GAPS Diet - 3 Month Update

Yesterday was my three month anniversary on the GAPS diet. It is hard to believe that it has already been three months.  Like any new way of eating, the GAPS diet protocol has become somewhat second nature and now that I am in more of a routine it is certainly not as challenging as when I started.  To celebrate, Alex and I went out to dinner. It was my first dinner out since I started the diet.  We went to a fancy burger place down the street from our house called Mooburger - I got a bison patty with some grilled vegetables stacked on top and an arugula salad on the side.  It was very nice to go out to dinner so hopefully we can do that every once and a while.

I would now say that I have moved out of the 'intro' portion of the diet and am now considered to be on the full GAPS diet.  This means that I can include:

•  Meats (no deli meat or processed meats with additives, grass fed and ideally organic
• Vegetables (no starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes/potatoes/parsnips)
• Fruit
• Eggs
• Fats (olive oil, ghee, coconut oil, animal fats)
• Beans - navy beans and lentils (these are the only beans allowed on GAPS)
• Nuts and seeds
• Honey (the only 'sugar' allowed on the diet.  I am still not really tolerating it - it gives me asthma/breathing problems)
• Fermented dairy (I have not introduced this yet, but plan to soon)

I still have positive things to say about the diet despite my earlier rant and am happy with how everything is going.

Here are a few updates -

• I recently purchased new probiotics.  I am using GutPro, which is great because it doesn't have any additives, has lots of different bacteria strains, and is concentrated.  I balked at the price initially, but it will last over a year and I have easily spent over $150 since January on probiotics.  So far it seems to be fine.  I haven't noticed any 'die off' symptoms (which for me seem to be headaches and muscle cramping), granted I have been taking the children's dosage... probably time to increase.
• I visited my sister, Caroline and her husband, Kris, this weekend and they sent me home with some water kefir grains so I will now be able to make my own fizzy probiotic 'soda' drink.  I sampled some of Kris' blueberry flavored kefir water and thought it was great so I am excited to make some different flavors and maybe convince Alex to try it :)
• I have been making my own dill pickles and will start eating the sauerkraut I made a few months ago (it takes 8-10 weeks to ferment).  I started my sauerkraut during the middle of May, so it has been well over 2 months, but it just didn't taste ready to me so I have been letting it sit in the fridge.  I tried it again today and it seems to be ready.
• Alex installed the 'portable' screen door today, which I am excited about because it means I can air out the apartment when I am cooking broth, soup, etc. without worrying about mosquitoes (or worse) crawling in through the gate.
• I ordered the 'Oslo Orange' fermented cod liver oil in liquid form (the pills are just too expensive - $70 for a months supply!).  I was initially nervous that I wouldn't be able to handle the taste, especially after watching a YouTube video that was embedded on the Green Pastures website. But believe me, it doesnt really taste that bad at all, certainly not bad enough to gag like some people do, apparently.  My accupunturist has given me Chinese herbs to drink that make FCLO taste like candy so I think that is what I was expecting.  Guess it is all just perspective. 

I think that is it for now!