ANSWERS!!!

It's 1:00 in the morning, so this may not be too coherent, but I thought I would share my test results.

Well... who would have thought???

Today I had the doctor appointment I had been waiting for for a long, long time. True, real answers to all of this crazy, digestive mess. It is not very often that I am actually excited to go to the doctor, but this was one of those days.

I had almost everything tested: food allergies, cholesterol, kidney function, hemoglobin, thyroid panels, vitamin D status - you name it. I listened to the results as though I were listening to the most fascinating story ever told... one with lots of twists and turns.

I knew, KNEW he was going to tell me that I am allergic to all dairy products. I just knew it. I bathed myself in the stuff for YEARS, so I just knew dairy was going to be a big allergen... Test results: no dairy allergies. WHAT!?!? Crazy!! Not even a blip. Amazing. I still cannot have them for 3-6 months (they are highly constipating), but cheese, we will meet again one day. YES! :) One that I was right on: gluten and wheat. Bye, bye bread.

But, my biggest allergen is... corn. Can't touch the stuff. Huh. Guess Mexican is out.

Some other strange ones to me were chicken and turkey. Apparently poultry does not settle well with me, but I have no reaction to beef. (Bring on the steak, yeah! Sorry to all the vegans out there...) Kidney and pinto beans and rice are out, as well as crab. Oh, and a sad one to any woman: chocolate. BOO!!!

I have to eliminate all these foods for 3-6 months, then I will be tested again to see if my gut has healed enough that I can tolerate some of these foods again.

Some other interesting findings: I am anemic and have hypoglycemia. So, now I am going to be on iron and have to watch out for foods that cause major sugar swings, like simple carbs. Apparently my thyoid is working too hard (hyper), so I am going to have to watch that as well. The doctor is hoping the diet changes will help, otherwise I may have to go on some type of thyroid medication. My kidney function is a bit low. (creatinine too high and eGFR too low) Combined with other tests, he thinks that is due to chronic dehydration, so I am going to have to really up my intake of water. This is another thing that is going to have to be monitored and checked up on in about 3 months. My vitamin D levels are too low. The low end is 32, optimal is 50. I am at 24.6, so I have been put on a daily D3 supplement for that. Oh, and I am not absorbing / getting enough B12, and that is affecting my hemoglobin levels as well, so there's a supplement for that, too. I also have candida albicans overgrowth from past, chronic antibiotic use. Joy.

I think the most suprising result to me was my total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels. They are both surprisingly high. My LDL is over 30 points higher than it should be... Huh. (At least my triglycerides were low.) I really do not have a bad diet, so the theory is that because my digestive system is soooooo slow, I am reabsorbing cholesterol that I should be eliminating. He also thinks that this is the reason that my skin has been so cystic.

So.... I have been put on a diet that eliminates all of these problem foods, along with loads of water and supplements each day. Oh, and those famous green smoothies! I will be drinking a quart of the stuff every day for 3 months. Good thing they taste decent. :)

I am so happy to have some direction. I know it is going to be hard to follow the diet - and remember to take all of the supplements, but I am excited and ready for the positive health changes that are to come. Please pray that I can stick to it - especially through Thanksgiving and Christmas! (Turkey allergy, GEEZ!)