This post was originally published on March 26, 2018 and republished on April 19, 2021.
This week we are continuing with My Endo Action Plan. Last week I shared with you some of the resources that have helped me in developing my own personal action plan to fight endometriosis and find healing.
This week we are going to take a closer look at how those nutritional changes look in real life.
Real Food for Endo: The Basics
I mentioned before that the strongest nutritional connection to endometriosis I could find is that an anti-inflammatory diet should, theoretically, be helpful in healing inflammation caused by endometriosis.
In fact, I mentioned this idea of eating an anti-inflammatory diet to my reproductive endocrinologist who just recently completed my second endometriosis surgery. He looked at my surgical photos and said, “Well, I’m looking at a whole lot of inflammation here, so I don’t see how an anti-inflammatory diet could hurt.”
But, I’m going to be real with you…this is TOUGH. Whenever anyone asks me what I’m trying to avoid when I mention that I’m doing my best to stick to an anti-inflammatory diet, I usually just respond with, “all the good stuff.”
- Gluten: breads, pastas, pastries, baked goods.
- Dairy: milk, cheese. Need I say more?
- Sugar: just sweet, enticing sugar.
- Soy: which just so happens to be hiding in almost everything.
- Caffeine: coffee, chai tea, soda. Did I mention coffee?
Let’s just say, you have to really, really want to heal from endometriosis. Or really, really want a baby!
Honestly, had I been diagnosed earlier I’m not sure I would have been on board to make these dietary changes in the name of healing.
Where do you even start? I was incredibly overwhelmed when I began looking into this. I was definitely sold on the science and for sure believed that diet and food could make a difference. But these are some major changes in the kitchen. There is a definite learning curve.
The best advice I can give you is to just start small. And slow. Make a change, not all the changes. Slowly shift by replacing current options with better ones as you run out of them.
I’d recommend starting with your cooking oils. Get rid of the processed vegetable oils and shift over to cold-pressed extra-virgin organic olive oil. Stick to butter or animal fats for cooking. Or try out a new oil like avocado or coconut where you can.
Then, I’d focus in on your proteins. This is the most expensive shift, but quite possibly the most effective one, too. Move away from factory-farmed, antibiotic and hormone injected meats and start choosing grass-fed, pasture-raised, or wild caught.
Next, start cutting back your use of dairy and sugar, eventually making swaps where you can. Like maple syrup and almond milk in your coffee or honey in your herbal tea. Limit your consumption of grass-fed, raw cheese and butter.
It’s almost impossible to make all the changes at once and stick to them. But with every choice you are choosing better health, you are choosing healing. Every choice matters, so make it. Small at first, then lasting changes for the long haul.
A Sample Meal Plan
To help you see what this can look like I’ll share with you my current week of meals. I’m sure you’ll notice that this plan is in no-way perfect. I do my best to stick to an anti-inflammatory diet, avoiding dairy, gluten, sugar, soy and caffeine, but I’m human after all. And sometimes, humans want sugar. And cheese. Or coffee.
Sunday
Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs with Veggies
Lunch: Hummus and Veggies + Tuna Pack
Snack: Nuts + Dried Fruit
Dinner: Nut Butter, Greens & Fruit Smoothie
Monday
Breakfast: Fruit + Nut Butter
Lunch: Leftover Nut Butter Smoothie
Snack: Cacao Nib/Chocolate Chip Gluten-Free Cookie
Dinner: Gluten-Free Pasta, Grass-Fed Ground Beef, and Marinara Sauce
Tuesday
Breakfast: Nut Butter on Gluten-Free Crackers
Lunch: Grass-Fed Raw Milk Cheese + Organic, Minimally Processed Lunch Meat + Fermented Kraut + Gluten-Free Crackers
Dinner: Cashew Chicken & Veggie Stir Fry + Rice
Wednesday
Breakfast: Hummus, Egg, and Avocado on Toast
Lunch: Leftover Pasta
Snack: Hummus and Veggies
Dinner: Leftover Stir Fry + Salad + Grilled Summer Squash
Thursday
Breakfast: Leftover Squash + Eggs
Lunch: Leftover Stir Fry on a Baked Potato
Snack: Gluten-Free Granola
Dinner: Leftover Pasta + Salads
Friday
Breakfast: Gluten-Free Granola Cereal with Almond Milk
Lunch: Peanut Butter on Gluten-Free Toast
Snack: Cacao Nib/Chocolate Chip Gluten-Free Cookie
Dinner: Bacon and Eggs
Saturday
Breakfast: Leftover Eggs and Bacon
Lunch: Grilled Steak + Asparagus
Snack: Gluten-Free Granola
Dinner: Leftover Steak + Salads
This meal plan isn’t set in stone. Things come up, plans change, my grocery run day shifts. This is a general idea of what I’m eating these days, though.
My saving grace in making this shift has been awarding myself the freedom to enjoy some of those off-limits foods once in while. But I try to do so by making the recipe at home so I can at least control the quality of ingredients going into it. So, instead of grabbing a bag of Chips-Ahoy, I’ll make some cacao nib/chocolate chip gluten-free cookies at home. Sure there is sugar in them, but I can use dairy-free chocolate chips and less refined sugar as well as gluten-free flour and feel a bit better about what I’m putting in my body.
I’ve also begun to rely heavily on eggs, potatoes, and lettuce. These three foods are super versatile and I can take pretty much any meat-based leftover and change it up by tossing it in scrambled eggs the next morning or heating it up and putting it on a baked potato or a bed of lettuce for lunch or dinner the next day.
If you want to give this meal plan a shot, go ahead and download this free meal planner and jot down what sounds good to you from my sample meal plan in this post. Then get creative, what foods do you like? Grab a copy of one of the books I suggested last week and give a recipe a try. Or just do a quick Google search for anti-inflammatory meal plans and take one for a spin.
Because the only way to get better at planning and preparing healthy, nutritious whole-foods based meals is to try them out. Start experimenting and see how you feel as you shift into this new way of thinking and eating.
I hope that you have been able to glean something from my endometriosis experience and My Endo Action Plan. Thanks for being here.
[UPDATE]
Country Wife Chronicles is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
I wanted to share something special with you, dear readers. I want to invite you into my personal story with endometriosis and infertility via a new and upcoming book, (In)Fertility: Secrets, Struggles, & Successes.
This book is a collaboration of several authors–both fertility specialists and women like me sharing their personal experience with infertility. I was able to share my story from my viewpoint with a single chapter in (In)Fertility, much like I have here on Country Wife Chronicles, but in an all-inclusive way that I haven’t done before.
This story represents my path to Intentional Fertility, it is me inviting you into the fold to really understand what infertility feels like and what, if anything, you can do about it if you are faced with that difficult diagnosis as well.
Infertility takes its toll on you, mentally, physically and emotionally. This book is about solidarity from those that “get it,” but it is also about so much more. This book shares a confidence to advocate for yourself, reminding you of your strength. Reminding you that even when the journey gets hard, you can do this. You can play an active role in your infertility story.
Be sure to sign up for CWC’s email newsletter to be the first to hear of the book’s release–in both digital and print form. I think you’ll glean so much from the neighborhood of women authors sharing personal stories and professional insights and I would be honored if you to chose to purchase a copy for yourself or someone you know that may be facing their own journey through the infertility valley.
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Be Still & Know…
DISCLAIMER: While I make every effort to share current and correct information here on Country Wife Chronicles, I am not an expert on endometriosis and I am still learning. I am simply sharing my story and the resources I’ve found to be helpful in this journey I am on. I welcome any comments, suggestions, or correction of errors. In reading this blog, you agree to not use this material as medical advice to treat any condition in either yourself or others. Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be experiencing.