What to do about the small block of cement that seems to have settled like a brick fog amid my intestines? Nausea is inertia. I have been searching for things to move me through this stormy weather. And then KP made this super easy Instant Pot curry dish that settled it.
So delicious and apparently anti-inflammatory. Ginger, turmeric, and healthy protein? Who could ask for anything more for a cancer dinner? This is from The I Love My Instant Pot Anti-Inflammatory Diet Recipe Book by Maryea Flaherty, which has 174 other amazing InstaPot-able dinners to choose from.
Coconut Curry Lentil Chickpea Bowls with Kale
We all loved this.
The other thing that has been a real comfort is hot tea. With the mucositis (basically my inner mouth skin sloughs off like snakeskin every time I get chemo), beverages that are super acidic like my first love—coffee—are now nauseating. Bummer!
Thank Heavens for Sips By which is a tea subscription service that sends you a customized box of teas monthly, with education on the proper temperatures to brew each type and also a gourmet variety that I may not have discovered as the tea novice that I am. Tea seems to be a little easier on the mouth and on the gut. I also love that Sips By provides these tea bags you can put loose leaf in!
Tried CBD oil for the first time this last round of chemo—I tried product from The Rooted Co because it is third-party tested and guaranteed to be THC free. I just wanted the anti-inflammatory and anxiolytic properties of cannabinoids, and, I’d say after about four or five drops added to my tea, it seemed to be equivalent to a beer (which I’m not drinking right now at all) and an ibuprofen.
Didn’t have a great smell, so I highly recommend a nice tea flavor to cover up the natural oil.
And even more important, is who you have to enjoy your tea with. Kermit remains a devoted sickbedfellow. In this photo, a mosquito was bothering my face but I didn’t want to untuck my arms from under my cozy blanket, and then Kermit crawled onto my chest and ate the bug out of the air!
And Karl-Peter, thanks for taking me to the Orpheum Theater last night to watch Harriet, a gorgeous featured finale film in the New Orleans Film Festival—honoring the strongest woman I’m aware of in American history—an incredible survivor and true hero, Harriet Tubman. Her haunting counsel sustains me this week, “If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going.”
*Products featured have been gifted, and while I share my experience for what I’m trying for symptoms in my own treatment, I do not recommend anything here to be taken as medical advice–that’s between you and your doctor!