[mouse]

okay......gotta just say this, vitamin water is NOT just vitamins and water. the second ingredient is crystalline fructose, a form of sugar that comes from cornstarch. they generally have about 13 grams each of sugar and carbs, about one less gram than gatorade. i love that stuff too (esp. when hungover!), but it's not exactly a health drink.

i'm happy about this new thread. i was pretty much raised on holistic medicinal practices (unless of course something was really wrong and antibiotics were necessary). my mother still thinks i'm a traitor now that i use advil when i need to.

i'm actually just about to start the "master cleanse" (10 days on fresh lemon juice, grade b maple syrup and cayenne, with a saltwater flush and laxative tea--it's basically a really hard-core detox program. the maple syrup lemonade gives you the nutrients to survive while everything else loosens up and flushes out your system). i've never done it before, and am generally skeptical, but i've been feeling really sluggish and gross lately and have heard only good things about the results. i figure if i don't feel like it's doing anything good for me, i'll stop. but i'm curious if any of you have done it, and what your experiences were.

[raskel]

midge, I was just saying, because I have been lactose intolerant my whole life, and still am, the doctor may have caught an allergy to dairy by now. The only food allergy they've ever came back with was that I am allergic to sesame oil. Kind of a random allergy, but it give me an itchy red rash to eat anything cooked with sesame oil.

[cloverbee]

smart girl!

[kkbmachine]

I haven't read this thread very thoroughly, but I strongly recommend Better Health through Natural Healing to anyone remotely interested in naturopathy and all that good stuff. It's seriously changed how I take care of myself. Example! Rather than treating a yeast infection with over-the-counter crap, just completely cut out sugar and carbs for a few days. What happens with a yeast infection is that naturally-occuring bacteria, candidas albicans I think it's called, go haywire. They survive off of sugar, so if you cut down your sugar intake, the yeast infection goes away. But yeah, the book's great.

[cloverbee]

wow cool, thaid. I need to get me some of that!

[thaid]

Hey girls! Don't know if this applies, but I love gaba calm. It's a natural anti-anxiety lozenge that you can get from Whole Foods, or some such equvilent. I had speech class last semester and these things saved my ass. It's kinda like "I think I'm getting a little nervous, but I'm way too relaxed to bother with it." I've never been a big fan of meds, so it's nice to have an alternative. But, they can still be addictive like any anti-anxitey anything. Still nice for the occasional "I'm having a finals panic-attack" day.

[turbojenn]

clover - you can totally take capsules apart, you can even get a little pill cutter at the drug store if you can't get them apart on your own....the one thing to consider is whether the capsules you're taking is a time release capsule...if it is, you might want to talk to a pharmacist about coming off on your own. You might also consider getting some support with a good acupuncturist/herbalist. And pick up a bottle of Rescue Remedy too...I love that stuff - for me, and my pupper!

midge...I shall do my best to find that pasta - somewhere. We've got some great natural food shops here, so my chances are good.

[cloverbee]

annelise, can you really take the capsule apart and empty some out? i have asked my pharmacist and my doc and they both said that won't work. I will do it if it works but I've heard it doesn't. I'm so confused!!

[pepper]

clover, so the doc can't lower the dosage? that seems weird, i mean how do they expect you to ever get off of it?
well, you can buy empty gelatin caps from the health food store. you could gently ease the two sides of your meds apart and reseal each end with the opposite end of an empty gel cap. voila and presto, custom made half doses! (or 2/3's in one cap, 1/3 in the other to help gradually ease off of them.) better than cold turkey for a day or two here and there. i think it might end up sending you into a total spin, i wouldn't do that myself.
i gave my bipolar dad an awsome book called depression free for life by dr gabriel cousens. it's all about how to seriously affect your mood through diet. i have heard great things about that, though not from my pops. he's addicted to cheese, meat, bread, and all manner of bad food stuffs.

[annelise]

cloverbee--another caution on being very very very careful when going off the effexor. i had a lot of trouble going off of it until i did it incredibly gradually. i would open the capsule and just let a little bit into the trash, going in tiny increments everyday, or every couple of days. if you're not very careful about going off of it, the experience can be hell. i was talking to my doc but he didn't really have much useful to say about it so i did my own thing, much more gradually than he advised.

[midgemcgrath]

whoa, so much action on this thread!

turbojenn--my fave rice pasta is tinkyada brand brown rice pasta. i think it might be made in canada though, so i don't know if you'll be able to get it!

re: vitamins--while it is important to get enough, especially if you're on b.c. (you need extra B complex vitamins), it really isn't healthy to exceed the daily recommended doses. some of them will just get peed out if there's excess, but some can be really hard on your liver and kidneys to the point of causing kidney stones! not to scare people off of them, but just remember everything in moderation!

raskel--just cause you were lactose intolerant when you were younger doesn't mean you can't be allergic to dairy. i was lactose intolerant when i was younger, but developed an allergy to dairy that got worse and worse until about five years ago when it got so bad that my allergist told me i would just have to stop eating any dairy indefinately. it sounds like you probably have some various food intolerances and allergies, and it might be a lot easier and more effective if you got the help of an allergist or naturopath. it can be difficult when you have multiple allerties/intolerances to figure it out on your own!

cloverbee-you should absolutely consult your doctor about tapering off the effexor. it can be really horrible and even dangerous messing with stuff like that on your own. by all means, i support your desire to get off of it, but please do it safely so you don't have a really bad withdrawal and end up feeling even worse! btw. if you go to your doc, there is a good chance that they can prescribe a lower dose pill!

[maddy29]

thanks for the vitamin info! i'm in a rush now just wanted to say thanks. i feel like a crazy scientologist too

clover-i've heard detoxing from effexor can be very very difficult, my dr. wanted to put me on it and i did a little web research and got scared. not to freak you out, but you might want to check beforeyou come off of it, like how the dr. thinks you should go off of it.

[cloverbee]

yeah, I can't lower the dosage b/c I'm taking the capsules but I know it's going to be bad b/c even if I'm an hour late taking it I get the wierd head-lightening thing. if you've ever come off antidepressants you will know what I mean. I can't switch b/c it's a SSNRI and it affects norepinephrine. it's a different kind of antidepressant. I think I'm just going to skip a day here and there and see what happens. it could be bad.

[pepper]

clover, is that a perscription? if it is could you ask your doc to lower the dosage or switch you to something milder?

[clairebear3]

I luuuuurve this thread! My husbands great aunt is one of these old fashioned farmer type women who has a remedy for everything! I'll have to get her to start writing things down before she kicks the bucket! Hmmm how can I broach that subject!

It's really great if you go there and ask for tea she just pops out into the garden grabs some leaves and hey presto! And each time it's a slightly different flavour.

My husband is a coeliac, and I think it's a great idea to get tested if you have re-curring stomach problems. His doctor did tell us that it's not a good idea just to cut something out of your diet unless you really need to. My husband has to take special supplements now. There are sooo many other great grains out there like midgemcrath said. Manufacturers stuff everything with wheat flour, even some ketchup and mayo. One thing that made a huge difference for me was cutting out white bread. There's absolutely no goodness in it at all and much too much yeast. It can even make your feet smell if you eat too much of it. Now I eat the darkest bread I can find with 5 or 7 whole grains hmmm!

[cloverbee]

okay busties, you all have just reminded me of my other problemo. I need to get off the Effexor. I've been on it for three years and it's time. But, I'm taking the capsules that you cannot cut in half so what to do? I need to start on a natural anti-anxiety medication. I know of one company that makes GABA (the neurotransmitter) and I was thinking of trying that or maybe just some nerve control which is another one that they make. anyway, first I need to get off the damned Effexor. It's time.

[neverending]

WOW!Great idea for a thread.I think I might hang out here too.I love talking about alternative medicine!

[turbojenn]

sure raskel, I'm sure you could cut the wheat out for a week or two, and see you feel, and then see how you feel when you eat it again. Things like thai rice noodles and spelt pastas are a good substitute, and if you bought some spelt or kamut bread as midge suggested, I bet you'd do just fine.

I think this time of year its much easier to notice your sensitivities because the weather is so wacky and mold and pollen counts are so high.

Oh, and I have to say, that a good soy cheese on pizza is really good, and I don't even notice the difference. In fact, I'm making pizza tonight - with a spelt, rice flour dough, and sauteed mushrooms, onions and asparagus. I can't wait!

[raskel]

Voodoo, It's called Vitamin Water. http://www.vitaminwater.com/

Sorry for the double post....

[raskel]

I have been lactose intolerant since I was a baby, so I don't think that I have an allergy to dairy. I consume organic dairy in small amounts every day to try to keep my body from reacting strongly if I eat pizza or something. I have a half a cup of milk every day, or a half a cup of cottage cheese, or yogurt. This seems to work pretty well for me.

I guess I have never paid attention to whether or not I wake up puffy. Plus any breads or pasta I tend to eat before 4pm. I think it's definitely something I should start paying more attention to. Would it work if I gave it up for a week or 2, then tried eating it again?