The end of the experiment

I didn't end up going back on the guai, and for now, I don't plan to. I still haven't decided if it was really doing what Dr. St. Amand claimed it does. However, it's been about 6 months since I decided to go on his hypoglycemic diet from the same book that talks about the guai. I was desperate enough to try to give up sugar and most carbs to see what would happen. I found that the first three weeks, I felt worse. I knew that was normal, as I've done similar diets in the past. But, once the blahs passed, it made an enormous difference! I was able to half my tramadol, then quarter them. I have a lot more energy and can wake-up a little better in the morning (I don't know if there is a cure for my mornings!) Once up, I function quicker and for longer periods of time. I've lost about 30 pounds fairly easily in the last year on top of that! When I mess up, I pay for it. I find that pizza is the worst culprit. I know that the crust is terrible. I've also read that tomatoes can cause inflammation, and I'm starting to believe it just from my reaction to pizza. The better I eat, the more I realize that I feel drunk (and not in a good way) or have a hangover most of the time when I don't eat well. It's a hard thing to start, but most of the time, it's pretty easy to live, and the cravings and extra hunger go away after a week or so. The pain difference makes it completely worth it. I think more clearly as well and am a lot less tired in general.

I also found that going to the acupuncturist makes a difference. My cousin's husband also has fibro so severely, along with some other issues due to a rappelling accident, and he became bedridden and almost non-functional. He's only in his late 30's. He started going to the local acupunturist, and it changed him visibly, so I decided to try it. I have a lot of pain that sits in my hands and forearms, and one treatment can make that go away for a few days at a time. It helps my energy as well. She is a community acupuncturist, which means that she treats several people in one room at a time (big zen-like room), so she can charge a lot less than in a traditional single visit. She has a sliding scale from $15-$40 per treatment.

So, that's where I am for now. I take my vitamins regularly- I think I listed them on a previous entry. [I just went back and looked... I'm not on all that anymore. Here's what I actually take now; I will only make a note on the new things that were not on the previous blog about supplements:

-Tramadol

-Women's multivitamin

-Fish oil

-Chromium picolinate

-B-12 for energy

-Magnesium/Calcium/Zinc (which I can not remember why at this moment; I knew when I started taking them; I know zinc helps the immune system a lot- I get colds a lot less often than I used to)

-Melatonin

-Klonopin

-Mobic.

These helps a lot, too. When I can, I exercise- that's a hard one for me to fit in with my energy issues (and it doesn't really work like it does for the average person without fibro- it may or may not help my energy. Sometimes it helps me tank instead). I do work in the center of campus, so I get some walking in every day at least.

I hope this has helped someone- I'm not sure it's definitive enough, but at least it's one person's experience.