In 2008 my husband was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. While in the years since his diagnosis his MRIs show the disease hasn’t progressed, his symptoms have slowly gotten worse. He is/was doing everything his doctors suggested, however his symptoms progressively got worse. Then one day we were recommended to read “The Wahls Protocol” by Dr. Terry Wahls. Having read a few things here and there about the effects of nutrition on the immune system, and being a science instructor myself, it seemed that the diet made perfect sense.
We may not have been the healthiest eaters prior to starting this health food journey. We had our occasional fruits, the salad doused in unhealthy dressings, and chips and queso for a snack. We fended for ourselves during the week, as my husband and I often got home from work at different times. A quick sandwich here,a frozen entree there was typical in our lives. Saturdays were our date night when we typically went out to eat to enjoy a few beers and “good” food. Finally, on Sunday evenings we would cook together and enjoy a homemade meal.
Enter the Wahls Protocol. I told my husband I would commit to the lifestyle change with him and we had to drastically change our bad habits. Starting with Phase 1 - Wahls Diet we now had to consume 9 cups of fruits and veggies a day (3 leafy greens, 3 colors, 3 sulfur rich). This seemed doable. However, it also removes gluten, dairy, eggs, sugar, and certain oils from your diet as well. No more quick sandwiches and frozen entrees for us! We dived right in and did what I refer to as “the purge” of our house. Donating everything that we were no longer able to eat to one of my students, we cleared our kitchen out. Needless to say our fridge and cupboards were pretty bare!
Then the grocery shopping began. The first time took me 2.5 hours due to having to read the labels on every single item in the store. Not going to lie, it was a bit frustrating at first. Your hopes get dashed quite a bit when you realize everything you can’t eat. Two and a half hours later I restocked our cupboards, but now what? We were used to quick meals during the week and hadn’t thought ahead to how this was all going to pan out. During that first week we often found ourselves at supper still needing 6 cups of fruits and vegetables yet. You can only eat so many giant salads before you quickly dread eating them again!
I needed a plan or this was going to be a short journey. Using a recipe app, I was able to plan our menu and not worry as much about what to make that will be tasty and keep variety in what we eat. I started waking up with my husband to pack his lunch and make smoothies for breakfast. Almost every night for the past couple weeks I’ve started supper as soon as I got home and made a true meal. We’re adapting, as we’re not only changing eating habits, but sleeping habits, times we go to work and get home, and how often we grocery shop.
We’re are nearing the end of our third week and each day gets a little better. We are starting to figure out what does and doesn’t work. A few days ago I posted a photo to Facebook of our supper. That night happened to be Sesame Ginger Salmon with Baked Lemon Garlic Asparagus. Photography is a hobby of mine. I’m not a professional, but I love to capture the world around me. After posting the photo of our supper, several people commented on how delicious it looked and how the photo made them want to eat it, even if it was healthy. This inspired me to track our journey: the good, the bad, and the ugly. We might be eating healthy, but it will be tasty as well (hopefully!)
