Latin Kisses

We love these and make them frequently.

• 16 large shrimp , peeled and deveined
• ½  cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon ginger, grated (or 1/4 tsp ginger powder)
• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 cup cilantro leaves (loose)
• 1/4 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon tumeric powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika powder
• 1 lime (1/2 medium or 1 large)
• 1 – 2 jalapenos
• 8 slices bacon, thick cut (slightly cooked)

Mix olive oil with spices and lime juice, puree in a food processor, and marinate shrimp in mixture for 3 to 4 hours, longer if desired. 

About 30 minutes prior to when you want to eat, slightly cook the bacon. I normally don't use the microwave, but for this recipe I arrange the bacon on a plate and put it in the microwave for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.

Next slice the back of each shrimp, cut jalapenos in slices length-wise about 1/8th inch thick and place in back of shrimp, wrap 1/2 slice of bacon around shrimp and put on a skewer. 

 When all the shrimp has been skewered, grill until done basting with leftover marinade.

DH likes to dip them in creamy jalapeno dressing. I sometimes dip them in homemade mayonnaise, bacon fat, other animal fat, coconut oil, or nothing at all. Either way they are delicious.

D-Ribose

Today was a rough day. I was hoping I could tolerate all the supplements, including d-ribose, since it is one of the important ones in people with mitochondrial failure. Unfortunately it totally kicked in my sugar cravings. All day long I wanted something sweet and I was really hungry - more so than I normally am.

Sometime after dinner I decided to take a spoon full of coconut milk kefir and proceeded to eat the entire 30 oz jar. I just couldn't stop it was so friggin' good. Then I made "chocolate" from coconut oil, cocoa powder, and d-ribose. Why the hell did I do that?? Last time I tried 1/4 tsp of coconut oil I had a wicked headache and backache the next day. Between the 2 to 3 Tbsp of coconut oil I ate and the 30 oz of coconut milk kefir, I could be feeling vewwy, vewwy sick tomorrow. I kind of regret trying it but on the other hand, if I hadn't I would have wondered if it would have helped. I guess now I know!

Hopefully the l-carnatine, niacin, and CoQ10 will help even without the d-ribose. I need something because I have been feeling utterly fatigued.

As I was consuming the "chocolate" I was thinking that it was stupid to go back on intro 8 days before I am going out of town for 4 days. I guess I will re-start for the 800th time when I get back from Austin or I may just not worry about it since I am stuck on stage 2 anyhow. Boiled meat has certainly never made a difference in how I feel.

The stool test kit didn't come today which was disappointing. I really wanted to get it over with and sent back to the lab to see if parasites are still an issue. A friend from the GAPS group also suggested having a rectal swab done so I will be looking into that as well. I am so fed up I am ready to go on another fast just so I can get some relief. Today I got so tired of being hungry that I just ate. That alone made my stomach distend even more. Eating coconut milk kefir and coconut oil sure didn't help and now I am literally in pain. I hate this!

I wish...

...the pain would stop.
...I had energy to exercise, go out and do stuff, and be adventurous like I used to be.
...I could focus and concentrate like I used to.
...the abdominal distention would stop.
...I could eat vegetables, nuts, seeds, and dairy again without a negative reaction.
...I could eat anything without feeling discomfort.
...I could stop doing enemas.
...I could stop tracking symptoms, food, supplements, etc.
...I could sleep without magnesium or other sleep aids.
...my heart rate would go back to normal.
...my adrenals would heal and I could stop taking hydrocortisone.
...I knew the exact underlying causes of all these symptoms.

I wish I had my life back!

GAPS Re-Intro: Day 4

Symptoms this morning: Headache, upper backache, lower backache, pain in calves, top of arms from elbows down, back of hands, back of fingers, and wrists, abdominal distention, red/burning/watery eyes, runny nose, constipation, tired, fatigued, not fully cognitive, elevated heart rate (not as bad as yesterday), right eye lid swollen, puffy face, crazy hungry, overall stiff body.

I am thrilled about my heart rate being lower and it came down even more after I took my morning dose of HC (10 mg). I just walked down to the kitchen and my heart rate was hovering between 85 and 97 which is about 20 beats lower than it has been the last 4 or 5 days. I lowered my dose of Cytomel yesterday by 3.125 mcg but I also increased the SR potassium to 15 meq from 10 meq. Either one of those could be responsible for the drop in heart rate.

I slept pretty good but only until 3:30 AM. Got up to use the bathroom and was hoping to go back to sleep, but it just wasn't happening. So at 4 AM I got up, fixed my coffee, let Pepper out, and came back to bed to check emails, approve and answer GAPS messages, read my devotionals, etc.

I did take another dose of d-ribose this morning in my coffee and also took 1 gram of l-carnatine and 500 mg niacin. No reaction so far that I can tell. I am hoping the supplements will help with energy, concentration, and overall healing. Of course after sleeping only 6 hours I doubt I will notice any improvement in energy today although from what I understand d-ribose gives people a fairly instant boost in energy. I wish I could nap during the day but have always had a hard time with it even when I feel dead tired. In addition, our upstairs AC unit is not working properly and it gets very hot and humid upstairs where our bedroom is during the day.

Yesterday I ate boiled salmon, hamburger patties (not boiled), extra lard on top of the hamburger patties, egg yolks, and beef bone broth. Today I am having boiled pork tenderloin, ground pork patties, pork bone broth, and egg yolks. I went to bed hungry last night and woke up still feeling hungry this morning. It's this never-ending hunger that also makes me think parasites may be an issue. Hopefully the stool test kit will get here today so I can do the test over the weekend and send it back on Monday.

Mitochondria

I am continuing reading Dr. Myhill's book on CFS with great interest and today I got my supplements. I couldn't order everything because some of the ones she recommends, like the mineral mix, are made by here and she is not licensed to sell her supplements outside of the UK. So I got l-carnatine, d-ribose, niacin, and coq1. They came around 3 PM and I immediately took some d-ribose. Thankfully no sweet cravings from it. Tomorrow I will add the niacin and maybe the l-carnatine. I wanted to add one at a time every 2 days or so, but I am way too impatient for that. Of course it would be easier to figure out that way if I am reacting to any of them.

I am so hungry I can barely stand it.

GAPS Re-Intro: Day 3

Woke up with the usual symptoms (headache, right eye lid swollen, tired, not really cognitive, heart racing, etc.) but overall not too bad. Sounds like an oxymoron, doesn't it?!

Anyway, sometime after lunch I started to get a headache and felt really tired and out of it. I thought the Nystatin increase yesterday (from 1/16 tsp to 1/8 tsp) must have done it but around 2:30 PM I realized I hadn't taken my mid-day dose of 7.5 mg hydrocortisone. Since it was a bit late already I took 5 mg then and within half an hour the headache was almost gone. That's good but the pain in my right wrist and knuckles continues and it flared up in my left wrist as well until I took the HC around 2:30 PM.

I went to the lab this morning to get blood drawn. Can't wait to see what the RA factor and ANA indicate. If the pain in my wrist is RA then the RA factor should be elevated - at least you would think it would be. What is odd though is that the pain started sometime after the blood donation and low blood volume. I don't understand it and Dr. Cowan didn't have a possible explanation either.

I also had a free 15-minute consultation with Chris Kresser yesterday. I had read some of the articles on his blog and like them. In addition, at least one couple from the GAPS Yahoo group is consulting with him. After listening to my chief complaints he feels I have parasites. Since I have done several herbal parasite cleanses and my diet is extremely strict and limited, he suggested I take medication for them and then rebuild gut flora once the parasites are gone. He said since he can't prescribe medication he can't really help me right now but would be happy to consult with me after I am done with the meds (should I decide to take them). Incidentally I had just ordered another stool test kit from Parasitology Center Inc. the day before. Chris likes Metametrix for parasite testing and that's who I did the last stool test with. However, I was told that this place is even better. Chris also felt that the difficulty I am having taking probees and ferments could be an indication of parasitic infection since parasite can feed off of them.

I really didn't want to do more tests (or spend more money on tests), but I am desperate to feel better. Right now I am not living. I am merely making it through the day as best as possible and there is no joy in that. I am praying that Dr. Amin from the Parasitology Center Inc. will find something IF there is something to be found which needs to be addressed. As much as I hate taking medication, I probably will give it a try considering that everything else I have tried has not worked.

GAPS Re-Intro: Day 2

I took a tiny amount of Nystatin yesterday as well as 1 drop of fermented carrot brine. I can't say I feel great today but no increased headache or other die off symptoms either. That's good...I am more hopeful.

It's only been one day and I am already tired of boiled meat. It just does not taste good to me. Yesterday I had boiled salmon and boiled chicken thighs. I admit though that I sauteed the skin of both in a cast iron skillet and some tallow. There is no way I can eat boiled fish or chicken skin and I didn't feel like pureeing it into my broth. Today I am having boiled chicken breast (it's skinless) and a ton of tallow. I will try a little bit more Nystatin but will keep the fermented carrot brine at 1 drop. It seems crazy that such a small amount could potentially cause die off.

The pain in my right wrist, knuckles, and fingers continues. I am not sure if I hurt my wrist somehow without noticing and the pain is radiating to my hand or if this is arthritic type pain. I hope it's not the latter. Dr. Cowan ordered some blood tests and among them he is checking for rheumatoid arthritis and also for mycoplasma pneumoniae. I have had the latter in the past and he wants to see if there's a lingering infection.