This is a blog about my journey to reclaiming ME. I am a wife and mother to four kids. I work at home which gives me the opportunity to care for my kids. In whatever time I can squeeze in, I sew baby bibs and accessories and upkeep a shop on Etsy (www.etsy.com/shops/kaedebear).
In the past four months, I have been battling some type of allergy induced rash. The onset coincides with my starting on a nutritional cleanse program called Isagenix. This is not to knock down Isagenix, which I am inclined to admit, truly works for most people who are interested in losing weight and getting healthy, and those who want extra income. I've made the decision to stop Isagenix and focus on reclaiming my health, mainly, to get rid of the blistering rashes I get. It has taken four months to come to this point. My husband was quick to point out that Isagenix was the root cause of my problems, I was less adamant.
From my research, and initial doctor visits, appointments, tests, things pointed to dermatitis herpetiformis, a skin manifestation of celiac disease. After three or four rounds of different antibiotics and multiple topical corticosteroids, I tried to eliminate gluten from my diet. It seemed to work. I then had to see my primary care physician to request authorizations to see a rheumatologist and a gastroenterologist. She ordered full allergy, CBC, and autoimmune panels. Based on the results, I do not have celiac, although my IgA levels are very high, the numbers are within the normal range. I feel like this is due to me being on a gluten-free diet prior to the test. What was interesting in my lab results was my IgE count, which is beyond high! This indicated an allergic response to "something". Finding out that "something" is the key to my recovery. As I wait to see an allergist and a gastroenterologist (my primary doctor didn't think seeing a rheumatologist is necessary), I am embarking on healing my gut.
A colleague of mine mentioned a program called Clean Gut, but Dr. Alejandro Junter. Dr. Junter points out that most illnesses can be traced back to a leaky gut, especially allergies. This resonated with me. After all, my labs indicate that I'm allergic to something I'm consuming.
Starting on February 22, 2016 to March 13, 2016, I am undertaking the Clean Gut program, a 21-day intensive gut repair program, followed by a week of trial phase consisting of reintroducing possible allergy triggers.
I have to be mindful of the allergies that showed up in my labs and avoid these foods. I am definitely going to avoid the ones with 1-2 rating, but will likely include the 0/1 ratings in my diet. This logic is based on the fact that 0/1 is equivocal and may not necessarily indicate a true allergy. This may be a little confusing but trust me, this whole rash situation is waaaay more confusing.
So, here's to the next 28 days! Wish me luck.
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