Eating Clean - GI Issues When Off-Plan?

[LaurenB]

When I first started eating by the Plan about 6 weeks ago, the transition was easy on my system. But after a couple relapses, or if I don't eat exactly on Plan due to poor planning, I notice I have some major GI upsets that have me concerned.

Is this a normal experience after training my system to be clean? I can literally feel a reaction inside when I've had an occasional piece of bread or carb not on the Plan. And the GI stuff... am I super-duper sensitive now? Please tell me I'm not alone... or could it possibly be something else? This is alarming me.

Lauren

[TYGtoday]

Hi Lauren,
When I was "out there, in the food" I ate things that I can't even believe now. I basically existed on sugar and red meat for a number of years. I don't know how I made it, but thank God, I did survive until I was blessed to find FAA and the suggested food plan. My body is very clean now, of all forms of sugar/flour/wheat and I haven't relapsed since I achieved my clean abstinence. But I do believe that if I did relapse, my body would react very poorly to the substances that are toxic for food addicts (for me!) Maybe this is what's happening for you, too?

You mentioned that you have these GI experiences after relapsing, but also if you don't eat completely according to the plan. What do you mean by that? Are you talking about not following the suggested timing in between meals? Or are you talking about eating "gray foods" (some of which are greasy, like potato chips)? Or are you talking about eating volume over what the food plan calls for? It would help to know what you mean when you say this happens when you don't eat exactly according to the suggested food plan.

I will look for your reply, Lauren. And also, someone else with experience with relapsing after being clean on the FAA food plan might be able to help as well.

Hang in there!

[LaurenB]

Yes, gray foods or on-plan foods in smaller amounts or at the wrong time of the day (milk and fruit mid-day). Because of an unusual string of days with GI/stomach upset even after eating according to the food plan going over a week now, I've been experimenting with the diet to see what I can do to help eliminate this unwelcome side-effect I've been having in my stomach, which might not have anything to do with the plan at all (or maybe it does).

I think one of my main concerns today is that if I ever deviate from this food plan, I'm going to suffer severely. Is it possible to be that sensitive to foods or to develop intolerances to foods on the plan because I'm consuming them in much larger quantities (dairy, grains) than ever before?

Thanks for listening.

[swimbunnie]

Lauren, when I first started with the plan but was not fully abstinent I noticed that if I ate some foods, particularly with corn syrup, I seemed more prone to GI issues than I had been before. I believe the sensitivity was there before but volumizing on foods of all types diluted the effects somewhat. Recently, 7 months into abstinence, after recovering from surgery I had a similar problem. Between anesthesia and pain meds I was constipated and the nurse gave me a laxative called lactulose. It made me nauseous, clammy, and ill. Turns out it was a sugar-based laxative. I didn't even know existed. As for concerns about deviating from the plan and worrying about severe side effects, I use that as an ally to keep me abstinent. God bless and good luck.

[here42da]

Thanks for sharing your dilemma. While I have never experienced any of these problems, I certainly have heard others share about a lot of related situations. Even was interesting that one had two use a much smalller amout at a time to gradually get the body used to whether it was going to accept the food in question. A good thing to do is ask like you have done here, and also on the question part of meetings, as well as the questions and answer meetings (Sunday 7:00 p.m. est, and open chat on Friday which is an online. ) Also Just keep asking others when you make outreach calls from the contact information that you get at the end of the meetings. I would also recommend attempting to do everything as perfect as possible for say 30 days with out any changes if you can handle it, and see what happens. If you start making changes in food, or timing, etc. You may never know exactly what it is that is causing the problem. Wishing you well as you travel this journey.
here42da

[LaurenB]

Update: After seeing a doctor and having some tests done, I learned that my GI issues were caused by a new supplement I was taking . . . not the food plan. I stopped the supplement immediately, unfortunately long after I stopped my abstinence.

Thank you to everyone who reached out in this thread trying to help me figure things out.

I've been derailed and off-track ever since in a very big way.

I have 9 months of reading to catch up on . . . hopefully it will inspire me to take that first step again.

LaurenB

[JustForToday]

Glad to hear that your issues have been resolved.

The longer us food addicts stay on this clean way of eating - no sugar, flour or wheat or other high carb foods that may not be s/f/w, and they are called gray foods and they are often not good for us food addicts; then the body becomes more sensitive to any s/f/w being eaten.

I thought at some point early in my abstinence that I would somehow be getting back some of those foods some day and now I see clearly that once they are out of my system - the s/f/w and my personal foods that I need to abstain from also, like puffed cereals, rice cakes, grapes, pineapple, watermelon, coffee and decaf coffee - then if I begin eating them again, well my body reacts with G.I. problems galore or I want to begin volumizing....there is clearly some kind of reaction with my body chemistry...so it's best for me to just abstain from them...and the road becomes narrower...just anther fact of life that I need to accept.

[Tortus]

Dear Lauren

I'm so glad your problem has been sorted.

I had very bad GI problems before I came on the plan. On one occasion my son had to feed me because I was shaking too badly to get a spoon to my mouth but knew that the only solution was to eat something! Now I am on the FAA plan, I have only had one episode, and that was when I could not eat at the right time and went over by an hour and a half.

I do hope you find the strength to jump back on the program, you know it makes sense!

Very best wishes

Victoria
Praying to stay clean today.