Research, I actually really love it. I enjoy pouring over books, blogs, articles, videos etc learning about a topic. I often spend days, and weeks obsessing over a particular topic until I have exhausted my hunger for the understanding of it.
My latest research has been about gut health and the GAPS diet protocol. To be honest, its a topic that I have been flirting with for a couple years now but like a cad would never commit to pursuing. I know the gut is the key to our bodies health. My mom taught me that as a kid but…brownies taste good and sometimes make you forget things you know.
A few months ago my 4 year old daughter started complaining of tummy aches. I thought she just didn’t want to finish her food at first but her bowel movements started indicating that she was indeed having stomach upset. I had her muscle tested and found a dairy and soy sensitivity. Nothing anaphylactic but definitely shutting down her digestive process. She also had some adrenal fatigue which was most likely linked to the anxiety she was exhibiting. Suddenly afraid of everything, crying for no reason etc. It wasn’t a lot but enough that I noticed and felt it was unusual. We used the supplements suggested and got her adrenals back in order and took her off dairy and soy, all seemed well with her. At around the same time, my husband and I also got muscle tested and he had extreme adrenal fatigue as well as some digestive issues. I have suspected he had gut issues for a long time because of his chronic halitosis but sometimes it is hard for husbands to take their wives suggestions seriously. (To be fair, its sometimes hard for wives to take their husbands suggestions seriously too.) I showed a sensitivity to cheese and whole eggs. Again, we got the supplements suggested, took the foods out of our diet and things seemed to get better. Fast forward a few months and my husband was exhausted again. I started to have weird stomach upsets. Nothing serious but definitely not my normal. My daughter also started complaining of stomach aches again. I could tell her stomach really was bothering her and I suspected a new food sensitivity. I decided to get serious.
I tend to be a pretty bold person. I don’t shy away from hard things when I know they are right. Its a blessing and a curse sometimes…my poor parents 🙂 I had seen friends and family members dealing with food sensitivities and I knew that I didn’t want to have to deal with endless “can’t have” food lists for life. I had also read enough of Weston A Price and Sally Fallon’s books to know that the gut was the key. As Hippocrates said…“all disease begins in the gut.”
Enter the GAPS – (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) protocol.
“The GAPS protocol was designed for patients suffering from learning disabilities, psychiatric and psychological disorders, immune system problems and digestive problems
The purpose of the treatment is to detoxify the person, to lift the toxic fog off the brain to allow it to develop and function properly. In order to achieve that we need to clean up and heal the digestive tract, so it stops being the major source of toxicity in the body and becomes the source of nourishment, as it is supposed to be. As more than 90% of everything toxic floating in our blood (and getting into the brain) comes from the gut, healing it will drop the level of toxicity in the body dramatically.” (taken from gapsdiet.com)
I only know one person who has actually done this 7 stage diet process with her family. Dina-Marie is a wealth of knowledge and has a fantastic blog. We have swapped recipes in the past- I taught her about master tonic and she taught me how to make sauerkraut. I knew she had experienced amazing success with GAPS so I decided to call her and see if she would share some of her tips and tricks. I found out she actually just came out with a new e-book about GAPS!! I also pulled out all my books and cookbooks on GAPS. Strange that I would have books on the subject? I know, but I told you I have been flirting with this idea for a while. It took us having health issues to push me over the edge into actual doing it.
I will be honest. I am nervous. I have never done anything like this with my whole family, especially young kids. I am doing everything I can to prepare myself for our starting date which is August. Here is what I am doing to prepare…
- Reading, reading, reading. You can not just jump into something like this protocol lightly. You need to understand WHY you are doing it and why it works. You also need to know what to expect, what you can eat when and how your body may respond. The books pictured are my favorite but I have also found some great blogs too.
- https://nourishedkitchen.com/
- https://raiasrecipes.com/ – I have found some great recipes here.
- https://www.wellfedhome.com/the-gaps-diet
- https://www.thefamilythathealstogether.com/
- Cooking. I know from just LIFE that the more I can prepare now, the easier it will be later. Cooking is a big part of that. I am making…
- Meat stock
- Sauerkraut
- Yogurt (both raw cow and goat)
- Meatballs
- Ginger Creams (aka Coconut creams)
- Various soups
- Sourcing. A key to this diet is having good quality ingredients. That means grass fed, organic, local (if possible) etc. The best of the best or at least the best you can find. I am looking for the sources around me. Here are some helpful resources I have found so far…
- Praying. I know that God has given us food and it can be used for healing but I also know that ultimately our healing comes from God. I need His strength as I start this journey.
- Preparing my family. This isn’t the kind of thing you just spring on your family without warning. “Surprise kids, we are only having broth and boiled meats and veggies for the next week! Aren’t you excited!?” NO, no, no. I have already been giving my husband things to read, explaining the idea to our kids and even starting to introduce a few things we will do while on GAPS – like taking shots of lacto fermented veggie juice. (I chose to give them pickle juice and they LOVED it! Talk about an encouragement for mom!)
I hope to share our journey here and will definitely be sharing recipes so keep an eye out. Don’t worry, if this isn’t your thing, the whole blog isn’t going to be all GAPS just some of it 🙂
