A Regimen for Remission
This log tracks my regimen of attitude, exercise, stress management, and SCD foods. Since I started this regimen in 1997, I've been able to keep my Crohn's in a drug-free remission.

Monkey-see,
monkey-don't
Even though I may have experimented beyond the SCD from time to time, one must remember that everyone is different. Follow the intro diet for 3-5 days, and stick with the SCD until you are completely symptom free for at least one year before experimenting.

Be sure to read:
Intro to Flog
Read Me
Archives
Laura's IBS log
SCD Web Library

Permalinks:
The linked timestamps are your permanent links to individual log entries.

Get the book:
Ready to get your shit together? Got the intestinal fortitude? Yearning for a nirvana of peristalsis? Buy Breaking The Vicious Cycle! Written by Elaine Gottschall B.A., M.Sc., the book includes guidelines for dietary relief and sustainable remission of Crohns, Ulcerative Colitis, and other IBDs.

Feel free to contact me if you still have questions.

As Dr. Frankenstein exclaimed, "It's alive!" :-)

We're running an average of 5000 Kbps from home now! To find out how fast you are running, use the bandwidth speedometer.
mhs@17:15

Yippee!!! This should be the last post from home that is made over dial-up connectivity! While I live in the "copper state", US West is notorious for it's "Darned Slow Lines"; i.e., I have never connected to anything at better than 26.4Kbps from home. But no longer! Today is installation day for Sprint Broadband, a high-speed digital wireless connection to the Internet. We're looking at 5000Kbps minimum for a very great price!
mhs@08:31

Breakfast: fruit, nuts, and some leftover chicken and green chile quiche.
mhs@08:25

Wednesday, August 30, 2000

Breakfast: some fresh fruit. More breakfast later at the Tucson Link!
mhs@06:22

Tuesday, August 29, 2000

Dinner: tossed salad, leftover turkey sausages and grilled zucchini. A lovely walk after dinner, watching the last of the monsoon sunsets (monsoon is almost over..).
mhs@19:31

Lunch: leftover roasted chicken, tossed salad.
mhs@13:22

Breakfast: fruit.
mhs@07:37

Monday, August 28, 2000

Dinner: grilled eggplant, chicken tandoori, and Laura's sauteed carrots.
mhs@20:28

Lunch: grilled spicy turkey sausages from Wild Oats Market and a tossed salad (with organic raw apple cider vinegar and flax seeds).
mhs@12:40

Breakfast: fruit, figs, and some almonds.

Dinner (yesterday): grilled eggplant and salmon, Laura's "wrinkled stringbeans".

And some though Microsoft was evil! Now AOL is getting into the Linux game by creating their own Linux OS.
mhs@07:58

Sunday, August 27, 2000

I'm back from San Jose! :-) For the most part I stayed true to the SCD. I did eat a few non-SCD foods, but was careful to mix them with plenty of SCD foods. So far, no problems. Nevertheless, one never knows how long it will take for something to backfire (pun intended) in the land of IBD. So do as Elaine says, not as Mike does. Got it?!

Anyway, while I was there this article on "all kinds of crappy problems" appeared in the weekly newspaper. The article discusses stress, IBD, colonics, and a book called "Far From Poopin" by Loree Taylor Jordan. I'm not sure how long the link will remain active, so if it appears to be dead then try searching for it manually on the Metroactive site by author (Kelly Luker) or title (Going Concerns).
mhs@14:54

Friday, August 25, 2000

Dinner (yesterday): @ Habana-Cuba Restaurant, San Jose. Awesome salad and chicken fricase. Oh yes, and I did sample some of their fine non-SCD fried plantains... mmmmmmm! Remember, do as Elaine says, not as I do!
mhs@07:58

Thursday, August 24, 2000

News alert: I've got a new job and I'm out of town, busily learning about my new job. So until I get back to Tucson, please feel free to visit the rest of my site or visit the scdiet.org site for more SCD fun. Better yet, check out Raman's Sex and the SCD!
mhs@09:22

Tuesday, August 22, 2000

Dinner: a big tossed salad, leftover chicken tandoori, and ... we'll see!
mhs@17:23

Lunch: grilled spicy turkey sausages from Wild Oats, tossed salad with flax seeds, and a bit of leftover quiche. All the while watching a black racer (a snake of the Sonoran desert) slithering through our backyard in search of its own lunch...
mhs@13:55

Listening to BB King on my MP3 player. Thanks, Vito! :-)
mhs@10:57

Breakfast: fruit, figs, and some nuts.

Dinner (yesterday): grilled chicken tandoori-syle, stir-fry of broccoli and spinach, and the last of our delicious gazpacho.
mhs@10:53

Monday, August 21, 2000

Lunch: leftover tuna, tossed salad, veggie burger from TJ's, and a bit of quiche from Wild Oats Market.
mhs@15:15

Breakfast: fruit.

Dinner (yesterday): grilled tuna, steamed artichokes, and gazpacho.
mhs@07:03

Sunday, August 20, 2000

Lunch: tossed salad, leftover turkey burger.
mhs@16:15

Breakfast: an apple, three fried eggs, and some leftover salad.
mhs@08:44

Saturday, August 19, 2000

Dinner: grilled salmon, tossed salad.

While watching dual rainbows over our house this afternoon we started chatting with our neighbor. She recounted a story about last weekend when a little bird was chattering away at her front door. She paid no mind, and then realized it was trying to scare away a little snake. Later she realized it was a baby rattlesnake, which some delivery guys were kind enough to move out into her front yard.
Anyway, while we're watching the rainbow and she is recounting this story, a little cactus wren starts chattering away not 30 feet away. It just seemed too coincidental..but it was happening again! Upon closer investigation, we spotted a baby rattler, probably less than 12 inches long, curled up next to a wall. It was too small to have a rattle that worked. It is amazing that the birds are such wonderful indicators of danger!
mhs@20:59

Another lazy Saturday, I'll be 'grazing' all day! :-)

Breakfast: an apple, a banana, some dried figs. Later, some cheese (remaining Manchego--will need to make a trip to Trader Joe's to get some more), nuts, whatever else I can find.

Dinner (yesterday): grilled turkey burgers, tossed salad with flax seeds, tomato, cucumber, and raisins, and grilled zucchini and eggplant (courtesy of Ron and Laura's garden).

We saw Space Cowboys last night--awesome!
mhs@08:17

Friday, August 18, 2000

Breakfast: an apple, a banana.

Check out this link about maintaining your privacy.
mhs@07:50

Thursday, August 17, 2000

Read the following link destination carefully, and then check it out.
mhs@16:15

Lunch: the insides of a grilled chicken burrito from Rubio's.
mhs@12:44

Breakfast: fruit.

I broke a few "scd rules" yesterday. There were some (delicious!) cookies on the table at the conference I was attending.. ate two of them (along with a bunch of celery and carrots). No effect, yet. Don't do as I do; do as Elaine says. :-)
mhs@07:09

Tuesday, August 15, 2000

Dinner: @ the Ashman Court Hotel, Midland Michigan. Broiled salmon, sauteed eggplant and zucchini.

Lunch: some Chinese stuff in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul airport.

Breakfast: fresh fruit.
mhs@20:00

Monday, August 14, 2000

Yo! Check out bird feeder!
mhs@20:50

It is hot here in Tucson! I want one of these so I can make fruit shakes!
mhs@20:47

Dinner: grilled ribeye steak, a wonderful tossed salad with flax seed oil dressing (and a few flax seeds thrown in for good measure), and some curried cauliflower.
mhs@20:45

Lunch: tossed salad, leftover roasted chicken.
mhs@12:52

Breakfast: fresh fruit and some pecans.
mhs@06:17

Sunday, August 13, 2000

Dinner: Another awesome dinner at Mike & Laura's! Leftover roasted chicken, with grilled organic yellow Roma tomatoes and grilled organic zucchini slices, and steamed organic spinach.

Lunch: tossed salad, roasted chicken.
mhs@19:43

Claire (a subscriber of the SCD listserve) sent me the following message. See my reply below.

Hi Mike, Claire here from SCD list. It sounds like you know how to stick with SCD even with hectic schedules and travel. I am new and that is something that really worries me. I would love any tips you could offer on travelling and sticking with this. Do you carry any foods with you, or do you just eat very plain foods wherever you go? Of course, I am already learning a lot about this approach, but any tips, particularly on travel would be most welcome. Thanks.

Claire,
Yes, I have a few tips to share for those that travel a lot, and I figured I'd cc: the list as well. I'm sometimes forced to "break a few rules" when on the road, but there is one rule I add no matter what: drink lots of water.
Here goes:
1) Yup, bring food whenever possible. I carry a ziplock bag of nut and raisin mix in my computer bag--it helps fend off hunger when traveling. When I have a morning flight I often chill some cooked veggies and animal protein in an old dry curd container to snack on while the rest of the passengers dine on what some airlines refer to as the "bistro bag"--an awful sawdust-tasting grain bar, some unnatural yogurt concoction, a miniature unripe banana, and a small plastic container of plastic-tasting juice. I usually get a few nods and words of "good thinking" or "wanna trade?" from my co-passengers!
2) I eat a lot of salads with grilled chicken while on the road. First, almost everyone offers these, and second, I can usually add a small amount of their evil, fake dressing to make the salad palatable. Sure, there is all sorts of non-SCD crud in that dressing, but in *my starving stomach's opinion* there is enough other stuff in the meal to not matter as much. Again, *listen to your own gut*, not mine :-)
3) Some suggest ordering the vegetarian meal on flights--backfired on me once so I never tried it again--they served me a pasta and veggie salad. There were about 3 oz. of veggies to 6 oz. of pasta. Not enough food for this hungry flier!
4) Room service: again, lots of grilled chicken caesar salads (few make the dressing from scratch!). I rarely eat beef at home, so often get a steak or burger from room service. Again, no bun.
5) Ask "can I get no starch but extra veggies, please?"--they usually look at you and go, "of course! that's more healthy anyway!". Duh... then why not just serve it that way in the first place..!
6) Other foods to bring include organic baby carrots, celery, and other chilled veggies.
7) I used to carry 4-8 almond or walnut muffins, but they kept getting smooshed so I stopped that.
8) I always carry or know where to get a banana for a snack.
Regarding the stress, that is a whole different topic. I believe one has to *let* stress affect one's gut. It is tough to detect until symptoms show up. Nevertheless, one knows what causes stress and can be on the lookout for it.
I find that a little yoga (some stretches, some breathing techniques) will often help me--even as little as 5 minutes' worth. No, I don't do any of that singing stuff and I'm not always sure what color my chakras are.. but the point here is that focusing on one's body in a peaceful way will do wonders. Does yoga have anything to do with SCD? For me, absolutely: it's all about *mental attitude and proper food intake*.
I hope this helps. There is a bit more on scdiet.org's site--see my testimonial there.
mhs@17:47

And I want to thank all of my faithful readers during this last week! Here's a note from Debra in Manitoba:
Dear Mike, For the past three weeks or so I have read wih interest your flog, and all the other great "stuff" you've made available on your site. I felt compelled to email you to thank you for your efforts. Aside from the fact that your site provides _useful_ info, your delivery (sense of humour and enthusiam (for the diet), which I find "infectious"!) is wonderful also. I have a question for you -- no pressure to respond, as I know you are busy -- could you tell me if the SCD listserv is operative? I am quite sure it's not a figment of my imagination that I went through the paces to subscribe 3 weeks ago, yet have heard narry a peep back.
Anyway, I hope all is well with you and your wife. I am off to explore _Glassbird.com_. What a lovely name you chose for it.
Take good care -- thanks again.

Yup, the SCD listserve is alive and well--24 Digest messages in my Inbox this morning (since last Monday)! To subscribe to the SCD listserve, visit www.scdiet.org, and follow the links in the Community section!
mhs@10:17

Hey y'all, I have been busy traveling around for my current job and interviewing for a new job. Have not had any time to update Flog from my itinerant stays in various hotels this past week. Next week will be more of the same. Nevertheless, I can assure you I have been extra careful, with all the STRESS, to maintain a SCD-friendly regimen for remission.

My wife and I did take some time off together this weekend at a wonderful resort here in Tucson called Westward Look. Phenomenal place. We totally spoiled ourselves. Awesome food--all organic veggies, according to the award-winning chef Jason Jonilonis who gave us a tour of his garden. OK, ok... we did have a few margaritas.. probably not SCD-approved but the tequila kills all the bad bacteria anyway, right?! ;-)
mhs@10:15

Monday, August 07, 2000

Lunch: chicken caesar salad.
mhs@13:26

Breakfast: fresh fruit, pecans.
mhs@06:29

Sunday, August 06, 2000

Dinner: grilled salmon fillet with butter and pepper, grilled slices of zucchini, and sauteed bok choy with ginger.
mhs@21:10

Lunch: grilled spicy turkey sausages, curried cauliflower, and a tossed salad.
mhs@13:41

I just finished reading Atlas Shrugged - it was awesome! Gee, where have I seen that happening in my life..?

What is up with this Harry Potter craze anyway?
mhs@09:27

Breakfast: a banana, an apple, and fried eggs.
mhs@09:10

Saturday, August 05, 2000

Dinner: grilled turkey burgers, steamed artichokes, and a tossed salad with a dressing of raw organic apple cider and flax seed oil.

According to Listen To Your Gut, essential fatty acids (EFAs) have been proven to have powerful anti-inflammatory properties, especially for IBD. While the source of the oils is often a controversy (toxicity in some fish oils), organic flax seed oil is a wonderful way to get one's daily intake of the benefits of Omega-3 essential fatty acids.
mhs@19:50

Lunch: a delicious tossed salad and a veggie burger from Trader Joes. Note: these burgers are awesome, but not really "scd-legal". Dine at your own discretion. :-)
mhs@14:54

Breakfast: canaloupe and apples.

Dinner (yesterday): more of Laura's beet soup (we're going to have to freeze much of it -- there is just so much!), some leftover chicken, and a tossed salad with organic raw apple cider vinegar and oil dressing.
mhs@07:33

Friday, August 04, 2000

A wise woman keeps telling that when sitting at my desk all day using the computer stretching is very important!
mhs@15:59

I've been doing a bit of fishing lately. Stay tuned to hear what I catch..as well as what catches me!
mhs@13:12

Lunch: Trader Joe's chicken masala and stringbeans.
mhs@13:10

Thursday, August 03, 2000

Dinner: curried eggplant and cauliflower, Laura's beet soup, chicken.
mhs@20:00

Lunch: tossed salad, grilled sausages.
mhs@13:33

Snack: a banana (thanks for asking).
mhs@11:20

I've been up all night (couldn't sleep). So, for the last hour or so, I was out in the backyard watching shooting stars and trying to identify constellations and galaxies. It was really beautiful! But it's going to be a long day..
mhs@04:53

Wednesday, August 02, 2000

Lunch: grilled chicken and turkey sausages, tossed salad.
mhs@13:25

Breakfast: fresh fruit.
mhs@06:42

Tuesday, August 01, 2000

Dinner: Grilled chicken fajita salad @ Chili's, no tortilla strips, dressing on the side.

Lunch: @Alexi's in Phoenix, awesome steak salad and soup-of-the-day. Laura and I stopped at the Annie Leibovitz exhibit on the way back to Tucson--awesome collection of portraits of women. I highly recommend this exhibit if it comes your way!
mhs@19:14

Breakfast: fresh fruit.
mhs@06:29

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