The Vampire Diaries

(come to think of it I'm not very good at crossing running water either!)

Today has been a difficult day.  My on going issues with digestion have not resulted in a positive diagnosis which means in the absence of anything else it is most probably a syndrome relating to irritability and a particular organ of the body that deals with the digestive system (she said whilst trying to maintain a modicum of dignity).

This is good news, it means there isn't anything 'wrong' with me, and bad in that it is a very long and somewhat complex road that I now have to go down to try and ascertain which foods are causing me a problem.

Based on the advice of a nursing practitioner I have for the past week been avoiding dairy. By Friday I had seen no change so added wheat to the exclusion list, by this morning with still no improvement I decided that I needed to take a slightly more systematic approach before all I was left to eat was a dry oatcake, on the very day I was trying to plan which culinary delights to make for my guests on Saturday!

Sometimes I love the internet, sometimes I hate it. Today it was the later. There is just too much information out there and too much of it is contradictory.  I am completely overwhelmed and confused and am awaiting a telephone call from my GP tomorrow to discuss a possible referral to someone who actually knows what they are talking about and might be able to help navigate me through this latest minefield. In the meantime I have had a look at some of the foods that it is suggested I avoid - practically everything I eat is on the list (including garlic -which I thought was supposed to be good for digestion - has to be avoided entirely). I then concluded that it is too much to take on board and have eaten some cake to make me feel better - albeit only psychologically!

What  however is common to all the websites I looked at was the importance of relaxation - why do all roads seem to lead here? Am I really such a stress head that it's affecting everything I do ("YES!!!"). Pondering this whilst out walking the dogs and I had a sudden moment of realisation that it probably is... after all I've even taken my hobby and supposed method of relaxation  - running - and turned it into something to get wound up over!

Perhaps more interestingly however is the list of symptoms, which include dizziness and ringing in the ears! Could this be the cause of my tinnitus? Could there be a way for it to stop without resorting to pink noise therapy?! How good would that be?! Which just leaves the small matter of my hearing loss to explain - don't anyone mention the home hot oil treatment...

M - 574
Brighton Half - 132
Glasgow Half - 356!!
Total Distance covered  279.7 miles