ifyourstomachoffendsyou

Hi Everyone. Good grief. I'll probably ignore most of the buttons on this thing. I don't do e-mail notification-was driving me nuts. I liked user CP. Could always pick last for the page. I preferred scrolling back to e-mail. Guess I'll save the first page to my favorites and then hit the last page button. So I'll send this and see what it looks like.]

Good grief!

Hi all, Laura, good to hear from you. It's amazing how having work we love and can invest ourselves in helps us live a healthier lifestyle. And Linda you're right. The energy to do what we're passionate about comes from eating right and taking care of ourselves. A snowball effect takes place with the two things fueling each other. I go early every morning to work in order to walk the halls and climb the stairs for 30-40 minutes. Amazing what good shape that puts me in for the day. I put in a 10 hour day and feel good about it. Remember, my husband does grocery shopping, house-cleaning, bill-paying, and all laundry except my clothes. Once in a while I dust furniture, clean counters, and organize my stuff. I've taken to eating a salad most nights with Feta cheese, fruit, and cashews. So not much cooking either. So I can focus on my passion. I gave up all gaming on FB last winter. Gave up my blog, too, once I reached goal. Have all I can do to keep up with FB posts, e-mail, and this thread. Watch a few shows, see my grandkids and go to church on weekends, am in two choirs, and sleep. Works for me. Cheri

Lori, your husband sounds very level-headed about your family of origin. Only you can take away their power to hurt you. Why give them that power another year of your life? You'll know you're getting better when you can laugh at your sister's shaming e-mails. You could e-mail her and say you gave up guilt for Lent and just haven't been inclined to take it back. One of the things that I have learned to say when resentment wants to build up in me over injustice done to me is the following prayer my Alanon sponsor taught me. God bless them twice as much as me and grant them health, happiness and prosperity. She told me to say this three times in a row, three times a day until I could really mean it. I have also said about certain people, "God bless them and keep them...away from me!" Ha! You really didn't want to be invited to their house anyway, did you? Cheri

Coffee on an empty stomach? Reflux! Coffee is full of acid. to neutralize the acid add lowfat milk. Also, don't eat for at least an hour before bedtime. Avoid chocolate, tomatoes and tomato sauces, fatty or greasy foods, tea (including green tea) and never drink pop. All these things are notorious for causing reflux.

Hi all, I tried some of those 100 calorie popcorns and baked Cheetos and Sunchips stuff. Who could stop at one pack? It truly triggers my crunchie salty carb cravings. Not good. Crazy days ahead. Having Thanksgiving here. Basement floor will be bare concrete still, probably but we'll be able to have the tables down there and the Wii set up and chairs all around. Sure won't matter if anyone spills. At least the walls and ceilings will be pretty much done and we'll have a working toilet downstairs so won't be overwhelming the upstairs one. People can split up between the upstairs and downstairs and there'll be plenty of room. Lori so sorry about your PIA relatives. Holidays bring out the worst in people, and we always have expectations that this year things will be different and we will be appreciated and honored. Ha! Welcome newbies. Really tired tonight. Should sleep like a rock. Cheri

Hi all, Just caught up with everyone. No comments. Gotta go to bed. Had a meeting after school. Came home for an hour and caught up on e-mail. Left for choir. Came home and caught up on FB and LBT. Getting up at 5 a.m. as per usual so need my sleep. Julie, have you ever thought about not trying to sleep at night? Seems like you overmedicate at night to kill the pain so you can sleep. Then you can't get up in the morning. Maybe just stay up and stay busy until you can't keep your eyes open. Sleep in your chair as long as you can. Then keep busy until you can't keep your eyes open then sleep again, etc. Maybe your body will find its natural sleep rhythm without knocking yourself out with drugs. You didn't seem to have much pain when you were busy with the wedding. What were you doing then that was working? Maybe having all that work to do kept your mind off the pain? Made you tired enough to sleep? Also, I lost weight while taking Flexerall. I doubt it caused your or Arlene's weight gain. It worked on my trigger points which allowed me to sleep comfortably and move freely throughout the day. Remember I'd had that bad fall and it took at least 6 months to heal. All my trigger points were triggered and firing. Moving freely and sleeping well helps you lose weight. Eating the wrong things triggers my appetite and consequent weight gain. Also, there is a stomach bug doing the rounds that may be responsible for some of the band discomfort people are going through. Definitely nausea is part of it. And, as we all know, major gas issues. Apples, I'm really surprised at your Dr.'s choice of laxatives. Hope it all worked out in the end. LOL. Cheri Cheri

I would have to nominate I80-94 from I65 in Indiana to where It splits into the Illinois Tollway West and 394 (Bishop Ford Freeway) to Chicago North. It's better now because they've added so many lanes and improved the exit and entrance ramps. However, this stretch of highway has the highest truck traffic in the United States. Almost all traffic entering the Chicago area from the Eastern and Southeastern half of the United States goes down that highway. It's called the Borman Expressway. When you look in your rear view mirror and see 4 lanes of truck lights behind you, its pretty scary. Fifth lane is cars only. Used to be only 3 lanes, trucks in every lane. My kids were all raised driving on that expressway before the extra two lanes were added. Once they'd mastered that, I felt like they could safely drive the Indy 500.

Wow! You've really been through a lot, including the Muscular Distrophy. Hope you're receiving counseling. We can help you with the food and band advice and we'll certainly listen and be there for you. But you sound to me like you need support on the spot. No shame in doing what you need to do to get healthy. Cheri

Arlene, I would be totally exasperated with that PA. The amount of food you can eat, dense Protein, is very high. Two hard boiled eggs would have me in the hospital! That is the sign, more than anything else, that you need a fill. I pbd a couple of days before my last fill. Just plain ate the wrong thing. Still had some restriction in the morning but none at night. i could eat a half lb hamburger at night. Doc used floroscope mid-day on me and told me I was wide open. He choose to make me pretty tight and I had several uncomfortable days but I stuck to my liquids and mushies, lost a few lbs and did great. So now you're in bandster hell again. But you have a plan so stick to it. Lori is right. You've said it yourself. You can't have carbs. Even the good for you carbs trigger you. It's fingernail time, but you've done it before and you can do it again. Cheri

Jessica, I hadn't read your second post when I posted this. I don't like the fact that he said what he said in front of your son. On the other hand, you know that hubris, which is part of your disease, can lead you into abandoning your meds and falling off the deep end. Your doc may believe that you need direct confrontation to keep you from doing that. Cheri

It always hurt me, too, when I actually started getting restriction. Gas can cause me that pain. Stick to liquids and mushies and maybe gasx or something until your irritated stomach heals and you lose a few more lbs. That usually took care of it for me. Cheri

Jessica, I take it you agree with your Doc. When working with others your bubbly side comes out. It's not fake. It's really you in that situation. But there's another side. And your doc sees it. Many of us are like that. I am an outwardly "bubbly" person, upbeat and optimistic. I am passionate about my work and I love children. But I'm also very private. I have a very sober side. I am very private about many of my deepest feelings, self-doubts, and fears. Generally I fake it till I make it. I act competent to feel competent, act happy to feel happy, etc. I pick and choose to whom I will self-reveal. I don't trust many people for fully opening up to. Most aren't trustworthy. They simply can't handle it. I've had good therapists and not so good. With your mental disorder, a good therapist is essential to your long term health. Keep looking. You may need to try out more than one. Whatever you do, stay on your meds. You're doing better than you've ever done in your life. I'm very proud of you. You will tackle this challenge like you've tackled everything else. Just think of it as another self-improvement project. Cheri

Hi everyone, Have gotten through the hardest part of the week. Fridays are a light day for me. Fewer students scheduled, no 6-8th graders except 1X. Free period or two, and no after school teaching. Phew! Tonight I've got regular church choir. Just about blew my voice out last Sunday. We have two altos, two sopranos and 6 men and a poor sound system. Our choir has really shrunk. I like our temporary director but our temporary keyboardest is not great. Hope we fill the position soon and the church actually invests some money in the music ministry. Foods been good the last couple of days. Getting in early to work to get in my exercise. Weight is middle of my range. Still dealing with excess gas. Working on some solutions. Cheri

Hi all, Man, I'm off the thread for two days and it takes me two hours to catch up. Hardly anybody posts weekends which is when I'm on there. No way I can respond to everyone but I do remember that its Apples anniversary. Happy anniversay, Apples. Also Linda's back. Yay! Laura got GERD but is doing better. Yay! New person posting a lot, nice big letters. Welcome. Tex got whipped with a wet noodle, LOL. Char eating lots of oatmeal--remember its carbs, Char. Eva tackling one project after another--next one, food. Yay! Lori-50 states done-Europe next. Yay! LauraK popping in here and there. Jodi's weekly epistle. Janet's advice and good wholesome food choices. Yay! So, inulin and chickory root are definitely the major culprits in my flatulence issues. Digestive enzymes have restored my system otherwise. Lots of kids out with stomach issues this week. One of my students also had an infected arm his mom sent him to school with. We sent him back. Looked like cellulitis and now he's in the hospital. Food a little whacked. Barely ate for several days and now trying not to boomerang. I'm really hungry. Went from too tight a few weeks ago to can eat a pig now. Cheri

Cheri, Thanks for your prayers, as well. I made some schedule changes, did a little cracking down, and have things pretty much under control right now. But I'm working 10 hrs a day in order to keep my groups small enough to not lose the advantage of small group instruction. Cheri

I've not introduced anything new except Kefir the last couple of days. I'm stopping that because of the inulin. I've actually stopped Protein drinks, Atkins bars of any kind, and fruits and veggies. I couldn't get charcoal, so I picked up some digestive enzymes. I've really been reducing my milk. I may have developed lactose intolerance with all the Protein Drinks and milk in my coffee. Hopefully, its still the results of the virus and it'll clear up on its own. Cheri

Laura, glad to see you posting. You must be feeling rested and caught up. Apples, I'm going to go buy some activated charcoal and see if that helps me. Had a terrible time singing in choir and sitting through church this morning. Managed some strategic exits and found nooks and crannies. Hope the charcoal takes effect before I have to teach again. Hate to cancel class because of gas. That would be a first. "Gas leak. Evacuate." LOL. Cheri

Spent day with 4 year old granddaughter. Had a lot of fun but gassy and body aching a little. Found out that the Nulin/FOS that is added to Kefir is actually inulin which is found in chickory root and Jerusalem artichoke and gives me gas. Found out primary side effect is flatulence. Inulin is a prebiotic that provides food for good bacteria to grow and ferment in the intestines. Kefir contains Probiotics which is supposed to restore the flora and fauna you're supposed to have in your intestines and the inulin is supposed to support the prebiotics. Unfortunately, it contributes to my gas issues. I'll have to go find some yoghurt that doesn't have any inulin added to it. However, my son mentioned that he's had something that's given him terrible gas for 2 weeks, so maybe its also part of the virus. So, keep an eye out for this new additive to many "health" foods. It may have some unexpected consequences. Cheri

I, too, have been on here before but for a while no one was posting hardly. So I'm glad to see people helping each other again. I'm in the maintenance stage. Feeling better and doing better than in years. Cheri

Done with Parent/Teacher conferences. Yay! Now to start all over again on Monday. Gas is still there but subsiding. Have stayed away from all Protein drinks and bars and am using the Kefir instead. Had some rotisserie chicken with Basil pesto and some deli chili Soup. Very small meals. Much tastier than canned soup. I'm really liking the rotisserie chicken with various condiments. Cutting it up and freezing it in baggies and then throwing a condiment of the day on it and taking it to work is working well. The chicken is really tender and the condiments keep it from sticking. The hummus was really good with it too. I don't eat crackers because they're just like eating sugar plus they can make me pb, but hummus and pesto are actually good for you. Maybe I'll buy my favorite guacamole (Wholly Guacamole Extra Spicy) and put it in with all the baggies of chicken next time and freeze the guac with the chicken and use up all the guac so it doesn't turn brown and go bad. Cheri

LauraK, Here's hopin'.

Arlene, the Atkins Protein drinks do give me gas but so do their soy nugget Protein Bars. Actually the shakes have Fiber in them too. Both also constipate me. Any fiber bars give me unbelievable gas and don't seem to help with the constipation. So, even with all the fiber I still need my miralax and even with that I can have trapped gas. Can't burp because of the band and can't always let it out the other end in a controlled way either. I suspect that the very severe bend or twist I have somewhere in my intestines is responsible. They had trouble giving me a colonoscopy some years back cause they couldn't get it to twist with the intestine. I kept waking up and going "Oww!" and they kept having to give me more drugs. LOL. I remember it very distinctly and you aren't supposed to remember anything from that. TMI, but, since we're on the subject.... I actually have been constipated since early childhood. I BM'd often only once a week on Sunday after I'd had a big Sunday dinner that helped push it out. LOL. I only ate cooked veggies, but I did eat fruit. Not much whole grains. Wonder bread. Didn't like cereals that much. Still don't. Not that we had whole grain ones in the house. Still, I was the only one with constipation problems. I'm hoping the Kefir cultures will regulate the gas. If I have that for Breakfast instead of a Protein shake I might avoid some of the issues. Been eating very little since getting the stomach bug, so I lost a couple more lbs. Well within my range now so I think I'll have no trouble losing the other 2 lbs by Thanksgiving. Basement is almost done. Just needs the ceiling. Doing the bathroom downstairs later. My son has said he'll do that. It'll save us much money. Just putting a door on it and a toilet in it so guests can use it when we have a lot of people over. I'm having Thanksgiving here hopefully and a work Christmas party and Ken's family Christmas party. Now I have somewhere to put them. Very cold out, but I'm going to bundle up or go to the walking track at the community center. It's free. Have a great day. Cheri

Arlene, before my final fill, I could be tight some days with some things, but overall I could eat a lot, especially at night. It astounds me that you can eat two eggs. Or your egg-white pancakes. I can't eat eggs or egg whites at all. I'm off this morning, then go in at noon and work till eight for parent/teacher conferences. Cheri

Sandi, my daughter, her husband, his sister are all in the chocolate run. I think their kids will be with them. David can run the whole way, he's 6. Josh will probably be in the stroller. Rachel ran last year. So if you meet a Jeff, Rachel, or Karen Miller, that would be them.