Food is medicine?

So yesterday was a great day. I slept way too late, but I clearly needed it. Then Eric and I went to Mother Earth's health food store in Wappingers to look for a few things my doctor told me to pick up. They didn't have them, but it was definitely a cool place! It was my first time there. The produce looked fresher, brighter and better than the chain grocery stores, and it wasn't that much difference in price. However a lot of the other food there was way out of our price range. I think it's a shame that eating as healthily as possible can be so much more expensive than filling your body with junk food. But we are really going to make more of an effort to pay attention to what we eat. In addition to food, they had a great section of all-natural beauty products. Anyone who knows me knows I can't go into CVS without picking up makeup. So finding some natural alternatives made me feel good, especially since the major cosmetics companies routinely test their products on animals. I'd like to stay away from that as much as possible. I picked up some witch hazel to help with my PCOS-induced skin problems.

I'm very interested in getting into the whole raw food thing. Our friends Dustin and Meredith have been doing it for a while now (I haven't seen Dustin, but I saw a picture of him on Meredith's blog, and he looks GREAT), and I've been reading Meredith's blog, The Raw Seed, which has been really educational. I've also been reading as much as I can about it and watching some documentaries. I've learned a lot but I know that there is still a lot I don't know. I definitely want to take the plunge (to employ a cliche), but I want to know what to expect before I begin.

I have a lot of health problems, mostly related to my diet and stress from work. I'm definitely ready for a complete lifestyle overhaul. I've been way more stressed at work than any human being reasonably should be, and to cope I've been coming home and stuffing my face with Philly cheesesteaks, pizza, fries, basically any comfort food to make me forget how much I truly hate my job. Then I feel ill, bloated, and not to mention guilty for eating such crap that I know is not good for me. It's a very negative cycle which I've been taking steps to break, but I know that I can do more.

I went to a new doctor on Wednesday, who is into holistic approaches. It's tough to find a doctor who won't push prescription drugs on you. In fact most doctors won't even think about giving you any advice that doesn't concern pills or surgery. This doctor was different.

First of all, he talked to me for an HOUR. He actually took the time to listen to me and see me as a human being, instead of some nameless, faceless "case." He asked me a lot of questions, he let me ask him a lot of questions, he even gave me some fatherly advice. I have never had such a personal experience with a doctor. I truly thought that personal care was gone along with milkmen and paper boys, but it turns out some doctors actually do care about the health of their patients. Needless to say I was impressed.

He did advise me to quit my day job, and I would like nothing more! I just need to figure out how I'm going to replace the income, meager as it may be. Also, he's having me keep a food diary, which I've been doing since Thursday, and it's already been an eye-opening experience. Reading back on what I've eaten the last 4 days, I can see that I eat way too many carbohydrates and hardly any protein. I am definitely thinking before I shovel food into my mouth now, partly because I'm now conscious of it and partly because my doctor wants to review my food diary, and I don't want him to be disappointed in me!

He also went over my Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome with me. My OB/GYN put me on Yaz (birth control) to alleviate some of the symptoms (irregular periods, acne, etc), but it's hardly done anything. My new doctor explained that this is a band aid and won't fix the problem, which is PCOS itself. He is advising me to stop birth control (no problem, I hate taking it!) and transfer my records from my OB/GYN to him so he can review them to see if he wants to run more tests on me. He did say that changing what I eat would help in a big way.

I am so grateful to have found a great doctor who's willing to put in time to help me. Working in a huge medical group, I see firsthand how patient care has taken a backseat to profit. It's so refreshing to see that some doctors are doing it for the love, not for the money!!!

I also watched a great documentary last night, "The Business of Being Born." It was eye-opening to say the least, and even sparked an interest in me to maybe go to midwife school... we'll see what happens with that. I have a bad habit of being fickle with my choices. But I'm definitely going to explore the option.

I reccommend watching it if you're a woman who is considering ever having children. Be prepared for some gross-out in the form of placenta! But don't let it scare you... I think the things they point out in this movie are things every woman who wants children needs to know! And most doctors won't tell you these things because it takes business away from them.

I didn't intend for this post to be all about health but I can't control my thoughts, so what is in my head is what goes on the screen. One of the documentaries I watched recently had the quote, Let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food. I'm starting to recognize that as truth, and as I uncover more layers to the relation between food and health, I feel more empowered to heal myself.