Kickas.org Forums Treatments, Drugs and Alternatives NSD and diet-related; Do You Ever Fall Off The Wagon?

Does anyone on NSD/LSD ever take a break from it, eg. for special occasions like holidays, parties or weddings? I'm going on holiday next month, and part of the pleasure of a holiday is eating good food.

It's not the easiest diet to follow, and I find the prospect of not ever again eating the foods I used to enjoy quite depressing.

So, is everone strict, or do you weaken occasionally? If I weaken, will I really pay for it in a flare, or is this unlikely?

I'll admit it here. Last weekend I was feeling pretty much pain free from being NSD for a couple of months, though progress was slow to get there, and decided to have a cheat day. I went to mcdonald's as a test. I got a 10 piece nugget, large fries, and a large coke. After being NSD for so long, it felt like the best meal I have ever had!

And the following day.... I was still mostly pain free like the day before! I had no reaction to it at all. So I've decided to make it a monthly, or perhaps even bi-weekly indulgance from now on. I'll test somewhere else next time, perhaps Chipotle (my favorite pre-NSD treat).

If I give myself a cheat day, I think I'll be more motivated to stick to strict NSD for the two weeks to a month in between. If I ever do react, then I will know to scratch that place off my list. I think my biggest test would be pizza or most italian food, which is fine because I always disliked italian. Its too bland for me. So I'll never go that far, and I'm happy never to eat italian again.

If you both are doing good with diet alone that is great !!! I hope for that some day! Then i will think about Chips & Salsa and Potato Chips. I do live in Idaho. But for now my goal is the drop TFN Blockers with strict NSD. Kurt

I took a break about a month ago. Went to a nice mexican restuarant and ate everything from chips to beans and flour tortillas. I could not finish dinner I was sick before finishing and had to leave. felt sick to my stomach all night and into the next day. Maybe eating normal is out for me, oh well so be it. I have got to where my diet seems normal anyway, a few cocnut brownies and homemade coconut custard once in a while and I am good.
ETTE.
Darrel.

after a year or so on NSD, when i was really feeling great, I could cheat pretty often and get away with it. i stayed away from bread and potatoes, but I could get away with some corn tortilla enchiladas and refried beans. I could eat breaded chicken fingers and even a little pizza as long as I kept my portion small and only did it occasionally. Of course, one cheat would lead to another and eventually I would flare and hate myself, then climb back on the wagon.

It is a journey, not a destination, isn't it? Or maybe it is a destination....permanent pain-free. Um, yeah. I think it is where I'd like to go.

Kurt, I am trying to get off of a TNF blocker using this diet. We are doing it.

Cheers.

Hi, woodbine:

The first five years, I was extremely strict and lost a lot of weight in fact.

But more recently especially, I have been able to get away with a more than occasional cheat.

I believe that this is due to the status of my intestinal tract after so many years away from NSAIDs, allowed to fully heal.

And honestly, I am worried about my eyesight; once I accidentally got myself into a severe flare that included iritis, however now there is no hint of that. I will not claim that I am cured, but the monster is not so anxious as it used to be to do battle with me.

So, I "never say 'never-again'" and if someone wants to eat starch, it is not so much a sin unless it creates a flare; I want people to be able to get away with the occasional cheat, just as I can now. Once, I wanted some Indian food and took loads of antibiotics to deal with the bacterial proliferation and the antibiotics probably made me more uncomfortable than the average flare used to, but...well this is something to approach with great caution.

Deep-FRIED breaded foods were always the worst for me, so a test would be onion rings that I used to love. Not so much pasta but I had one very memorable flare after eating some fried rice. Today, steamed rice does not have any perceptible effect upon me, and my ESR readings at worst were >100 and recently <7 even while eating a portion of rice nearly every day in Philippines.

HEALTH,
John

Before developing iritis as a "side-condition" I would cheat frequently. Not ideal, as I had to take painkillers to deal with the aftermath of cheating but at least it wouldn't threaten my eye-sight.

These days, any form of cheating means an iritis flare. So I don't cheat anymore. However, due (I think) to the hormonal changes of pregnancy and breastfeeding, I was in remission for 3 years and during that time I could eat what I wanted. And you know what, starch is overrated :-)

Now I'm back to the NSD and I think doing this diet is very similar to stopping smoking, don't think of it as "for the rest of my life", just think about today and maybe tomorrow.

For all we know, 5 or 10 years from now they could come out with this miracle drug that deals with AS with no side-effects...

I'm just glad there is the option of the diet as it allows me to be in control, not AS and not the drugs.

All the best to you and your journey!

I do cheat:

i sometimes drink more red dry wine than usual.
sometimes i have a beer or two or three.
sometimes i eat almond pie with more honey that i can handle.

but it has been more than 10 months since i've had a slice of bread with butter and honey. and i do not need it any more. who knows, maybe i'll have it someday. But not today.