*Starch-Free Success Stories* Guest Blog: Sabrina Carlson
I learned early on that Sabrina was a success story in the making. She was ‘all in’ and committed to the process from the very beginning. This kind of attitude pays off big-time when undertaking a significant lifestyle/dietary upheaval with the hope of positive results. I appreciate so much that all along the journey Sabrina was honest and open about her 2 steps forward and 1 step back. She did all the right things and, with time, is reaping the benefits. She’s been such an inspiration to me and I don’t doubt she will be to you as well!
Sabrina Carlson’s post is part of the “Starch-Free Success Stories” series.
Stumbling Upon a Diagnosis
In October 2022, I was home sick with the dreaded Covid for the first time. I was on a health website researching if a certain cough medicine would be safe to take while sick and having asthma. At the very bottom of the page was another article titled “When your back pain isn’t just back pain”. That article was the beginning of the answers I waited 23 years for. It described a condition called Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS), for which I had Every. Single. Symptom.
Could this be it? Did I just accidentally discover the cause of all my pain and suffering? Did I just diagnose myself by chance from a random internet article while dozens of doctors, midwives, nurses, and practitioners of all kinds did not put these pieces together?
I was weirdly elated. Yes, this disease sounded pretty horrifying. And good gracious – don’t google images of spines with advanced AS. YIKES! But this might finally give me a direction to move in that would be effective! OMG!
How It All Started
But let’s back up a little first. Until early 2020, I had been a super active and adventurous person. Mountain biking, hiking, backpacking. If it was outside and required a lot of energy, I was all about it. But since this last cycle of pain, fatigue, brain fog, and anxiety set in, I could barely walk at times. I was bent double with pain. The anxiety sometimes at night was so intense I would just vibrate and cry the entire night.
I had made a career change in 2019 and I assumed this was all just down to increased stress and decreased activity. My new job was very sedentary, indoors, and stressful, never mind the global stressors we all were heaved into in 2020 collectively. Surely I just needed to move more and cut back my hours at work right?
Searching For Relief
I threw myself into everything I could think of to help. I cut back at work, hired a therapist, health coach, functional medicine doctor, personal trainer, massage, bodywork, pilates, mid-day walks, Epsom salt baths, sauna, theragun. If there was a chance of it helping me feel better I did it. I even subscribed to an app for a while designed to help you meditate your way out of pain on the theory that if it can’t be seen on imaging, it must be all in your head. Most things help a little for a few minutes (except that stupid meditation app) but I was definitely NOT getting symptom resolution. If anything, working out was driving me deeper into pain. Walking and pilates were ok, but I just couldn’t do much more than that.
Once I found that article though, I knew I could find a way forward. I scheduled an appointment with a Rheumatologist. But our city has only one, so he was booking 6 months out. In the meantime, I got to work, as I always do. What were diet and lifestyle interventions that would be effective for AS? That led me to the low-starch Facebook group where I jumped in with both feet.
What Worked For Me
Ultimately, I have ended up with a mostly carnivore diet at this point. I started off trying to do a low starch/AIP combo. But I could tell I was still chasing pain triggers. I didn’t have the bandwidth to constantly play around with what foods might be hurting me still. So I went full carnivore for three weeks as an elimination diet. I reintroduced some plant foods without an increase in pain, but after several months of no additional progress pulled the plants back out again.
I have almost immediate relief after going carnivore. Not 100% better. But 4 days in, I woke up and could get out of bed without bracing, winching, and pain-induced tears. It was WORKING!
Now, 7 months since starting, my anxiety is mostly gone, I can get through a fairly normal day without wanting to collapse in exhaustion, and my pain is a fraction of what it was. In fact, the protocol is working so well, the rheumatologist doesn’t actually want me on biologics yet. The PA told me that 60% of AS patients don’t get the positive results from medications that I’ve gotten from diet. So we will monitor and assess as we go.
My Journey
Through this whole journey, I look back at my life and I realize I’ve probably had this thing since I was 20. I had a terrible case of walking pneumonia that year. That was when I first had low back/SI joint pain. I thought I had just “thrown my back out” coughing. But it never fully went away. Thankfully it was pretty minor and easy to ignore.
But more significantly, I finally understand what happened during my pregnancy and postpartum with my son. I had such a tough time. Pain, fatigue, depression, and anxiety. It started while pregnant and got worse after he was born. I was diagnosed with postpartum depression, but I could tell there was so much more than that going on, though I never really figured it all out. Luckily, by the time my son was 3, life had gotten a bit less stressful and the worst of that storm had passed. In retrospect, I know now that pregnancy caused a massive AS flare. It explains so much about why I was so very very sick during that period.
Finding Joy Again
I am finding my joy again. Now that the fog has started to lift, I’m able to enjoy everyday things again. Helping my clients, my partner’s silly jokes, my son’s laughter, and a sunny walk in the woods. Since reducing my pain I’ve started to ride my bike again. Nothing yet to the level I was before, but I will get there. The mental health boost I get from riding my bike, especially with my love, is like nothing else.
With my diet being so very simple right now, it is relatively easy to manage. Eat some meat or eggs with salt. Boring? Yes. Stressful and complicated? No. I certainly hope one day I will be well enough to tolerate a wider variety of foods. But right now, meat, eggs, and goat dairy are working. I can’t say I really get ‘hangry’ anymore. My blood sugar is so much better balanced now that it’s harder to force myself to eat enough than it is to keep up with what to eat.
Crucial Support
I would be remiss not to mention how critically important the support of my partner, Jason, has been. When we met I was in a remission period. I was full of energy, joy, adventure, a sense of humor, and an easy laugh. When this last flare period set in, my world got very dark. The joy had gone from me. The pain was so immense it suffocated everything. I wouldn’t have blamed him a bit if he had decided that wasn’t what he signed up for and ran away screaming. But he didn’t. Over and over again he held on tight and said “I’ve got you and we will figure this out”. He picked up the slack around my house that I didn’t have the energy for. He played with and entertained my son when I could barely lift my head. I cannot begin to fathom how much harder all of this would have been without him.
Note of Inspiration
If you are just starting out on this journey I want you to know it is all worth it. The beginning is so very hard. You are willingly adding to your suffering by cutting out a lot of favorite foods without knowing that you will really even feel better. In fact, you will likely feel WORSE at first. But hang on. Don’t give up. Stay on the plan 100%.
This isn’t a weight loss diet where you can eat perfectly for 6 days and cheat on the 7th. Your body is broken and healing requires vigilance. But you were not born to be broken. You were born to have vibrant health, energy, and capacity. There is no worldview through which it makes sense that immune systems just “get confused” and start attacking their own body as a normal part of life. Just because medical research hasn’t officially declared a “cause” and a “cure” for AS yet, doesn’t mean there isn’t a reason or full remission isn’t possible. It is. So many people are here to give testament to that fact.
Be stubborn. You will figure it out if you persevere.
Disclaimer: Starch-Free Feasting may discuss topics related to diet and nutrition. The information provided on this website is for informational purposes only. Consult a physician or medical professional before making changes to your diet and medication. You assume the risk of any potential injury that may result.
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