The Interim.

Only a week now until I get some answers from my tests at the NHNN and I literally cannot wait, it’s really playing on my mind whether I gave them enough information or what my tests results were. I am scared that they might say “don’t be silly, you are fine, there’s nothing wrong with any of your results” – AHHHHH! I know most people should hope for an answer like that but when you’re feeling like I do everyday, having an answer and something to focus on is like a saving grace – albeit a rather odd one!

I’ve been getting on OK the last few weeks though, obviously my symptoms are here everyday but at least I can function which is nice 🙂 I had my birthday last week and two of my best friends came down from London and we went to the Moseley Folk Festival in my village – it was lovely! The hardest part was standing and queuing to get our faces painted but I kept kneeling on the floor or sat in a chair that was free whilst we waited.
One thing that was a bit odd though was that this was pretty much the first time I’d had a birthday or been to an event with friends that I hadn’t been drinking at… I had one glass of prosecco with them to toast my birthday but held off after that as I knew the hangovers and week long effects of it are just not worth it! I had a great time though but I do miss drinking and also being able to have the energy that drinking gave me. I also really miss being able to dance 😦 hopefully one day I can bust some proper moves on the dance floor once again.

Another thing I’ve been trying is the low-histamine diet, this has been very hard as I’ve had so many outings which has prevented me being able to cook and also I didn’t really understand fully what I could eat and what should be avoided, I’ve now found a great resource and am using that to help me manage my diet. I’m not excluding everything that has histamine in, just trying to reduce it and focus on things that lower histamine or have none in! I can tell a difference in my skin as I haven’t been itchy when avoiding the high histamine things and also my lips aren’t swelling up that I can tell! However I am still getting headaches so I’m unsure if this is due to histamine, PoTS or because I started back on the pill a few months ago and my body is not really enjoying it… I’ll probably ask next week what the specialists think as I’m sure they’ll have more of an insight into these things than my GP. I’m really not keen on stopping the pill though as it has evened out my moods and made my body look nicer! If it turns out they think it is causing headaches though then I will stop as it’s not wise to continue if there’s a higher risk of a stroke – horrific.So, back on to the histamine diet, I’ve been making some ‘tasty’ green smoothies and also cooking some healthier, more vegetarian options for dinner and lunch. Jamie Olivers gf quiche pastry recipe is now like my best friend! It’s so easy to do and I use ricotta, eggs and natural yogurt to bulk out any fillings I put in there. This one is beetroot, red onions, walnuts (bad histamine oops) and rocket – very pink and tasty! Tonight I’m planning on making one with courgette, onions, nutmeg and basil. The best thing about them is they’re so easy to pack for lunch and I can have one slice for brunch and one for lunch then just snack on an apple later on (or a tiny bit of milk chocolate as that has lowest histamine – thank god…). Also, just a note to say that I’m trying to reduce my sugar intake also as I’m pretty sure I’ve got a candida infection again so I’m taking probiotics and some anti-candida herbs to try and reduce this. I hate candida, my tongue is literally white – it’s disgusting! I had it last year around this time but it was due to copious amount of antibiotics that I was given as they didn’t know why I was having so many weird symptoms (it was PoTS stuff I think). They gave me loads of anti-fungals back then but I don’t really want to take any more of those this year so trying to do it naturally…

Lastly, I want to introduce you to my new little baby – Tiny Dinosaur (or Peanut). She/he (not sure yet) is a Crested Gecko and she is the cutest thing ever! She’s about the size of my middle finger including tail and eats powdered fruit mixed with water to form a paste. The only thing I really have to do is spray her house with water in the morning and evening to make sure it stays humid for her and also I occasionally feed her a cricket as a treat :). I think having a pet is really important when you have a chronic illness as it helps you to feel responsible for another life and care about something that relies on you. I’d love to get a dog but we just don’t have the room, a garden or own our own house! As soon as we buy a house with a garden then I’ll be getting a dog. Thinking I’ll either get one from Birmingham Dogs home or from Underdogs, which rescue dogs from aboard and they are gorgeous!

I’ll write again probably once I’m back from my meeting about my NHNN results – eek!