There Is Power In Knowledge

I loved school. I've always valued education and believe that it can have a great impact on peoples' lives. As I've grown older I still value education only my perspective on what education is has shifted a bit. I believe education is the pursuit of knowledge both spiritual and temporal, whether in a formal setting or not. I also believe that there is power in knowledge, which is why I continually try to educate myself. Knowledge can bring enlightenment to a hope-less situation. Knowledge can bring guidance to the lost. Knowledge can empower someone to change and make a difference in the world around them. I have experienced the power of knowledge and have found that it really has made all the difference in my life. Because of knowledge I can understand and have peace about challenges in my life. Knowledge has given me a foundation on which to build myself.

I have been amazed recently with some people I've met how they don't take advantage of the knowledge around, but rather sit confused and in a stupor, figuring that it'll all just work out magically somehow. And they are right, it will. But where I see the difference is in the quality of life they have in the interim. My life is much happier and much more peaceful when I have an understanding about what is going on. For me that means I am going to research and use the resources I have been given. Knowledge may not always fix my life but it makes the quality of my life better.

We live in a world now where knowledge is all around us. We are blessed to have more knowledge at our fingertips than most scholars had access to 'back in the day'. That's not to say that acquiring knowledge these days is easy. In fact I think it is just as difficult as it used to be. Because there is so much information available to us, through the internet and all the research that is currently being done, it is difficult to sift through it all and decide what is really true and what just sounds good. It's easy to go to someone's blog and read about, oh I don't know.... the oats controversy in a gluten free diet, but just because it's there doesn't mean it's true.
** On a side note, I do try to only write about information that I have researched and believe for myself. It's up to my readers to do their research too and decide for themselves if what I say is true.

Just because it's difficult though doesn't mean it isn't worth it. For me taking the easy way out and just letting life work itself out isn't an option. I want the power that knowledge brings with it. I want the peace and understanding. I want to use the knowledge I obtain to make my life better than it could have been. So I'll keep researching and sifting through information. I may make mistakes, I may get frustrated, but to me it's worth it.

Curly Hair

I figured since I eluded to the fact that I would explain my new curly hair I should probably live up to it.

I mentioned a while ago, as in when I first started this blog, that I lost a lot of hair when I was really sick. This was pretty traumatic (that might be a bit of an exaggeration) for me. I loved me hair. It was thick, shiny, rich colored, silky soft, and I didn't need to do anything to it. I would just wash it, let it dry, and it would be movie start straight with just the right amount of volume (that might be a bit of an exaggeration too, it wasn't always perfect). I always got compliments on my hair, and I liked that.Well I guess we all need a bit of humbling. When I got sick I lost over half of my hair. It turned a funny rusty-dull color, was dry and brittle, and flat as a board.

Since I've gotten better my hair has come back to me, only different. It's not quite as thick anymore, or as soft, but my rich color has come back and on most days it's shiny and healthy looking. Oh and it's curly now... which isn't too much of a surprise because my mom and brother have curly hair and when I was really little my hair was curly too.

By request of Em T here's a picture:

My hair is so curly in fact that it's a pain to straighten it anymore (although I'll admit straight hair is more flattering to my face. Hmmm.... I'm sensing some more humbling needed). Since I'm not really the kind of person who enjoys spending loads of time getting ready I have been trying to figure out what to do. While I do straighten it once a week (which lasts about 3 days) I don't like to do it too often because of the damaging heat.

Here are some things that I have been using lately.

Kinky Curly Come Clean Shampoo and Knot Today Conditioner
   
On days I know I am going to keep my hair curly I use these. They are all natural products, they smell great, and they are great for naturally curly hair.

Kinky Curly Curling Custard

During the winter months this is a great styling product to use. It only takes a little bit, but it does a good job keeping the frizz down. It also leaves your hair feeling soft and natural, not like you have a stiff gel or other product in it like most other curly hair products. During the summer however, it doesn't do so good because it will actually draw water to your hair making it frizzier.

Herbal Essence Tousle Me Softly Mousse

I use this in the summer months. It controls frizz and holds the curl, but without any stiffness or crunch. It just leaves natural, soft feeling hair. This is what I used the day I took the picture.

I've enjoyed playing with my 'new' hair. I don't know if it will last or what I'll think of it years down the road. Right now I'm just glad it grew back at all.

Apparently I'm just really sensitive.

I don't mean emotionally, although a few my contest that point.

I mean my sensitivity to gluten. I try my hardest to live my life 100% gluten-free. I take measures that most would say are extreme. And yet I am healthier and happier for it so I am not going to change. However, because I have been so strict from the very beginning it has not allowed me to see how sensitive I really am. Recently however I have had a couple experiences that have made me realize how sensitive to gluten I truly am.

The first one really blew my mind. For Christmas my younger brother got me some salon-grade shampoo and conditioner I like. I had already been using the conditioner for a while, but hadn't splurged on the shampoo yet. I started using them right away, and loved them! After the Christmas holidays I started to noticed that my bowels were off. I would have minor cramps and bowel inconsistency. After several weeks of this I went over everything I was eating trying to figure out what was contaminating me. But I couldn't find anything, so I just let it go. A couple weeks later I was out at the store looking for hair products, trying to find something to tame my newly curly hair (more on that later). As I was looking at products I noticed that a lot of them had gluten in them. I decided not to get them, just in case. (At the time I remember questioning myself about whether that was just too extreme.) But then I had a thought. Had I checked the shampoo and conditioner I got for Christmas for gluten? I went home and checked. The conditioner was clean, but lo and behold the shampoo had gluten. So I stopped using them and within a few days my symptoms stopped.
Now let me first say that just using something with gluten in it topically does not induce a gluten reaction. The gluten has to be ingested. I was somehow ingesting enough of it through cross-contamination that it was giving me grief. I don't know how, but it did. That was my first clue that I was WAY sensitive to gluten.

The second one didn't surprise me as much, but it still gave me a clue to my sensitivity level and how I need to live me life going forward. While I was visiting my brothers at college I attended the schools Celiac Club dinner. A group of people with Celiac Disease meet once a week and share dinner. This was the first time in two years that I went to an event and ate freely. Bad move on my part. I still got sick from it. My guess is (and I am pretty confident in this) that the food got contaminated in preparation. Students made the dinner. They all live with roommates who eat gluten and who don't have any clue about cross-contamination issues. This made me realize that my resolve to have my home gluten-free is a good one. It would be so easy to get contaminated with sticky, crumby kids running around. I want to be a healthy, symptom-free mom when that time comes.

As I am becoming more aware of my sensitivity to gluten I am also becoming more aware that many other people with Celiac Disease aren't as sensitive. And actually science is beginning to back this up. It was first thought that anyone with Celiac disease would have the same reaction to the same amount of gluten. It was also believed that Gluten Intolerance, Gluten Sensitivity, and Celiac Disease were completely different things. While it's true that the reactions and severity differ, science is beginning to think that maybe they are not so different after all. The thought is slowly coming out that maybe all of these things fit together on a continuum with Gluten Intolerance being the least sensitive and Celiac Disease being the most sensitive, with different levels of sensitivity in each defined group.

There is still a lot of research to be done to fully connect all of them and there is actually a lot of controversy in the matter. Some people believe that it's unfair to those who have Celiac Disease to link Gluten Intolerance and Gluten Sensitivity into the same category because those who have Celiac Disease have certain genes, whereas those who are intolerant or sensitive don't necessarily need to have those genes. Also, the reaction in Celiac Disease has been proven to be an autoimmune response resulting in villus atrophy, whereas in intolerance and sensitivity that's not the case.

I don't know the answer to this, but I think the information is interesting. I do believe that there is varying sensitivity levels in those with Celiac Disease and I think that science is beginning to realize this as well. It's good for me to know how sensitive I truly I am so that I can live my life in the way I need to, even though some people may think me a bit extreme....

Eating Out

"Hey guys let's all go to Olive Garden!" Can I just say that I love Olive Garden, and yet it is probably the scariest place on earth I could go right now. Between the pasta and the dairy, you might as well just give me a death sentence; or at least I'll wish I was dead. But seriously, eating out is not something that I am doing right now.

There are a few restaurants (not Oilive Garden) that offer gluten-free menus but then there is still the issue of cross-contamination in preparation. Several of the books I have read have said that it's not a big deal; all you have to do is go into the restaurant and explain the situation to the server and they will be happy to accommodate you. One book even suggested that you print out a card that explains your 'special' needs. These authors also suggested that you might need to check labels of some of the restaurant's ingredients. One person even said that she has had her server bring her a two gallon bucket of dressing to the table so she could read the ingredients. Plus the fact that after all that there is still a chance that your food will be contaminated.

I'm sorry but I am not about to do any of that. Plus I've worked in the food industry before, I know what goes on behind the scenes. Here's how it usually goes down...
Server: "No problem ma'am. We'll do our best."
In the kitchen... Server: "This crazy lady at table 42 has some 'special' instructions for the cooks. You need to..."
Cooks: "Awww.. come on... you've got to be kidding me! If she has so many issues why doesn't she just stay home and cook for herself!! What do we look like personal chefs!?! We don't have time to worry about all this; we've got other orders to fill!"
(This is when they decide to either spit in your food or ignore the 'special' instructions. Either way, I don't want to eat the food.)

There would also be a lot of colorful language which I left out; but they are right. In my opinion restaurants are there to serve what they offer, which is on the menu. They are not there to serve our every need and desire. If you want all your needs satisfied get your own chef, cook for yourself, or bring your own food when you go to restaurants. I have brought my own food to restaurants and haven't gotten kicked out yet, but usually I just cook for myself; although, I think my mom could qualify as a personal chef. :) The nutritionist I went to gave me a good tip for eating out. She said, "Stick with the extremes of restaurants. Go to either the really cheap ones like Taco Bell and Wendy's or the really expensive ones. The cheap ones really don't have a way to cross-contaminate your food because of the assembly line process they have going on. The expensive ones cater to more individual needs. The middle ground, like Chili's, Outback, and Macaroni Grill is where you can get into the most trouble. They have a strict menu and don't tend to cater to specific individual needs."

 Like I said before, I personally don't think that eating out is a good idea unless the restaurant has separate cooking areas for gluten and gluten-free items, and has practices against cross-contamination. There are a few restaurants where I live that have good practices that I might try once I feel better. You can easily do Google searches for your area to find if there is anything near you.

Change

I like change. I find it challenging; and I love a good challenge! Besides change can always be a positive thing as long as you make it a positive thing. Being diagnosed with Celiac Disease definitely meant some change. But I was also filled with excitement. The gluten-free diet is certainly a learning curve but I have been enjoying every moment of it.

Well, just to keep the excitement going I am adding in some more change. I've been gluten-free for a month and the truth of the matter is that I am still sick. Earlier this week I decided it was the little bits of milk I was getting (I am lactose intolerant due to the damage of my villi); the chocolate, the margarine, the gluten-free brownies, etc. So, I decided to be 100% dairy-free too. Unfortunately, being dairy-free did not help me from being sick this weekend; and I mean SICK. I haven't been that sick in a while. This morning I was trying to figure it out. Had I gotten gluten somewhere? That just seems impossible, I've been very cautious. It wasn't the dairy because a) I hadn't eaten anything with dairy in a few days and b) this was a different kind of sick (yes, I can tell the difference). All of a sudden I realized, I had eaten something with yeast in it this weekend. I don't normally eat things with yeast. The last time I ate something with yeast I was really sick too.

Now, I don't think I am allergic to yeast but it does make sense for something else: Candida Overgrowth Candida is a bacteria (bad) in your intestinal system. Normally you have a very small amount. However, due to things like stress, poor diet, or other health problems, candida can multiple at a very high rate causing the balance of good to bad bacteria to be off which causes intestinal problems. When you ingest things like yeast and sugar it feeds the growth of the candida causing an even higher reproduction rate and more issues. I know for a fact that the good to bad bacteria ratio is off in my system. This is due to deterioration of my intestines and malabsorption. This is also why my doctor had me start taking a probiotic (good bacteria in pill form). I figure maybe the balance is just a little more off than we expected and I need to take a few extra steps in trying to right the ratio of good and bad bacteria.

So, back to the change thing; I have also decided to cut out all yeast and refined sugar from my diet as well. (At this point I will do whatever it takes to feel better) The yeast won't be a problem at all. However, I am a self proclaimed sugar addict. It's going to take some getting used to; and I'm pretty sure I am going to face withdrawls. But, like I said before, change can be a good thing if you make it a good thing. I have always wanted to conquer my addiction and eat healthier. It will also allow me to try new ways of eating that may even be better than sugar. Who knows what I'm gonna find! I am still excited for it all.

 So just a quick recap; I am now: gluten-free, dairy-free, yeast-free, sugar-free (refined).  I always love a good challenge!!