Believe it or not, our bodies usually tell us what they like and don’t like. We just have to take a moment to listen 🙂

MIGRAINES:  For years, I wondered why I got debilitating migraines. I could never predict when they would come, I just knew sometimes I had them and other times I didn’t.

After years of popping painkillers, I started wondering whether my migraines were being triggered by something in my diet. After weeks of observing and making notes of what I consumed, I noticed that the migraines usually occurred after I had eaten (or drank) way too much sugar (i.e., CocaCola, ice cream, candy, cookies, donuts, and other sweet treats).

CHEST PAIN: Years later, I began having sharp chest pains. The pain was so bad, I thought I was having a heart attack! This happened multiple times in the span of a week before I finally went to the doctor. The doctor ran multiple tests and told me, “everything is fine, your chest muscles were just tightening up.” He also mentioned that I should use an ice pack whenever I had the pain and could start taking painkillers daily, if I wanted to. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing! I was way to young to start taking Aleve daily, right?!?

After this visit, I checked with my sister to see if she’d figured out where her chest pain was coming from. “Refined sugars!”, she replied.  With this information, I decided to start observing whether sugar was also the culprit for me. After several observations, I figured out that sugar (not just refined sugar) was causing my sharp chest pain!

WHAT I LEARNED: My body speaks to me all the time! Now that I am listening, I can hear it telling me what it likes and does not like! If my body starts doing things it doesn’t normally do, I make a note of what I consumed recently. This way, I am able to eliminate foods that make me feel bad and keep eating foods that don’t make me feel bad. Using this method has allowed me to observe the following:

Culprits: Sugary drinks, snacks and candy (with over 15g of sugar)

Symptoms – Migraine headaches, acne breakouts, chest pain

Culprits: Pasta, rice, oats, ice cream, yogurt, popcorn

Symptom – Acid reflux

Culprits: Beans, avocados, dairy, sometimes nuts

Symptom – Digestive issues

Culprits: Dairy, gluten

Symptoms – Acne breakouts, cysts

MY ACTION STEPS: While I still eat sugar, I have become a lot more conscious of how much I eat and have been experiencing far fewer migraines and chest pains. Thank God! Because, boy, were they painful!

I am still on a quest to figure out whether my body likes gluten. I think gluten may be causing me to breakout, and it may also be causing a cyst on my foot to flare up.

For my digestive issues, I will try using kombucha, water kefir and/or prebiotics to see if they can help me digest avocados and beans, better. If not, I will continue to limit how much I eat or eliminate them from my diet completely.

CHALLENGE

Join me in taking some time to listen to what your body is telling you. It may surprise you!

Have you had aches, pains, or odd things happen to your body lately? If so, try listening to it and making notes of what you ate (or drank) hours or even days before you experienced the pain. Using a food journal to log what you consume and any symptoms you feel can be helpful.

I think doing a food journal for one week is great! You may decide to keep it for longer, if you enjoy it. Personally, a week is plenty for me!

We are all different and unique, and this is why it’s so important for YOU to listen to what YOUR BODY is telling YOU:)

Thank you so much for reading this post! As always, if you have any tips, suggestions, questions and/or comments, please leave a comment below.

Until next time!

Xx,

Raina B ❤