There were a lot of things about myself that took a big chunk of my life to figure out. For example, I was in my 40s when I determined that I possibly have Asperger Syndrome. Things like that make you realize you don't know yourself as well as you think. I'm pretty lucky in that I'm able to discover my own problems without having other people point them out to me (most of the time).
Something that affects me every day is what I eat. There are some foods that I have to be careful not to consume, or at least, not overindulge. These can cause me to get sick to my stomach. Some of these food issues are common with other people and others seem to only be exclusive to me. Here they are:
1. Lactose Intolerance
I was in my late 30s before I came to this conclusion. My entire life, I'd always had a problem drinking milk. It wasn't something I noticed right away. I could drink one glass of chocolate milk and have no problem. But if I drank two glasses of chocolate milk, my stomach wouldn't feel right. And if I tried to go to sleep after that second glass, it wouldn't be long before I experienced re-flux. That was never fun.
This caused a problem in my childhood. As teachers, my parents only got paid once a month, on the 15th. That was the day we went grocery shopping and they would allow me and Loyd to each buy a box of pre-sweetened cereal. (We always tried to choose the ones with the best prizes inside.) When we got home, we were allowed to eat that cereal for dinner. We would probably eat about three bowls that night.
And once a month, every month (for a few years), I would wake up in the middle of the night because I was vomiting. I'd jump out of bed, scream to Mom and Dad that I was throwing up and run to the bathroom, leaving about five puddles on the floor along the way. (I remember one night, they were yelling at me to go to the bathroom. Loyd got up and tried to pee in the toilet while I was throwing up because he thought Mom and Dad were telling him to go to the bathroom.) I don't recall for certain if this monthly event took place right after the payday cereal feast. But looking back, I think it did, and I'm surprised that we never made that connection.
I should add that I don't have a problem eating cheese. It seems like I can eat all the cheese I want and it doesn't affect me. However, if I eat ice cream before bedtime, I will wind up with re-flux. If I eat sherbet, I don't have that issue.
2. Orange Juice with Pulp
When I'm feeling okay, I can drink any kind of orange juice. It doesn't matter if it has pulp or not. However, when I've got a cold or just feel sick overall, my stomach cannot handle pulp. And there's only one way to get that stuff out of my body. I wind up vomiting and all that comes up is this orange glop that looks like the pulp my stomach couldn't properly digest. Before, I wondered why some orange juice brands state whether or not they have pulp. There are probably people out there who cannot digest it all and they need to know before they make that purchase.
3. Sunny Delight/Sunny D
In my 30s, I thought I found a cheap alternative to orange juice. Sunny Delight came in gallon containers and were a lot less expensive. I can drink some Sunny D, but if I drink a lot of it in a short period of time, it all comes back up. I guess there's something in the chemicals my stomach cannot handle. After having this happen to me a couple of times in one year, I swore to never drink it again, unless I was in a situation in which there was nothing else to drink. And even then, I'll only drink one serving.
4. Beef Brisket
What the heck? I LOVE beef! And brisket tastes very good. And again, I can eat a couple of slices and be just fine. But if I gorge myself, it won't properly break down in my system. Even worse is that it can take several hours before it decides to come back up. The last major incident was at my Grandma Ogolon's funeral. I helped myself to as much free meat as I could handle. My brother drove me from Broadview, NM to Espanola. We had planned a big spaghetti dinner when we got home. We bought the ingredients and rented a movie to watch. After we started to boil the pasta, I wound up in the bathroom. I sure didn't feel like eating spaghetti after that (nor did I want to watch the movie). I went straight to bed because I was going to have to catch a flight the next day to go home.
5. Ham at Denny's
I don't know why it is, but if I order something with ham in it at Denny's, I wind up losing it later. I figured this out after eating a ham omelet one time and a Moons Over My Hammy sandwich another. I haven't ordered ham at Denny's in about 30 years and I've never gotten sick from that restaurant chain since. There's plenty of other stuff on the menu.
I should point out that these are all foods that I enjoy consuming. I just don't like how they make me feel later. I almost understand people who consume alcohol until they get sick to their stomachs. The only difference is that I know when to hold off on these items. They want to keep partying until they puke.
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