“Healing is not a linear climb to the summit; it is a walk through the woods, sometimes getting lost, but always learning the terrain.”

If you’ve been here for a while, you are aware that I was diagnosed with Alpha Gal Syndrome, Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, and Histamine Intolerance. When I last wrote about it, I had just started holistic/homeopathic type treatment to hopefully put it all into remission.

I fought what conventional medical people were saying (that AGS is incurable, SAAT is a waste of money, etc), and I took hope in the first hand experiences of people I knew who had success with this treatment. I convinced myself to step out of my comfort zone and schedule the appointment and begin treatment. I convinced myself that it was going to work.

I had hoped (actually planned) to write a post about how this diagnosis was actually a blessing in disguise. I envisioned that once I was safely in remission I would write about how I didn’t realize how my normal wasn’t actually normal (because I was ignoring my body’s warning signals) and that my diagnosis and then treatment was a blessing that helped me actually get my body back into line and healthy.

That was my plan. As can happen, reality did not follow my plan. I followed the protocol exactly, including the very restrictive diet during treatment. When I went back to have the SAAT acupuncture needles removed, I was declared in remission for AGS, MCAS, and HI although I still tested sensitive to wheat, chicken, and dairy. They cleared me to start a slow reintroduction to foods and instructed me to finish the homeopathic treatments for the sensitivities I still showed. They were confident at the end of treatment, I would be able to eat anything I wanted without consequences.

I have now completed the treatments. If I watch what I eat and eat AGS-safe foods that isn’t wheat, dairy, or chicken, I feel pretty good but I very obviously still have food sensitivities and I haven’t even tried red meat which was/is my biggest AGS trigger because I am scared to. Nothing else is better so why would that be? I have not been in for any further testing because of the holidays and frankly, I am still not sure if I will go back in anyway. At this point I feel like the treatment I was told worked for 97% of patients did not work for me.

Do I regret going? No, I don’t think so. It was expensive and possibly (probably?) completely ineffectual for me, but I did learn a lot about my health and diet. I learned to pay more attention to the way I feel and what affects my body in negative ways and why it affects me. I have learned to be much more aware of what I am putting in my body and what is in processed foods (it is shocking what you learn when you become a label reader).

I am, of course, disappointed to be in the 3% who didn’t experience a miraculous result. However, I am trying to focus on the results from this experience that can’t be tested for. Maybe the treatment didn’t fix my immune system, but it did change the way I think about food. I am making even more of our food from scratch so that I am confident of what is in it and that there are no surprise or unnecessary ingredients being sneaked into our bodies. I’m still navigating the “what’s next,” but I’m doing it with a lot more knowledge than I had before I started.

In light of the fact that AGS seems to be sticking around for now at least, and the fact that it seems to be becoming a very common issue, I have added AGS-safe and AGS-safe variations to my Recipes page. I will continue to add AGS-safe variations and recipes as I navigate this new territory and continue to discover what works and what doesn’t.

Have any of you tried SAAT or other alternative treatments for AGS? How did it work for you? Have you been treated for something that was supposed to work but didn’t? Have you ever been in the “3%”??

Here is a peek into my life just because – Christmas music, kid’s gifts…exploded…everywhere, napping dogs, and a dose of waffle stitching dopamine.