Dr. Terry Wahls - MS recovery plan

[maddietod]

I wrote a nice long reply earlier, and PR ATE it! Trying again.

Xchoc, I can't answer any of your questions! The timing of sleep improvement implies that it's something about the juicing; nothing else has changed. I need another week or so to see if the improvement holds.

I was already on the chlorella for mild detox; I figure I'll stay on it for the micronutrients. I found toasted seaweed at Trader Joe's, so that's an easy add-in. I probably won't ever know what any of the individual pieces are doing for me - I'm just going for the widest range of nutrients I can get.

I can't eat avacado. What a waste, right?

How exactly are you all following Wahls' plan?

 

[xchocoholic]

Hi sally,

Good to hear from you. I haven't tried those yet. I'm still eating maine dulse and wakame from the bag.

That's great that you can eat avocados. I've been eating one a day cause I heard the fats were good for us. I didn't realize that it was mostly omega 6 tho. The omega 3 was 40 mg and the omega 6 was 500 mg. I found that on the avocado dot org site.

I used to have fibro pain all the time and between giving up bacon and tomatoes and raising my omega 3
I haven't had this for several years. Kow. I actually had knots all over my back and shoulders constantly for about 18 years. I still have the trigger points but that's nothing compared to the constant pain I was in.

tc .. X

 

[xchocoholic]

Hi madie,

I hear you ..

It's hard to pinpoint exactly why our bodies decide to correct itself. I'm assuming my ataxia was from gluten but I'll never know for sure. I started sweating normally 3 - 4 years ago and I have no idea why.

I usually experiment 3 times with a diet change or supplement before I decide if it worked or not. Because if my cfs, it took me several years to notice that my dark marks around my eyes were from dairy. Duh ..

As far as the wahls diet goes, every meal I eat leafy greens like kale, parsley, romain occassionally, cilantro, radish leaves, beet greens, dandelion, chard, etc.

Then about 1/5 cup brocolli, cauliflower and cabbage due to hashimotos.

Radishes, carrots, beets, red bell peppers, leeks, garlic.

Throughout the day I graze on ..

Amande yogurt and flax muffins.

Blueberries, apples, bananas, citrus ..

Dulse and wakame ..

For meats I eat ..

Grass fed beef, salmon or lamb. Still trying to increase my bone broths.

Supplements include .

Spirulina, fish oil, coq10, zinc.

Because of my labs I take pregnenolone and 7 keto.

Because of my oxalate problems I take biotin, b6 and magnesium. I need to find a plain calcium citrate for this but my local stores don't carry it.

I'm playing around again with natural calm because it really makes my digestive tract feel better and reduces inflamation ..

I think that's it ..

Tc .. X

 

[Chris]

Madie, I am not worrying too much about exact amounts--I just eat a lot of dark greens and beets to get enough of the nitrates/nitrites story going, a good deal of the sulfur foods (onions, garlic, broccoli, mushrooms etc) and lots of colour--peppers, tomatoes, and berries. Bone broth for a few days when I make a batch. Fish and krill oil and hemp for omega-3s. The usual mix of mag, Q10, acetyl-l-carnitine, and now a bit of high-alpha whey spiced up with a bit of Branched Chain Aminos.
I walk as far as I can (with a rest break 1/2 way) each day without triggering significant PEM (now up to 12 mins + 4 mins rest-13 mins back), and then if I feel OK a couple of mins of high intensity rowing--seems to perk things up a bit; any more and I invite a crash.

Most of my Vit D now comes via Fiji Sun lamp--to activate the nitrite /NO cycle.

I am still up and down, but definitely more ups than downs. I think this protocol is basically working; have to avoid too much of those crucifers, and take a bit of kelp to keep iodine up but not too up. I juice a bit to make things easier for my digestive system, and to take in Joel Fuhrman's concept of nutritional density. Getting more comfortable with the routines I am working out, and feeling slowly better overall.
Best, Chris

 

[Sallysblooms]

Avocado's are good for me, not sure I would eat one per day though, ha. Several times a week for sure.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=5

 

[xchocoholic]

PEM 101 .. I really blew it a few days ago by taking two 1 hour walks on the beach. My pem had lessened a bit so I got cocky and went for broke. I've been down 2 1/2 days now.
Even managed to do a face plant on my coffee table yesterday .. Bwaa haa haa

Thanks for the link on avocados. I'm down to eating 1/2 of one today. Fwiw. It may not be the avocados causing my pain but I thought I'd start with it.

Back to resting .. X

 

[maddietod]

Hey, Xchoc - will you forgive me for laughing out loud, reading your post? Cocky.....broke.....face plant. Yeah.

Best post ever.

 

[xchocoholic]

no problem .. Once I ruled out that I needed to go to the er, I thought it was funny too.

I "think" this is my very first face plant. All I have to show for it is a busted lip. Too bad it wasn't more exciting. .. X

 

[Sallysblooms]

OUCH!!! Glad you were not badly hurt!

 

[maddietod]

Wait, what??? I thought you meant you fell asleep while eating! You passed out?

Not funny at all!

 

[Enid]

What is special with avocados then - I much enjoyed but somehow did not stop the passings out - could it be something more ?

 

[xchocoholic]

thanks for the kind words ... It really was a boring face plant. I was sacked out on the couch and decided to get up. When I put my hand on the edge of the sofa to push myself up, my hand slipped and my face hit the coffee table. I'm a real clutz when I have PEM so no surprise there ...

The cut on my lip is almost gone as is the swelling. I can smile again ... My nose hurts but appears to be ok.

Based on the face plants I saw on the web, mine was mild. Some of these are hysterical.

tc ... x

 

[xchocoholic]

What is special with avocados then - I much enjoyed but somehow did not stop the passings out - could it be something more ?

Hi enid,

I'm confused ... Do avocados make you pass out ? I'm just backing off these for now to see if the omega 6 in these are increasing my pain. Sally gave a great link about avocadoes on the previous page. tc ... x

 

[maddietod]

Here's a link to my favorite source for paleo recipes. I know we're not doing paleo here, but you might find something new to try. So far, all of her recipes have worked for me.

http://www.elanaspantry.com/paleo-diet-recipes/

 

[Chris]

Hi, Madie--I am not so sure we are not doing a version of Paleo here--TW uses the term a couple of times in her book, including this: "in 2003 I began the Paleolithic diet" (p. 154). She went through several major changes, but I am not sure the mix of veg and meats and bone broth and the elimination of dairy, legumes and grains does not point towards some version of Paleo--a fairly elastic concept anyway. Chris

 

[maddietod]

Is anybody else juicing? I've got a new favorite:

200g kale, collards, or swiss chard
200g red or green cabbage
150-ish g yellow summer squash (depends on the size of the squash)
100g red seedless grapes

 

[xchocoholic]

Hi madie,

Thanks for the recipe. I was exposed to juicing recently and found it made a HUGE difference
in my energy level and feeling of wellness. So much so that I ordered a juicer yesterday. Smoothies
with the same ingredients help a tiny bit but nothing compared to juice.
I'm guessing that my digestive tract just can't handle the effort required for cellulose.

We were juicing beets, beet greens, kale, parsley, ginger, lemons, red bell pepper and apples. Yum ..

At the same time I learned how eating fruit, esp citrus, helps me recover
from feeling wiped out. I was only eating 1 fruit a day because of hyperinsulinemia, but gradually increased it to 6 - 8 servings a day. Instead of reaching for water, I eat an orange or tangerine.

I was walking an hour a day for two weeks. Yay ! However,
the downside of me having more energy is that all the activity makes me feel jittery the next day so I'm backing off to see how much I can do without getting jittery. I'm still trying to id this feeling. It's not hypoglycemia or pre seizure. Maybe, too much adrenaline ? Caffeine would do this to me.

Tc .. X

 

[maddietod]

Are you sure the jitters aren't related to the amount of fruit (sugar) you're eating?

 

[xchocoholic]

no ? I have no idea where this is coming from. Why would extra fruit make me jittery if i'm using those calories by exercising ? insulin, maybe ? hmm ...

the extra fruit seriously cuts back on my feelings of fatigue / muscle weakness.

I noticed a few years ago that eating an orange or drinking oj, resurrected me from the dead but I never stuck with it ..

the juicing works even better tho. I get a little hyper from the fruit but not the juice. It's funny, I was whining about needing to rest and ten minutes after juice, I was jung ho ... of course, i still have to lay down from time to time to get the blood back in my upper body, esp my head, but never the less .. this is new to me ... : )

 

[maddietod]

I get jittery from too much sugar, just like from caffeine. Since it sounds like you're eating a ton of fruit (compared to me, 200g max mixed into vegetable juice, not daily), I just wondered.

"I get a little hyper from the fruit but not the juice." This makes me still wonder. If fruit is a reliable pick-me-up, and it can make you wired, it sounds like a stimulant to me. I have no idea what the mechanism would be.