Status post-Mexico

In picturesque Tapalpa

So we just got back from our 2-week Mexico trip. While we had a good time, enjoyed beautiful surroundings, met lots of nice people, swam in the Pacific (I even got to go snorkeling!!), and ate plenty of delicious food, I am sad to report that the trip took its toll on our health -- at least, the health of Oliver and me. The saddest thing is that Oliver lost weight. I had no ability to get good food for him, it was extremely impractical to shop at a market and do any cooking (something I had not expected), we had to ration the raw milk we brought down to 1 cup per day (which I made into kefir), and Oliver basically refused to eat any wholesome food there, instead yelling for fruit and sweet beverages that were present at every meal. Sigh. Our digestion suffered (both his and mine) but it was because we were eating foods our bodies aren't used to (and never did well on). As you probably know, we have been on a healing diet that is mostly no-grain, no-starch for a few months now, which went completely to pieces in Mexico, as expected.

Due to eating differently (corn every day, sometimes at every meal, plus way more fruit than I'm used to, plus beans - which I LOVED!) and having some sugar - albeit very small amounts, I now have experienced in the past 5 days since returning: 1) a bad acne breakout (which has not been a problem AT ALL since going on the GAPS diet), 2) very heavy painful period for the first time in YEARS, 3) the beginnings of athlete's foot (that niggling little pain between your two smallest toes-sound familiar? I vanquished that long ago, without even noticing), and 4) a return of the painful Bartholin cyst I have not had for a long time. It's a benign vaginal cyst that can be the size of a small walnut. It is already shrinking and will go away soon, but I had forgotten how unpleasant it is and also that I even used to have it at all!! I have also been very tired and lethargic in the late afternoons, as before when I had a thyroid problem, and interestingly enough the lymph node in my neck that had shrunk after starting GAPS (after being large for a year) has now gotten bigger again... The good news is that I have stopped feeling bad after eating since we returned. While there, even after eating a delicious meal that I enjoyed very much, I often felt tired or over-heated after the meal was over, and often craved sweets. By the end of the trip I wanted sugar or fruit several times a day and was DYING for some French fries (a sign of fatty acid deficiency), probably because I had none of my usual daily servings of lard and butter. It made me recall how I used to crave fries and chips constantly! Ugh, such torture. It has been so nice to be free of those cravings.

As for Oliver, he is covered with mosquito bites and scrapes that are simply refusing to heal. Usually he heals within 1-2 days, tops. We returned at midnight Thursday night, and by Sunday Oliver was running a fever, which stuck around until early this morning. He has been lethargic, tired, and lying around on the floor way too much for a small boy who is usually filled with boundless energy and health. He even came and lay on the bathroom floor while I took a shower today. :( At last Hugo had the realization that this is probably die-off: symptoms of pathogenic bacteria being killed off and releasing toxins, something that would of course happen after returning to his GAPS diet. He has been excreting lots of mucous in his stool again, too, which we had taken care of well before the trip. As you can see, there was a lot of regressing. But the good news is, that we will both be in tip-top shape again soon, with a little bit of patience, rest, and a return to the diets we need. I am so ready to not be able to see Oliver's little rib-cage anymore! :(

I know some of what I've shared is a bit personal, but that is part of the point of this blog -- to convey through my own experience just how profound an effect food has on our hormones, our immune systems, our digestion, and how we feel on a daily basis.