Field report by Brigitte: Diarrhoea and abdominal pain
“Don’t dwell on the past, don’t dream about the future. Focus on the present moment.
Over time, Brigitte has learned to live in the moment. She is very active and enjoys life with her friends – be it on trips, in a restaurant or when she invites guests to her home. But her joy of life was severely clouded by sudden diarrhoea and stomach pains. She could not imagine enjoying a bus trip with these ailments.
“For me, the most difficult thing was to give up my almost daily spaghetti ice cream or not drink a latte macchiato.”
Friends recommend nutritional counselling with Thilo Keller to her. Her test result shows that she can’t tolerate dairy products and should also avoid yeast at all costs: “I was shocked because I liked to eat curd potatoes and yoghurt, just like cake and ice cream.” The practical tips from the counselling sessions helped her a lot: “For example, I didn’t know what to eat with the kids for their birthday, then the suggestion of Italian antipasti came in handy – it was a great fit! And when I go out I now drink a vodka-orange or vodka-tonic instead of beer (Hefe).”
“I know how well I am doing now, however, it does take a strong will to keep it up when in company.”
The change was difficult for Brigitte: “I never ate breakfast, hardly ate lunch and dinner was my main meal. Nevertheless, I have completely changed my eating habits.” Her friends are considerate of her diet – “they’ve always eaten healthier than me and now I’ve adapted.” The effort has paid off: her abdominal pain and diarrhoea are 95% gone. In addition, the pain from her osteoarthritis has improved and she has lost 9kg, but that was never a priority.
“You just have to learn your tricks.”
With the new eating habits, travelling is of course a bit more difficult, but for her well-being Brigitte is willing to put in the extra effort and take crispbread from home. Now she eats a lot of breakfast, lunch is her main meal with carbohydrates and in the evening there is an all-vegetable meal: “Otherwise it ferments and the complaints come back. And I definitely don’t want that.”
