If We Had Bone Broth Today I’d Update You on My Doctor’s Appointment

If we had bone broth today I’d update you on my doctor’s appointment.

This morning’s virtual bone broth date is a personal one, one in which I’m having with the only person who probably truly knows where I’m coming from and how I typically feel (you know who you are).

But I’m inviting you to eavesdrop on our conversation, you know since I shared with you these last 30 days.

If We Had Bone Broth Today I’d Update You on My Doctor’s Appointment

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She starts by asking,

How did your doctor’s appointment go yesterday?

I dive right in, and lay it all out there.

After a thorough evaluation and discussion, he thinks he has narrowed it down to a gut infection, SIBO and/or adrenal fatigue.

I don’t describe the three mentioned above because my friend already knows all about all of them. I won’t go into detail on any of them for you either because the truth is that there is no reason to obsess until we have a conclusion.

I tell you about the tests I’ll be doing: complete metabolic panel, complete blood count and several other random blood tests which include complete thyroid analysis (none of this, “‘Oh you’re TSH is fine so you’re “good“‘ nonsense). In addition, I’ll be sending off fecal samples (ew, I know) and breath samples (that’s for SIBO). Tests, tests and more tests…..and ironically? All tests I don’t think any doctor has ever thought to do before.

I then tell you that he said I am spot on with the current supplementation I’m doing (Cod Liver Oil, heavy probiotics, digestive enzymes, HCL, l-glutamine and collagen), but that he would be adding 4 to this list (which I start after my testing samples have been collected): Florastor, apo-STOM, MUNDIPUR and SyGest. I am unfamiliar with all of these, and I’m looking forward to researching them during these next few days.

At this point in our conversation you’re kind of antsy, so you just ask it….

But what did he say about diet? What does he think you should do?

And this is one of the parts I enjoyed most about him. He said we’re not going to do anything really with my diet until we know what’s wrong. He admitted that perhaps an even tighter control on GAPS would be best for me for now, but if I didn’t make the best decision at every single meal then that was okay. He feels that I should be as close to the Autoimmune Protocol as possible, but that stressing over it right now is not the focus.  He also said to be cognizant of FODMAP’s, as they may be making the problem worse as well. FODMAP’s are no stranger to me. I wrote briefly about them in the 2.0 version of The Gutsy Girl’s Bible, but at the time I wished I’d never had to pay attention to them. Turns out, I might need to.

I quick hug you and say, “Thank you so much for getting me The Paleo Mom‘s book. I love Sarah, and her teachings on AI are coming at the perfect time!”

You say, “But oh no….your peanut butter. Peanuts aren’t AI.”

I reply, “He knows all about my nut butter line and said how very, very awesome it was. For now, I can’t OD on it as I wish, but I can still eat it. I will still nibble here and there. Life surely doesn’t work without a spoonful 🙂”

I end our broth drinking today with a few final thoughts and rants, which you kind of expected….

I was there a little over an hour. It took me 3 hours to get there, and 2 hours to get home. It cost a fortune. But last night as I reflected on it all, I began to truly believe there will be light at the end of this tunnel.

I have spent YEARS with half-@#$ answers from doctors who skimmed over the general surface in order to make things right. A prime example is my low blood pressure (abnormally low). Since I had my tonsils out, doctors have always wondered about the low blood pressure. Every single time I have it taken, comments are made, “Do you know you have low blood pressure? Oh, you do. So it must be normal for you then? Do you workout a lot? Oh, that makes sense. Your blood pressure is normal.” Not this doctor. This doctor said, “This is not normal. We need to look into it. It could be a symptom relating to your adrenals.”

If my life was simply based on a “healthy lifestyle” and knowing exactly what to do, I’d be an expert. And even when it comes to healing the gut, I know exactly what to do and this has allowed me to heal and progress as much as I quite possibly can for the Colitis.

But here’s where the appointment kind of got twisted for me…. he said that what’s going on now might have nothing to do with the Colitis, but instead that several years back it was simply pure coincidence that they found the Colitis when I complained of these issues. The reality is there may have been another problem that was never taken care of at some point in my life. When problems aren’t addressed, they ultimately manifest in several other crazy ways. This could be my current battle. But…..

This doctor is helping me take the guesswork out, and for that, I’ll clink my bone broth mug with yours and say, “Amen!”

{My follow-up appointment is October 28, 2014.}

Xox,
SKH

p.s. For the record, this doctor is an MD. I say he is Eastern meets Western medicine. From his mouth,

As a doctor, I believe my primary duty is to simultaneously be knowledgeable and compassionate. I value the ability to be an ally and someone with whom to walk the healing path. My goal is to facilitate each person’s innate healing capacity using all treatment options, both conventional and alternative.