Easy Mediterranean Veggie Wrap

Since moving to San Diego, my obsession with avocados has grown immensely. They are absolutely amazing, and so so good for you! Here is my new favorite quick-and-easy lunch wrap that won't set me off in pain.  I hope it works for you too :)

Mediterranean Veggie Wrap 

Ingredients:

• 1 avocado
• 1/2 a cucumber 
• feta cheese
• 1 sandwich wrap (or if avoiding gluten, use collard greens or a gluten free choice)
• tahini sauce or homemade IC friendly hummus (found on the IC Network website! modify if necessary of course)
• Ingredients for IC friendly hummus (blended to taste):
• 2 cups drained canned or jarred garbanzo beans
• 1/2 cup or less tahini, to taste
• 2-3 T olive oil
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, squeezed
• salt to taste
• 1/2 to 1 tsp cumin to taste 
• shake of paprika 
• minced parsley

Directions:

• Slice pieces of avocado and cucumber
• Toss with tahini sauce or homemade hummus
• sprinkle with feta cheese
• Wrap, cut in half and enjoy!

Happy Healing!

A Grab & Go Snack that Works for Me

As an IC patient, it is difficult to find already packaged snacks that will not send me into a flare.  In fact, I typically don't recommend consuming pre-packaged foods to any IC patient, because pre-packaged items often come with a lot of other crap that we don't want to put into our poor bodies! However, sometimes you are in a hurry and need something fast and easy that is nutritious and won't hurt you.  That's when I grab one of these babies:

Kind bars are amazing! I typically grab a few before traveling (either during road trips or before a flight where I know I won't have access to healthy food) so that I have them whenever I need a pick-me-up. They are typically sold at Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Sprouts, and Vons (at least in the San Diego Area). Kind bars are fabulous because they:

• are all natural
• are gluten free
• are dairy free
• measure low on the glycemic index
• provide necessary fiber
• have no additives
• are non-GMO

  The almond & coconut bar is the only one that I have tried, because the ingredients I have seen in others could potentially set me off in a flare.  But, as we all know, IC is very particular for each person, so what works for me may not work for you, and vice versa.

Ingredients in the Almond & Coconut Kind Bar:
almonds, coconut, honey, non-GMO glucose, crisp rice, chicory root fiber, soy lecithin

Now now, before you freak out at the word "soy," let me explain a little about soy lecithin.  While many IC patients have issues with soy products, some (like myself) can tolerate soy lechitin.  This is because soy lechitin is derived from soybean oil, and not from the soy protein itself.  Soy lechitin is used in many products as an emulsifier, holding a product together without making it unbearably sticky.
It is up to you to decide what works best with your dietary needs, as I am in no way a dietary expert, but if you do not have a serious allergy to soy, I would give it a shot!

Enjoy & Happy Healing!

Yoga - Why You Should Try it Today

Having fun on Cowles Mountain, IC and all.

Oh man. Yoga.  In the past few months, we've been having a serious love affair. If yoga were another man, I'd leave my boyfriend for him (just kidding!!). But seriously, yoga has honestly turned my life around since I developed IC.  Why? Let me list just a few of the many reasons:

• Provides amazing stress relief
• Releases endorphins (those happy little natural pain relievers) and helps to calm inflamed nerves
• Increases flexibility and agility and overall well being
• Low impact work-out ( very important: most IC patients have serious issues with high impact exercises! Look for something more mellow. Low impact does NOT mean less of a workout. Most days I leave yoga a sweaty mess, and I love it!)
• Improves mindset. We IC patients do a lot of damage worrying about our illness.
• Allows us to connect physically and emotionally with our bodies. We need to develop peaceful, kind relationships with our bodies, not angry combative ones.
• Serves as a great pain distraction. I never think about IC during yoga class, ever. It's funny how it seems to just go away while I'm focusing my energy on something else.

I hope this has inspired you to roll out your mat today! And don't worry, you can start out slow.  Most yoga instructors will be happy to discuss your concerns regarding IC.  Yes, not ever pose is great for our condition (particularly those that focus on core work), but modification is welcome in every class.  The best part of yoga is that you can truly make it your own practice.

Namaste and happy healing :)

What's for Breakfast?

As an IC patient, it is often hard to find easy, healthy recipes that won't leave me in searing pain.  Here is one of my favorite go-to morning meals that is both nutritious and really freakin' tasty.

Old Fashioned Gluten Free Breakfast Oats

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of gluten free oats (I like this brand)
• 2 cups of nut milk of your choice (I usually use unsweetened almond milk)
• any fruit that you can tolerate (I usually use bananas and blueberries)
• nut butter of your choice (I like organic peanut butter, almond butter, or sunflower butter)
• cinnamon
• sweetener or choice (I use honey or agave syrup)

Directions: 

• Bring 2 cups of nut milk to a boil
• Stir in 1 cup of gluten free oats
• Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 15-20 minutes
• Stir in nut butter, cinnamon, and sweetener
• top with fruit slices
• Enjoy with herbal tea of choice :)

Happy healing! xx

Aloe Vera Juice for Healing

(from foreverliving.pro/about-aloe-vera/)

I have been using aloe vera juice to help soothe my poor bladder for quite sometime. It's incredibly anti-inflammatory, and I believe that by consuming it, the juice can directly reach all of those nasty cuts and sores and calm down a flare instantly. Some people take aloe vera supplements, but I like the idea of the healing elixir flowing directly through my body. I highly recommend George's Aloe Vera Juice  because it has a pleasant taste and doesn't have any nasty additives. Now, don't go chugging glasses and glasses with the hope of being cured - be sure to stick to the dosage suggested on the bottle (for George's, it is only a few ounces per day).

Check out  following article to learn some other great healing benefits of this awesome plant.

Top Twelve Benefits of Aloe Vera

Happy healing! xx

Having the Strength to Say "No"

I'd like to briefly discuss my love/hate relationship with Western medicine and my IC doctors. Let me just preface this with the fact that I have TONS of respect for all individuals in the medical field, and I'm in no way denouncing Western medicine as a whole.

HOWEVER... during my time battling IC, I have put a lot in the hands of urologists and gynecologists hoping that they would magically cure me over night.  Guess what guys? This is not the case.  Guess what else? You have the right to say NO to anything that you don't feel comfortable with.  I know, I know.. shocking right?! Often times, people put all of their faith in their doctors as if they are all-knowing, immortals who have all the answers. While I truly appreciate all of the medical professionals I have dealt with, I have learned the hard way that they in fact do not have all the answers, and they also certainly don't know my body as well as I do.

I woke up one morning with a sort of epiphany. I was set to head to the doctor later that day for another round of instillation treatments, and also to learn how to do them at home.  Sounds exciting, right?! Really, I was stoked to have vials of medication stored in my refrigerator next to the eggs and OJ, and even more thrilled to have catheters and needles lying around like any other average twenty-something.

I woke up and in my semi-conscious daze my mind said, "NO. I will not go to my appointment later."  I no longer wanted chemicals going into my body that I didn't believe were truly healing me.  I was no longer comfortable taking medications that medical professionals didn't know everything about..."it works for some patients, but we're not really sure exactly why.." That's real comforting, doc. I was sick of being a medical guinea pig regarding IC.  As a young, otherwise healthy, strong twenty-five year old, I was sick of masking my illness and not genuinely healing it.  I was sick of being told that this was my fate forever, by doctors who had never been in my shoes, in my body, in my brain.

That day, I made a promise to myself to love, respect and nourish my body from the inside out, and to do all things with healing in mind.  So, doctors everywhere: Don't tell me that my body is incapable of healing.  I know I can get better, even if it is a slow and tedious process. I have heard the stories and seen the proof that healing from IC is very possible, and it's usually not at the hand of medications.

So, friends, please do not ever feel pressured into doing something that you believe will cause your body more harm, even if your healthcare professional suggests it.  I'm not saying to refuse all Western medicine- there are plenty of amazing things about modern science, biotechnology and pharmacology.  Just do your research, and always love yourself enough to say no.

Happy healing! xx

"It's up to me to be happy and healthy.."

"As I grew older and began to take more responsibility for my life I came to realize that it was up to me to be happy and healthy. I had a health problem at an early age that no medical doctors could seem to find a remedy for, only a band aid effect. After many frustrating years I truly took control of the matter and learnt all I could about nutrition, the body/mind and alternative therapies. I soon discovered that the food I put in my body can be medicine or poison for me. I collected information from various sources and put together a diet/lifestyle plan that works for me and my unique constitution."- Amber Le’strange, interview with Wellness Warrior