For a person who just began a blog in order to document my quest for more real and less filler, my work/life balance has been all out of whack lately. My days have become a balancing act of simply fitting it all in, and “all” has been more work, of the 9-5 variety, than usual. I found that I just put quotes around half a dozen of those words, which I then conscientiously edited since no one needs that, and I blame work for that, too, as quotes use are a style consideration that plagues the technical writer. Or at least this technical writer. Not as contentious as the Oxford comma, but still of note.
So, in short, I picked a week to start this no sugar, no dairy, no grain month when I’m stressed out with work and my husband is stressed out with work. Have you ever tried to stress eat a cucumber? It’s dumb. Cucumbers have their place, for sure. A cucumber salad is a delight on a hot summer day, but for your basic fight or flight adrenal response they are not the answer.
Another poorly planned part of this dietary leap is that, as the over-abundance of the unnecessary candida bacteria die off in my gut, they release a toxin as their Hail Mary, a toxin which makes me feel nauseous, headachy, rashy and tired. Probably just for the first week or so. I understand the whole darkest before the dawn analogy, but really? I’m traditionally more about instant gratification and less about soldiering through. I’m not Don Draper, not even Season 1 Don Draper (and full disclosure, that reference is straight out of general pop culture, as I’ve never watched) but a glass of wine after a long day feels like the inalienable right of tired women everywhere. Since I’m not usually patient or cultured enough to let the wine breathe, that is instant gratification of the 45-second variety. Deep breath, deep drink.
What’s a girl to do when her reward system is turned on its head? Today, with plenty of hours already in, I put the guilt away and came home early. I got a magazine and sat in the sun on a 70-degree day and let the Vitamin D pour in. And it felt pretty good.