These days, it seems as if going gluten free, dairy free, vegan, vegetarian, Keto, Paleo, Atkins, Whole 30, etc. is more of a trend or choice rather than a necessity. And those who choose to live this lifestyle can accidentally eat one of these foods and be ok. But for those who NEED to be on these diets, it is a different story, and one I have come to relate to in some extent. This week's post is all about the encounters I have had, and what it is like to live without gluten, dairy, soy, and egg. For those of you who know me, read my FND Story post, or follow my @eating_right_in_college_ Instagram account; you know that since February, I went from being able to eat anything I wanted (except kiwi, I'm allergic to that..random, right?) to basically cutting out all things normal to me!
1. "Wow, that must be tough."
Whenever I am offered a sample of something, at graduation parties or celebrations, and have to explain that I am gluten, dairy, soy, and egg free, everyone has the same reaction. They look at me like my puppy just died, and reply with "wow, that must be really tough." My answer? YES IT IS! There are two giant reasons why this lifestyle is so hard to keep up with. The first can be explained by psychology. There is a theory that states that when you are told you can't have something, you want it even more. For example, when a big red button says "do not press!" you're darn right I am going to press it. I experience this everyday with this diet. I absolutely hate seafood, but when the menu describes that it is cooked in butter or is breaded, just the fact that it contains two things that I can't have makes me want it. I'd like to think as a psych major, I could realize that this theory is driving me insane, but as much as I'd like it to stop, it's human nature. The second reason that this diet is so hard, is that soy is in everything! Most people think that cutting out gluten and dairy would be the hardest, but soy and egg are by far more challenging. Why? Well, they make so many gluten free options, but they all still contain egg. There are also so many vegan options that cut out the dairy and egg..but soy is a common substitute. I have become fantastic at reading labels, looking up the allergen menu, and asking servers what kind of oil their fries are cooked in. Fun fact, Chick Fil A waffle fries are not cooked in soy oil..woo hoo!
2. "What happens when you eat it?"
After explaining that I can't have any of those ingredients, the reaction to this question is even more entertaining to see than the dead puppy reaction. It is not well known that the brain and the stomach are connected, it is called the blood brain barrier. When I eat one of these foods, it gets into my blood stream and goes to the part of my brain called the Basal Ganglia which is what causes my seizure like movements. Most people assume that I get a stomachache or don't feel good when I eat one of these things, so when I explain that I basically have seizures at night, they look at me like I just told them their puppy died instead of mine. Eyes wide, mouth agape, and are at a loss for words. To ease the mood a bit, I have gotten used to saying something like "so yeah as much as I'd like to eat that cookie, I think I probably shouldn't." They just nod their head real fast, eyes still popping out of their head. It used to be hard for me to say that this is what happens to me, but coming up with witty things to say after watching countless popping eyeballs makes it all worth it.
3. "Wow aren't you just little miss healthy."
I mostly get this statement at restaurants. As you can imagine, I am limited when I go out to eat, but of course things like meat, vegetables and fruit are all fair game for me. I can still remember the first time I went to Old Chicago while starting this diet. For those who don't know, Old Chicago is known for their Chicago Style pizza. After my family ordered the usual large pizza, half pepperoni, half sausage with tomato on the whole thing, I then ordered a grilled chicken breast with steamed broccoli. The waitress looked at me for a couple seconds before making the remark mentioned above. Most of the servers say it like it is a bad thing, or that they are surprised, which I find interesting in itself! Haven't you ever seen a teenager eat healthy before? Guess not! I still have not come up with a good response to this statement yet, so I just kind of smile and nod until they realize I did in fact just willingly order vegetables.
4. "Are you a vegan?"
One of my favorite recipes that I have come across is a sweet potato black bean burger (if you want the recipe, reach out!) So when I posted this on my Fitstagram account, I got a lot of replies asking if I was vegan. My response was "It really depends on the day." As you can imagine, they were confused. I am not vegan because I can have meat, but once it is cooked in soy, I am a full on vegan. It can get confusing to keep track of, especially since I can't have the number one protein replacement for vegans which is soy protein. I have been trying to come up with a term to call my diet, and so far have had no luck. I'll settle for partial vegan, the "no fun" diet, "rabbit diet", I'm open to any ideas if you can think of any!
5. "Wait, you want what?"
I remember when I was little, I would have my mom order my food for me at restaurants because I was too shy to talk to the server. I honestly hate ordering at restaurants now because I have the weirdest, most high maintenance orders. As I mentioned, I'm limited as to what I can eat, but one thing all restaurants seem to have is a grilled chicken sandwich, so that is what I get. Except when I order, it sounds more like a grilled chicken sandwich without the sandwich part. The servers look at me like I have three eyes as I order a chicken sandwich without the cheese, the bun, the sauce, and everything else until it is just the chicken. I then move over to the sides! The menu options are usually fries, chips, coleslaw etc..so I ask if they could make a steamed vegetable for me but absolutely not cooked in butter. Of course they say yes, but they are writing down my order so slowly on their little pad and look so confused like I just ordered the weirdest thing ever. This is where history repeats itself as my mom tries to diffuse the confusion, telling the server I have allergies, which then leads to the dead puppy reaction again. If our family is going to a special restaurant to celebrate something, my mom will call a day in advance just to make sure they set aside a chicken breast for me before they marinate them the next morning. So yes, I am 19 and technically my mom still orders for me :)
6. "So what CAN you eat, ice?"
Ok I get that it sounds like a lot to cut out, but I can eat more than just ice!...not by much though. As much as it limits me to what I can eat, I don't mind what options I have now. I like my veggies, fruits, chicken, and turkey probably more than the average college student. I have a lot of options that I like for lunch and dinner such as different salads, variations of chicken, turkey, mixed veggies, all fruits (well..not kiwi), beans, sweet potato..really all the natural and whole foods. Breakfast and sweet treats are where it gets hard. My staple breakfast used to be greek yogurt, or eggs. I ate greek yogurt everyday for breakfast since high school, and love my eggs as much as anyone else for Sunday brunch. I've now switched to plant protein based shakes, Kind bars, oatmeal, or the classic Cheerios. It is also hard to satisfy my sweet tooth these days. A lot forget that chocolate has dairy in it, even when "milk chocolate" explains itself. All gluten free treats have egg in them, caramel treats tend to have soy or butter, and most dairy free ice cream still have gluten or soy in it. I now rely on Pinterest heavily for some good recipes! I am thankful that Halo Top Ice cream is a brand that does not have soy in it! There is a reason halo is in the name, the Lord's work right there.
7. "Rabbit Girl"
One of the hardest things about switching to this diet, was the fact that I was still in school on the cafeteria meal plan at the time. I am so thankful for all the work Gustavus has done for me to accommodate to my needs. They used to cook their chicken in soy, but changed the way they cooked their chicken campus-wide, just for me! Before they figured out a way to cook it without soy, I was limited to only being able to have the salad bar for three weeks. During this time, the cafeteria staff started to call me "rabbit girl" because they heard about my allergies, and saw my plate piled high with lettuce several times a day. The nickname has stuck, but I don't mind, because I have come to know the staff very well, and they all look out for me, telling me what I can and can't eat in the caf that day. My parents heard about the nickname, so when I came home for a weekend, my mom thought it would be funny to place a rabbit stuffed animal on my bed. She didn't need to explain why it was there once I walked in my room, sadly, I knew.
8. "I feel bad eating this in front of you."
If I had a dollar for every time I have heard people say this (mostly my mom), I would be able to pay for tuition. Most of the time I can handle watching people eat pizza or other things I can't eat. But I am not gonna lie, when it comes to ice cream, I feel like I am like my dog, sitting and just staring as each spoonful goes into their mouth. Every single bite until it is gone. I hate when people feel guilty and that they feel obligated to accommodate me, but I have a mom that does not like making others feel left out, so it works out. Because of this, she has gone head first into the deep end trying to make alternative recipes for me. Turns out, they make an egg alternative powder, but in my opinion, egg alternative just does not sound like it should even be a thing. As you can imagine, taking dairy, gluten, egg, and soy out of a recipe makes something taste much worse very fast. So as hard as my mom tries to make stuff for me, I feel bad telling her that the cookies she just made or bought taste like dirt. I have also tried a gluten free, vegan pizza, and can confidently say that it does not classify as a pizza. Vegan butter should also not be allowed to be called butter. I have found that I would much rather not eat the alternative foods because they just remind me of what I am missing. But of course, I appreciate the effort!
9. "How long do you have to do this?"
The answer to this question is not totally clear, but a couple years at the least. I have been eating these foods for 9 years without any knowledge that they were doing this to me, and it is going to take a while for 9 years of that to be out of my system in order to heal my brain and gut. The hard part is that every time I mess up, or accidentally eat something I can't, the clock starts over. So if I have gone three straight months without eating any of the forbidden foods, one chocolate chip undoes those three months of clean eating. In a perfect world, I would be able to do this no problem, but there is so much cross contamination, that this task is pretty much impossible for me to complete. I like challenges, but this one is pretty lofty. If anything, there may be a point where I can introduce soy and egg back into my diet, but it is unlikely to ever be able to have gluten or dairy again because those two things are known to cause brain inflammation in general.
10. "Does it actually help?"
The golden question. The brain is a miraculous thing, so it is hard to believe that food can impact brain health, and something as extreme as this can actually improve a disorder I have had for 9 years. But the truth? It does work. Ever since I have started this diet, my violent spells have been clearing up and have become almost non existent. I also know it works because every time I do eat something I can't, I will have flare ups. I am now in control of this, which is the the wish I have made every year while blowing out my birthday candles since 6th grade. Now that I have this control, I know what my price to pay is every time I can't fight the urge to have a lick of ice cream, or a fry cooked in soy. I can live with having mild flare ups, which is why I still have yet to completely follow this diet for a week straight! Through experimentation, I have found gluten and dairy flare it up the most, so I do avoid those a majority of the time. I like to say that unfortunately, this diet fortunately works.
Following this diet definitely has made me recite my verse, Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," in my head a couple times when I am around foods I can't have. I need the strength the most whenever I am watching my family eat their Culver's custard, eating popcorn at the movies, Sunday brunch, Nothing Bundt Cakes, and DQ. I just keep telling myself that I am getting one step closer than they are to a six pack and it makes me feel a tad bit better. I joke with myself saying that maybe eventually, this verse "I can do all things" will allow me to say "I can eat all things." As hard as it is, and as bad as others feel for me when they find out I am limited on what I can have, I look at the bigger picture. Not being able to eat certain foods anymore is so worth it when it comes to ending the suffering I've endured for the last 9 years!
R.E.S.P.E.C.T, for all of you that have allergies. (Tried to make the title reference come full circle here).
Have a great week, folks, mine will be without egg yolks :) **I challenge you all to go ONE DAY following this diet...I'd love to hear your results!!
~Lauren