This Crazy, Gluten Free Adventure

The polar vortex tried to take the midwest by storm, but we're a tough people. Fifty below ain't got nothing on us! Truly, we've been out of school for four days. We've been staring at each other for four days. We have eaten at home - for four days. Until today. Today, we were released in to the wild (only -18). And today, I failed GF and ate a cookie.

I admit that I've been playing with this gluten free thing a bit. I'm a skeptic, particularly when it comes to my own limitations. I'm definitely the one who dances on the edge to see how far one can really go. Within half an hour of eating that glorious, gluten filled cookie, it was on. 

Full body revolt sprung in to action, though I've never been without gluten so long to be able to determine if the yuck was truly from gluten alone. Today provided some great, useful data -  immediate headache, stomach ache, nauseousness, sinuses clogged up, nose running, head heavy...from one cookie. 

Remember when I said that being forty is fabulous? It is. Except for the part where your body doesn't behave like it used to and starts acting like an ahole. That part, I could live without. 

I've been rationing my benadryl intake this week because of a sensitivity to who knows what that caused me to break out in to one wicked rash. Safely home and off the roads, I took some and viola! Gluten stuffed, aching head, runny nose issues also gone. 

WHAT? 

Figuring I was on a roll, I put a few drops of DigestZen in a veggie cap, along with a few drops of Copaiba and cue miracle moment 2! My stomach stopped hurting and I haven't had the painful swollen gluten consumption thing going on yet. Now, this isn't a cure for my gluten issues. It did help me, personally, feel better and I'm looking forward to a post gluten-cookie sleep without heartburn. 

The adventures don't end here. I now have to test this theory. This isn't going to fix my gluten issues, but it sure helps the reaction when I screw up. There are so many delish cookies out there that I could consume, but I'm going to have to choose wisely, because rotten stomach, headache, heart burn, stuffed head isn't worth it for just any old thing. (More later). 

In the meantime, I do want to share these two oils with you. DigestZen is a blend of essential oils. Don't use it neat (alone, without a carrier oil or salve) on your skin. If you have sensitive skin without reason like mine, your skin is likely to react and you'll hate your skin for a few days. Our fave oils have DigestZen in capsules and a roller bottle if you want to take it on the go. I prefer the capsules. You can also take your liquid DigestZen and put it in a veggie yourself, if you're not dripsee. DigestZen has ginger, peppermint, caraway, coriander, anise, tarragon and fennel in it. It's a bit...strong scented, if you will. But boy does it settle an upset stomach! 

Copaiba is something very different. This is an oil that truth be told, I've been playing with some. If you've done any research into CBD oil, you may have run across some discussion about copaiba. They are not the same. Copaiba comes from a tree (various species) and supports the systems functions, as well as my forty years plus malfunctions. Copaiba is another essential oil that you'll want to dillute in a carrier oil or salve before applying it to your skin. It's a pretty powerful antioxidant, and provides some old body relief as well. The littles use it mixed in miracle salve on their tired, sore muscles after sportsing for many hours and find great relief. It helps my creaks and cracks, and supports all the things. 

So that's what we've been up to for four days of cold. Playing with oils and putting the wood stove to work. Not such a bad way to spend the day!