Well, I got tired of my doctors and went off on my own. I was still using steroid creams but only over the counter strength. My skin was horrible for 3-4 years but then slowly started to improve. I started taking milk thistle for my liver and brought my liver enzymes to within normal. I was just starting my journey to more natural health.
Then about 6 years ago, my husband and I decided I should go back to work...I had been off for over 5 years due to my health being so bad and we didn't know why. I was better and eating more healthy. It was around this time I learned about the GAPS diet but felt confident I didn't need it as I had dropped 100 lbs, was eating all natural (the Weston A Price way of eating) and had only a few skin irritations. Well, the stress of being an Emergency Room nurse took its toll on me quickly. I started eating garbage again due to time constraints and started using more and more steroid creams as my skin started to worsen. Then approximately 4 years ago, I discovered the notion that the steroid creams were the cause of my worsening skin. It all made sense. So I pitched the creams and went into a full body flare. My body was basically craving the creams. Withdrawal could last years. So my husband picked up overtime and I had to quit working once again. I suffered horribly and started gaining weight again. I was in pain on a regular basis and the constant itching was unbearable. The only thing I took was benadryl, tylenol, and motrin. I didn't want to use any other medications. I went on a journey to discover I had gene mutations like MTHFR and many others that affected my healing. I started special supplements and improved dramatically where I could at least work part time. I was trying to eat better but was always unsuccessful due to so much stress. I felt that doing GAPS at that point may actually make me worse. With GAPS, the body detoxifies significantly and the biggest detoxifying organ is the skin. Causing more irritation to my skin was just not fathomable. The pain I was already in was too much. I thought I would try it once my skin improved. Well my skin improved, but I got worse in other areas. I developed severe asthma, worsening food allergies, and chronic hives. I have tried dealing with these issues over the last few years through natural means like Chinese herbs and whatnot, but those problems continue to linger.
So that brings me to where I am at today. I recently changed my job so my stress level has reduced dramatically. I still have a demanding job but it is more controlled as are my hours. I no longer have to work nights or odd hours except for the days I am on call. And on those nights, I will only be called in for special cases. I have reduced my hives by trying to eat more low histamine and staying away from dairy. My asthma is aggravated by mold in the house and dairy and gluten. I can't do much about the mold as we rent. However we are building a new house on our property and we should be moving in 4-6 months, so that will fix that area. I no longer suffer with painful, oozing skin. If I scratch, it does not tear easily. So I now know my skin can handle the detox process of GAPS. I feel that it is now time. I have 3 days off this weekend and while I will have many bad days I'm assuming, the 3 worst days will be in the beginning as I come off all sugar and caffeine.
The issues I am hoping to fix permanently with GAPS are my chronic hives (or histamine intolerance), food sensitivities, asthma, weight gain (currently 60 lbs overweight), and chronic fatigue. While I have more energy than I used to....it definitely is not at a normal level by any means. I would put my whole family on GAPS, but at this point I have learned to not overdo it. My kids are in their teens and while very disciplined, I would not have the patience to deal with their issues going through GAPS as well as my own. None of them have any health issues. One daughter gets hand eczema during the winter but hand creams work good on her. So I will press on with GAPS for myself and then transition them to GAPS (full diet - not intro) as I head in that direction. We already eat relatively healthy in many ways - we have been drinking raw milk for over 6 years now and all meat is as natural as God intended. We also eat organic produce and eggs. We don't drink soda at home. Once in a while I will allow them to have soda when we eat out. We never eat fast food. If we go out, it is usually to Cracker Barrel or some other restaurant with healthier options.
As of today, I have skin irritation on my forearms (where I get most of my hives), a few spots on my face, and my neck. I use my nebulizer for my asthma about 3 times a day. I was up to 6-7 times a day at one point, but the Chinese herbs and staying away from dairy has helped reduce that. I get tired to the point I want to fall asleep about 2 times a day. The rest of the day I feel tired, but able to get things done. After work I can sometimes work up the energy to take a 1 mile walk. All housework is done by our kids (yes, we do pay them). I will be cooking for myself only as I have taught my kids to cook so they can cook their own meals and get help from hubby if needed. I will have to plan my meals weekly and be diligent in packing my lunch for work. I am not sure how well this will go with working as it requires a lot of time prepping food. But here I go....
