I have been totally ging-ified for several years now, because, it turns out, ginger is one of my most effective medicines.

Since I have gastroparesis, one of my biggest and most debilitating symptoms is chronic nausea. And I do many different things to try and manage it (look to a future post for that one), but my absolute favorite is ginger.

Ginger. Ginger. Ginger. And more ginger.

Now, if you’re like “Oh, I’ve tried ginger ale and it doesn’t do much.” Well, odds are, you’re drinking the average mass marketed ginger ale, like Schwepps or Gosling, which means you’re actually not getting real ginger ale. You’re getting carbonated sugar water with artificial ginger taste. And sometimes carbonated sugar water can help, because of the bubbles, but you’re not getting the benefit of ginger.

Ginger is kind of a miracle plant. It has a lot of healing properties and, most importantly for spoonies with nausea, it aids digestion and soothes the stomach. So when you’re looking for something to really help your tummy aches, you want some real, honest-to-goodness ginger. And the best part is that, unlike most medicines, there are really no bad side effects to consuming ginger.

So now the question is, how do I get this ginger into my body? Well, after many years of trying just about every ginger product available in the continental U.S., I am here to share my favorite products!

Now, just a disclaimer. Not everyone likes the taste of ginger. I hated ginger before I got sick. So I had to “ease my way” into really strong ginger products. But the brain is a miraculous thing, and as the ginger started to make my stomach feel better, my brain associated it with good things, and I began to enjoy and even crave the taste. Now, for me, the stronger the ginger taste, the better.

For me, personally, ginger doesn’t “fix” a flare, but consuming it regularly throughout the day goes a long way to managing my symptoms. When I forget to have a lot of ginger products in a day, I notice. I actually have a friend with IBS who says she can eat almost anything she wants as long as she has a cup of ginger tea every day.

Which brings me to my first favorite ginger product:

1. Ginger Tea

Now, if you’re not a fan of the ginger taste, the good news is that there a lot of ginger blends. Just go to the tea aisle at your favorite grocery store and start browsing. You can find a tea that has ginger blended with lemon, apricot, or some other delicious sounding flavor to help balance the ginger kick. Of course, you’ll have better symptom management with straight ginger tea, and my personal favorite is Harney & Sons Ginger Tea.

I add a little bit of honey to this and it’s absolutely delicious and fantastically effective. The best thing about ginger tea is that, unlike most ginger products, it doesn’t contain any sugar (except for whatever you choose to add).  Plus, it’s easy to browse the tea aisle and see what strikes your fancy. I also happen to love Yogi tea, and they have a great ginger-lemon blend that is fantastic. I drink it straight without adding any sugar, milk, or honey.

2. Ginger Soda

Depending on your body, sometimes a carbonated soda is more effective to help your nausea, bloating, or cramping. The downside of that, however, is that it comes with a lot of sugar. I can tell you my teeth have suffered the consequences of this, so if you sip throughout the day like I do, I recommend using a straw.

I have two favorite sodas. The first, Reed’s Ginger Beer, can be found at most Whole Foods or other health food stores.

This soda has 26 grams of real ginger in it, so it’s very powerful, both in taste and effect. But if that’s a little too much ginger kick for you, they also have some delicious blend sodas that have very little ginger taste. My favorites are the Raspberry Ginger Brew and the Spiced Apple Ginger Brew. They only have 17g of ginger, so they’re less effective than the straight ginger beer, but they still have a lot more ginger than, say, a Canada Dry.

Update: Reed’s now makes a “Stronger Ginger Brew” that has 39g of ginger! It’s replaced Fever Tree as my “tonic” ginger beer.

My other favorite ginger beer is a recent discovery. It can be found at Total Wine, and more recently, in the organic section at Giant Grocery Store. I call this drink “my tonic” because I have it in the morning to help jump start my stomach for the day. It’s called Fever Tree Ginger Beer, and you can also order it on Amazon, although it’s a bit pricier that way.

Unfortunately, it is very sugary tasting, so I like to also have Reed’s throughout the day (even though they both have about the same sugar content, Reed’s doesn’t taste as sweet). They literally put twice the amount of sugar into the American version of Fever Tree than they do the British version, which is sad, because when I was able to try the British version, it actually tasted much better, and was, y’know, not as terrible for your teeth and health. But it relieves my bloating significantly, so it’s worth it to me. I’m looking into trying to make my own ginger beer in the near future, where I can control the sugar to ginger ratio more to my benefit, so I will report on that as well!

Bruce Cost also makes some delicious ginger brews, but be careful not to get the zero calorie/artificially sweetened kind, as those can exacerbate symptoms, which completely reverses the point of drinking it! The pomegranate blend is particularly scrumptious. Although I’ve had a hard time finding it in stores.

Fentiman’s also makes a strong ginger beer, but I personally can’t stand the taste.

Maybe you’ll like it, though!

3. Ginger Candies

These are great to carry with you on the go and munch throughout the day to manage your nausea. My favorites are The Ginger People’s Gin Gins.

I literally order these things by the case load. I probably go through a box every two days. Again, it has a lot of sugar that isn’t ideal, but it really, really helps. I now eat the original ginger flavor because I’ve found it’s the most effective for me, but I started on the apple-ginger flavor until I got used to the ginger. They’re usually available in any health/organic section of your grocery store, so you can try the different flavors and see what works best for you. But if you, like me, find a flavor you like and use them daily, your most economical option is probably to order them in bulk off of Swanson Vitamin’s (they always have coupons) or Abe’s Market.

I also like to balance out the harder candy texture with Reed’s Ginger Candies (yup, same company as my ginger beer!).

They’re a lot softer and chewier than the harder Gin Gins, so it’s just a matter of preference. I like having the option of both, and I find them both equally effective. If you like these, I find it most cost effective to order them in bulk off of Amazon.

I’ve also recently started using Ginger Tummy Drops, which are hard candies that you suck on. Although the act of chewing helps aid digestion, these are nice to suck on during those times that eating just seems impossible. They have a lot of bite, though, so I only recommend them for the expert gingerians.

Update: I also love the ginger cuts made by Nuts.Com.

Do you have any favorite ginger products that I’ve missed? Comment below! 

About the Author:

Leah is a 24 year old suburb-of-Philly native. She has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome – Hypermobility Type, Gastroparesis, Dysautonomia, a feeding tube, and a battery operated stomach. She is the proprietor of this site, as well as the sassy Disney blog The Magical World Of.

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Here’s what I do to make sure I can eat safely in a rented kitchen.

It starts before you leave, really. You’ll want to bring some (dish) towels to make sure you’ve got something that’s gluten-free to clean up with in the first place. If the place you’re renting comes with linen included, make sure it’s cleaned by a dry cleaners, because they put everything in sealed plastic bags. The last thing you want is finding those clean towels sitting on the worktops in the kitchen when you walk in.

Also, bring a sample size bottle of the dish soap you use at home, that way you know it’s gluten-free & hasn’t been touched by loads of people who just had a sandwich before they did the dishes. Bring some small containers with salt, herbs, & spices if you plan on using those.

Check out what shops there are at your destination, they probably have an online delivery service so you can see what brands they sell. Either go shopping after you arrive or have some gluten-free staples delivered.

You’ll also want to try & bring a small cutting board from home as well (a light plastic one that fits in your suitcase should do the trick). Plastic cutting boards don’t absorb gluten, but the ones in holiday rentals are always ‘thoroughly used’ to say the least. All those cuts in the plastic are the perfect place for tiny bits of gluten to hide. There’s no way you’ll be able to scrub that out (and not a way to spend your holiday anyway).

If bringing your own cutting board seems like a step too far & you’re not planning on doing much cooking while you’re away, just use a plate instead.

With all that prep work done, let’s get to what you should done once you’ve arrived.

Start by using one of the dishrags to clean the sink. This is going to be your ‘I can breathe here, it’s gluten-free’ spot for now. Use hot & soapy water. Take a new cloth & clean the counter and the hob.

It’s such a relief for me once those parts of the kitchen are safe!

Next up is cutlery, glasses, plates, pots, & pans.

Only clean what you know you’ll be using & take that out of the drawers and cupboards. Put everything in the sink (in, not next to it, that saves you more cleaning after) and use a new cloth to give it all a good scrub. Don’t put everything back in the drawers, they’re the perfect gluten hiding place. Leave everything you’ll be using (that’s probably only going to be some knives, forks & a couple of plates) on the counter.

If you’ll be using the fridge, the best thing to do is only clean the shelves you’ll be using or put towels on the shelves and put your food on there.

When you’re only going away for a couple of days

Just do the sink & put a towel on the counter to use as a safe space. You can use disposable plates & cutlery (pick an eco-friendly brand, please) to avoid scrubbing the silverware too. To be honest, I bring most of my own stuff. I’m like a very religious family all on my own, so #sorrynotsorry to everyone who’s had to put up with me showing up with my own pans.

Download the checklist here!

About the Author

Sarah Frison is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach. She has had gluten intolerance, dysautonomia & gastroparesis for over 5 years now, probably even longer.  Before she was diagnosed, she was trianing to be a pastry chef. You can imagine she loved gluten! She sharse recipes, tips & tricks, and how-to guides like this one over at sarahfrison.com.

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Chronic illness is BIG—really big—and as such, can wreak some serious havoc on your mental health. A good attitude certainly isn’t going to cure you, but it’ll help you stay engaged with your life and treatment, and make everything a lot easier. So, as you work on physical health problems, be sure to take some time to tend to your feelings as well.

If you’re sick enough to have sought out this guide, please start by looking into your options for counseling. A lot of people assume that counseling is for people with diagnosed mental conditions, but that’s not true—it can be helpful to anyone who needs to think something over or process something that’s going on in their life. Setting up regular appointments with a counselor (at least for a bit) can be very helpful; it forces you to “check in” with yourself at regular intervals, and gives you a space where you can focus on problem-solving of a more personal and internal nature.

There are many mental health services available regardless of your financial situation, so put out some feelers and see what you can find for your particular needs. Calling your health insurance provider can help you determine whether counseling is covered, and many counselors offer sliding-scale rates if you need to pay out of pocket. Keep in mind that if you’re in school, there should be a counselor on campus that you can work with at no charge. Finally, there are quite a few more informal options available online—check out the Resources section at the end of this zine for more information.

As for what you can do independently, be sure to research “self care” and put together a list (mental or written) of things you can do to take care of yourself when you’re going through a rough patch. This is a great concept that’s really becoming popular right now, and there are lots and lots of ways to practice it. Definitely take a look!

This post was excerpted from the informational zine Chronically Badass. 

About the Author:

Diane is a newly-diagnosed spoonie living in Portland, Oregon. She runs a blog Spoonie Living (spoonie-living.tumblr.com), and has also published a free, informational zine for spoonies called Chronically Badass (https://gumroad.com/l/chronically-badass). 

The post Mental Health appeared first on Spoon Shares.

Working with and finding good doctors will probably be the greatest challenge you face as a spoonie, mainly because the skill of your doctor will impact every part of your life, including your physical health, mental health, relationships, insurance claims, and any accommodations you may receive. A lot of folks are raised believing that doctors are somewhat of a magical breed: you go to them and they fix you, full stop. However, where chronic illnesses are concerned, the lack of research and understanding of the symptoms you’re experiencing will likely reveal how incorrect this belief is.

Doctors, like us, are fallible; they only have so much knowledge, and they can often be swayed by their own personal opinions. Because of this, choosing a good doctor—even if it means “dumping” a bad one—is absolutely vital. You may feel like or be told that you’re being too high-maintenance, but remember that you deserve to have a doctor who helps you and with whom you feel absolutely comfortable.

Signs of a Good Doctor

• Patient; listens well and encourages you to ask questions
• Validates your feelings and experiences; shows that they believe your symptoms are real
• Responsive to phone calls, emails, and requests
• Admits when they’ve reached the limits of their knowledge
• Communicates about what they’re thinking and the next steps they’re considering

Signs of a Bad Doctor

• Rushes you through your appointment
• Shows or says that they don’t believe you’re sick; invalidates your experience
• Tells you it’s all in your head
• Unresponsive to communication outside of appointment; forgets to fill prescriptions or process referrals
• Doesn’t look further than their own knowledge; doesn’t appear to engage in research or referrals
• You can never tell what they’re thinking or planning

This post was excerpted from the informational zine Chronically Badass. 

About the Author:

Diane is a newly-diagnosed spoonie living in Portland, Oregon. She runs a blog Spoonie Living (spoonie-living.tumblr.com), and has also published a free, informational zine for spoonies called Chronically Badass (https://gumroad.com/l/chronically-badass). 

The post Working With Doctors appeared first on Spoon Shares.

Did you know that our culture basically revolves around food? It’s actually pretty insane. You don’t realize the full extent of this until eating or finding food to eat becomes problematic.

We have luckily become more aware of certain disorders that require dietary restrictions, such as celiac disease or diabetes, but a lot of chronic illnesses come with dietary restrictions that don’t have their own separate menu. And, even with the new awareness of the more “mainstream” dietary disorders, it can still be a challenge to find food in many restaurants.

I have gastroparesis, so my dietary restrictions are pretty insane. I can’t have (sped up) fatty foods, fibrous foods, food that cause bezoars, skins, seeds, nuts, anything with indigestible parts such as broccoli and cauliflower, hydrogenated oils, aspartame, fake fiber, caffeine, high fructose corn syrup or alcohol.

My friends call me The Waiter’s Terror.

So a couple of tips I’ve learned for eating with intense dietary restrictions.

Pack Your Own Food.

I always pack a few staples in my bag wherever I go, in case I can’t find food where I am. I like beef jerky sticks and baby food purees. Other staples I’ve used in the past are luna bars, meal replacement drinks, graham crackers, but now I try to opt for something a little more nutrient dense. But basically you just need packable food that won’t go bad and won’t make you sick or symptomatic.

And yes, your bag will be comically large.

(dumps large bag)

2) Ask to talk to the Chef

Especially if you have really complicated dietary requirements, going to the source of your food is often the best. Besides getting real answers about how the food is prepared instead of the waiter guessing, you’ll get a clear idea of how receptive the chef is to modifying the food for you before you commit to an order.

I printed out restaurant cards but haven’t found them useful as of yet.

Be sure to use the phrase “it will make me sick.” Otherwise they might think you’re just on a new fad diet and they might blow you off and tell you what you want to hear. The thought of a customer puking in their bathroom tends to motivate them to fess up about their real ingredients.

If you’re at a chain restaurant, ask to see dietary information because they almost all provide that now. But, the flip side of that is that if that information is provided, it probably means it is highly processed foods that come out of a plastic bag. Might not be the best food for you and you might wanna rethink eating there.

Which you can totally do! Because tip #3 is…

3) Don’t Eat the Restaurant Food

That seems kind of counter productive. But if you think about the enjoyment factor you get out of eating at a restaurant it’s not just eating the food. It’s also the atmosphere and, generally, the company you’re eating with. The way I approach eating out with friends is, unless I have a specific place that I know has food for me that I ask people to go to with me, I eat an hour or two before I go out. If I find something I can eat at the restaurant, great! I’ll order it, eat a little, and save the rest for leftovers. If I don’t, I’ll either pull out one of my snacks — and if the waiter gives me a hard time…(squeezes apple pouch). Actually you just explain your situation, usually they’re pretty receptive. If they start to give you a hassle, if you throw in the phrase “American with Disabilities Act,” they usually just do what you ask. It’s one of the magical phrases, like “it will make me sick.” One other thing that they fear besides cleaning up puke? Cleaning up a lawsuit!

Sometimes, though, when friends want to go someplace I know I won’t have anything to eat, like McDonalds, or I don’t feel safe “risking it” that day because I’m symptomatic, I plan specifically not to eat at the restaurant.  This sounds depressing but it’s really all about the mindset. You’re not there for the food, you’re there to hang with your friends, family, or significant other, whoever. It might feel strange at first, which is why it’s probably good to pack a snack just so you can feel like you’re eating with them, but after the first two times it will start to feel natural.

Assure your friends that it doesn’t bother you and that you are enjoying yourself as well. Also make sure they understand not to tempt you with the “just one bite” thing.

“C’mon, just one bite won’t hurt, will it?”

Yeah, it will.

This is about them wanting you to be happy with the situation, too, so just explain that you’re much happier without risking the extra symptoms and enjoying spending time with them. Be open and honest with your friends so they understand your mindset and know best how to accommodate your needs, because everyone is different in how they want to be treated in situations like this. So…throw them a bone! Help them help you.

You will get weird looks from the waiters, but that’s something you can laugh about. My friends and I always look forward to the “oh, she’s anorexic” look. We relish it.

Because in these situations you gotta laugh or cry, and as Kurt Vonnegut says, “I prefer to laugh because there’s less cleaning up afterwards.” 

Tell me your own tips for dining out with dietary restrictions in comments and check out more tips for people with chronic illnesses on spoonshares.com. Sending spoons and love, take care!

About the Author:

Leah is a 24 years old suburb-of-Philly native. She has gastroparesis, a feeding tube, and a battery operated stomach. She is the proprietor of this site, as well as the sassy Disney blog The Magical World Of, and a contributor to the new podcast Media Matters.   

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