Family Wellness

A few months ago I was feeling worried about the anxiety disorder that Jim and the boys deal with.  Both boys were seeming to have a harder time with it.  I was wondering if we needed to increase Logan's medication and if Alex was approaching the need for medication.  I've always struggled with the idea of medicating my little boys, and Jim has long desired to be free of the medication.  There's no question that they've needed it, though.  It's been a night and day difference for both Jim and Logan.  I've long been convinced that there must be another way, though. 

It's been on my mind for years that the right diet could really help my 'menfolk' with their anxiety, but I've struggled so much with cooking.  I CAN cook... quite well actually.  It's just that I really really really dislike to do so and I struggle with WHAT to cook.  I also didn't grow up eating many vegetables, whole grains, legumes, etc.  I didn't know what to do with those foods and didn't think I liked them very well!  Eating healthy has been a battle I've been fighting for years.  So, although I've been thinking on it a long time, I haven't really been able to see HOW I could possibly provide my guys with the diet they needed.

My little Alex finally prompted the HOW a few months ago.  Worrying about him was the last straw.  I do NOT want to medicate my other little boy!  I do NOT want to increase Logan's prescription!  I DO want to free Jim and Logan from the medication, but not at the expense of their ability to handle life.  So I turned to a wonderful group of women that have quite a bit of knowledge in this arena.  Their response was overwhelming (in a good way) and I felt very strongly prompted to completely overhaul our family's diet as the FIRST step in freeing our family. 

We have switched our family to a mostly plant based whole foods diet.  It took a few weeks to truly start eating this way because I couldn't bring myself to throw away food.  We continued eating what was already in the house, while only purchasing whole foods at the store.  Once we really started eating this way, we all felt better.  Jim and the boys seem to be handling their anxieties better, and both Jim and I are feeling healthier than we have in years.  We aren't so extreme that we skip out on special events (church potluck, birthday parties, an invitation to dinner, etc.), and I have every intention of making my children's birthday cakes with white flour and white sugar.  However, those instances have been rare.  Amazingly, I can see a difference with Logan and Alex when they DO have refined and artificial foods, particularly white flour, white sugar, and food dyes.  They are much more prone to meltdowns and stress for the next day or so. 

This isn't the final answer to managing their anxiety, but I feel it was/ is an important step.  Eventually, we'll work with someone to pinpoint more specific dietary and natural supplements with the hope to begin weening Jim off the medication.  He gets to be the family test dummy.  :)

This has also been extremely good for me.  For years, I've been seeking a way to eat healthy while having a healthy mindset about food.  In the past, whenever I haven't worried about food I've gained weight and felt poorly physically.  In contrast, whenever I've tried to eat healthier, manage portion sizes better, or even make seemingly small reasonable diet changes I've found myself thinking about food all...day...long...every...single...day, and I've felt guilty if I didn't stick with whatever my plan was.  That was never a healthy or happy mindset for me.  I was always focused on what I couldn't have, and there was always plenty of food in the house that would defeat my goals.  So this has been wonderful because I can eat whatever is in the house, whenever I want, and I feel GOOD!  I don't find myself thinking about food (except when I'm hungry or it's time to make dinner) and I'm not destroying my personal health by not worrying about it.  I thought this kind of a diet would be difficult because it sounded so extreme, but I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it is!  I have a simple criteria for shopping, and then I can use whatever is in the house.

Jim has amazingly lost 30 pounds since we started eating this way.  We took before and after pictures because we were also doing a wellness challenge during the first little while we did this.

Before

After (I generally don't realize my pictures are fuzzy until I load them on the computer.)

One really good habit we had before switching our diet was having fruit for snacks.  The kids have always loved fruit.  Yesterday as I was unloading groceries, I was amused at how much fruit I'd just bought for ONE week, so I lined it up and took a picture.  This is minus one bunch of bananas and several apricots that the kids had eaten before I'd put away the groceries.