on my diet

I met with the dietitian last week. I had been looking forward to the visit since I'd made the appointment two weeks ago. My insurance had already approved four visits for me and I could not wait to get more answers.

B got the time off work so he could join me. I am so glad he was there. It is very difficult to relay all that information, as I will try to do here, and since he was there the communication and understanding is clear.

I went into the meeting expecting her to tell me all the things I should and should not eat, along with the list I'd already started. In educating myself about lactose intolerance I believed that there was next to nothing that didn't contain even a trace of milk or whey protein. It's in so.much.stuff. What she told me, however, is that while there is lactose in bread (for example), the amount of it in a single slice is minimal and the chances of that tiny amount affecting me is next to none. And I know this to be true. I can eat a turkey sandwich no problem.

I shared what my regular diet consists of. I'm lacking heavily in my fruits in veggies, which is hard because berries, peppers, tomatoes...these all affect my GERD, especially if I don't take the prilosec. I also learned I'm 15 pounds underweight. FIFTEEN people!! I'm 5'9'' and 120 pounds (nekked) or 123 clothed. The plan is to increase my calories all while trying to gain healthy weight. She is not expecting me to gain 15 pounds, but to get to a healthier weight in which I feel better. My personal goal is not a certain number. It's the same as hers. I felt best right around 130-133. My clothes fit great and I had more energy. She wants me to eat at least 6 times a day. Three full meals and at least one snack in between each meal, including a snack before bed time.

Speaking of meds, the prilosec is really the only med I must take and if I take it later in the day it seems to throw my entire system off. I feel a huge difference in taking it and know it is helping with both the GERD and IBS. I'm also taking a probiotic. I'm not feeling a difference one way or another, but the dietitian indicated that it could take several months before that has a true effect on my symptoms. Lastly I take a tummy relaxer. I've only needed to take it once a day, usually in the evening when I can tell the prilosec is wearing off. I can take it up to 3 times if I need to and won't. That shit backs me up bad and since I'm done to one a day things are much better.

Overall, I am encouraged. I'm doing a 6 day diet study. Our next visit will go over all the specific numbers with that study and possibly help narrow down where certain symptoms come from. The last two days have been great. But I know that this is not a quick fix. My history shows that I have 2-4 good days and then a bad day in between. Hopefully those will become fewer as my diet becomes more controlled.