I don’t do well with deprivation. Really, I don’t. I used to be great with deprivation (for all the wrong reasons), but now, not so much. You wouldn’t think a 25-hour diet of white rice, fish, and cauliflower would be a big deal.
It is.
Oh—let me clarify. That’s plain white rice, plain fish, and plain cauliflower. Salt is the only seasoning allowed.
Harrumph.
But let me back up for a moment.
THURSDAY
Today I received my first NAET treatment, for B-complex allergy. (Could this be why I have trouble with grains? Perhaps…) The treatment itself was actually quite pleasant. Imagine someone massaging along your spine as you hold your breath and grasp a little vial of the offending substance in one hand. I would have been content if this had gone on much, much longer.
Afterwards, the clock started ticking. For 25 hours, until 7:00 Friday evening, I may not eat or touch whole grain products, fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy products, or anything with B vitamins. What I may eat, to quote from The NAET Guide Book, is the following:
Cooked white rice, cooked white pasta, cauliflower raw or cooked, well cooked or deep fried fish, salt, white sugar, black coffee, French fries, and purified water.
Since I don’t consume gluten or caffeine or fried foods, that pretty much leaves me with… Yep. White rice, fish, and cauliflower. (If I were to have white sugar, what would it go on, anyway? Aside from putting it in your coffee, if you drank coffee, would you just eat it plain?? Maybe you’d put it on your French fries… Imagine, for a moment, the metabolic effects of a diet of coffee, sugar, and fried food. Zounds!)
Thankfully, the fish (mahi mahi) tastes fine with salt, as do the rice and the cauliflower. One meal down, two to go.
Already I am realizing just how much I rely on food to satisfy many different appetites. For me, food is nourishment, comfort, pleasure. I use it to ground me and help calm anxiety and to stave off a variety of hungers. The little kid inside me is NOT HAPPY about having to give up her favorite foods, even for one day. In fact, she is pretty pissed. It’s not that bad, I tell myself. Really.
I dish another spoonful of rice onto my plate and do my best to stay out of the kitchen for the rest of the evening.
FRIDAY
I am tired, grumpy, and not looking forward to breakfast.
The food tastes fine, of course, but I still feel out of sorts. I want my gluten-free toast.
Five hours later, I am STARVING for lunch. I think that, despite the fish and cauliflower, the white rice is contributing to blood sugar crashes. Maybe that’s why I’m so tired… I always thought that MSG was the reason people felt hungry two hours after eating Chinese food. Maybe it’s the white rice.
I’d kill for an apple.
At 4:30, I start counting down to 7:00.
Just to be safe, I work on my computer past 7:00. Can I eat now?? My stomach, which rarely growls, is rumbling loudly. Ironically, the first thing I eat is a rice cake. (Ha!) Followed by a satisfyingly large dinner.
I pray that the treatment “takes” because I don’t want to have to do this again. But I’ll have to wait until my next appointment, on Monday, to find out. In the meantime… foood!
MONDAY
I’m not really worried, but I breathe a sigh of relief when my chiropractor tests me again for B-complex and I’m fine. I’m in the clear! Huzzah!
Since I’m there and I’m willing, we move right on to treating my gluten allergy. I’m assuming this one will be easy, since I’ve been gluten-free since February. Well, except for discovering beta-glucan, which is derived from oats, in my body lotion last week! Even though Celiac.com puts beta-glucan on their Safe Ingredients List for those with Celiac Disease, I’m not taking any chances.
Is it possible that in another 25 hours I’ll be able to eat wheat again?? Oats? Barley? Kamut? (Yes, it’s true that I’ve missed Kamut! Is that odd?)
Do I dare to dream??
Stay tuned!
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
COULD YOU LET ME KNOW HOW THE NAET TREATMENTS WORKED FOR YOU CELIAC’S DISEASE? THANK YOU.
Hi Kristen, thanks for your comment. While I am gluten sensitive, I don’t actually have Celiac disease, so my situation is not as serious as it would be if I did have the disease. I am not totally sure how well the NAET treatment worked, since I have only had a small amount of gluten since the treatment. While I seemed to do fine with it, my sense is that it’s best for me to continue to stay off gluten as much as possible, though I may try to reincorporate oats and barley into my diet occasionally. My practitioner did report that her mother, who had Celiac disease, got amazing results from her NAET treatment. My understanding is that for more serious allergies, it may take more than one NAET treatment to clear it, so take that into consideration.
I imagine that any practitioner you consult with might be able to provide you with names of people to talk to who’ve undergone the treatment. Since every practitioner is a little different, that might be the way to go to get some testimonials. Good luck!
Hi, I just wanted to say thank you for writing such a great piece on the trials and tribulations of NAET treatment. I’m on hour 9 of the B complex treatment, and it’s just awesome to read someone’s take that’s so similar to my own! (I’m on my second meal of fish and chips and counting down to real food again…)
Hey Em—
Hang in there! Do you have more treatments after this one? Let us know how it goes.
Good health to you!