Sag Season

Have you ever taken steps to improve your well being only to feel like everything you are doing is having the opposite effect?  

Fun right?

I keep reading that this is where most people quit … I get that, I feel like I’ve lived that - been there, done that.  Not this time.  

I recently had some bloodwork done to rule out anything medical causing my migraines.  Hilarious right?  I’m really ruling out things like a tumour - you know … major changes on the medical front.  Upside - no tumour.  Downside but unsurprising side - inflammation markers are higher than they should be.  Then I want them.  

Sighs. 

So I’m currently on a restrictive eating plan - temporarily - to reduce my inflammation markers and reset my gut health.  I say temporary - it is and it isn’t.  I’ll always have a focus on anti-inflammatory foods and certain foods and my body don’t play well together so will be limited or off limits.  So - the current restrictions and hard no’s are temporary while I reset but will move to an 80/20 rule longer term to ensure sustainability and keeping those markers on the low side.  

As I navigate this I continue to learn new and fascinating things.  I didn’t realize the body had memory of illness - chronic or otherwise … if I think about immune functions - it makes sense.  It’s crazy, wildly educational but also makes sense.  The immunity discussion came up because I think my body was recently fighting off a cold of some variation.  Like any normal person - I don’t enjoy feeling overly tired, having a headache or feeling blah.  I took an Advil on Thursday, Friday and Sunday to manage the headache which I have since learned suppresses the body’s ability to fight infection with a fever.  Which also makes sense if I think about it.  All the over the counter medicines are designed to bring comfort - numb the throat, stop the runny nose, suppress a cough … but also prevents the body from treating the infection using the tools at its disposal.  I’m not saying I’ll never take an Advil again.  I will.  But it did make me think - am I hurting my immunity by never letting it work - by never letting it do what it is designed to do for things that I don’t really need medication for (read a head cold).  

There is a cost.  I give myself permission to rest.  I let myself feel what my body needs to feel while it treats the infection the cold is causing.  I don’t reach for temporary relief.  

It made me wonder about the strength of our immune function - is it strong if I never get sick?  Am I really not getting sick or am I over medicating and my immunity forgets how to work?  Does the immune system function like  a muscle - it needs to work to remain strong?  

I’m not opposed to medication or modern medicine … not at all.  I do worry about over medicating when it’s not necessary … looking for the balance between prevention and reaction … looking at how food or lifestyle or mentality can impact health or longevity and work in partnership with medication or can also be used as medication.  These things make me curious.  These things make me think.  These are the rabbit holes I go down for no other reason other than my brain poses questions I can’t answer without investigating.  

I do believe food is foundational to our health.  Obviously.  Or I wouldn’t believe in inflammation or removing foods that create or keep the body inflamed or eating foods that have anti-inflammatory properties.  I’d look for a silver bullet and go about my day.  

The challenge - I have never considered myself a cook.  Curiosity has been mild - at best - as it relates to the effort I’ve wanted to put into recipes or experimenting with meals.  The problem - it makes eating in ways I want to eat unsustainable because of the ingredients in those items.  So I have failed - every time.  

Depressing no? 

There is good news … this time I’m approaching food differently.  My inner scientist is taking the lead … is giving me permission to try, to fail, to try again.  I promise you - not every experiment I have tried has worked. Not even remotely.  More importantly.  Not everyone has failed. I made ribs for the first time ever.  While I currently can’t use BBQ sauce - I can use grainy mustard and grainy mustard is more versatile than I imagined it could be.  Each week I try something new, something I’ve wanted to learn but never bothered - for whatever reason.  

The best news - I’m enjoying it, a lot.  

I might even open a cookbook - I have several - and try a recipe from one of them that I’ve never been brave enough to try.  I’d like to master sea food.  Not just fish - which I love.  But octopus, shrimp, shell fish … I don’t know what to do with these so I avoid them.  I might even pull out one of my grandmother's aprons - show up as a serious chef.  

We are entering Sag season … taking risks, aiming high, seeking knowledge … I’m feeling this - especially in the kitchen.  

Maybe I’ll take a cooking class … in another country … in a language I’m in the process of learning … because why not?  Food is meant to be fun, to be explored, to be experienced.  Every culture does food differently and I find that fascinating … Exploring my inner Sag seems like the bold choice - the brave choice - the right choice.