Hi! *waves*

(Tracey M) #1

Hi all :slight_smile:

I just wanted to pop in and say hi - I’m brand new, been eating keto for nearly two weeks now, at the suggestion of my Neurologist.

I’ve been ALL about town with different diagnoses for symptoms (going on two plus years) from different parts of the good old NHS. We’ve finally settled on ‘sensory overload’ - I’m a HSP (Highly Sensitive Person), which is something I only learned about last year, so when the neurologist suggested sensory overload was his diagnosis, it actually made a lot of sense to me.

I had been diagnosed with Meniere’s Disease by a private consultant (while waiting for the NHS ENT appointment), then ENT changed it to Vestibular Migraines, then Neuro changed it to sensory overload, or Sensory Processing Sensitivity as part of being HSP.

His main suggestion for getting rid of my symptoms…? Keto diet! He had personally been keto for eighteen months, and he said he felt great. I’d been looking into it a few weeks prior to that, as I’d read it was good for migraines (which is what my diagnosis had been until I saw Neuro) but I’d chickened out due to the large amount of pork rinds being used in the recipes I was looking at right then (I’ve also since learned that US pork rinds are nothing like UK pork rinds :joy:).__

Him suggesting it was a sign though, so I dove straight in. I’ve found loads of incredibly awesome recipes on brilliant websites, and I wanted to join a forum for support if I need it, and hopefully to support others too when I’m eventually fat adapted!

I’m hoping the therapeutic nature of this lifestyle on the nervous system will help me settle my body down, as the symptoms were weird and far-ranging over lots of different parts of my body. I won’t list them here, but if anyone’s interested I could start a new post somewhere, tracking how the symptoms are as I progress.

Thanks for reading!

Tracey x

(Carpe salata!) #2

Great first post and welcome @tracey !

I think we all love those tracking progress threads. What I find annoying is that it all doesn’t happen overnight. However there are small but stunning victories along the way that will keep you calm and keto-ing on. I found over time that I ate less and was less obsessed by eating. In fact food became a lesser focus of the day. Lately I don’t eat until about 6pm most days and its no trouble at all.

Ears have very fine structures in them that I imagine could be easily be disrupted by inflammation. I’m getting that you had attacks of vertigo and tinnitus and aversion to loud sounds. Thanks for posting.

(Tracey M) #3

You are absolutely spot on - my main symptoms (there are a thousand more) have been dizziness (80% of the time), and tinnitus (100% of the time); I’m very sensitive to all stimulation - lights, noise, patterned floors and walls, lot of movement… I work in a big busy open plan office, so that’s been challenging to say the least…

I had been ‘okay’ on medication as they dulled my nervous system - Citalopram, and Venlafaxine (different times, not together) but I suffered awful side effects from both, and had to eventually come off them. The Venlafaxine withdrawal in May this year was the most ill I have ever felt in my life, which is what sent me to Neuro, so we could find something to help me that wasn’t medication based! Keto is perfect :slight_smile:

The keto diet is basically the total opposite of how I had been eating on the migraine diet since June. I am SO MUCH HAPPIER eating this way. I’m not craving carbs (I know it’s early days, but I was hitting sugar and carbs pretty hard before I started LCHF) and I feel okay. Strangely fine. I’m waiting for the ‘flu’ to hit… hoping my body is just so happy to be living this way, that I’ll skip that part altogether :joy:

(Doug) #4

Hi Tracey, welcome. :slightly_smiling_face:

Good for your neurologist to suggest giving keto a try. For many of us, refined carbohydrates or too many carbs, period, do seem to be irritants and potentially nerve-damaging.

What is the difference? :yum:

(Carpe salata!) #5

If its been 2 weeks, you might just skip the 'flu bit. Some people just feel more sleepy and need to get to bed a bit earlier - that’s how it affected me to begin with.

I had so many aches and pains that just magically disappeared, and I don’t find myself leaning on the shopping trolley for support in the supermarket any more. I can walk across town without having to stop for a coffee and a sandwich and OK i’ll have the eclair. NO MORE :smiley:

(Tracey M) #6

I read yesterday (I forget where!!) that pork rinds in US are like quaver crisps, very light. Pork rinds in the UK are very thick, and usually covered in bits of hair :joy: Seriously, though, they’re a lot thicker, and look nothing like the pork rinds in the US when I googled it to see! :smile: I couldn’t imagine using our pork scratchings to make anything resembling a substitute for bread crumbs lol.

(Tracey M) #7

I do hope so! I had a headache the other night (I don’t get headaches, I know that sounds ridiculous as I was diagnosed with migraines lol) and I thought “NO! This is it!” but I went to sleep, and was fine the next morning :slight_smile: I’ve been mildly achey in my joints before bed the last two nights, but through the day I’m good as gold.

I love that you mentioned eclairs, and I’m not even daydreaming about one! :star_struck: Suck it, carbs…

#8

UK are like US cracklins

#9

That’s what we call cracklin in the US

(Siobhan) #10

Hi! If you have difficulty with migraines you may want to keep an eye on your magnesium intake, by which I mean supplementing. Ive been seeing more and more info pointing towards magnesium deficiency for migraines. I would suggest epsom salt baths.

As for tinnitus Ivor Cummins interviewed someone who specializes in ear stuff I dont remember the name… but basically pinpointed tinnitus as one of the earliest signs of insulin resistance because the vessels in the ear are some of the most sensitive.
I can try to dig it up and link it if youre interested.

Also keto flu tends to be electrolyte imbalance so if you keep up with salt and magnesium you can mitigate a lot of it.

(Frank C) #11

that’s right… magnesium is one the most important minerals in our system… there are over 300 functions that depend on it, and it is one of the least abundant minerals in our diets. To make matter worse, most doctors misdiagnose the symptoms caused by a shortage of magnesium, and prescribe meds that actually take more of it out our system, therefore causing an increase symptoms (and more meds prescribed)!!

Good luck with your adventure!

PS here is a great link I just visited on Importance of magnesium!

(Tracey M) #12

Thanks! This may be why I’m mostly feeling okay, as I’ve been drinking a dissolvable electrolyte tablet thing every few days, and I already take 400mg magnesium twice a day (was taking it just in case it helped my vestibular migraine symptoms) :slight_smile: I bought a year’s worth on offer a couple of months ago, before they told me it’s not migraines, and I figured I’ll just keep taking them until I run out!

I’d be really interested to read about tinnitus and insulin resistance - I can just go Google it though! I’ll go see what I can find on it :slight_smile: Thank you!

(Doug) #13

Thanks for the information, Tracey and Turbeville. Ouch - I can certainly do without the hair attached… :neutral_face:

I’ve seen a good amount of variation with U.S. pork rinds - some are very light, you can crush them to nothing between your tongue and the roof of your mouth; yet then others may be noticeably heavier, chewy, even hard to chew all the way.