8-months check-in
2008.07.18
I've been feeling discouraged that my mobility still is bad and seems unaffected by this diet experiment even though my bladder urgency seems much improved. I was recounting this to my therapist and musing about whether the diet was actually helping or if the improvement I am seeing is just the natural fluctuation of the disease.
She pointed out that I had actually identified four big improvements since starting this experiment:
- Cognition. My fuzzy-brain feeling has all but vanished. I hesitate to say it is gone for good, but I can't remember the last time I experienced it.
- Energy. I can get up at 7:30, work a full day, watch TV at night, do a stint on the elliptical machine then get into bed at 10:00 and read for a bit before turning out the light. My energy levels are definitely better.
- Fatigue. Related to my energy level and my experience of fuzzy-brain but, as my doctor pointed out, one of the most common complaints of M.S., the multiple-system failure that is fatigue. I still notice it when I get overheated, but recovery seems to come quicker, usually within a day rather then lasting a week.
- Incontinence. The subsiding of bladder urgency was one of the first things I noticed and the incidence of "accidents" has gone way down too.
Also, I have adopted some great alternatives to things I don't eat and am back down to a comfortable weight.
We talked about the fact that it had been eight months so far and she asked me how I would feel if I stopped now and then a month later, for example, again started to notice declines in these improvements. Would I feel it was prudent to resume it at that point, even if it meant I had to wait another eight months to get back to where I am now?
No. It makes more sense to at least finish out the year.
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