Starting on GAPS is known to be daunting and overwhelming to most people who learn about it. I try to keep in mind that we’re already doing or know how to do a lot of the things that we need to be doing, even if we haven’t been doing them. Here’s my list:
- We know how to make good broth (although I’m concerned our use of regular store bought chicken isn’t going to help enough)
- We love the broth
- Me and ds1 love soup (dh not so big a fan)
- Having been on a low fat diet years ago, I’ve already had experience with coming up with substitutions for unapproved foods
- we can all tolerate fats
- everyone likes coconut okay
- we have been cooking from scratch for years
- we don’t cook with a microwave
- I use baking soda and vinegar to clean/rinse my hair (avoiding chemicals)
- I use a deodorant stick (avoiding chemicals)
- we drink well water (no fluoride and we get “dirt” since the water isn’t purified)
- we love our water and mostly drink it (instead of soda, juice)
- if it ends up we heal enough to tolerate raw milk, we have dairy goats (what to do with all the milk in the meantime)
- I’ve known about WAPF principles for years so a move to GAPS isn’t too wildly different (for example, we haven’t been living off of convenience foods and fast food)
- We like meat and vegetables and salad
- I have been trying to limit my intake of pasta and carbs, recognizing how they make me feel after eating them
- We don’t end dinner with “dessert” so no one will miss that
- We have been trying to avoid MSG for over a decade
- We have been using butter for the last 8-9 years (instead of margarine)
- We avoid all artificial sweeteners (nutrasweet, saccharin, etc.) I have in fact been against artificial sweeteners and have tried to avoid them all my life. Ds1 is allergic to sucrose and breaks out in a measles type looking rash if he ingests it
- we have been avoiding soy for many years
My son with Down Syndrome tends to be a creature of habit (aren’t we all?). He becomes dependent on a routine, and then expects it. If we’d been having dessert after dinner all along, he would be upset if we stopped abruptly.
That’s all I can think of for now.
