Month: January 2017

Homemade Coconut Creamer 

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I’ve been off caffiene and dairy for the last 5 weeks and just recently got a green flag to have a cup of coffee or tea per day, preferably black. I know me and I can’t do black tea or coffee, and, I’m currently off nuts (milk and butter) and soy too —  it doesn’t leave us with too many options now.

The thing is, I never needed caffeine or relied on it. I genuinly enjoyed having a cup or a half once a day, while writing or when I went out with friends.

For a while I was worried I’d lose the freedom to have a cup of something. As I said, I simply can’t get myself to truly enjoy black coffee.

Good thing is, that’s not the case anymore. I I’ll be carrying my creamer around from now on. It is just heavenly!

Ingredients: 200 ml Organic Coconut Milk (or any coconut milk with no or low preservatives. The one I used contains 99.9% coconut cream) + a few drops of organic stevia (you could use coconut sugar if you have no sugar restrictions) + 1-2 tsp coconut oil + 1 tsp vanilla essence or a pod + 3-4 tablespoons of water or coconut water (can water down the coffee, so decide based on your preference). Coconut water has its natural sweetness and goes well with this creamer.

Method: Blend all ingredients and store in an air-tight bottle. You can keep this for about a week but I suggest using it within 3-4 days and making a fresh batch. I also use the same in golden milk latte (turmeric milk) or chai. I’m supposed to only have a teaspoon in my cup but that too boring for me so I add about 2 teaspoons :)

P.S. Coconut milk might not work for everyone with SIBO. It can be considered high FODMAP in certain amounts so I suggest checking with your Doctor before you decide to try this creamer. You might be allowed some other nuts in your a diet that’s more specific to you.

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Thai Style Pan Roasted Chicken Breast 

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Marinade:
Ginger paste, Turmeric powder, Red Chilli powder (less, for SIBO), Lime juice, Dried Lemongrass powder + Dried Galangal + Dried Kaffir Lime leaves + Thai Sweet Basil leaves (or use a Thai mix without garlic or onion), Cumin powder, Curry powder (without onion and garlic powder) finely chopped Coriander leaves, finely chopped chives, 1 tbsp coconut milk, Black pepper powder, Sesame oil and Salt.

Method: Mix all the above ingredients, mix in with chicken and refrigerate overnight. Pan-fry in more sesame oil (love the nutty flavour it gives. I can’t have nuts at the moment so this really helps!). Cover if needed. I prefer cutting a deep slit into the chicken breast so that it cooks evenly. Plate up and pour a bit more of coconut milk if needed.

That’s it. Cut up and store in an air-tight container in you plan to have it over a day. Easy-peasy and SIBO-friendly! One chicken breast usually lasts me for 2-4 meals as I have it with a serving of low FODMAP veggies.

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Day 26: Bedbound

It seems my lower back is just going to take its time to heal and I’m slowly starting to ease in. Once it starts to show signs of recovery, I’m confident I’d be able to build it up all over again (you fall, you get hurt, you accept, you adjust, you love, you heal, you put yourself together and you keep going) because I’ve done it time and again.

I might need to investigate if there’s any new injury or anything to worry about as this has been a rather severe back flare up in the last few months. Let’s hope there’s nothing new in there. I plan to get it checked in a few days, once I get through a few more sessions of physiotherapy and Ayurveda treatment to see if my back responds. I postponed getting it checked earlier because I’m aware of a couple of factors which could be hindering the recovery process.

I’m done resisting the present, hoping and expecting my back to respond just because I have a time frame in mind. I’m slowly easing in, accepting that despite my plans for January 2017, there was a need for me to slow down. And here I am finally allowing myself to. I can’t be more grateful for the support I have right now which makes it possible for me to give my back a break for the time being. I’ve dealt with a great deal of instability for years altogether and realise the importance of having support/stability AND also being grateful for whatever of it you have.

This is not to say that I can wait for too long to feel more like myself again. I feel like a zombie version of myself right now! Truth being said, nobody enjoys experiencing so much pain or dealing with limitations. I seriously despise being unable to do things I’ve worked so hard to get myself to over the last couple of years. I think it’s always good to pause as long as you don’t quit. The  present situation  calls for me to rest, to let go more so my back heals and regains its strength again. I know I’ll be back on my feet soon enough.

Love to all,

MD

❤︎

SIBO friendly : Easy Indian Spiced Chicken

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Marinade:

Red chilli powder (I’m not allowed to have too much do I put less than half teaspoon)

Turmeric powder

Ginger powder (you can use fresh ginger)

Cumin powder

Lemon juice

Salt + crushed black pepper

Fresh coriander (for marinade and garnishing)

Olive oil/Coconut oil

Method: Clean the chicken, put all the ingredients and marinade well and place it in the refrigerator overnight.

Pan-fry in olive or coconut oil, skin side down, until cooked. You could also cover it for a few minutes to help with cooking.

I think it tasted as good as it could without ingredients like onions/onion powder, garlic, extra red chilli powder for more heat, yogurt etc which go in when I usually make it. I could do with this for now.

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Day 17: Bedbound

In the last 17 days, I’ve had to change and cancel my plans and come to terms with my present reality once again. It’s never easy having to adapt to the ever-changing nature of your chronic illness but you get better at it. It bothers your less (in general) and when it bothers your too much, you learn how to manage your thoughts and emotions around it without beating yourself up each time.

I’ve had to postpone the starting date of my part-time job, stop working on the classes I had plans of teaching, take a break from Pilates and my daily walks, ask for help with groceries and meals, all so that my body gets the rest it deserves, the space it needs to just be.

What I have been doing instead is tending to my back as much as I can and very religiously sticking to my bedtime and nap-time. I’ve been massaging my back with certain oils that help me, using lots of hot packs, doing very light stretches, a bit of infrared therapy, going for physiotherapy, meditating, making small mandalas while in bed, reading up on the treatment-diet that I am on for SIBO, writing, and for most part of it, trying to be more present

As much as I’d like to do more, I can’t do more right now and that’s something I need to be okay with. I’ll do more when I can do more and for now, whatever I’m doing is enough. I’m going to continue giving my back the time it needs to recover. Once it’s better I’ll have to slowly build myself back to where I was before this crazy flare-up (or before I went to India.)

According to my Naturopath, my back could be taking longer to recover due to the SIBO treatment-diet I’m on. It seems that the treatment can induce a very strong detox process (which is needed for the treatment) in your body, which, if too aggressive can cause more inflammation in the existing areas of inflammation. I only hope what she thinks is true because quite honestly, my back is not a happy bunny right now. At all.

I hope things start to look a little more positive soon.

P.S. If you’re wondering what’s on my SIBO friendly “buddha bowl”:

  1. Boiled Beet root with Olive oil and Lime juice
  2. Stir-fry Spinach with Salt and Pepper
  3. Pan fried egg (I usually have it without the yolk)
  4. Olives
  5. Roasted Tobasco & Ginger Chicken
  6. Indian Spiced Zucchini

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Day 13: Bedbound

In the last 13 days of being bedridden, I had three alsolutely healthy individuals telling me that I shouldn’t have done something I did on New Year’s Eve. What did I do on New Year’s Eve? I went out for dinner (DINNER) with friends, couldn’t sleep till 4am and woke up in excruciating pain. And did I complain to you? Nope.

These three individuals aren’t even close to me and most definitely don’t know what it is like to be chronically sick for eight years and the consequences it has on one’s life.

 I completely, from the bottom of my heart understand that they were probably concerned and perhaps I need to just let it go and I certainly will. However, I choose to share this today because I want to bring across a very important message.

On behalf of all of us, the chronically ill community, whose lives generally revolve around their health, acceptance and gazillion other life-altering decisions, I want to say something:

Every single decision we make is consciously thought through by us. Whether that’s something as minor as choosing to use a fork instead of chopsticks, or something major such as having to leave school or a full-time job, or, to once in a while allow ourselves to do something we normally don’t. One can’t even begin to imagine the lengths we go to weigh out pros and cons etc. Every cause and effect is measured. And even then ,our bodies fail us sometimes. Even after all the thinking and taking necessary precautions, there are times when our bodies have other plans and leave us in utter disbelief of the amount of pain something can cause.

At the end of the day, we are not fortune tellers and as much as we can base some of our future decisions on our past health-related experiences, we cannot deprive ourselves of being human. Most of us are extremely responsible people leading a rather simple life, filled with passion and gratitude despite all our struggles. And, let’s be honest, our health usually doesn’t allow for bad decisions.

The last thing we’d want to hear when we’re dealing with such heightened pain is what we “should” have done or not done or do. When you tell someone that they should do something (or not), you make them feel incapable of making right decisions for themselves. It’s almost as if you believe you know what’s better for them. Trust me, you don’t.

What would help instead is to simply ask how we’re doing and if there’s anyway in which you could help. Thank you.

Pan Roasted Tobasco Ginger Chicken 

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Attempting to eat more protein (I miss my vegetables!), that too with only limited ingredients and condiments has been such a task. I’m going fine though. What sucks big time is that I’m bedridden and so blood exhausted every minute of my day that I’m finding it hard to get my experimental self to work. If I can’t even stand, forget trying to get creative with food. At the moment, my survival mode is on. I just need enough food to get through my day, to take all my pain and daily medications + extra antibiotics and survive. Generally speaking, I’m doing fine. Doing my best.