I had forgotten this part.  This is the stage of the GAPS diet where we experience die-off (or Herxheimer reaction).  This isn't caused by eating the fresh, healthy food son plan, but rather a reaction from all of the unhealthy foods I've been feeding my body over the past year.  They've been stored up in my body and it's time to let them go.  I tend to react very quickly and recover quickly as well.  It's interesting to me that the slight symptoms I have from my auto-immune condition (swollen lymph nodes, pressure in my right ear and jaw line, congestion) seems to be worsened as I start the diet, but then as the drainage subsides I start to feel very, very clear headed.  I'm looking forward to that.  Sticking with the allowed foods through the next few days is the hardest part, but I'm encouraged because I know what the end results will be.  Taking only a digestive enzyme (stopping all other supplements), lots of water, skin brushing and detox baths seem to help me make it through even faster.

I've already attended two social gatherings where the food looked delicious, but was off plan.  I took some chicken stock with shredded chicken, onion and carrots with me as well as some cooked vegetables.  I did really well and recognized that the energy that I would have put into the food was redirected to the people who were present. 

Last night when the kids had gone to bed I experienced my first huge craving for something "special".  A small glass of wine, a piece of dark chocolate.  I realized that I had become very dependent on small treats throughout the day when moments of craziness or solitude brought up feelings I need to work through.  I was able to sit down by myself and work through some of those.  A hurt from a few years ago that I'm having trouble letting go, a sense of loss as my son reaches manhood, fear about our future as we search for a farm.  While I'm fairly good at thinking things through I often avoid the hard work of really spending time in prayer over things, asking for forgiveness and most important forgiving myself.  I'm looking forward to making more time for letting go.

The most important thing to remember is BE PREPARED!  I'm stocked up today with chicken stock, chicken soup, shredded chicken and cooked vegetables.  I've got a pot of beef stock on the stove and have plans to make fish stock tonight (friends are gathering for a picking party & fish fry).  I cannot stress how important surrounding yourself with loving and accepting people becomes.  I'll make sure that there is plenty for my family to eat as well.  Because the best thing about this way of eating is that all of the food is packed with nutrition, grown locally and exactly what generations of folks have been eating for centuries.  The concept is what sent our great-great grandparents after the chicken soup when someone was ill (it was never meant to be the Campbell kind).  So I'll encourage Nathan and my kids to drink as many cups of stock as possible and to nibble on chicken, beef and vegetables when they are "hungry".  And if they choose they will start to eliminate the bad stuff on their own. 

Nourishing Farm Meals {GAPS Diet-Stage One}

I've known that an elimination diet was in my future for a while.  The last two years have been by far the most stressful of our lives and I think that I've basically been running on adrenaline most of the time.  As things begin to slow down a bit and we are able to start a routine (I use that word lightly) I find myself recognizing the health issues that I've picked up. Unable to lose weight, lethargic, loss of appetite followed by feeling ravenous, cold sores, ringing and pain in right ear, pain in lymph nodes on right side of neck, confused and light headed.

I considered starting with a candida cleanse which Nathan and I have had a lot of success with in the past.  We both have symptoms of being pre-diabetic and after Nathan's mom was diagnosed with liver disease two years ago we were even more determined to take control of our health.  But life happens and sometimes you just get off track.  That's why I've decided to go back to stage one of the GAPS diet.  I had tremendous success healing Lilah's autism diagnosis, hair loss, and digestive issues as well as healing my autoimmune disorder in the past.  We worked carefully under our medical team at Cool Springs Family Medicine in TN and feel confident that we'll see the same success on our lesser issues this time.  It's a lot of work and takes some preparation, but I realize that it's worth the investment of my time.

I'll be doing State one of GAPS by myself this time, but my family will reap the benefits of eating several of the meals with me throughout the week.  The bone broth alone can be just the thing to cure tummy issues which Nathan, Carter and Elizabeth have been complaining of since we got off track.  One of the reasons why I was so attracted to local food as our main food source was because of the success we experienced with GAPS.  All of the foods on the diet are available locally, from our own farm and from farmers that we know.

These are the foods that I will be eating on stage one:

-Pastured or Wild Caught Meat & Fish
-Well cooked vegetables:  broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onions, leeks, winter and summer squash
-Bone Broth, Stocks (at every meal and in between meals)
-Sea Salt
-Garlic (I add freshly minced garlic at the end or before re-heating)
-Sauerkraut Juice
-Lots of Distilled Water

Five years after I was introduced to the GAPS diet I realize that a lot of my autoimmune symptoms may be directly linked to the fact that I was born by cesarean, formula fed and remained isolated in a sterile environment for the first weeks of life and beyond.  In addition, my diet growing up and in the early years of adulthood was full of processed, sugary foods.  The GAPS diet allows my body to rest, reboot and prepare for the next stage of life!

While I realize that any elimination diet is full of ups and downs and that there will be days when I want something else to eat I'm thankful for how well my body responds to these pure, simple foods.  It also allows me to spend less time thinking about what I will eat (or not eat) and more time focusing on what is really important.  Here are a few of the ways I plan to spend my time more effectively:

-Working on a new homeschool curriculum that fits our lifestyle and each childs personal needs.
-Working through faith, hope, patience as we continue looking for a farm.  Journaling.
-Running, Yoga
-More focused time online.  Unplugging for most of the day.
-Preparing more nutritious foods for my family.

I'll be on stage one somewhere between 10 days and 4 weeks depending on how well my body responds.  Most likely it will be closer to 4 weeks.  I'll be adding in some green juices from Zest-Juice for Life (heated before drinking) when I feel light headed or show other symptoms that my blood sugar is dropping.  This did become an issue for me last time due to the low carbs in stage one.  Peeled and cooked apples can also bring your blood sugar back up, but I'll only use them if I really need them.  I'll do my best to check back in and discuss my progress and particularly how I move into stage two.

In February of 2012 our family started the 100 Thing Challenge.  I wrote about it here and here, but this is a summary of what the 100 Thing Challenge meant for our family.

"Americans own homes that are three times larger than they were in the 1950’s.   Our homes are fuller than ever, and we still spend 22 billion dollars on storage units to store the stuff that will not fit in our homes.  At some point, our excess stuff started to take over more space than our homes allowed.  Our stress levels and quality of life actually started to decline.  The 100 Thing Challenge is less about counting to 100 and more about increasing your quality of life.   It’s about taking back control of the things that matter most and putting your stuff in its place – figuratively and literally!"

The concept came to my attention when several blog writers wrote about a new book that was out with the title 100 Thing Challenge.  While the author elimated everything , but 100 items in his life we decided to be a bit more realistic for a family of 6.  We allowed 100 items per person including clothes, shoes, toys, etc.  If you are thinking that you yourself might benefit from a similar challenge let me encourage you to think less about the legalistic rules and more about what you are hoping to gain.  The hardest part is just getting started.

One of the rituals I created for myself was touching each and every single possession.  Asking myself if it was worthy of my money, time and space.  If it was I gave it consideration and if it wasn't then it found a new home.  I realize now that the desire to do the 100 Thing Challenge was really a step towards us following our calling to farm full time.  Choosing the most narrow path always is.  At the end we had more money, time and space to fill our lives up with something new, something more meaningful.

But you know what happened?  Life happened.  We made the decision to farm full time which meant a thousand small decisions to make that happen.  Nathan set out to finish his masters degree-finally.  He gave his notice to work and finished his commitments there.  I became-for the first time in a few years-consumed by work as we prepared for starting our year round CSA.  And Nathan's mom was diagnosed with liver disease and passed away a month after we began farming full time.  Our home became full of clutter, trash and stuff that steals what's important.  Life happened.

It also began to become obvious that we really do NEED MORE ACRES.  We advertised our desire and hunkered down for what we thought might be a long farm hunting process.  And it has been-two years, in fact.  But with prospective farms on the horizon I know that it is time.  It's time for me to reconsider each and every possession one by one.  To do the hard work of starting the process of removing items I love, from shelves that have held them for over 12 years.  Shelves in a home, in a neighborhood that we love.

As I was considering just starting the 100 Thing Challenge as before I mentioned to Nathan that I needed some moving boxes and a good old-fashioned kick in the pants to gather the motivation to get started.  Nathan said, "I have 100 wooden crates in the barn".  He wasn't sure what he had just said, but he said that I got that look I always get and there was smoke rolling out of my ears.  I'd say that it was simply divine intervention.  The motivation I needed.  I'd fill 100 wooden crates with our most important stuff and get rid of the rest.  Yes, I do realize that our furniture and other large items won't fit, but remember that I don't like getting too legalistic.

So I'll start filling the crates one by one-starting with the things most important to me- because that makes everything else easier.  And I'll wait patiently as we remain hopeful for our next farm with more acres and lots of extra space.  Life is happening.