I Told The Witch Doctor...

Today I went to the Naturopath.

The what?!

That's right. The Witch Doctor. The Chinese Herbalist. The Accupuncturist. The wacky one that MD's shudder at the sound of. Seriously, I didn't even know what a naturopath was until it was explained to me by the naturopath herself. But, there I was, in the office, waiting to be assessed.

Why was I even there, you ask? Well, let me tell you.

I have been experiencing dietary concerns for a very long time, but they seem to have become exacerbated in the past year, year and a half or so. It was certainly high time to do something about it. I couldn't distinguish what was causing me to feel sick when I ate and what wasn't. We thought perhaps a lactose intolerance, but it was finicky about when it wanted to flair up. Chicken hasn't been sitting well with me for a few months now; sometimes pasta does me in. Someone recommended seeing a naturopath when their digestive problems were solved, so I found the first one that didn't have a 6 month waiting time and booked an appointment.

First, I was running late, surprise, surprise. Then, as I pulled into the parking lot, I couldn't see a sign for their offices on the outside of the building, so using my excellent detective skills, ventured into the professional building to look for a list of resident businesses. Not one matched my idea of a naturopath office - there were lawyers, insurance companies, landscaping, but no wellness centre. I phoned mum, but ended up deciding for myself that they were probably on level two. Luckily, that small success was mine.

Second, I forgot my wallet. Durrrrrrr.

Third, I am so horrible at filling out intake forms. They ask you questions that you only think about when you're filling out intake forms! I don't know the exact date of my last physical! I can't remember my diet for the past week, let alone yesterday! Grr.

On the bright side, Dr. E is great. She's very honest, welcoming, friendly... the list could go on. She did, as I mentioned above, explain to me what a naturopath does, and the difference between MDs and NDs. She likes to base her treatments in science before trying more holistic mthods, which I appreciate, having some skepticism about Chinese medicine, acupuncture, chakras (voodooism?), etc.

She was also very honest about the treatment plan we are starting with. The Elimination Diet.

That is, take out like, everything and then slowly bring things back, one at a time, and watch for adverse reactions. Dr. E pointed out that the 'Do' list is longer than the 'Don't', but with our Western diet, things like gluten and dairy are staples in sooooooooooo many things. I now have to be super duper careful about everything I eat.

Quinoa for breakfast. Go me.

I'll try to blog about the diet. I hope this will help me to be actively recording any reactions I may experience, from mood swings, fatigue, to nausea when we start re-introducing items.

Did I mention this diet of like, nothing, is lasting for two weeks? 14 freaking days of dust! *sobs* Ok, ok, I'm playing this up.... there are lots of things to eat. But I'm going to have to get really creative with meal planning - oh, and actually plan a meal in advance, period.

Wish me luck.

Over and out,

~Alexandra