I think I'm a bad blogger?

So again, its been a while. But here we go :)

My newest obsession: organic creamy peanut butter (or also Natural Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter) with organic strawberry preserves on Colorado Cracked Wheat bread. Which is delicious! Especially when you love peanut butter.
   I think that lately I have been craving protein so, I have definitely been having atleast one and sometimes 2 pb&js a day!

So last week I was in Puerto Rico and man was it crazy. When I say I went to Puerto Rico, most people think I went on a tropical vacay: nope! I actually went because my grandmother was having cataract surgery. But WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS... I realized last weekend that my feet were starting to swell. I assumed I had too much salt intake and so I took water pills and drank tons of water. Once I arrived in Puerto Rico on Sunday afternoon, my feet were each the size of a softball! Naturally my grandmother and mother were very concerned. Thus I continued to take the water pills and began drinking EVEN MORE water. So my grandmother gave me a glass of coconut water straight from the coconut itself! However, coconut water I believe is an acquired taste. Its certainly not for everyone. And I'm not really sure I even like it really. Its kind of an almost not quite slimy taste but goes down straight like water. Its incredibly hard to describe. I must admit that its not for everyone though.
The next day, my grandmother was very intent to get my ankles/feet to un-swell. So I ate papaya twice a day for the rest of the time I was there. Papaya is a very fascinating fruit and has such amazing health benefits.
1. Papaya is an Anti-Inflammatory. Thus the entire reason my grandmother made me eat it in the first place. It has 2 enzymes that have been shown to reduce inflammation as well as heal slow healing burns. Thus if you are a person who happens to suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, or even asthma, should consider eating papaya for its natural anti-inflammatory effects.
2. Papaya promotes digestive health. In my case, this is extremely helpful because I have IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) which basically means my colon is a complete spaz :) It has been proven that Papaya actually is a help in preventing colon cancer. How? The fiber in papaya is able to bind to cancer-causing toxins in the colon and promote a healthy colon.
3. For more information on the natural and healthy effects of Papaya please check out this very informative website: Papaya
Thus papaya, mango, and coconut water was a major part of my diet. And to say the least, a lot of my organic only went out the window while I was there because of all the amazing yummy food! However, a lot of it was made with very natural ingredients.
After eating A LOT of papaya and mango and drinking tons of water and coconut water, my ankle/feet started to un-inflame. Another thing that helped was my grandmother putting an organic homemade salve on both of my legs a couple hours before bed time. It dyes your legs to look like self-tanner and with stain the sheets and clothing! Obviously my family are kind of naturalists and would rather turn to natural ways of healing than pharmaceuticals or doctors.
Regardless, my mother still made me an appointment with my Endocrinologist for tomorrow afternoon at Emory University in Atlanta. Once we called my doctor he faxed over some blood test orders for me to get done before I left for Auburn this past Friday. I had 3 vials taken and tested. And I will find out the results tomorrow. I am feeling like the medication is not working very well anymore. I am getting some hot/cold flashes again and sometimes I get really hungry. However, I heard that sometimes that happens. The body adjusts to the medication very quickly, sometimes within 6 weeks, and thus why a lot of people with any thyroid problem have troubles getting and sticking with just one thyroid medication. But I suppose we will find out tomorrow and I will post either tomorrow or Thursday to update.
Last update, I am moving to Birmingham on Sunday and starting an HR internship on Monday with the Birmingham Children's Hospital. It is an amazing organization that everyone should look at and donate to! Check it out here: Children's Hospital

Hope everyone has a wonderful evening and great tomorrow!

Yummy and Not so Yummy

Just finished grocery shopping at EarthFare! Still trying to find a bread I really like. I use the same brand but I'm trying new types. I have tried the whole wheat made with honey and it was not that great unless you really love wheat bread. I currently have been eating organic spelt bread and it has tasted fine, however, it is not very soft. I just purchased some sourdough bread and colorado cracked wheat. I'll keep you all updated!
Purchased some diet stevia cola. But what is stevia?
     STEVIA-an herb in the Chrysanthemum family which grows wild as a small shrub in parts of Paraguay and Brazil. The glycosides in its leaves, including up to 10% Stevioside, account for its incredible sweetness, making it unique among the nearly 300 species of Stevia plants Stevia Information
It was not exactly my favorite, but if you are a big soda drinker then it will definitely satisfy that carbonated beverage craving.
My new favorite drink is TAZO Organic Iced Green Tea. At first taste, it doesn't taste like much, however, the more you drink it, the more you grow to love it. Its very refreshing and gives you that little big of flavor you need when you just can't drink anymore water. **Remember, when you are drinking water, make sure you are drinking purified water, preferably distilled water in which the minerals have been put back in. Spring water is not as good for the body.
*Tazo makes other amazing organic cold and hot teas. Take a look at their website to see all the teas they have and have your tea leaves read! TAZO Website
I am still loving EarthFare's Organic Chocolate Truffles--maybe a little too much! haha Its a great recommendation to those who have a sweet tooth. (like me!)


This morning I had a big presentation and since I was on the run, I grabbed the wildberry frosted pastries and a bottle of the TAZO organic iced green tea. And it was incredibly filling!


Today has been quite the day. Reading a little scripture today has calmed me down however.
***Remember! Try to reduce your stress as much as possible so that you do not incite your symptoms!


Tomorrow or someday this week I am going to go to the clinic and get my blood tested again to see how the medication is working. This is the first medication that my endocrinologist has given me. Its important to remember that the first medication might not and probably not be the exact medication that is right for you as an individual. Its important to get your blood tested every 3 weeks at the beginning. Your doctor will most likely remind you and tell you when to get your blood taken.


Back to studying for me now!

It's been a while

It's been a while since I have blogged. But I guess I will update you.

I am feeling a lot better. The hot flashes have decreased enormously and the swelling in my ankles has decreased somewhat. However, the one thing that I cannot seem to shake is the insomnia. I think I only slept approximately 4 hours last night. Sleep seems like it does not want to come and when it does, it doesn't stay for long. I have heard of Graves patients taking Ambien to help with the sleeping, however, I have heard many negative things about it.
Last night I tried taking a tylenol pm to see if it would help put me to sleep, however, it did not work to my advantage.
A hairdresser told me of a vitamin to take that starts with an "m" that is supposed to be a natural sleep aid. I just cannot remember the name.
One of the most important things that a Graves patient must remember is that they should try to reduce their amount of stress to practically nothing. This has not been easy at all. Reading my bible and talking to my friends have been helping quite a bit. There seems to be something so relaxing about sitting down and reading a book for pleasure. I have been able to do so simply because of school and as most people know, my personal life which I shall not discuss here at all.
In regards to me going organic..
My mom has been such a help in buying the organic groceries because they are quite a bit more expensive.
     -For dinner tonight I had a can of reduced sodium creamy tomato soup along with a pb&j (organic crunchy peanut butter with organic blackberry preserves on organic spelt bread)
-My body is really adjusting to the change in food. My stomach is becoming more and more upset when I eat/drink non-organic foods/liquids
-Mexican on Saturday night was especially difficult to digest.
-I do understand that some of it has to do with my IBS as well as the amount of alcohol I have been drinking
-Alcohol really agitates my stomach now, However, I did drink vodka with organic raspberry lemonade and it did not upset it quite as much. DO NOT drink alcohol before or at least one hour after you take your medication for Graves. It causes the medicine to not quite work as well as it would usually. (I would consult with your doctor concerning consumption of alcohol) It also helps if you limit/reduce your alcohol consumption. The more you drink it the less it works.
-For snacks today I had:
     -organic celery washed and cut into 3 in pieces with organic non-fat ranch vegetable dip
     -organic mixed berry frosted toaster pastries--These are especially sweet and much softer than normal pop-tarts and are quite delicious
-I recently bought some organic lowfat chocolate milk. It definitely is not very good. It first tastes like regular lowfat chocolate milk but then has a dirt aftertaste. Maybe it is just something that I need to get used to
-I also purchased a block of organic Colby cheese--it is so delicious! I definitely recommend it!
-For lunch today I had a turkey sandwich :) A good-old fashioned classic! I had organic honey maple turkey with a slice of organic colby cheese on organic spelt bread with organic yellow mustard and organic mayonnaise. It is definitely something I recommend. It tastes the same as a regular turkey sandwich. The only difference is that the organic spelt bread is a little tougher than regular bread
-Saturday morning I made some organic waffles with organic blueberries and some with some semisweet chocolate chips and they were so good!
-I have been eating some non-organic foods that my roommate has been cooking. She is such an amazing cook, but sometimes I have to resist because she doesn't usually cook with organic or natural products.
-My newest obsession is EarthFare's organic chocolate truffles!--They are absolutely to die for! So smooth!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, especially regarding organic foods (although I am no expert at all but I can let you know about taste!) or if you have any questions regarding Graves Disease (again I am NO expert but I can let you know some symptoms as well as some amazing doctors!)

Today

This morning I woke up around 11:00. It was amazing to sleep in. I then threw on some workout clothes aka t-shirt, sports bra, and the pajama pants I was already wearing.

I played Just Dance 2 on my new Wii.
   If you don't have a Wii or Xbox or video game console in which you can play these
   fitness games and dance fitness games, I highly recommend it! If not as long as you
   work out in some way for at least a little bit of time each day it greatly helps it. But
   what better way to work out than to do something you have fun with and enjoy doing?

I then made an all organic whey protein shake for breakfast/lunch around 1:00 pm.
   I bought an organic vanilla whey protein shake powder from EarthFare, who has the
   most organic foods I've ever seen. I added one whole organic frozen banana with an
   organic mango juice. It was most definitely very delicious. It was especially much better
   than the one I made last night with: organic whey milk, raspberries, blueberries,
   blackberries, and half of a banana. The protein shakes are very filling although it
   doesn't sound it.

I made dinner for me and my parents which was Chicken with Tarragon Sauce atop of No Yolks Egg Noodles.
   The chicken was organic as well as all the ingredients except the egg noodles. I found
   this recipe in a new book I purchased on the Amazon Kindle IPhone app. The book is
   called Delicious and Yummy Recipes for Organic Cooking by Rachel Redmond and is a
   great book for those who wish to cook organically.

Hope everyone has a very blessed night <3

In the beginning...

I started out tweeting everything that I was eating or what I was doing to exercise. Then I realized there weren't even enough characters to begin to describe what I was doing. When I suggested writing a blog, I got a lot of encouragement and so this is it.

I suppose no one needs to know the whole story it is much too long and boring. But I guess what people need to know is the following:

I was recently diagnosed with Graves Disease. It has been a long and grueling process trying to figure it all out but I am so happy that it has been figured out. Although it may sound strange, I am more than happy about it. And spare the whole woe-is-me. That is not what it is about at all. This is about how common I have found that it is. And half the time no one can figure it out! Thus here is a blog on how to know the signs and how I am living with Graves. But by no means am I any doctor or know anything about medicine. But some of this stuff is still able to be applied to live a healthier lifestyle. (in my opinion).

A very important person in my life sent me this wonderful email of an article about how diet and exercise affect Graves and what can be helpful. (http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr._Eric_Osansky) And I am writing about the journey I am taking.